I usually enjoy a complete guitar build, something to get my teeth into and turn out something nice. It helps to work with the customer first mind you, to make sure I get bits that work together. The trouble with cheaper parts, from various places it can be a bit of a challenge! At first […]
Category: General
Gretsch – Bridge, Nut and Bigsby update
I like these, great value, really well made although there are some slight problems. Much as I love a Bigsby they do have one or 2 weak points. The first one is not staying in tune, or more correctly not returning to tune once you use the trem. Part of the problem is the bridge […]
Epiphone – Fret Dress and Setup
I rather like these, I’m always a sucker for a semi-acoustic. This one’s brand new but sadly isn’t playing very well. the pickups still even have the plastic film on them. The biggest problem is in the frets, some of them a very uneven.. So out with the nut… and level the neck. Tape it […]
Fender Precision Bass – Setup
I often get asked if I can set up a Bass guitar. The simple answer is yes, there’s no real difference. Some of the numbers may be a little different but the principles are exactly the same. It’s the same 5 point setup…. No.1 The neck relief. By adjusting the truss-rod. No.2 The action at […]
Burns Steer – Setup
What a great looking guitar. I’ve never really liked Burns guitars but this one’s rather lovely. It’s an odd sort of thing, It’s got a sound hole, but there really isn’t any sound coming out of it? Some of the frets are a little worn…. and just a little uneven. A fret dress will sort out […]
Dean – EMG Pickup upgrade
Not quite my cup of tea but a nicely built guitar. The owner has decided on a pickup upgrade so it should be a fairly simple job. Off with the control knobs. It’s all plug in so shouldn’t need any soldering, apart from the cable for the neck pickup, just not long enough so I spliced […]
Fender Telecaster – Body Transplant
Odd one this, I’ve been asked to fit a new neck to an old guitar but never fit a new body to an old neck? I was a little sceptical at first, it was a nice guitar to start with, and I wasn’t very sure about that pink? Some of the hardware is going to be […]
Simon & Patrick acoustic – Reduce action height
Not the greatest of guitars, but could still play a lot better. It just needs the action height bringing down a little…. Before I take the strings off I like to set the neck relief where it should be, so I can tell exactly how high the bridge is. Now I know exactly how much […]
Les Paul – Final Assembly
What a great guitar! A friend of mine has been working on an Epiphone Les Paul. He’s done some fantastic work on the finish. It’s a gorgeous satin finish with just enough of the natural wood showing through. Pity, but the photographs don’t really do it justice! I was called in at the last minute […]
Martin – Bone nut and saddle
How does your guitar sound? One simple improvement is to replace the existing nut and saddle with bone ones… I’m a traditionalist and I really like traditional bone nuts and saddles. To make sure I get the size exactly right I need to get the action setup properly first. The neck was a little […]