Jelloman's Double Parts-caster build thread...

[jelloman]

Greetings...

The idea here is to build 2 guitars...a hard-tail strat, and a tele...on a limted budget, using money I made selling a bunch of stuff on eBay to buy the parts, and using whatever I have lying around...and also demonstrating various finishing techniques, and some different kinds of wiring options...

The bodies were bought from the Red Dirt Guitar Works via eBay auction, and the necks are MightyMite via ebay using the BIN option from a couple of different suppliers...pickups and bridges are GFS, and assorted hardware and electrics are from GFS and Allparts...as well as my own supply...

...the obligatory box'o'parts pic...

the cost breakdown goes like this:

STRAT
body - 75.00
neck - 90.00
pickups - 68.00
bridge - 11.00
assorted hardware and electrics - 30.00
pickguard, knobs, pots and tuners came out of my parts supply...

total=275.00 approx.

TELE
body - 41.00
neck - 90.00
pickups - 65.00
bridge - 30.00
PG, plates, hardware and electrics - 80.00
tuners are out of my parts box...

total=310.00 approx.

edit: 310.00 plus 30.00 for different tuners:(

 

[Mark Wein]

Cool!

 

[jrockbridge]

Subscribed!

 

[silverring233]

munch0

 

[jelloman]

Tele body prep...

so...let's start by prepping the tele body...

The tele body is swamp ash, but weighs in at almost 5 pounds, which is why I got it so cheap...it is also routed vintage style, with a 1/8" edge rout and a single coil neck pickup slot...

I'm going to be using a humbucker neck pickup so that had to be opened up...I also need to route a ground wire to the bridge, so I drilled out a hole for that, and also added a 1/4" radius to the body...Red Dirt was kind enough to drill out holes for the pickup leads to the control cavity so I was good to go there...

the finished product...

...btw...those are my trusty Skil drill and Bosch trim router...I highly recommend a trim router for this type of work as it's MUCH easier to controll...

NEXT: Strat body prep...

 

[jelloman]

Strat body prep...

Luckily for me the strat body doesn't need as much work at this stage...

...as you can see it has the standard strat-type SSS rout, and is pre-drilled for the bridge...

THIS is why I got this one as cheaply as I did...

...so prepping this one was a simple matter of drilling a ground wire hole and filling the knothole...

...easy...

...I know the filled hole will be visible after finishing, but I'm willing to live with it...especially because it's not in a very noticeable spot...

NEXT: Sanding and finishing...and sanding...and sanding... and...

 

[emmaporkchop]

Good luck, keep us updated. I'm currently getting parts together for a third Telecaster. I'm aiming to come in at under $200. I've been getting incredibly lucky on ebay the last couple of days. What kind of finish were you planning for these?

 

[jelloman]

What kind of finish were you planning for these?

clear over the raw wood...haven't completely decided whether to use my tried and true poly recipe, or just use a "tung oil" finish...

 

[emmaporkchop]

Do you put guitars together often? I'm kind of hooked on it, I currently only have my two teles that I put together last year. I think the only guitar at this point I would bother buying would be a Gretsch Jet. Have you ever done any stain finishes on guitars?

 

[diceman1000]

HELLS YES JELLO!!!

 

[Mark Wein]

looks good!

 

[irishstu]

Excellent! Subscribed.

 

[jelloman]

these will be the fourth and fifth i've done...yes, I did a strat a few years ago with a red mahogany stain and gloss poly finish...it was OK...I'm a big fan of wood, and woodgrain...these bodies have a decent amount of distinctive grain structure, and I'm starting to lean heavily towards a satin oil finish for them...

 

[emmaporkchop]

these will be the fourth and fifth i've done...yes, I did a strat a few years ago with a red mahogany stain and gloss poly finish...it was OK...I'm a big fan of wood, and woodgrain...these bodies have a decent amount of distinctive grain structure, and I'm starting to lean heavily towards a satin oil finish for them...

Yeah I really like the grain on the Tele.

 

[jelloman]

Yeah I really like the grain on the Tele.

but am I giving anything up by not going for a gloss finish?

 

[emmaporkchop]

but am I giving anything up by not going for a gloss finish?

No, I just like the grain on it. Looking forward to seeing how they turn out.

 

[jelloman]

SANDING...Sanding...sanding...

...and after some sanding...and some sanding...they're ready for finishing...

...they have both been sanded to 220 grit with my Dewalt Random)rbit sander, then to 320 with my trusty Black&Decker pad sander...

Smooth as glass...

...now if only I could decide how to finish them, I'd be good to go...

 

[jelloman]

Starting finishing...

AND...first coats have been applied...

For the tele I went with this...

...it is an oil/varnish blend which should give me a nice satin finish with a warm glow...

...3 or 4 coats should do it...with a wet sand after coats 2 and 3...

For the strat I used this...

...in a high gloss formula...this is a wiping poly...

...3 or 4 coats...same as the other one...

Maybe I can start assembling this weekend...

 

[silverring233]

dang man! no wasted time here!

 

[jelloman]

dang man! no wasted time here!

days off can do that...