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Finished the Carvin Bolt Kit!


dan-o-guitar

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Finished it this morning:

 

carvin16fv.jpg

 

carvin22af.jpg

 

The kit is very well thought out and includes everything (right down to strings and a couple of Carvin picks) that you need except finishing supplies.

 

I used four coats of tung oil with 0000 steel wool between coats. After the final coat, I wooled most of the gloss off an finished it with a coat of lemon oil. Gives it a very nice "slightly used" overall finish. (If you look really closely, you may see a few small dings--these were my mistakes, not Carvin's--the body and neck as shipped were *flawless*).

 

Got the copper foil installed in the cavity, the tuners, string through pegs and jack plate with no issues. The neck fits in the pocket very snug, and had it bolted on with the 4 bolts with 0 issues. Got the rest of the assembly done, used the supplied wire nuts (will replace with soldered connections later) on a total of three wires, screwed in the pickguard and I was done.

 

Strung it up with the included Carvin strings (pretty nasty, but those are the first things you'll change anyway). Here's the amazing part--no need to set intonation or monkey with the truss rod-after assembly it just played well.

 

I've heard a lot of people talk about Carvin necks, now I see why. It plays very nicely, thin profile with super fret dressing and an ebony finger board. During the finishing process, I did a bit of extra steel wool work on the neck so it would be super smooth and not grabby/gunky, the results were very nice.

 

Overall this kit is complete, well thought out, and has great instructions. As a side note, the body had one small knot on the lower bout, and a *very* small knot on the neck. Both pieces came with the number "2" penciled on them. I suspect these small flaws cause Carvin to mark them as seconds. And as such, the seconds are what come in the kit. This is my guess, not sure as to if it is true or not. Regardless, the body and neck were fantastic pieces of wood.

 

The only thing I would have changed would be the pre-assembled/wired/soldered pickguard. I would have perferred to do this myself, but I can muck around with it later.

 

For under $400 bucks (more if you go with their other options), this is not only a super fun project, but you end up with a guitar that plays really well and sounds great.

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Do you think an absolute amateur at doing guitar-anything (besides y'know stringing it a little) would be able to pull it off? i'm interested in this, and I think my other guitarist (who loves strat-style guitars and currently owns only 1 electric guitar, a MIM Fender Strat) would be very interested in this.

 

What kinda sounds does it get?

 

Is the neck more stratish or ibanez RG/jackson/whatever "metal" guitar company neck style (ie thin and fast)?

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Originally posted by Richard Guy

Great Job Dano, it looks very nice
:thu::freak::thu:

 

Thanks buddy, it was a fun project. I'm already figuring out a custom pickguard/pickup rig for it.

 

And just so you know, I've been hearing the tone of that AWESOME Gerhardt Sunset amp in my dreams. I think I'm going to have to bug you to come over and play it again some day!

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Originally posted by SeraphSlaughter

Do you think an absolute amateur at doing guitar-anything (besides y'know stringing it a little) would be able to pull it off? i'm interested in this, and I think my other guitarist (who loves strat-style guitars and currently owns only 1 electric guitar, a MIM Fender Strat) would be very interested in this.


What kinda sounds does it get?


Is the neck more stratish or ibanez RG/jackson/whatever "metal" guitar company neck style (ie thin and fast)?

 

 

Absolutely great for a beginners project. The only thing that is a bit tricky is getting the finish the way you like it. Other than that, it is very straightforward. Take your time, have a good set of screwdrivers on hand, and you're set.

 

The tone is very much strat-like, three single coils with the add bonus of a coil tap switch.

 

The neck is in the thin, wide and fast category, but not like an Ibanez Wizard neck. Maybe between the Wizard and traditional Strat in profile.

 

If you do take the plunge and have questions, feel free to PM me.

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Nice. Under $400? Seems sweet.

 

About the finish ...this sounds dumb but...When I painted a motorcycle helmet I bought a tube of crushed pearls that you add to auto paint. The finish is crazy cool.

 

Any idea if that would work on a guitar?

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Hello Dan-O-Guitar,

 

You have a total green light to play the Gerhart Amplification Sunset Amp anytime. You did sound very nice playing it through that 4x8 semi-closed cab. Recently, I had a chance to play it through a 2x12 semi-open back cab with a JBL E-120 and an EVM 12L installed. The Guitar sounded like a harp! Gary is building me another Sunset. Dan-O, interestingly enough, you are in good company as Steve Morse has used the Sunset Amp in the studio with Deep Purple :thu: Not that I am trying to 'sell' anyone, but I am offering the Sunset and other 'fully-built' Gerhart Amplification Amps on my site at a nice discount. Thanks for giving me a chance to spam a bit :freak:

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Originally posted by dan-o-guitar



Absolutely great for a beginners project. The only thing that is a bit tricky is getting the finish the way you like it. Other than that, it is very straightforward. Take your time, have a good set of screwdrivers on hand, and you're set.


The tone is very much strat-like, three single coils with the add bonus of a coil tap switch.


The neck is in the thin, wide and fast category, but not like an Ibanez Wizard neck. Maybe between the Wizard and traditional Strat in profile.


If you do take the plunge and have questions, feel free to PM me.

 

 

I'm only slightly interested, but i've been looking for some good deals for the other guitarist friend of mine. He recently fell in love with a jackson because of the neck (DKMG i believe?) but he still loves strats, so if this kind of combines both, that'd be awesome for him. Hell i wouldnt be above buying the damn thing for him, if he does express interest.

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As a side note, the body had one small knot on the lower bout, and a *very* small knot on the neck. Both pieces came with the number "2" penciled on them. I suspect these small flaws cause Carvin to mark them as seconds. And as such, the seconds are what come in the kit. This is my guess, not sure as to if it is true or not. Regardless, the body and neck were fantastic pieces of wood.


 

I posted about this over at the Carvin forum.

The general consensus is that the #2 is an inspection mark not

an indication of a defect or other problem.

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Originally posted by jrfan


I posted about this over at the Carvin forum.

The general consensus is that the #2 is an inspection mark not

an indication of a defect or other problem.

 

 

 

I remember a year or two ago some guy posted pictures of the a Blue Flamed DC he was going to return because he though the Flame was defective wood. Damn thing looked like you could dive into it because it was so wavy and liquid looking. One of the most beautiful pieces of wood I've ever seen.

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