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my second shot at painting. My first attempt was restoring my first elect. A '63 Harmony.

Kind of hard to post this after seeing Steven Wheelers beautiful axe but it was great fun and it plays and sounds...it is quickly becoming the first one I grab.
I'm working on another for myself now that will be Burgundy mist. It will be just like this one. I wanted some Strat style with HB's. All of my others are single coils.

If you notice the roundover at the lower side of the neck pocket there is a chip. I did that fitting the neck in. Even though I didn't paint the pocket there was paint at the edges and it was a tight fit without paint.

I also melted a small part of a corner of the neck pocket area buffing. Man, that was easy to do. I built a buffer like the one Stu-Mac sells with 14" pads. Lot's of first times on this guitar.

It has Callaham parts, HB's I wound. Oil finish neck- light, like 3 thin coats. Haven't weighed it but it's just over 7lbs.

I know the pic's suck. I have no talent with a camera but hope they're enjoyed.

Michael

You did GREAT!

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Looks pretty darned good to me, Michael!

Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

You didn't try , you succeeded !!! Very nice.

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The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Chris, Alex and Jim,

Thank you guys!

Before I attempted getting my act together to try building I couldn't imagine how cool the feeling would be to play one that I've made and it's been so cool with each one. There were a couple that just didn't work LOL, but at least they were lessons.

I never thought about the feeling from sharing them with other builders and getting approval or help with projects when I became stumped...it's all been worth it with a big thanks to members here. I appreciate you.

Michael

Two words: kick ass!

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wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Looks good to me. Love the figured maple neck. Nice job!

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Steve Sollod (pronounced sorta like "Solid")
www.swiftcreekguitars.com

Just a Couple ? Your ahead of the curve then !

Yep guys , Hes Hooked !

_________________
The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Nice job Mike, looks fabulous. I dig metallic colors on strats.
Touch up those couple of spots and forget about them. Kind of like a new truck, first ding is the worst.
What are you using to wind your pickups. I've wound a few but never going to be an expert. I'm still using a hand drill and a stop watch. Wind, stop, check resistance, wind, stop, check...
Cool truss rod access.

Steve

Thank you Dan and Steve S.

Steve I made my winder. Sewing machine motor, variable speed controller, magnetic reed switch. The trick was getting a fast reed so the count would be accurate at fast rpm's. A little oak box that gets it LOL.
2 mounts - the motor doesn't reverse.

I'm no pro either. I wind just for myself. I have many brand name pups in my guitars and I've found it's not very hard
winding some just as good or better. addendum; It's also a plus because it's much cheaper to wind pups to "fit" the guitar for the sound one wants. ( I can wind at least 3 sets for a Strat for less than the cost of 1 set of Fenders)
I think I stated in another thread that in the 53 yrs I've been messing with guitars I've never met one person that can tell me the manufacturer of a pickup by listening.

I sure like getting the single coil parts from Tone Kraft. My last order I had engraved and they do a great job. I'll be glad when they
start handling HB parts.


Steve I thought I would add...I don't have pics but if building a winder is something you'd like to do I'll try to get all the information about the parts I used and photos for you (and others that may be interested).

Had time (at work) so went looking for any photos of the winder I might have saved on-line and since I've always noticed your avatar Steve thought I'd show you my ride-'09 Heritage


This guitar is also the first one I've made using Poplar. Whatever percentage of effect the wood has for the tone I don't know but the final product sounds great to me so I'll be using it for my next one and it's a major plus in cost savings too.
Since you approved of the truss-rod access...I've liked the wheel and this method best of any- thought I'd show a closer view.

Hey Mike,

Someone stole your pictures.

I vacillate on building a winder, right now I'm content with my winding technology as I only use it for special situations where I can't by a ready made piece. I've been using that same truss rod adjustment for about 3 years now. Only difference is I bore an access hole at the end of the neck to make removal of the nut possible.

Nice Soft tail, I hope your getting plenty of miles on it.

Steve

Oops. Just not good with photos. I moved all them to a folder at Photobucket and broke the links.

that's a really nice guitar man! love the blue, great job!
I too would love to see your pickup winder. I've been playing around with the idea of building one for about three years now, but I just haven't gotten to it.
But again, looks awesome!

Really nice job Michael and she looks like a great ax to me too!

Nice going!!!

Thank you Mark and Hesh.

The pics probably say everything but if there are questions I'll try to answer them.
It was my first shot and the only thing I'd change is the shape of the box- I'd slant the counter- as is I just put a board under it to tilt.
I'm glad I went with a hand control speed rather than a foot. Also glad I went with this motor. It has torque and winds good at low speeds and will get it on if ya want. It came with the mount so I designed the box around it.
There is a wafer magnet glued in the aluminum plate and the magnetic switch activates the counter-no power needed but it
would be nice to have a backlit counter.
No reverse - set it up with plates on either side.

The wheely-dealy truss nut slot is awesome!
A Fender style neck that can be adjusted without removing the neck!

Michael, can you estimate what it costs you to make a set of 3 strat pickups?
I'm into making my own stuff and saving money.

Thanks,
Dan

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Dan the cost sure depends on where you get supplies from and I've seen big differences on-line.

IMO for single coils the offers at Tone-Kraft http://www.tone-kraft.com/stratocaster-style/ can't be beat.
Mojo is where I was getting pieces and assembling the bobbins but the selection, quality, service and choices at Tone-Kraft are
just unbeatable. I don't know of anyone selling pup parts or kits that can even get in the same playing field...more less beat them. YMMV.
I really don't miss building the bobbins...would make a difference to me if I were designing but I'm not into that.

What I haven't done is keep track of how many singles I can get from a pound of 42 AWG which is @ $30.00.

If I guess and say 9 singles;

3 singles- ( one kit from TK ) $27.00 + @ $3.50 for wire - so around $10.00 per pup is a good estimate.

Dang Michael!
I may just have to give winding a spin!
I'm an electronics product designer and we have a cool 3d printer at the office.
I bet I could put a winder together and create a counter.
Thanks!
Dan

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Man I wish I had a 3d printer. It would be cool to make my own plastic bobbins.

Be cool having the metal press workings for making HB covers too.

Offered materials are limited and for a hobby I can understand why the initial investment is not worth it for some.

I never believed that all those ladies winding for Fender graduated from a long run at the tone-king pickup academy...wanted to know
if I was right. Seemed to me they hand guided (scatterwound) wire and watched a counter (that was probably mechanical and not very accurate) and I could handle that. Yep. Kinda fun.

Rather than starting another thread thought I'd add to this since is much the exact same type guitar.

My first attempt at blade HB's will be on this one.

This paint job, my second serious attempt at painting, is not perfect. I think my sanding was good but I didn't
apply enough sealer coat or I should have put a primer. At certain angles I can see a little wood grain. Maybe more coats of paint? I don't know. Not sure if
that will change after the finish is sanded and buffed but doubt it. Well I have Fender Deluxe Strats that I'd put this up against...so far anyway -and I'm learning so it's all good.

FWIW here's the shots of the pups and Burgundy Mist.

Michael,

That looks great. I love that sparkly look on an electric guitar. We do need to see some more pictures.

Thanks for posting the info on your winder. I've had a sewing machine motor sitting next to my desk for a while waiting for me to pick up the rest of the parts and build a winder. I'm not sure how I missed this when you first posted it. I may have to move my winder closer to the top of the list of projects.

John

Thank you John.

I'll post more when it's finished.

I get a kick out of winding. It's great to be able to swap out pickups if need be to fit the guitar and for peanuts compared to big-name. My ears tell me that "name" is
the only difference.
I sure think winding is worth giving a try. If it works out it's good stuff.

Really like your truss rod adjustment concept in the fingerboard.

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Hey Michael,
That finish looks great!
What type of finish is it, and what do you use for a clear coat?
I assume it is an acrylic automotive lacquer.
Where do you get it at?
Thanks,
Dan

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Wah

Chris the wheel type is my favorite. It's a little harder to install but worth it IMO.

Thanks Dan.
It's nitrocellulose lacquer that I get from ReRanch.

Both of these paint jobs have been failures IMO. I think I've been learning but they're sure not something
I'd want another player owning. Long way to go but I've been having a good time with it.

I'm thinking I need a spray system to get where I want to go but I also think using the rattle cans is teaching me things about painting I should know and help me decide if I want to invest or not.

I made a 8x8 ft. area something like Dexter would do. Put some wood strips on the ceiling and tape plastic to them. Two dollar paint booth LOL. Out of all the painting that is what works best...so far.