The Jimmicaster

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:45 AM

I don't normallly troll around the Stratocaster side of this as I usually do Teles, but I got the itch to build a Olympic White on white Stratocaster like Jimmi played.

So I saw this in a catalog...

and thought, why not I have built a couple of Teles, how hard could it be? Well I will tell ya, the Teles are easier to build by far... so start like Leo did, build a Tele first before you start on the Strat.

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:46 AM

So I had a couple of pieces of leftover Poplar from the Tele builds... one larger than the other, should work out for a Strat body...

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:47 AM

So after a little searching on the net I finally found a Strat drawing file, printed me off a copy

and went to making a jig (sorry Ron, I like to make my own... I am too cheap to buy them!!

)

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:48 AM

Started sourcing parts for the build...
found this on the Bay, for $30 I figured why not...

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:49 AM

Eden necks are drilled for Modern tuners, but I got a sweet deal on some Vintage Pings, so we had to buy some bushings from GFS.

Headstock looked good though...

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:51 AM

So we attached the drawing to a piece of MDF to make our jig.

Now I am not a purist by any stretch of the imagination, so I thought one day I might want a SSH, so I made the bridge pup cavity flexible. I am also going to set up a reverse slanted bridge pup, so this will allow a standard set up, a reverse slant and a bucker if I wanted... options!!

I drilled all the starting holes, so off to the band saw for some cutting!

andy__woods · July 3rd, 2008, 10:51 AM

wow, this will be cool. can't wait!

buddastrat · July 3rd, 2008, 10:52 AM

Is that white one from the catalog, a MIJ strat? Looks cool with the early CBS head, Klusons and that matte finish look to the neck. All the MIJ ones I see are very glossy and thick finished.

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:55 AM

sidetracked, well actually...

The daughter wants a guitar... so we were shopping for parts and she decides she wants one. So I spy this on the wall, don't need the neck, I already have one but I have another Tele body in the works that needs a neck and I start thinking which is a dangerous thing...

That neck for a tele will definately need to change... So we spent about two months on the Tele, while the Start sat...

But the daughter was happy, find the Gumdrop Tele and you can see that saga...

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:56 AM

Quote:

buddastrat Is that white one from the catalog, a MIJ strat? Looks cool with the early CBS head, Klusons and that matte finish look to the neck. All the MIJ ones I see are very glossy and thick finished.

that is from the Musicians Friend Catalog, I am sure it is a MIM as it was listed somewhere around 5 bills, too rich for my cheap blood, why buy them when you can build them?

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:57 AM

Now the Bentley was nothing to look at... but it had some parts... and for $60 it fit the cheapness factor...

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 10:59 AM

not too sure about the pups, they look to new to be in that guitar and the soldering looks too much like someone like me added them. They have a certain vintage look to them...

Still have not ran the Ohms, but I do not think they are overwound or hot.

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 11:04 AM

I do not want to be confused with Buckocaster as a master builder so I won't give you step by step pictures as I am too lazy for that and it slows you down.

So we routed the body...

And the back... what a pain...my jig bit the dust for the back... so I blocked out the space on the back with wood strips (should have bought those jigs from Ron!!) good thing it is getting painted. And I did do it with a router, as hard as it is to believe, next time I think I will use the chainsaw!!!

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 11:07 AM

So after a little work I installed the tuners, man I love those vintage looking Pings and the bushings and did a logo... for the headstock logo police read it carefully, and yes it has fooled at least a dozen people at this point.

Oh and I cut my own Corian nut, used some needle files to the slots and it turned out pretty good for my first one...

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 11:14 AM

So after some sanding we fit it all together to see how it fits...

It is a little rough and I need to adjust the neck angle somewhat, but I am happy. So happy I played it for about a month like that but did not unveil it to the public.

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 11:15 AM

Wow that last pic the flash was bad but you get the picture albeit a bad one...

here is a little better shot of the front.

Now we have a problem. As I mentioned this body is poplar, but the grain looks pretty good, too good to get painted I start thinking. So maybe a burst as the back has more green mineral streaks than the front. Maybe a Cherry burst, hmmmmm... <slaps himself in the face> snap out of it, we started to do a Jimmistrat and we will stay with the plan!!!

So the tear down begins!!!

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 11:23 AM

So after about a month and a half of...<in my best Pat Morita Karate Kid>

with 150 grit, 200 grit, and 400 grit
sand the body up, sand the body down
sand body side to side, sand body circle up, sand body circle down...

Primer on,,,
with 200 grit, and 400 grit
sand the body up, sand the body down
sand body side to side, sand body circle up, sand body circle down...

We were ready to apply paint. Krylon Antique White I do believe, close enough to Artic or Olympic or Lace and so we spray and spray and spray.

And then we spray on Clear, spray on clear, spray on clear...

And then we...
with 400 grit, 800 grit, and 1000 grit
sand the body up, sand the body down
sand body side to side, sand body circle up, sand body circle down...

And then with the polish we...
polish the body up, polish the body down
polish body side to side, polish body circle up, polish body circle down...

And we end up with....

The JimmiCaster...

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 11:25 AM

How did I do?

the original...

the replica...

Of course I would have to learn to play left handed to look like Jimmi, well not look like him as I am caucasin, but play like him, well I can't play like him either, so well, when I play it righty, it looks like his guitar playing lefty... well you know what I am talking about.

andy__woods · July 3rd, 2008, 11:52 AM

looks sweet!

mogascreeta · July 3rd, 2008, 12:09 PM

great job! I noiced the bridge looks lefty. did that make it harder for you to make?

Preacher · July 3rd, 2008, 12:54 PM

Quote:

Today 12:09 PM
mogascreeta great job! I noiced the bridge looks lefty. did that make it harder for you to make?

Good eyes... yes the orignal plan was to put a vintage "righty" tremolo on it, after I had cut out the body for the "righty", I got the "lefty" on the donor guitar which would keep it more like Jimmi's. So when I went to put it on, the slot for the tremolo is not symetrical on the mid line of the body, so I had to do a little more route. If I had it to do over again I would have gone ahead and bought the "righty" tremolo and not cut the body. You can see just below the bridge that there is a slight hole you can see.
Oh well, live and learn.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:45 AM	#1 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	The Jimmicaster build I don't normallly troll around the Stratocaster side of this as I usually do Teles, but I got the itch to build a Olympic White on white Stratocaster like Jimmi played. So I saw this in a catalog... and thought, why not I have built a couple of Teles, how hard could it be? Well I will tell ya, the Teles are easier to build by far... so start like Leo did, build a Tele first before you start on the Strat. __________________ So many guitars... so little time. Last edited by Preacher : July 3rd, 2008 at 01:03 PM.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:46 AM	#2 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	So I had a couple of pieces of leftover Poplar from the Tele builds... one larger than the other, should work out for a Strat body... __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:47 AM	#3 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	So after a little searching on the net I finally found a Strat drawing file, printed me off a copy and went to making a jig (sorry Ron, I like to make my own... I am too cheap to buy them!! ) __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:48 AM	#4 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	Started sourcing parts for the build... found this on the Bay, for $30 I figured why not... __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:49 AM	#5 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	Eden necks are drilled for Modern tuners, but I got a sweet deal on some Vintage Pings, so we had to buy some bushings from GFS. Headstock looked good though... __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:51 AM	#6 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	So we attached the drawing to a piece of MDF to make our jig. Now I am not a purist by any stretch of the imagination, so I thought one day I might want a SSH, so I made the bridge pup cavity flexible. I am also going to set up a reverse slanted bridge pup, so this will allow a standard set up, a reverse slant and a bucker if I wanted... options!! I drilled all the starting holes, so off to the band saw for some cutting! __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:51 AM	#7 (permalink)
andy__woods Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Michigan Age: 23 Posts: 1,139 60 Photos	wow, this will be cool. can't wait! __________________ -- Andy "Woods" Crowder --

July 3rd, 2008, 10:52 AM	#8 (permalink)
buddastrat Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 139	Is that white one from the catalog, a MIJ strat? Looks cool with the early CBS head, Klusons and that matte finish look to the neck. All the MIJ ones I see are very glossy and thick finished.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:55 AM	#9 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	sidetracked, well actually... The daughter wants a guitar... so we were shopping for parts and she decides she wants one. So I spy this on the wall, don't need the neck, I already have one but I have another Tele body in the works that needs a neck and I start thinking which is a dangerous thing... That neck for a tele will definately need to change... So we spent about two months on the Tele, while the Start sat... But the daughter was happy, find the Gumdrop Tele and you can see that saga... __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:57 AM	#11 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	Now the Bentley was nothing to look at... but it had some parts... and for $60 it fit the cheapness factor... __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 10:59 AM	#12 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	not too sure about the pups, they look to new to be in that guitar and the soldering looks too much like someone like me added them. They have a certain vintage look to them... Still have not ran the Ohms, but I do not think they are overwound or hot. __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 11:04 AM	#13 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	I do not want to be confused with Buckocaster as a master builder so I won't give you step by step pictures as I am too lazy for that and it slows you down. So we routed the body... And the back... what a pain...my jig bit the dust for the back... so I blocked out the space on the back with wood strips (should have bought those jigs from Ron!!) good thing it is getting painted. And I did do it with a router, as hard as it is to believe, next time I think I will use the chainsaw!!! __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 11:07 AM	#14 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	So after a little work I installed the tuners, man I love those vintage looking Pings and the bushings and did a logo... for the headstock logo police read it carefully, and yes it has fooled at least a dozen people at this point. Oh and I cut my own Corian nut, used some needle files to the slots and it turned out pretty good for my first one... __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 11:14 AM	#15 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	So after some sanding we fit it all together to see how it fits... It is a little rough and I need to adjust the neck angle somewhat, but I am happy. So happy I played it for about a month like that but did not unveil it to the public. __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 11:15 AM	#16 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	Wow that last pic the flash was bad but you get the picture albeit a bad one... here is a little better shot of the front. Now we have a problem. As I mentioned this body is poplar, but the grain looks pretty good, too good to get painted I start thinking. So maybe a burst as the back has more green mineral streaks than the front. Maybe a Cherry burst, hmmmmm... <slaps himself in the face> snap out of it, we started to do a Jimmistrat and we will stay with the plan!!! So the tear down begins!!! __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 11:23 AM	#17 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	So after about a month and a half of...<in my best Pat Morita Karate Kid> with 150 grit, 200 grit, and 400 grit sand the body up, sand the body down sand body side to side, sand body circle up, sand body circle down... Primer on,,, with 200 grit, and 400 grit sand the body up, sand the body down sand body side to side, sand body circle up, sand body circle down... We were ready to apply paint. Krylon Antique White I do believe, close enough to Artic or Olympic or Lace and so we spray and spray and spray. And then we spray on Clear, spray on clear, spray on clear... And then we... with 400 grit, 800 grit, and 1000 grit sand the body up, sand the body down sand body side to side, sand body circle up, sand body circle down... And then with the polish we... polish the body up, polish the body down polish body side to side, polish body circle up, polish body circle down... And we end up with.... The JimmiCaster... __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 11:25 AM	#18 (permalink)
Preacher Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Oklahoma Age: 40 Posts: 243	How did I do? the original... the replica... Of course I would have to learn to play left handed to look like Jimmi, well not look like him as I am caucasin, but play like him, well I can't play like him either, so well, when I play it righty, it looks like his guitar playing lefty... well you know what I am talking about. __________________ So many guitars... so little time.

July 3rd, 2008, 11:52 AM	#19 (permalink)
andy__woods Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Michigan Age: 23 Posts: 1,139 60 Photos	looks sweet! __________________ -- Andy "Woods" Crowder --

July 3rd, 2008, 12:09 PM	#20 (permalink)
mogascreeta TDPRI Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Orlando, FL Age: 18 Posts: 38	great job! I noiced the bridge looks lefty. did that make it harder for you to make? __________________ All Tele, All The Time