Dig it! jello builds a partscaster...FINISHED!

jelloman

jelloman

Couch'd Tater...
I love my strat...I always have...

But my recent re-evaluation of my collection, and the subsequent purge has made me really want to spec out a strat to fit exactly what I have discovered about how I like to play, and the guitars that fit those needs best...

As a result I started watching Warmoth's website for a body and neck that fit my specs...

BODY
Lightweight Ash or Alder body
3 color sunburst
Standard tremolo rout
Standard 3 pickup or bathtub rout

NECK
24 3/4" conversion scale
THIN profile
Maple shaft
Rosewood or PauFerro fingerboard
6105 fret size
Graphtec nut

BRIDGE
Fender AM Std. 2 stud trem with cast saddles, not bent

I knew I was going with the BG pickups in my MiM strat, and as a result had already yanked them out and put that guitar back to it's stock configuration...

I didn't have to wait long, by the way...

I didn't have to wait long, and once the body and neck were being prepared I ordered a box of parts from Allparts and a set of tuners off Amazon...

So, now that everything is here, let's build a guitar!
 
The very first step for me will always be installing the tuners...Warmoth pre-drilled the tuner holes to fit my choice...



I have really taken to Hipshot tuners...they are very well made, smooth, and a high 16:1 ratio...plus they are height staggered to eliminate the need for string trees, giving the headstock a cleaner look...plus I like their mounting plate system, which requires no drilling...I have broken a few screws in the hard rock maple they use for necks...
 
I should say to the non-builders that this is actually a very simple build...Warmoth has pre-drilled the body and neck completely except for the tuner screws and strap pin holes, the former of which I didn't need and the latter of which is a very simple thing to do...Warmoth also drilled and installed the bridge studs for me...

I tend to work in sub-assemblies, which makes it easy to stay organized, not lose parts, and makes the final assembly go very quickly and easily...
 
A really cool thing Warmoth build into their necks is the side adjust bolt for the truss rod...



(sorry about the out of focus pic)

The classic fender truss rods adjust at the heel, which requires removing the neck each time you need to reset the neck...with this system you can pre-tension the truss rod at the heel, install the neck, and make the necessary adjustments without removing the neck...AWESOME!:thu:
 
I install my bridge a bit differently than is considered "standard"...



I screw the claw all the way down to the body, and only use 2 springs...the full extension on the springs gives enough tension to keep the bridge flat to the body (no, I don't float my bridge) while offering minimal resistance to the arm..

I know Fender has switched back to bent saddles on the American Standard Strat, but I will always prefer the cast type they used on the older AmStds...

 
This is the part that I know scares the SHIT out of most noob builders...installing the electronics...

Seriously, once you have learned BASIC soldering skills, this is NOT hard...it's as easy as following a diagram and setting one wire I place at a time...

I used the Seymour Duncan standard strat diagram, which I have printed out in a binder...( I actually have a BUNCH of various diagrams in my book)...

3S_5W_1VppENB_2T.jpg


My diagram doesn't have the push/pull option...:embarrassed:
 
This is the finished pickguard with all the wiring finished...



...and a closer look at the wiring...



They don't give points for neatness, and it's not like anyone's gonna see it on the finished product, but I feel better knowing it looks like this underneath...

I really like the CTS vintage style pots, and I choose to use the .022 capacitor over the more standard .047...gives me less tonal range, yes, but more room inside the adjustment range...
 
The side-adjust truss rod kicks the living shit out of the heel adjust.

It's a little fussy to set up at first and then there's that whole "Here's what to do if it falls out or bottoms out" thing.

But, once set, it's nice.

That's a freakin' clean-looking wiring job, man.
 
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It's amazing how fast these things come together...

Neck is installed on body...



I threw a couple random strings on it to check the alignment of the neck, body, bridge and pickups...the holes are all pre-drilled so there really isn't a lot of adjustment available without doing some very uncomfortable drilling and reaming...





Looks good to me!:thu:
 
Now I have to screw the pickguard down...these are my pickguard screwing down tools...



8 ounce detail hammer and an automatic center punch...the swamp ash will be soft enough that the punch will make an adequate pilot hole to get the screws in snugly...
 
Pickguard is screwed down...



Time to heat up the soldering iron, 3 more connections to make...

maybe a bit of lunch first...
 
OK, lunch is over, and the soldering iron is nice and hot...

the final 3 connections are also the most important...first up, the output jack...



It is very important that you keep the exposed wire as short as possible and route the wires away from where the plug will be so as not to short out the signal from the guitar...this is one area where neatness does count...I also like to leave quite a bit of slack in the wire so I can pull the pickguard off and have enough length to be able to work without disconnecting it...

The last connection is also the hardest to do well...attaching the secondary ground to the trem claw...what makes it tricky is the fact that the trem claw is a substantial piece of metal to solder to and you need to get it pretty hot to make a firm connection...it is also best to file down the area you're soldering to...I tend to rest the iron on the claw for a minute before making the connection to get it as hot as possible...



Not bad...a bit of puddling but it feels firmly attached...

Now to hook up a battery powered amp to check for output and ground issues...I usually just touch a screwdriver to the magnets for this, you know immediately if the pickup is functioning, and then you cycle through all three...
 
And...perfect...

OK, I have to clean shit up, fit the knobs and other plastics, and string her up and set her up...and maybe get some proper pics...I'll check back in with you all later...
 
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