Best inexpensive strat to mod from??

Chad said:
If you want to get crazy, Warmoth will cut a guard for TV Jones pickups. :grin: It shouldn't take too long for Warmoth to get the guard to you. It only took them a week or so to ship my last one.
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Nah, I will stick with the Dimarizio Virtual Hot PAF I have and something to match that. Probably the Dimarzio Humbucker from hell, or the Super Distortion 2.
 
I went ahead and ordered the dimarzio HfromH for the neck. Will also see this weekend if I can get the correct allen keys locally to adjust the bridge saddles and neck relief.
 
sunvalleylaw said:
Well, I just canceled the order for the trem cover. LOL! Was thinking I am going pretty garagey on this guitar anyway and might as well leave it off. @Chad, what do you think? I am installing 5 new springs and will tighten down the trem. Worth blocking too? Looking for that sustain here.
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If you're tightening the springs down all the way, you don't need to block it.
 
Help!I'maRock! said:
If you're tightening the springs down all the way, you don't need to block it.
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Thanks. So far, I have left about a centimeter of the screw thread out. I am replacing the 3 old springs with 5 new ones. Do you think I will need to screw it in further, or should I just see how it all reacts with the new springs?
 
sunvalleylaw said:
Nah, I will stick with the Dimarizio Virtual Hot PAF I have and something to match that. Probably the Dimarzio Humbucker from hell, or the Super Distortion 2.
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The Super 2 is a very hot pickup and I wouldn't use the VHPAF in the neck. If you're looking for a lower gain neck pickup from Dimarzio, I would go with an Air Classic or PAF Master. Those are the ones I was looking at before I got my Ibanez.
 
Help!I'maRock! said:
The Super 2 is a very hot pickup and I wouldn't use the VHPAF in the neck. If you're looking for a lower gain neck pickup from Dimarzio, I would go with an Air Classic or PAF Master. Those are the ones I was looking at before I got my Ibanez.
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I was planning VHPAF in bridge, (it is labeled a bridge pickup) and the HfromH in the neck. I already ordered it so I will see how it goes. I will look at the those other two if I don't like it. The PAF Master looked interesting. I have not heard anything about the Air classic.
 
sunvalleylaw said:
I was planning VHPAF in bridge, (it is labeled a bridge pickup) and the HfromH in the neck. I already ordered it so I will see how it goes. I will look at the those other two if I don't like it. The PAF Master looked interesting. I have not heard anything about the Air classic.
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You said Super 2, so I was concerned. :wink:

The Air Classic was the revision to Dimarzio's PAF in the mid 90s. It's pretty much their version of the SD Pearly Gates. Maybe less highs and more mids. But it's going for classic PAF tones but with less string pull due to the "Air" spacers. When I put new pickups into my PRS, 10 years ago, it was between an Air Classic set and a Virtual PAF set. I ended up with the VPAFs because it was a more incremental change. The original PRS pickups were super hot and middy. The VPAFs were not hot and kinda middy. The Air Classics are mid scooped. Since I was playing a mid-scooped Mesa at the time, and now play a mid scooped Fender Blackface-based amp, it was the right move.

All that said, after playing my new Ibanez. I'm seriously considering another set of Super 70s. They're monstrous.
 
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sunvalleylaw said:
Well, I just canceled the order for the trem cover. LOL! Was thinking I am going pretty garagey on this guitar anyway and might as well leave it off. @Chad, what do you think? I am installing 5 new springs and will tighten down the trem. Worth blocking too? Looking for that sustain here.
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No need to block it with 5 springs. It won't be going anywhere.
 
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Adjusted the action today and took a little relief out of the neck. By eye and feel as I did not have this stuff that showed up this afternoon. Will figure out the specs and check my work for real now that this stuff is here. Using a re-purposed yoga mat and a neck block as a bench. Will go through my other guitars too.

EDIT: Also put the 5 springs in.
 
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So playing it a bit tonight, just messing around with a buddy that was in town who was trying out my tele though my Concert amp, and me through this guitar, through my son's modeling Peavey amp, I can say I had a ton of fun. Just simple crap. D, A, E. open chord form or barre, repeat as necessary, improvise if you want. Fun as shit. Way different sound than my other guitars. My buddy was having a ton of fun on my tele. The adjustments I made roughly and will check more scientifically and methodically, felt good. New guitar sounded good, better than before with a little better set up. But still, thinking the pick up mods will improve it from here. Fun so far anyway.
 
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New pickup on top of new old pickup. Will probably attempt to wire it this weekend.

Tool thingy with 90 degree and 35 degree files for cleaning up fret sprout. Cheapish from eBay. Seems good for the job. Similar to the stew mac one but with the extra angled file.

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Also, installed 5 new springs in the back on the trem, and all seems well there. Have not had a chance to measure my work as we had friends in town over the weekend. Feels fine to play for now, so will wait until the weekend. Maybe the PG will be here by then too.
 
I'm digging this thread. Enjoying the adventure I have always wanted to embark on. And will eventually.

Sent from my SM-G928V using Tapatalk
 
MonkeyZero said:
I'm digging this thread. Enjoying the adventure I have always wanted to embark on. And will eventually.

Sent from my SM-G928V using Tapatalk
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It IS like a little adventure. My first time was with my tele, and I went solder less then. But the Santellan company I used for a wiring kit has been bought, and is not an option, and I figured this time, I could learn to solder too. Also, it is nice to follow the advice of Dan Erlewine in his vids that come with the set up book, and just "get brave" and get in there and adjust things to your liking. If you over adjust or under adjust, no big deal. I recommend your not too distant departure on a similar journey. Doing it on a not too expensive used guitar that I was not previously attached to is making it easier also.
 
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