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Hey all,

I just finished a new build and I thought I would share. My inspiration for the build was the N4 Nuno Bettencourt Signature model from Washburn. I choose Padauk wood with Tung Oil finish for the look and the tone. The pickups are a Bill Lawrence and SD 59. I was going for a more modern style by extending the lower heel and shortening the upper area around the arm rest. The body cuts are fairly aggressive and I used ferrules at attach the neck. The neck is purchased form Musikraft (BE Maple Neck with Ebony Board, 12 - 16 radius with Jumbo frets). I would love to try building a neck, but I fear I am still a bit ill equipped in the skill, knowledge and tools area to take on a complex neck. I created the veneer and mounted the padauk on the headstock to achieve the overall look I was going for. Plays and feels great. My only issue is that I am not in love with the Bill Lawrence pickup. Just not my thing, I find it mays my tube amps sound a little thin? May be it would sound better with a high gain solid state amp but again, not my thing. I already dropped in a JB I had laying around I like it way better. I am going to research and explore a few difference pick up options. So far I am considering a set of Evolutions, some Bare Knuckles or a set of Surh's. If you have any suggestions for the pick ups or any comments please share.

Rick

Nice work! Nice shape. Now to show off my ignorance of electrics.

The nut? Are those hold downs for a zero fret? What's up with the aluminum foil?

The springs - why is that one cockeyed?

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Mike Lindstrom

I like it! How much does that padauk body weigh?
Mike, the bar is to hold down the strings because the headstock has no angle.

You can build a neck, it's not that hard. Plenty of resources here, just type it in the search.

Building the neck is one of my favorite parts of building the guitar. You'll probably come out with a neck that feels way better than any you've played, if you do lots of feeling as you carve.

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I wasn't sure if your were serious or what but here goes. The nut itself is a string locking device that keeps the tremelo system in better tune. Floyd Rose invented it. The bar behind it holds the strings at a certain hight so you can tune up then lock the clamps on the nut while staying in tune. As for the aluminum foil I don't know what your taking about. Now my guess for the crooked spring is because it was rubbing the cavity wall at the lower portion of the spring...Mike

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Another day, another dollar.

Sweet!
I like the reverse peghead!

Thanks for the info, and yeah I was completely serious. I did hold an electric once, but that's about it. The "foil" I was talking about is the metal under the strings at the locking nut. On the springs, I thought maybe you needed to do things like that to balance string tension.

And to Rick - Again, nice job! I keep looking at it. I don't know what it is about it, but I really like it.

Mike

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Mike Lindstrom

Thanks for the kind words.

Muskr, sorry for the delay in cycling back after your comments. I weighted the guitar tonight and it weight's in at 9.2 lbs. So, it is definitely heavier than basswood, alder or mahogany. I would put in medium in weight, similar to maple. Also, there is a 37mm heavy bell brass block added to the Floyd which is not stock (from Floyd Upgrades). Not sure exactly how much the brass block weight's but it certainly adds some extra weight. I first used a brass block on an EVH replica build that I completed of Ed's Frankenstrat. I added it to be accurate to the replica build. I found that it warmed (smoothed) up the tone and added sustain. Helps with harmonics as well and gives a nice bell like ring and punch. I put one on all my guitars now.

Mike, the Floyd Rose system is a locking tremolo. In a traditional Strat bridge, when the tremolo is depressed the string tension drops and the string moves back a forth over the bone nut between the nut and the peg head. Sometimes, when the trem is released the returns to level (home) location, the string tension is returned, but the string binds or get stuck at the nut. This would cause the string to go slightly sharp and out of tune. On a Strat, you may need to slightly pull on the string to get it to return to it's home position and back in tune. On a Floyd Rose system the bone nut is replaced with a clamping metal nut. The nut is securely fastened to the neck and the strings are clamped down tight. This prevents the strings from moving between the peg head and the nut, regardless of how hard the whammy is worked.

The one spring is offset in a homage to Ed Van Halen. Again, I did this on the Frankenstrat replica to be accurate and I have just kind of do it this way when I set up a Floyd now. With the springs set up this way, I guess the tension would be slightly lower on the Low E Side, which may make sense as the actual bar is attached to the plate on the High E side. Truth to be told, I am not a good enough player to feel or tell the difference. Just a big fan of EVH.

So, I pulled out the Bill Lawrence pick up and put in a Seymore Duncan JB I had laying around. The Bill Lawrence was just not my thing. The JB sounds so much fuller and alive to me. I ordered a set of Suhr Doug Aldrich pick ups (Neck & Bridge) for the guitar and cant wait to put them in.

I have always sent my necks out to my local guitar shop to get leveled and the frets dressed. I think I will slowly acquire the tools to level and dress the frets myself. After some practice, I may buy some wood and give a neck a try. Any other suggestions?

Again, thank for the positive feedback.

Rick

My first real electric that wasn't a piece of junk that I actually built from parts 20+ years ago had a Seymour Duncan JB in it. The ironic thing was I built it using a Dimarzio body and neck. And I put in Seymour Duncan pickups. It was awesome.Does anyone else remember the Dimarzio parts?

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