The StraTelecaster

[Guitarnut]

Originally Posted by Ironwolf

Yes, that's right.

And, I thought you might be interested in my interpretation of a cross between a Strat and a Tele.

Sweet! Nice blend of features.


Mark

[Guitarnut]

Originally Posted by ramseybella

I just did it my way.

Cool! The Tele bridge and Strat output jack combo is interesting.

Mark

[Guitarnut]

This morning I trimmed out the top and even being ever so careful not to run into end grain, the bit snapped off a chunk of maple and alder. I quickly grabbed up eveything on the bench that wasn't a shaving. I glued the largest piece back in place.





I set that aside to cure and started work on the neck. I had a piece of maple that has some nice flame but not too flamey.



I laid out for the truss rod...

[Guitarnut]

I rough cut the neck on the bandsaw...



...and routed the profile with a pattern bit. After doing 2/3 of the thickness, I flipped it and used a flush trim bit to finish up.



I had a nice fretboard blank that I found in a stack from another build. Used the StewMac miter box and fret saw to slot it. I'm really just marking them at this point. Since I started using the depth guage on the saw to recut the slots after radiusing the fretboard, I don't worry about final depth at this point.



Truss rod installed, pins in place. All ready to glue up. I'll apply glue, then remove the tape that's covering the trusrod channel.



Clampzilla!!!

[Worn]

I'm going to be following this one.

[Guitarnut]

Some of these are out of sequence but I think I covered all the steps. I set up to route the neck pocket. This was easy since 3/4 of the body is Tele. I just lined it up as usual.



Nice fit. It needs a bit of shaping along the heel to get it to sit in all the way.



Next, using my results from my earlier post about neck/heel shape, I lined up the Strat template to route control and PU cavities.



I took everything to .75" then added a stop to guide the bit as I took the control cavity down to 1.5".



All finished...

[Guitarnut]

A quick pass on the spindle sander to clean up the edges.



Then I added the radius. I used a .5" bit but took a shallow pass so the round over is somewhere between Tele and Strat. Just right.



Back to the neck. I set up my resaw fence and used the edge of the fretboard to give me a parallel path down the headstock.



Here's a tip you might not know. If you turn the StewMac depth guage over, it cuts deeper.



I set it to just past the top of the bandsaw kerf so I could saw away without having to worry about going too deep.

[Guitarnut]

With the fretboard trimmed to the neck and the fretboard extention shaped, it's all coming together.



The radius opened up a void from the tearout repair...easy fix.





More tomorrow...

Peace,
Mark

[Guitarnut]

Thinking ahead to the finish, I'm really diggin' the antique white.



I wouldn't want to paint over the flame maple so I came up with this. Not a firm decision but an interesting approach to white, burst and figured wood.

I would start by bleaching the top white, then apply a light black dye, sand back, spray a trans white coat and then burst it with antique white...the back being alder would be antique white as well.

To take it full force, I'm gonna see if I can find a hi res white pearl PG to comp in place of the white one in the mockup.

Not for eveyone but there's something very heavenly, white tiger, white chocolate, white satin about it.



I'm gonna do a test this week and see what develops.

Peace,
Mark

[Stubarber]

Sweet!

[Guitarnut]

The full hot order...including white pearl pickguard and dot markers at the 12th fret...I just placed 2 beacuse that's all I had in the drawer. I could gop with all 10.

Getting a bit too glamorous?



Peace,
Mark

[tgfmike]

Originally Posted by Guitarnut

Getting a bit too glamorous?

It's an acquired taste - and I seem to be acquiring it.

[Stubarber]

All that one would be missing would be bird's eye maple neck and fingerboard . . .
;)

[boris bubbanov]

Originally Posted by Guitarnut

Mint green pickguard, parchment knobs, tips. Off white buttons on the Gotoh tuners.

[RocknDrTom]

I agree with boris - the pearl PG seems to take your eye away from the beautiful wood, and it's just too much going on.

[mgdesigns]

Mark: I have question regarding this build, and it reflects a comment from a guitar owner, whose Strat I ended up buying. He thought that Teles were solid body sound, whereas Strats are not (because the pickups are mounted to the scratchplates, instead of the body). Do you think that having the p/u's mounted to the plastic scratchplate will change the sound?

[Pellwell]

how about making some arm rest- and belly countours? Blend in a lil' mo' of the strat!

[Guitarnut]

Originally Posted by tgfmike

It's an acquired taste - and I seem to be acquiring it.

Thanks! It does sort of grow on you, doesn't it?

Originally Posted by Stubarber

All that one would be missing would be bird's eye maple neck and fingerboard . . .
;)

Thanks! It has a flame maple neck/fretboard...different from the mockup.

Originally Posted by boris bubbanov

Mint green pickguard, parchment knobs, tips. Off white buttons on the Gotoh tuners.

Originally Posted by RocknDrTom

I agree with boris - the pearl PG seems to take your eye away from the beautiful wood, and it's just too much going on.

I see the point you guys are making. I might go with a white PG but it won't be mint green for sure...for me, looking at those has always been like chewing on aluminum foil. It just irks something in me.

Peace,
Mark

[Guitarnut]

Originally Posted by mgdesigns

Mark: I have question regarding this build, and it reflects a comment from a guitar owner, whose Strat I ended up buying. He thought that Teles were solid body sound, whereas Strats are not (because the pickups are mounted to the scratchplates, instead of the body). Do you think that having the p/u's mounted to the plastic scratchplate will change the sound?

I expect this one to have the tonal character of a Strat more than a Tele. I think mostly because of the PUs as you point out. But more than the way they're mounted, it'll be because it will have Strat style PUs...I plan to wind my own on this one and I'll use Strat flatware and bobbins.

Peace,
Mark

[Guitarnut]

Originally Posted by Pellwell

how about making some arm rest- and belly countours? Blend in a lil' mo' of the strat!

My belly already has plenty of countour...don't need it in the guitar too.

Peace,
Mark