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Beatlecaster

hekawi
May 11th, 2012, 11:28 AM
had a cheap tele copy sitting around for quite a while, always intending to do something creative with it. the other day i finished working on a Beatles "Revolver" jigsaw puzzle. hmmmm, the box top is an exact copy of the album cover, i wonder....

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y170/hekawi/IMG_1821.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y170/hekawi/IMG_1822.jpg

ok, now be nice. this is my first attempt ever at any kind of customizing.

the original body was a thick poly finished butterscotch (but not the kind you could see woodgrain through). pulled the neck pickup, 'cause i wanted an Esquire style. then i roughed up the body (note: battlescar above pickguard) and sprayed a bunch of coats of rattle-can white. then more coats of spray lacquer. i used the old pickguard and traced out the shape on the Revolver cover. sprayed that with 7 coats of lacquer. the switch is non-functional since it just has the bridge pickup. i put a couple of witch-hat knobs on from a busted amp. that's about it, turned out ok for a first attempt.

she sounds real, real good. the body was routed for humbucker in the neck postition, and i think the hollow cavity must add something to the sound and tone.

Crawfish
May 11th, 2012, 12:06 PM
That's really cool! Great idea, and the body color sets the album cover off nicely. You did a nice job on the refinish.

You know you can use the switch to wire up some different tone combinations - lots of ideas here on the forums.

Your picks are really clever too. When I saw there were five, I didn't know what the fifth one was (now I see it's the Apple Records logo). My first thought was that you should have a fifth one and make it either Stu Sutcliffe or Brian Epstein!

-Kevin

CarlosN
May 11th, 2012, 12:28 PM
Thats a cool looking guitar. I especially like the placement of the eyeball in the lower horn, that seems just right somehow. Is the pick guard just the cardboard box cover then sprayed with lacquer, I think that is how you describe it, just wondering how stiff it is in the end. Looks great from here! And a good fit for any Beatles fan.

The B/W contrast looks good too, now you can do the psychedelic one with the sgt peppers album!

hekawi
May 11th, 2012, 12:36 PM
Thats a cool looking guitar. I especially like the placement of the eyeball in the lower horn, that seems just right somehow. Is the pick guard just the cardboard box cover then sprayed with lacquer, I think that is how you describe it, just wondering how stiff it is in the end. Looks great from here! And a good fit for any Beatles fan.

The B/W contrast looks good too, now you can do the psychedelic one with the sgt peppers album!

yeah, the pickguard is just cardboard sprayed with lacquer. i did run a bead of glue around the edge first, then pressed it flat overnight...my idea of preventing fraying edges.

good idea on a Sgt Peppers version. might have to snag another cheap guitar for that purpose

glen smith
May 11th, 2012, 12:57 PM
Very nice and original!

jkingma
May 11th, 2012, 01:01 PM
That looks great.

Skub
May 11th, 2012, 03:20 PM
A cracker idea well implemented. Love it.

garymaddox
May 11th, 2012, 05:11 PM
I like it. If you can find a clear esq. pickguard you could over lay it. In any case, it's chock full of freezy coolness.

bobsway
May 11th, 2012, 05:18 PM
Gear!

TG
May 11th, 2012, 05:28 PM
Fab.

SixShooter
May 12th, 2012, 10:03 PM
I absolutely love it! Great execution. I want one.

hekawi
May 18th, 2012, 01:10 PM
thanks for all the compliments! it was fun to do, and it makes me smile every time i walk into the man cave and see it in its stand. i'm really having a blast playing this guitar. it sounds so good, you'd never know it started started out as a $150 Austin. really digging the Esquire-style single pickup vibe.

Alex W
May 18th, 2012, 02:01 PM
A great album + a great guitar = win.

Mind Flayer
May 19th, 2012, 03:51 PM
Nice work. Great album and great looking guitar.

metalmayhem
May 20th, 2012, 08:31 AM
My favorite album and a great looking guitar. Love it

Gibson
May 20th, 2012, 08:46 AM
I like it, excellent idea, although I'm getting a sense of deja vu about this thread ... :lol:


Edit: Oh, that's why! (I like it, excellent idea.)


I still like it!

Tele Fan
May 20th, 2012, 09:38 AM
Nice!