Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 So I picked up a Fender Stratocaster that was made in Japan in 1985 and it is a really cool guitar. It has a Fender proprietary bridge that was manufactured by Schaller that is pretty bad ass, as well as some custom designed humbuckers (that from what I gather were made by Schaller as well). They have been wired for coil splitting via a mini toggle, and I can adjust the overall tone with Fender's TBX tone pot. It really is a cool guitar, but the original neck was missing the Fender proprietary locking nut. I decided to install a Floyd Rose locking nut on the guitar, but I totally {censored}ed it up... Instead of just installing it from the top and leaving well enough alone, I decided to install it from behind the headstock and that is when it went all awry It moved slightly to one side and didn't sit tight against the fretboard. I deserve the largest for this!!! Anyway, I decided to get a new neck that was designed for the Floyd Rose nut and install it in place of the neck I botched. This is how the guitar looked before: And this is how it looks now: I definitely love the look of the maple fretboard better than the stock rosewood... What do you guys think? Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members missingastring Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 I dig! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Zeppelin Rules Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Looks good! I like how you kept the painted headstock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 I dig! Thank you sir! The neck isn't the most beautiful specimen of maple, but it sure does have some pop to it now! I also changed out the tuners from those atrocious skull and crossbone tuning buttons to locking Fender tuners... It was interesting to drill the counter-pivot holes for those tuners, but I was able to get it done with a reasonable amount of ease... I was looking at these necks on eBay, but they weren't cut for the Floyd Rose and wasn't sure that just the tuning machines would be enough for the tremolo that was designed to use a locking nut... http://www.auctiva.com/hostedimages/showimage.aspx?gid=1672181?=578297438&images=578297438,578297456,578297474,578297488,578297508,578297523,578297545&formats=0,0,0,0,0,0,0&format=0 The neck I got is a Mighty Mite MM2902FCR... which is a compound radius 9-12... Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members madryan Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Sexay! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Looks good! I like how you kept the painted headstock I happened to find that from a dealer on eBay... everywhere else it was unpainted. I did a mock up of it with one of those online generators and it really spoke to me... Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members madryan Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 I happened to find that from a dealer on eBay... everywhere else it was unpainted. I did a mock up of it with one of those online generators and it really spoke to me... Cole It can be hit or miss when replacing a neck. My strat turned out great when I got a new neck for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Sexay! Thanks... There are a couple of things that I would like to do to it still. I would love to get a new pickguard (though they aren't readily available) that is routed for humbuckers (at least humbuckers that we are all familiar with). I would also like to sand down the the body and have it repainted, as it has gotten some love dings over the years. The humbuckers in it actually don't sound too bad, but I was thinking a Seymour Duncan Custom 5/'59 setup would be pretty killer (and I would still keep the single coil option and the TBX tone pot). Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 It can be hit or miss when replacing a neck. My strat turned out great when I got a new neck for it. I like the color combination that your neck has... The tint matches well with that burst finish! Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members soundgardener75 Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Nicely done Cole! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Nicely done Cole! Thank you sir! This guitar sounds great, especially with the new pedal I just got... An MXR Modified Badass Overdrive into my Marshall really complements this guitar! I need to get the string height a little bit lower (as I like really low action) and set the intonation better... However I am letting the strings get stretched to where they are stable and then I will set the intonation. Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Snappy Hat Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rampage Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Love it. Whenever you posted the mock ups I preferred the maple and I stay by that; really looks good. How does the neck shape feel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Pepi Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Nice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Love it. Whenever you posted the mock ups I preferred the maple and I stay by that; really looks good. How does the neck shape feel? The shape feels pretty good... The neck is 1 5/8" wide at the nut, whereas the neck width of the original neck is 1 11/16". The overall shape is definitely C shaped, but it isn't too rounded that I can't adapt. The neck on the original is flatter, but not by much. The shape of the stock is more D shaped, which I prefer, but new neck reminds me of my Agile Tele knockoff, which plays great. The neck has a satin feel to it, and the frets feel good. I was expecting to have to file the frets, but it feels just right! Overall, I am pretty happy with the outcome! It does make me wonder how much better Warmoth, WD Music, Allparts, etc. would be to the Mighty Mite variants... Thanks for looking, and giving some feedback Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Nice Thank you for checking it out!!! Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Crunchtime Posted June 30, 2012 Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Looks great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted June 30, 2012 Author Members Share Posted June 30, 2012 Looks great! Thanks for looking! It feels good to know that I drilled most of the holes (minus the holes for the shaft of the tuners) and have it turn out the way it did. Thanks again Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RUExp? Posted July 1, 2012 Members Share Posted July 1, 2012 It really has that hotrodded look now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted July 1, 2012 Author Members Share Posted July 1, 2012 It really has that hotrodded look now. I know exactly what you are saying... Kind of Charvelish... Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Markdude Posted July 1, 2012 Members Share Posted July 1, 2012 {censored}ing love it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted July 1, 2012 Author Members Share Posted July 1, 2012 {censored}ing love it. Thanks mang! I just traced my pickguard to have a new one made... Instead of using the layout for the stock pickups, I have drawn in the routing for a standard humbucker (as we all know them)... I think a 3-ply Black/White/Black would look great on this... I am planning on mailing this out to Greasy Groove and have them replicate it... What do you guys think of the humbucker routing area on this tracing? Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted July 2, 2012 Author Members Share Posted July 2, 2012 UPDATE: The stock guitar was setup for the microtilt system that Fender uses, but unfortunately the new Mighty Mite neck was not... It was an easy fix though. All it took was a 3/4" Forstner bit, some Gorilla Glue, and a dime The Forstner bit made a very nice countersunk hole for the dime to fit. I was very happy with the turnout, and now it is fully functioning like the original neck Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members catalinagooseV2 Posted July 2, 2012 Members Share Posted July 2, 2012 I love a maple neck on a Strat. Looks great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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