Building your very own

[sonofspy]

Ok.

I've read the FAQ stuff about swapping necks, and I've built
electronic kits (integrated amps, effects boxes), customized my
own guitar's electronics, and lots of folks here talk about the
enjoyment they get from their 'project' guitars....e-bay is filled
with bodies and necks trems and electronics...

...and I'm poor (only in $$).

So.

How do you go about starting one of these projects? What does
one have to know so far as (I assume you pick the body first?)
finding suitable parts...and does the outlay for parts usually come
for in for lots less than a ready to play used guitar?


I have lots more questions but I guess this is enough to start with.


Son Of Spy

[Sunbane]

Well, I have just started a project like this. I've decided to limit myself to Jackson/Charvel parts though, to try and avoid potential problems.

The first thing you need to consider, is that the body and neck share the same construction basics:

* scale length (length from nut to bridge)
* number of frets (as this impacts the length of the neck)

A body made for a 22 fret, 24.75" scale neck, will not be a good match for a 24 fret, 25.5" scale neck, for instance. That guitar wouldn't intonate.

I guess it helps if the body and neck share the same neck heel width, to avoid unnecessary woodworking. Jackson necks are typically wider than Fender necks for instance. Next you need to consider what bridge you're going to have, and if the neck has a nut that fits (locking nut or standard nut). Etc.

There are lots of things to consider, but good luck to you!

[m2pmd70]

Buy a mojo body from Slash.

[missionguitars1]

One thing to consider is whether you want to strip/paint the new body, or go with a pre-painted one. Painting represents a lot of the cost, as well as time, in these projects...

[sonofspy]

Yes I saw that it would require two months (!) of light coats to do a
creditable rattle can job...I'm looking for a reasonably local luthier
to do buffing work on the prepainted body....
Want to stick with Jackson parts thanx...Jackson bodies are just more


...than others


Son Of Spy

[DonP]

One thing to consider is whether you want to strip/paint the new body, or go with a pre-painted one. Painting represents a lot of the cost, as well as time, in these projects...

+1 to that.

I have made a KE3 with a DK1 neck, and a Charvel Fusion Deluxe Body with a Jackson Fusion Professional neck.

It can get more expensive building your own if you are not careful. For example, with the Kelly, I scored a DK1 neck first, then I found a dirt cheap KE3 for $200. I sold off the parts I didn't need to offset some of the cost.

[Bengal65]

I chime this here on the forum many times and I suggest getting the book by Dan Erlewine on Guitar Repair, "Guitar Player Repair Guide". You can get this book at any large bookstore or see below. That's a start, then I suggest "Building a Electric Solid Body Guitar" video by Dan Erlewine (www.stewmac.com). The book is totally invaluable for setups, problems, painting and putting together a guitar.

In reading you can decide how you want to go on getting parts. I've found that getting the body and neck from the same manufacturer is the way to go. You pretty much will not have to worry about how the neck will fit into the body. For paint, wiring and hardware you can go from there.

Sources: Amazon, Barnes Noble and www.stewmac.com

I started with the book in 1990 and have built many guitars since then. My first guitar I built was in 1984 an learned from reading old Erlewine tips in his monthly column in Guitar Player.
You can figure, if you build your own, say a Floyded (OFR) guitar with nice woods, finish, hardware and electonics for $800-$1100. This depends on the sources and quality of finish (Graphics etc.), hardware and pickup's that you want)

[missionguitars1]

Yes I saw that it would require two months (!) of light coats to do a creditable rattle can job...I'm looking for a reasonably local luthier to do buffing work on the prepainted body....

Depends what you're painting with - nitro lacquer would indeed take about that long, but acrylic or poly will take a much shorter amount of time. That being said, fuck the timing/thickness of your coats up with that and it's back to step one!

You can really do a real good job buffing out any body, just use good products (I prefer 3M, but there are many non-silicone rubbing compounds and glazes out there that work well) and a lot of elbow grease with a micro-fibre fuffy towel (to eliminate scratches) - save your money for a good luthier to set it up once your done!

If you haven't done so already, look at www.projectguitar.com - it might be a little much, but all your answers lie in that site!

[sonofspy]

If you haven't done so already, look at www.projectguitar.com - it might be a little much, but all your answers lie in that site![/quote]


What a goldmine that site is!!


Many thanx!

Son Of Spy

[straycat]

Keep this in mind it is almost always cheaper to buy an existing guitar than to build a project.

[Newc]

True, but that depends on the exact features you want in a guitar.

The Halford Warrior so far has cost me about $800; WRMG body (used), OFR (used), 2 different necks (used JTX and parted-out DK2M - that one cost me $300 - and a case), but Jackson simply does not make a Warrior with a maple fretboard with black fins. All the other things I added to it myself because it's what I wanted.

A Custom Shop model would have cost well over $3000, even as a bolt-on, to have it come out with the same features (but without all the extra dents )

By the same token, try to find a stock WRMG with a reverse headstock. Can you get a body and neck to build it yourself? Sure. Will you pay more for the parts than a stock WR? Yes, but you'll get what you want.

You reach a point where you have to decide if the cost is worth getting what you want. For me, it usually is.

When I had my first Jackson JTX, I fell in love with the razor thin neck, but just couldn't get along with the body shape (the big front bout is uncomfotable for me, because I'm not used to full-sized Strat/Tele types). I wanted that neck on a Warrior, Dinky, or Kelly, but because of the design of the neck heel, theonly thing it would match was a JTX body.

So after spending $130 on a neck, I decided to modify the heel myself to fit the DK2 body.

This task defined butchery - a handheld hacksaw and a die grinder to cut/shape the heel and a robo-clamp to hold it to the body while I drilled the holes. Erlewine would puke if he saw it.

It worked. I now have a JTX neck that will fit on any 24 fret Jackson body (except a JTX).

Was it worth it? F'n-a-right it was!


From EVH's Frankie to Vai's Green Meanie, project guitars and homebrew modding have opened up far more possibilities than all the R&D departments of all the guitar companies combined, because the people that play them know what they want, even if they don't always have the best idea on how to achieve that.