COMPLETED -- $100 Telecaster Challenge - Palletcaster

[Mike Simpson]

I finished routing on the body and drilled the wiring holes, It just needs a little sanding and it is ready for finish.

I went over to Maricopa's house and he let me use his fret slotting saw and jig. Also in this pic is the piece of maple I bought from Home depot a few years ago to make a 6 string neck for a banjo and this was the left over. I am going to use a 5/16 square bar epoxied in the neck instead of an adjustable truss rod.

Here is my template that I made by copying the Allparts neck in the middle of the pic and here you can see the neck blank has the steel bar epoxied in and the blank is rough cut to shape.

 

[bobthecanadian]

This is awesome! I particularly like the copper hardware.

 

[Mike Simpson]

Pine Palletcaster in Sonic Blonde (or is it Daphne Blonde?) with Paua dots.

I still need to profile the back of the neck and add some coats of clear over the next two days.

 

[Parma_TeleMon]

Lookin' good! Can't wait to see the finished product!

 

[Maricopa]

I still think you should have left it 'Natural Pallet', but that looks great Mike.

Ended up being a good lookin' piece of neck there.

 

[brewwagon]

the ultimate "recycler" tele




brewws

 

[chiro972]

So is this your first attempt at routing? I have been thinking about getting one and trying this kind of stuff, but I have never had my hands on one and am a little scared of the stories I have read here about mishaps with routers.

 

[Mike Simpson]

I decided to use a atandard size bridge and save the half bridge for something else later so I had to make another copper bridge. I made a copper bridge pickup base plate out of copper too.

 

[Mike Simpson]

Also here is a shot of the back of the neck with some finish on it.

 

[Mike Simpson]

I am liking the black pick guard with the Daphne Blonde and copper... Whadda y'all'uns think?

I might make a black leather one and save the allparts 1 ply in the pic for another project.

 

[martino]

I made the hardware from some copper scraps left over from the motorcycle gas tank project.

I should have called it the coppertone-caster...

How did you cut the slot in the control plate ? ? ?

 

[Mike Simpson]

I drilled a little hole at each end of the slot and then cut between the holes with a little disc on a dremel tool.

 

[Parma_TeleMon]

I am liking the black pick guard with the Daphne Blonde and copper... Whadda y'all'uns think?

I like the color scheme. Looks great with the copper parts.

 

[robt57]

Better use a liner/gasket under the neck plate with that soft of a metal for the plate.

The copper looks great!

 

[Mark-00255]

Also here is a shot of the back of the neck with some finish on it.

Nice! That neck went from rough cut to awesome in a heartbeat!

 

[iansmitchell]

Wait a sec, so not only did you fashion your own body, neck and hardware, but the pickup too?

 

[RodeoTex]

Great looking work there Big Mike. I think you need to give us a little lesson and forming that bridge plate - if you have time.

 

[Mike Simpson]

Wait a sec, so not only did you fashion your own body, neck and hardware, but the pickup too?

Ian, The pickup I bought on ebay, it is supposed to be out of a 50's classic. I made a base plate for the pickup out of copper and I made the bridge out of copper.

RodeoTex, to make the bridge I out a fender bridge on top of the copper and scribed a line around it and marked all the holes. Then I center punched all the holes (except the 3 in the back lip) and drilled them all on a drill press. I clamped the copper between a piece of wood and the table and bent the sides over with a brass hammer. I cut out the pickup slot by drilling a series of 1/8 holes around the outside and then cut through the holes with a dremel cut off wheel and smoothed the inside of the slot with a dremel sanding drum and a file. I drilled the intonation holes last. Then I silver soldered the corners and filed it all smooth then went over it with a scotch brite pad.

 

[robt57]

In my minds eye I just saw an anaconda PG with that copper hardware.
Probably a budget buster though....

OR Brown Tortoiseshell perhaps...






OR

 

[Mike Simpson]

Ya I will probably still make a leather pickguard and dye it black.