My New Monster

Man I dig this guitar so much I had to share. She's not for everyone. Actually, she's not for anyone, except me! :)

I wanted a great sounding Strat with a crazy fat neck. I also wanted lots of tonal options, but still a 60's vibe.

So this is it. My first parts-caster and it just rocks my world. Can't believe I didn't do this ten years ago! Truly hooked.

Strat details -

Body - 2 piece Swamp Ash, 3.4 lb. H-S-H Routing, Olympic White, no Clear Coat, Copper Shielding.

http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee384/rllonger/photo-35.jpg
http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee384/rllonger/photo-33.jpg

Pickups -
Bridge & Middle - Fender Custom Shop 69's (5.7k),
Neck - Don Mare Custom (5.7k & 8k), RW/RP.

Electronics -
Master Volume (push to activate neck pickup in series)
Master Tone (push to activate Bridge pup)
500k Pots & .047 cap
Rothstein Mid Shaper Pot
On/on toggle to tap the Neck pup
5 way.

http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee384/rllonger/photo-37.jpg

Neck -
Maple with Rosewood FB
1.25" thick with a U/C profile
Shellac finish
1.75" bone nut
Med Jumbo Frets
Tuners - Sperzel

http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee384/rllonger/photo-39.jpg
http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee384/rllonger/photo-34.jpg
http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee384/rllonger/photo-36.jpg

Bridge - Wilkinson by Gotoh 2 point

http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee384/rllonger/photo-38.jpg


17 different pickup options, sounds crazy good, plays dreamy, love the trem, stays in tune, just under 8lb, feels solid, rings for days.

And man it's so nice to have a neck that fits.

Very excited about how she turned out, and now very addicted to home brews. :)

You know, indifference is more cruel than insults. Haters welcomed too. :)

i like your green shoes :razz: jk

The guitar looks amazing. I enjoy a thicker U profile on guitar necks too.

You sir, have made my day! You even made my shoes happy too! Thank you. :)

Yeah, it is impossible to find a neck that's anything past an inch. The CNC guys don't have a program for it. You have to find someone who carves by hand.

But wow, finally having a neck that fits is worth the extra coin.

Beautiful!

Very nice. There is much to be said about a white/white strat. I like the maple board better, but that rosewood looks nice too.

I'm glad I'm sitting down because that fretboard just knocked my socks off. Such beautiful grain. I don't know if I could play such a thick neck, but it's great when a plan comes together

Thanks guys!

I'm a maple neck guy, but was a little afraid of being too bright, having a light body, low output pups, and 500k pots. Rosewood seemed to make sense.

I had a Tele neck made at the same time. One piece maple. The Strat neck is 1.25, but the Tele is 1.33 :). The body is being painted, but I can't wait to get this beast of a Tele going.

http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee384/rllonger/photo-25.jpg

Now that's a drop! Scared to go vintage tuner on that E, and don't get me started about low end nut pressure. I even had to rout the neck pocket an extra 1/4" deep to accommodate the heel. The strat was done at 3/16".

looks good, lots of pickup tones, and i LOVE me some fat fat necks....less hand fatigue!

way to go.....

What a beautiful baby! Congrats! Great work on that :D

Thanks everyone!

I'm with ya on the less fatigue, and for me, it feels solid, fast, and right.

The different tone options are wild, they are like variations of the same theme in a way. With the tone pot and the midrange shifter, you can tweak any option into something really neat.

What did you paint it with? Rattle cans? It looks great! :)

Man, that thing looks amazing!

Thanks!

I used 3 cans of Reranch Oly White, but only 3/4 of each can as they tend to spit near the end. Then a lot of wet sanding.

No clear coat was done for a few reasons. Fender did it for a short time, and if thin skin is in, no skin sounds even neater. I don't mind easy relicing or a less shiny look. But really, I figured that if I screwed up or didn't like it, it would be a nice base coat for a different color.

Anyway, so far it's all worked out. I'm digging on the look, but man I have a thing for yellow Strats. Does it ever end? :)

No, it never ends...
Nice guitar - its great to have something unique and made to fit.