Warning to 1st time builders...

[pullchord]

Ever figure put what it would cost to build a car by buying all the parts separately? If you're planning on building your own strat from off-the-shelf parts, you're going to spend no less than 6 - 700 bucks before you're done. And unless you're very lucky or very skilled, you'll be lucky to have something that plays as well as a storebought MIM or MIC Fender. I'm nearly $400 into a project that may well be scrapped at this point.

[Doug 54]

u r right-

but sonic exploration has so many potential/unlimited combinations....

u can't put a price on the pursuit of excellence...
and sometimes a bit of foolery

[RodeoTex]

You are certainly right about the cost, BUT saving money isn't the reason many choose to build their own guitar. A lot of people see it as getting to build their own signature guitar with all their favorite features.
I've never looked at home-builts for economy unless I do all the wood and finishing myself. Then it can be cheaper than an MIM or something similar.

[getbent]

pullchord,

building your own guitar should never be done in the interest of thrift. I've built a few guitars now and doing it is a constant reminder of how talented the folks who do it for a living are... if a guy needs a cheap axe... buy on craigslist, go squier or rondo... if you want a perfect guitar... it will cost you..

if you want your 'own' guitar... be prepared to spend and do and redo until you get it right.... I finally have one of my 'pet' guitars working like I want... it only took me two years and lots long hours and the stress of realizing how bad I suck at luthiery....

The guys who make the custom jobs really are worth the dough.

[LuvN Guitars]

Originally Posted by RodeoTex

You are certainly right about the cost, BUT saving money isn't the reason many choose to build their own guitar. A lot of people see it as getting to build their own signature guitar with all their favorite features.
I've never looked at home-builts for economy unless I do all the wood and finishing myself. Then it can be cheaper than an MIM or something similar.

In general I agree, but whether it can end up cheaper or not can also depend on a whole heap of variables. Just 'cause you might be able to buy a MIM or MIC cheaper, doesn't mean you're getting the same quality as you might with licenced parts.
Maybe factory guitars are cheaper in the states compared to parts, but here in Australia I could import Warmoth, Allparts and the like, plus decent quality hardware and pickups and do a Strat for under $700AUD as long as I do the finish. A MIM would cost me about $300 more and an American Fender at least $500 more for the cheapest available.
But as RodeoTex mentioned, cost isn't the primary reason, along with getting all the features you want, I'd add the strait out satisfaction of playing something you've made yourself. I once claimed that I started building guitars because I couldn't afford the guitars I wanted. Sure the first few didn't meet the standard I was shooting for, but I enjoyed it and what's the value on that? I could have spent a lot more money playing golf or something!

[pullchord]

You guys are right. Did this for something unique. Just didn't realize what I was getting into. If it ever does come out right, I know I'll be happy & satisfied. Just really discouraged right now.

[getbent]

I'd put it away for awhile. That always helps me. Go do something that makes you smile... you'll refill the creativity water tank and when it is full, you'll look at your project differently and get back into it.... it isn't fast food... it is sloooowww cookin.

[boris bubbanov]

Getbent is right.

But there's another approach here worth considering. Buy a fully assembled fairly decent cheapie, and practice substituting its parts for the parts you have stored up now.

You can figure out how things should look when they're together, and you can learn better just how good each pieces-part you now have actually is.

Once you are quite familiar with how the pieces tend to fit; where the problems tend to occur, and hone your assembly and set up skills, the box of parts may suddenly be back in your reach. Nothng wrong actually with replacing the Cheapster part by part with your $ 400 good stuff until you have a whole, well sorted out guitar.

But nevermind reading this post twice, right now. Come back to it when your tank is full again.

[jrfrond]

I'm kinda lucky in this department, because my company has a dealer account with Allparts, WD, and Fender et al. Then there's eBay, Guitar Fetish, and any other place I can find good deals on what I want. The priciest build I have done cost me a tad under $600. It is a Charvel San Dimas clone with a Mighty Mite neck, 1pc. mahogany body off eBay from a place called American Guitar Foundry, and most of the (gold) parts, including the Gotoh/Floyd were from AllParts at dealer cost. Pickups (GFS "VEH") and tuners were from Guitar Fetish. The Gilmour Clone Strat I did last year cost me a tad under $500, as did the Strat with a SD Antiquity Firebird pickup in the bridge, which I had laying around because a customer just left it to me. Essentially, I built the guitar around the pickup.

If you can keep the price of the wood parts down, you can do better. For instance, there is an eBay dealer that parts-out Mexi Strats, a GREAT source for finished Alder bodies (both of my Strat bodies are from there). Mighty-Mite necks, as well as AllParts, are excellent. If you WANT, you can spend lots of extra $$$ on Musikraft or Warmoth, but that does NOT guarantee a good guitar.

I've built a lot of guitars, and in every case, they have turned out AT LEAST as good as store-bought. I could care less about resale value, so I don't care about buying an original Fender or Charvel or whatever. What matters is that the guitar sounds and plays well, and I like the fact that I know every last little detail about the guitar. That means a lot to me. Then again, I build my own drums and amps as well. My mentality and mantra is that I can do it better and would rather play something that I made with my own two hands.

You can get a dud in an factory-made guitar too. That shouldn't stop ANYONE from the DIY approach.

[Brendo]

I don't agree about it costing more than you would spend on a similar guitar. I've built four now, the first one had about $120AUS in it, I made the body (it looked like crap), I salvaged a neck from a throwaway strat copy a mate was offloading to the tip, the pickups were blemished specials, bought the control plate pre wired, and bought an ebay bridge. It was horrible, but it meant that I learned a whole heap. Anything salvageable went into the second build. I bought a cheap neck, built the body, added the bridge, pickups and control plate from the disastrous first build, and it's a fantastic guitar. I put maybe $180AUS into it all up, it would match any $500 electric HH you'd buy off the wall at a store. These things are as expensive as you want them to be. I'll never pay $1000 for ANY guitar, I would rarely pay $500 for one. But I am happy to build them for cheap, and get much more than what you pay for them.

Good luck with your project. As Boris said, let it lie for a while. You'll get a clearer picture of what you want and the best way to go forward. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised when you've finished.

[jrfrond]

You will learn three things when building instruments:

1) The whole is NOT necessarily the sum of it's parts (i.e. purchasing all premium parts does NOT guarantee a good-sounding axe)

2) The whole can be MORE than the sum of it's parts (you've economized on everything, and the guitar rocks, despite all odds against it).

It just happens. It is really in the interaction of the body and neck resonance. Sometimes it's great, sometimes it's OK, and sometimes it downright sucks. Two guitars built identically side-by-side with wood cut from the same trees might be two very different guitars. The trick is that any electric should sound good BEFORE it's plugged in. I can hear how a guitar will sound before it ever gets near an amp. Guitars that are great acoustically will sound great no matter what pickups you load in. Guitars that are just passable acoustically tend to be fiddly, and though you may hit on a pickup combo that works, you may always be wanting something else.

3) Guitars need time to age in. A freshly-built guitar needs time to age-in and break in. Out-of-the-chute, some guitars aren't so stellar. Finishes need to cure, necks need to stabilize under tension, and quirks need to be sussed out. I built A TELE that I dubbed the "Uglycaster". It has a WONDERFUL 1pc. swamp ash body that some idiot painted with rattle-can metallic red model paint like Testors or something. It had THAT smell! I recognized it. BUT... he was selling it cheap. Anyway, I did the GE Smith-clone thing with the half-bridge, GFS Lil Puncher Tele pickups, and AllParts neck with a single wipe of tung oil... just went as economical as I could and threw it all together. It smelled like model paint for months and it sounded OK. Then, as the smell disappeared and the soft-ish paint cured, the tone opened up and is just one of the most BADASS Tele's I've ever played, and one of my best playing guitars (although my son has adopted it with all of my other guitars, and it's his favorite too). It's STILL ugly, but the tone and playability is as pretty as it gets. Like people, all guitars need a chance to show their true colors.

[Zmatko]

The only option to go with 'profit' with new parts is to buy unfinished products, maybe even cut your own pickguard if it's an musicmaster or the like?

But the problem is the finished product, it's a lot more fun to play a guitar that feels "authentic", let's say a factory finished neck; it's easy to finish a neck but you can't get away from the feel of a real finish so to speak.

The best guitar is "the one" of course, and to learn finishing with rattle-cans takes about four times (filler, primer, color, clear coat).

But why i sometimes want a partscaster is because i don't dare to modify a real Fender, it somehow seems that the magic might get lost if i even change one thing.

Fender have such a range in today's market that anyone who's sceptical about Fender's products should atleast play one first, cause who knows how a road worn feels? How fun a highway one jazz bass is? how different a classic player Jaguar HH sounds? and so on..

[LuvN Guitars]

As some of the other guys have said, put it away for a while and take a break, most times if you're pissed of with how it's going, pushing it will only see the whole thing get worse.
As suggested, you could try fixing up a cheapy for practice, the experience gained pulling it apart and putting it back together could give you some insights and experience.
When you go back to your build remember the old saying "measure twice and cut once", though maybe it should be "think twice and cut once". Oh, and if you aren't sure what to do at any stage, ask here before you take a shot at it, you'll get plenty of advice. Internet forums are a great asset, especialy this one, I wish they'd been an option when I started out.
If you are looking for a little more detail in terms of what you should do with your project, now about a description of where it's at and where you think things are going wrong, some pics would help.
PM me if you like, I'd hate to think a potentialy great guitar got consigned to a dusty corner of the workshop and never got played.

[shinigami747]

if i may add,

i would consider tools as part of the cost.

granted, the tools can be used for something else (or for other builds) and others are tools one SHOULD have around the house (screwdrivers, etc), but if one would getting the tools for only one build, one can't spread the cost over so many units produced. and not everyone is a handyman/woodworker/builder of non guitar related stuff needing tools.

however, all the hunting for parts and tools, sweating the small (and if you make a mistake, possibly BIG) stuff, learning as you go, and other experiences involved in build-your-own is FUN.

but hey, any hobby (or profession for some) involves money, time and effort.

IMHO, YMMV, etc.

[shadowfan]

Originally Posted by pullchord

Ever figure put what it would cost to build a car by buying all the parts separately? If you're planning on building your own strat from off-the-shelf parts, you're going to spend no less than 6 - 700 bucks before you're done. And unless you're very lucky or very skilled, you'll be lucky to have something that plays as well as a storebought MIM or MIC Fender. I'm nearly $400 into a project that may well be scrapped at this point.

Hi Pullchord:

Sorry to hear about your disappointment, however if you list your issues, maybe with photos, we might be able to help with solutions; I for one would like to help, if I can.

Cheers

[jrfrond]

Originally Posted by shadowfan

Hi Pullchord:

Sorry to hear about your disappointment, however if you list your issues, maybe with photos, we might be able to help with solutions; I for one would like to help, if I can.

Cheers

I concur. If you have $400 into it, it is too far gone to scrap and time to ask for help. What are your issues?

[GoranS]

The definition of a hobby:
- Utterly time consuming
- No money limit
- Absolutely unnecessary
- Lotsa fun!

Need I say more?

[Telenator]

Originally Posted by jrfrond

You will learn three things when building instruments:

1) The whole is NOT necessarily the sum of it's parts (i.e. purchasing all premium parts does NOT guarantee a good-sounding axe)

2) The whole can be MORE than the sum of it's parts (you've economized on everything, and the guitar rocks, despite all odds against it).

It just happens. It is really in the interaction of the body and neck resonance. Sometimes it's great, sometimes it's OK, and sometimes it downright sucks. Two guitars built identically side-by-side with wood cut from the same trees might be two very different guitars. The trick is that any electric should sound good BEFORE it's plugged in. I can hear how a guitar will sound before it ever gets near an amp. Guitars that are great acoustically will sound great no matter what pickups you load in. Guitars that are just passable acoustically tend to be fiddly, and though you may hit on a pickup combo that works, you may always be wanting something else.

3) Guitars need time to age in. A freshly-built guitar needs time to age-in and break in. Out-of-the-chute, some guitars aren't so stellar. Finishes need to cure, necks need to stabilize under tension, and quirks need to be sussed out. I built A TELE that I dubbed the "Uglycaster". It has a WONDERFUL 1pc. swamp ash body that some idiot painted with rattle-can metallic red model paint like Testors or something. It had THAT smell! I recognized it. BUT... he was selling it cheap. Anyway, I did the GE Smith-clone thing with the half-bridge, GFS Lil Puncher Tele pickups, and AllParts neck with a single wipe of tung oil... just went as economical as I could and threw it all together. It smelled like model paint for months and it sounded OK. Then, as the smell disappeared and the soft-ish paint cured, the tone opened up and is just one of the most BADASS Tele's I've ever played, and one of my best playing guitars (although my son has adopted it with all of my other guitars, and it's his favorite too). It's STILL ugly, but the tone and playability is as pretty as it gets. Like people, all guitars need a chance to show their true colors.

Sound advice here.

I'd also like to ad:

Anyone considering a new guitar build would be well advised to first, buy a used Squier, Pacifica, or some other $35 throw a way guitar and dismantle it completely. When you reach the point that you can re-assemble it into a decent playing guitar that tunes properly and has good tonal balance, then you're ready to take on your first build.

Building a guitar is not supposed to be a source of stress and dismay. It can be very rewarding to play a guitar you put together yourself. But it really is not that easy.

Like all things worthwhile, there's a learning curve. Just like learning to play the dang thing!

You'll be fine.

[68 Shovelhead]

I say don't give up, I bet I have made just about every mistake possible in attempting guitar building/modifying, you have to expect it as part of the process. For example my first paint job took 3 tries before I ended up with satisfactory results, but after that 3rd try I now have a reliable and repeatable process.
A friend of mine just build his own Hot-Rod Tele, he's not someone I would consider highly mechanically inclined, but the guy can paint like nobodies business. He bought high quality parts from USACG, painted the body and ambered the neck, then handed the finished neck/body and parts over to a guitar tech to be finished. He ended up with a one of a kind guitar thats on par with anything Fender's custom could have done.

[otterhound]

A whole lot of good advice here . No wonder I did it the hard way . The trials that I went through with the wiring of my first build make me laugh now . I did learn and continue to do so . When you finish the build , I want some pics . If you must insist on giving up , send me the gear . I need some practice on building righties . I am hoping that you do not quit . For me , the end result was worth all of it .

[Zmatko]

Originally Posted by LuvN Guitars

As some of the other guys have said, put it away for a while and take a break, most times if you're pissed of with how it's going, pushing it will only see the whole thing get worse.

This.
pullchord has probably caught up on this advice so i think it's going in the right direction.

[jrfrond]

Originally Posted by Telenator

Sound advice here.

I'd also like to ad:

Anyone considering a new guitar build would be well advised to first, buy a used Squier, Pacifica, or some other $35 throw a way guitar and dismantle it completely. When you reach the point that you can re-assemble it into a decent playing guitar that tunes properly and has good tonal balance, then you're ready to take on your first build.

Building a guitar is not supposed to be a source of stress and dismay. It can be very rewarding to play a guitar you put together yourself. But it really is not that easy.

Like all things worthwhile, there's a learning curve. Just like learning to play the dang thing!

You'll be fine.

Also good advice.

Hey listen, all of this stuff can be learned. I started out on cheap Teisco guitars when I was around 13. 37 years later, I get paid well for my repair work (other stuff besides guitars as well). Really, a lot of repair work is NOT rocket science. Most people with a brain, two hands and a little aptitude can learn it. One of the best setup guys I know barely plays guitar!

[pullchord]

Well, today I finished the custom Strat (see photo #4). After probably 50 - 60 hours of finishing (which I totally botched), assembling, disassembling, wiring, reassembling, disassembling, carving up the $70 custom made pickguard (because GreasyGroove didn't cut it right the first time), reassembling, and rewiring, I finally plugged it in and played it. Didn't sound anything like I thought it would. Worst of all, I could not intonate it. The "G" string is horribly sharp at the 3rd fret, and flat open against the D string No amount of compensation at the bridge helped. So much for Mighty Mite necks. The project is a total loss, so I will be disassembling and selling off the parts very soon. A very expensive lesson learned, not to mention having to explain to the wife where $700 went. I should have just gone to the track....

[Old Cane]

You know, I remember back int he 70s and 80s buying a ton of the black powder gun kits from folks that never finished them for pennies on the dollar. The thing is, yeah, it's a kit but you still need to know how to build a gun.

So here, you still need to know how to build a guitar. If you use good parts and it doesn't turn out then you have to know whether you have defective parts or just a bad screwdriver. And to me, buying a good strat for $700 seems pretty reasonable. I have about $850 in my build and it plays and sounds as good as my old one that I've been offered $14k for. And yes, that was a couple of years ago before this thread turns into a vintage guitar value discussion.

And just to add andother 2 cents worth, if you didn't level and crown that MM neck and replace the nut properly......there's your problem.

[Headshot]

pullchord, I am local to you.....I will gladly help get it running at no charge to you.....just don't give up yet.

[flyingbanana]

Originally Posted by pullchord

Ever figure put what it would cost to build a car by buying all the parts separately? If you're planning on building your own strat from off-the-shelf parts, you're going to spend no less than 6 - 700 bucks before you're done. And unless you're very lucky or very skilled, you'll be lucky to have something that plays as well as a storebought MIM or MIC Fender. I'm nearly $400 into a project that may well be scrapped at this point.

Unless of course...you want the best of both worlds, such as a Robert Cray hardtail strat with a 12" radius neck, but don't want to spend 4199.99 for the custom shop version to get the combo.

I have spent 500 bucks so far to get reasonably close to his guitar by buying parts off of Ebay. Now I start the assembly.

No guitar is worth that much.

[pullchord]

'Nana....the key phrase: "so far....". I hope you have better luck than I did! And I agree. Anybody who pays that kind of geets for a Custom Shop is a sucker.

[otterhound]

Originally Posted by pullchord

'Nana....the key phrase: "so far....". I hope you have better luck than I did! And I agree. Anybody who pays that kind of geets for a Custom Shop is a sucker.

Interesting , but harsh viewpoint . Out of curiosity , what would you call a person that has the capability to purchase what they want , yet settles for something else/less and regrets his decision forever ?

[boris bubbanov]

Telenator and jrfrond really capture the essence of how I feel about assembling project guitars. Great reading.

Some guys get so much satisfaction out of playing, and others get so much satisfaction out of bringing pieces together into a satisfying whole, and I'm just grateful to get a decent amount of satisfaction out of doing both!!

Getting a great result is in part about making the right parts choices, and making friends and getting parts cheaper than they might cost bought somewhere else. Once you have gone a long way to containing costs per guitar, and then can do multiple guitars where the part that is not right for this guitar, is right for the one next to it - suddenly the pressure comes off and the prospect if selling the guitar one day for more than you spent in parts becomes very easy to achieve.

As for $ 4,200 guitars being for suckers, I think a neck that won't intonate is a worse value. That little stick of maple won't help keep the fireplace going for more than 10 minutes.

I still want that $ 4,200 guitar - I just want it for $ 2,300.00

[Colt W. Knight]

The cost of finishes, sand paper and shipping cab add another couple hundred bucks if you don't watch.

[fadingcaptain]

Originally Posted by RodeoTex

You are certainly right about the cost, BUT saving money isn't the reason many choose to build their own guitar. A lot of people see it as getting to build their own signature guitar with all their favorite features.
I've never looked at home-builts for economy unless I do all the wood and finishing myself. Then it can be cheaper than an MIM or something similar.

+1 - after getting into modding this past year, I priced out some parts via Warmoth, and the price was going to be around $1000 when all was said and done. That's just out of my range at this point. I may stick to modding MIM strats. If I could do my ultimate build, I would, though!

[newtwanger]

Originally Posted by pullchord

'Nana....the key phrase: "so far....". I hope you have better luck than I did! And I agree. Anybody who pays that kind of geets for a Custom Shop is a sucker.

Ya had me feeling bad for your situation until you decided it was a good time to slam the "suckers" out there that might want to help you.

enjoy your $700 of firewood.

[pullchord]

Never meant to offend anyone, Newt. Just assumed that most here were educated buyers and aware that builders like DeTemple, Melancon, Kirn, and others could build as good a guitar as Fender's Custom Shop for about half the price. Fender's marketing machine and money allows them to spend alot more in advertising (which the buyer ultimately pays for). Not slamming Fender either. They're simply good business people. I played a Mexican made Strat at Best Buy the other day that played so beautifully it made me cry...for the $700 I could have had it for instead of the Thanksgiving dinner I have now, sitting in a corner unplayed.

[otterhound]

Buck it up pullcord . How did you get to 63 by giving up this easily . Instead of firewood that you do not need in Ft. Lauderdale , send me the parts to finish and I'll send you a Thanksgiving turkey to eat . I'll throw a lefty neck on that sucker and play it .

[fadingcaptain]

Originally Posted by boris bubbanov

I still want that $ 4,200 guitar - I just want it for $ 2,300.00

YES!

[Bill]

I think I spent $125 building my guitar from scratch. Body and neck wood from the lumber yard, all electronics and hardware including the truss rod I tore apart from a $20 busted junk guitar from a used guitar store. $5 bucks for the tung oil and another $5 for a bag of frets.

[pullchord]

Just this morning, I re-strung our lead singer's Japanese strat & set it up. It plays and sounds perfect. My "dreamcaster" was to have 2 TV Jones, neck and bridge, and a single coil Fender strat center. I could have bought a $350 Japocaster (most likely with a swimming pool route) and done this so much easier with the storebought Japanese guitar neck & body. Otter, I think I'm having crow instead of turkey.

[otterhound]

I would dare to think that many here , myself included , has shared that menu before . Now that you have reassured yourself that you can do it , pick a time of your choosing and have at it . Pics when done .

[Telenator]

pullchord, if you're willing to pay the shipping and send me the parts, I'll make it into a truly functional guitar. No charge. As long as all the parts are there and need no finishing work, I will put it together properly, set it up and make all the adjustments and return it to you ready to play.

I just hate seeing something like this go so wrong, and I love a good project so, if you're interested, and trusting, send it along and I'll make it right.

bikeshots@earthlink.net

[Headshot]

Hopefully he will take you up on the offer Telenator. I am local to him and offered the same thing. We exchanged emails a few times, but I guess he is resigned to that guitar being bad.