Mary Kaye Baja Esquire II: Electric Boogaloo

tlsmack · May 18th, 2008, 08:09 PM

After several false starts, here is the Mary Kaye Baja Esquire:

Musikraft Mary Kaye Blonde Nitro 2pc. Swampash Body - 4lb 4oz.

Baja Tele neck - I paid a bunch on Ebay, but they ain't easy to find.

Glendale Double Cut Retro Finish Bridge w/comp Brass Saddles.

Callaham Wired Esquire control plate w/domed knobs.

GFS Alnico 50's pickup

Elixir .052-.010 Nanoweb

I've been playing it all day through my Rivera Clubster 25 ( no one is home but me, so I unhooked the mini-mass for the first time in months!) . This guitar has major mojo, tons of bass- the .052's really rumble and the GFS has a nice little feedback to it when overdriven. Does a great "Jumping Jack Flash." Plus it feels about half the weight of my alder AmStnd.

Notice no strap buttons - I may try some Dunlop Flush Mount straplocks down the road, but for now it's an indoor kitty and I like the clean look.

giginthesky · May 18th, 2008, 08:20 PM

beautiful!

downeastboy · May 18th, 2008, 08:23 PM

Great lookin' tele, tlsmack! Nice job!

Del Pickup · May 18th, 2008, 08:33 PM

Very nice!

Cole · May 18th, 2008, 08:36 PM

very nice! You do the finish on the body?

tlsmack · May 18th, 2008, 08:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cole

very nice! You do the finish on the body?

Nope, that's a Musikraft Mary Kaye Hi Gloss Nitro finish.

trag-o-caster · May 18th, 2008, 08:50 PM

Very nice! I'm drooling on the keyboard.

NEPATelecaster · May 18th, 2008, 08:51 PM

Nice grain on the back...

boris bubbanov · May 18th, 2008, 09:13 PM

That turned out excellent.

So glad you went ahead and got the job done to your satisfaction.

Nuttin' rong with those Baja necks.

tlsmack · May 18th, 2008, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boris bubbanov

That turned out excellent.

So glad you went ahead and got the job done to your satisfaction.

Nuttin' rong with those Baja necks.

The Baja neck is what started the whole project. I a few played Baja's at GC, loved the feel, but wanted a lighter body and didn't like the Fender finishes too much.

Once again ,thanks to Jim at Jamerson/ Musikraft for helping resolve some issues and get this baby built. My AmStnd is going to be gathering dust while I break in my new Esquire.

gmann · May 18th, 2008, 10:11 PM

Beautiful guitar! How do you like those Elixers? I use 'em on my National and my Martin but have never used them on an electric.

tlsmack · May 18th, 2008, 10:45 PM

I like the Elixirs a lot. This is my first set of .052's and they feel great. The coating helps me slide around the fretboard smoothly as well as lasting 2- 3 times longer than uncoated strings. The bass strings really boom on this setup.

May 18th, 2008, 08:09 PM	#1 (permalink)
tlsmack Tele-Meister Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Lonk I-lant, New York Posts: 359 42 Photos	Mary Kaye Baja Esquire II: Electric Boogaloo After several false starts, here is the Mary Kaye Baja Esquire: Musikraft Mary Kaye Blonde Nitro 2pc. Swampash Body - 4lb 4oz. Baja Tele neck - I paid a bunch on Ebay, but they ain't easy to find. Glendale Double Cut Retro Finish Bridge w/comp Brass Saddles. Callaham Wired Esquire control plate w/domed knobs. GFS Alnico 50's pickup Elixir .052-.010 Nanoweb I've been playing it all day through my Rivera Clubster 25 ( no one is home but me, so I unhooked the mini-mass for the first time in months!) . This guitar has major mojo, tons of bass- the .052's really rumble and the GFS has a nice little feedback to it when overdriven. Does a great "Jumping Jack Flash." Plus it feels about half the weight of my alder AmStnd. Notice no strap buttons - I may try some Dunlop Flush Mount straplocks down the road, but for now it's an indoor kitty and I like the clean look.

May 18th, 2008, 08:36 PM	#5 (permalink)
Cole Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Louisville KY Age: 57 Posts: 172	very nice! You do the finish on the body? __________________ ~Cole Cole's website Cole's MySpace "The only currency we have is influential communication."

May 18th, 2008, 08:50 PM	#7 (permalink)
trag-o-caster Friend of Leo's Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Flushing, Michigan Posts: 4,438	Very nice! I'm drooling on the keyboard. __________________ Timothy Jon Lamb

May 18th, 2008, 09:13 PM	#9 (permalink)
boris bubbanov Poster Extraordinaire Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: New Orleans, LA + in the past Posts: 7,144	That turned out excellent. So glad you went ahead and got the job done to your satisfaction. Nuttin' rong with those Baja necks. __________________ Bubban0v

May 18th, 2008, 08:20 PM	#2 (permalink)
giginthesky Tele-Holic Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: south jersey Age: 36 Posts: 984 6 Photos	beautiful!

May 18th, 2008, 08:23 PM	#3 (permalink)
downeastboy TDPRI Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Raleigh, NC Age: 56 Posts: 69	Great lookin' tele, tlsmack! Nice job!

May 18th, 2008, 08:33 PM	#4 (permalink)
Del Pickup Tele-Meister Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: New Zealand Posts: 378 5 Photos	Very nice!

May 18th, 2008, 08:51 PM	#8 (permalink)
NEPATelecaster Tele-Holic Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Archbald - NEAR Scranton PA Age: 34 Posts: 976	Nice grain on the back...

May 18th, 2008, 10:11 PM	#11 (permalink)
gmann TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Okinawa, Japan Age: 54 Posts: 56	Beautiful guitar! How do you like those Elixers? I use 'em on my National and my Martin but have never used them on an electric.

May 18th, 2008, 10:45 PM	#12 (permalink)
tlsmack Tele-Meister Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Lonk I-lant, New York Posts: 359 42 Photos	I like the Elixirs a lot. This is my first set of .052's and they feel great. The coating helps me slide around the fretboard smoothly as well as lasting 2- 3 times longer than uncoated strings. The bass strings really boom on this setup.