avengers63 Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 I made this body last year. It's been posted for sale twice, but I still have it. Clearly, things didn't go according to plan on this one. Therefore, it gets made and put on consignment locally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted March 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 (edited) The back is one-piece African mahogany. The top is white limba with mahogany stringers. The control cavity cover is limba. The walnut neck is from Larry Karosa. It has a granadillo fretboard and brass dots & side markers. Wilkinson Imperial tuners & wraparound bridge. Artec pups with blye pearloid inserts with matching knobs from Q-Parts add a splash of color. The only real debate at this point is whether to use the LP-style switch plate or leave it off. The switch isn't tall enough to support both. I'm debating putting a limba face on the headstock. Any thoughts on these two items? Edited March 21, 2009 by avengers63 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
necroscience13 Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 i like it but loose the washer on the pickup selector Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psw Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 You appear to be missing a tuner button? Honestly...the design seems to have a lot of problems and I'm not sure who it would appeal to...the timber and joinery is ok (although very "flat") but the gold and blue looks very out of place. I guess when you build things you need to ask what is the customer you are selling to and what do they want. pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted March 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 What would make you think the gold hardware is out of place? I can see the reaction to the blue - it's supposed to be a bright color in a field of brown tones, but I don't get your thoughts on the gold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 It just does not fit aesthetically,that's all...if you don't have an eye for it,you just don't see it...but to me it sticks out like a dangly earring on a dude... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 I like it. Lose the switch ring though. Once you get some stain on the body the blue will look nicer against it. The top wood needs to be darker, a lot darker for the blue and gold to work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psw Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 Do you really want an essay on colour theory? Black and gold good...etc... It just does not fit aesthetically,that's all...if you don't have an eye for it,you just don't see it...but to me it sticks out like a dangly earring on a dude... That pretty much sums it up though...there's so much confusion in the details. Imperial tuners don't suit the design for instance, way to ornate and "classy" for something so plain... I guess there is who you are trying to appeal to, your not building this for yourself, in which case whatever turns you on would apply...but this is for sale and selling things means building for others. I have issues with the design in large part for the same reasons. It is not for the lack of ability to build the things, but the apparent inattention to details and in many cases customer demand. Not everything needs to look like an LP or a Strat, but new designs should be able to learn from the successful designs of the past or bring something new if you are going to compromise on these things. If you look at the threads here, people are consistently look at things like upper fret access, chrome hardware is always in (gold is extremely rare), a big body like this looks flat without contouring, balance looks like it could be a problem (even if not, looking unbalanced is enough in the sales game), the neck looks mismatched being dark and a completely different wood... You might get away with gold with a dark wood like that neck, but not with that body colour or shape. The blue would be a very difficult thing on anything really. It's fine to be "adventurous" and "different" or even "ironic" but even "Kitsch" is an aesthetic and there are rules even there. There are things that just look "wrong", and this is one of them I suspect. You can learn these things (look at how much time the average woman spends debating, criticizing or studying fashion and appearance) or some people can do it intuitively...mostly people just follow fashion, and that's where sales come in, what's hot and what's not is vital really and being sensitive to the "market's aesthetic" as much as anything. pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boundsteelblues Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 "sticks out like a dangly earring on a dude..." That is a good simile, but the effect under stage lights might be interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SJE-Guitars Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 Gold for me just doesn't look good with anything other than Black (even then personally I'd never have gold components!). The blue is a nice touch but for me just not with gold - the wood being light would look far better with chrome or probably black. I also agree there is too many wood colours going on - was a mahogany neck not available? Also agree with psw that the imperial tuners look out of place. As for the switch plate - loose it - also the control knobs and switch seem unusually positioned for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Narcissism Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 My bass has gold hardware, and its red. Its also Honduras Mahogany. I believe African Mahogany will look similar when cleared, only it'll be lighter and more of an orangy color, which will go pretty well with gold and blue IMO. (note) I'm colorblind Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 At first glance, I didn't like it much at all, but on a 2nd and 3rd look, I don't mind it so much, it's got nice woods on it and it looks like you've done a pretty good job on the body so far. Hmmm, I was thinking the opposite, I was thinking solid white body would look good under the gold/blue. The control layout, to me, is borderline unusable, but I see PRS's with just as (to me) goofy control setups, so that's just a matter of opinion I guess. My difference of opinion come in here: Who am I building for? My answer is myself. And if I build a body I didn't like, I would just toss it and start over again. You see, what I see when I look at your pics is a LOT of hardware I would prefer to use on a guitar that I really liked and would want to use somewhere else. That's why I will stop builds in the middle if something goes wrong, I don't want to waste any more of my time (valuable), or my materials (also valuable) on a project that I feel no love for anymore. That way, the ones that make it to completion, I LOVE, and all the time and materials I spent on it were worth every minute it took to build it. To build a guitar that, in the end you knew was sub-par or unloved for whatever reason, seems like a waste of time and materials to me. I understand resources (time/materials) and make the most of them. Building a guitar that I know is in some way less than par for me is a waste of time and materials. JMO of course. You could obviously counter with the argument that as long as you made your money back in the end, than the balance sheet is zeroed out, and that would be a perfectly valid argument I guess, it's just not the way I look at things. ...But I can dig the blue/gold thing, that is strictly a matter of taste... I would also use an oval output jack instead of the square one, and make a trussrod cover out of (as close as possible) the same blue material as the pkp covers...take the blue/gold to the neck as well, just the gold tuners isn't cutting it for me, but a blue TR cover added would... I think it might be an interesting guitar in the end If you were going to try and accent the wood in the body instead of painting it white, than I think black pkps would look better, follow the Gibson LP Jr. look, I think more people would like it and it would help your price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick500 Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 I only really like gold on green. Eye of the beholder, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 Yeah, I would say if you're keeping the blue, then blue trussrod cover too, and paint the whole thing white, neck included, I think it would look pretty damn good like that. Otherwise, lose the blue for black. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 One more comment, since I'm adding design comments . I would lose the rear control cover, I think it looks ridiculous. But don't feel singled out, any time I see someone make a rear control cavity cover out of another piece of wood and the grain doesn't match or fit in, I think it looks ridiculous, every time, no matter who does it. When you do it the way I do it, cutting the piece out before you glue the back on, (if the back is a separate laminate), than I think it looks completely tricked out and bad-ass, because it's rather tricky to do, and it fits perfectly design-wise. Otherwise, I'm more than happy with a standard black plastic cover. The black plastic looks like it belongs there and perfectly normal. When you stick another piece of wood on there, to me, it says, look, I think I'm cool because I can cut out another piece of wood for my cover instead of using a black plastic cover like everyone else does. However, (to me) it falls on it's face from a design standpoint, it does not look normal, and it doesn't look good either, it is taking the design parameters and going backwards, not forwards. It interrupts the natural flow that your eye wants to see and stands out allright, but not in a good way. Just sayin.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IPA or death Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 To opine on your original statement, I would leave the headstock as is and do away with the switch washer. And to further add to what everyone else is saying, I think the guitar would have to be stained fairly dark for the gold hardware to not seem out of place. the blue doesn't work for me either. Maybe you could save that for a guitar that is painted blue as well. And if it were mine, the back control cover would be stained similar to the mahogany or use black plastic as Drak suggested. All merely my opinion, but when you ask for a toothpick on PG forums, you tend to get a tree limb don't you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supernova9 Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 All the aesthetics aside, I'd never buy this guitar for one major reason - I use my volume and tone knobs while I'm playing. I'd start to hate this design pretty quick after you realise that every time you try a volume swell or similar you'll have to really try hard not to flick the selector switch. Blue + Yellow = Error. If you changed the pickup covers to gold, and the knob tops to gold, and then painted the guitar solid gold, game on, but until then, I have a feeling this will stay on consignment a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted March 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 All the holes drilled & hardware lined up, grain filled, wood sealed, and the first coat of finish laid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chops1983 Posted March 27, 2009 Report Share Posted March 27, 2009 All merely my opinion, but when you ask for a toothpick on PG forums, you tend to get a tree limb don't you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted March 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2009 I'm not the least bit upset about differing opinions. If I didn't want them, I wouldn't solicit them. Time to inlay my J into the headstock. 1) I love my scroll saw. A makeshift zero-clearance insert made from a 1/8" piece of leftover longhi is serving me EXTREMELY well. This is the first inlay I've done that didn't break along the brittle vertical grain. 2) A few minutes with some 100 grit, very gentle shaping and smoothing the edges, and we're all ready to go. 3) This HAS to be the most rigged up thing I've ever done. I immediately had an issue with dust and it's resistance to my trying to blow it away. I reversed the hose on my shop-vac so it blew, them clamped it down to blow away the dust. It was s little overkill, but there wasn't a hint of dust to be seen! 4) Thanks to a tip I read yesterday about scoring the outline as deeply as possible AND some dental bits from a generous PGer, the inlay hole cut without a hitch. It fit nearly perfect right out of the gate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted April 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 Finished, leveled, matte coated, re-leveled, touched up, beginning of assembly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLeader Posted April 8, 2009 Report Share Posted April 8, 2009 I say paint it black, Keep the PU covers and knobs, then do blue binding. XD It's looking good, I'm loving the headstock inlay. -Stormy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterbrown Posted April 8, 2009 Report Share Posted April 8, 2009 I realy like the neck and the headstock. Realy works with the gold. That fretboard would have been a prime cantadate for gold frets! Nice clean inlay too by the way. Cheers, Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted April 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 All done. It's REALLY light - very comfortable to play standing up. The HB-sized P-90s are nice and twangy. There is a little hum, but they ARE singles, so that comes with the territory. The tone is pretty balanced, too. The mahogany/limba gives it the bottom ind, and the walnut neck adds some snap. I honestly think this is the best finish I've done so far. I may have found my niche with the matte top coat. The grain is filled smooth as glass, but the mate really lets you see the beauty of the wood without the finish getting in the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaycee Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 I like the gold and the blue, a nice build Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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