software

It all started with this thread:
from : localhost//forum/s...ad.php?t=48351

That Les Paul brought back a lot of great memories for me. My grandfather (whose initials were GRP) owned a '62 Chrysler that he kept in his barn. It had a very cool colour that you don't really see on cars these days - a metallic light blue, which I have learned is called quot;Glacier Bluequot;. In addition to the car, Grandpa owned an Anjo LP clone painted in the same colour, as well as a violin. I came to call this quot;Grandpa's colourquot;, because as a child I identified it strongly with him.

My Grandpa was the only grandfather I ever knew (my mom's father passed away long before I was born), and I loved him dearly. He loved country and bluegrass music, and he used to quot;jamquot; with me and my sister when we were little. I would play the washboard while he sang and played that Anjo. When I got older and started playing myself, he would let me play the old thing. At the time I was more into classic rock/grunge (who wasn't back then?), but I managed to crank out some respectable blues licks on that Anjo through his solid state amp. It wasn't the greatest guitar technically speaking, but man did it have a cool vibe. It's one of those instruments that seems to magnetically attract you to it and want to play it.

When he passed away in February 2004, it was decided that the guitar would go to my uncle, because he wanted to learn how to play it. At first I was a bit pissed since I had such a deep history with it, but I realized the following things:

1. I already had two electrics at this point, both of higher quality than the Anjo, so it was pretty unlikely I would ever use it seriously.
2. I play left-handed, and this is a right-handed guitar

I told my father (who was in charge of the estate) not to put up a fight if Uncle Fred really intended to play it. I was given Grandpa's harmonica, and have been making a decent effort at learning that.

Anyway, I have recently come into some extra money, and I have been jonesing for a dual hum guitar for a while now. After seeing the thread posted above, I decided what I want to do: build a left-handed LP clone in the same vein as Grandpa's Anjo.

The specs I have decided on are in the next post.

Anyway, here are my specifications for the instrument, subject to change of course (I am like a woman in that I can't make a firm decision to save my life):

BODY: Warmoth Carved-Top LP
Core Wood: chambered (hollow) mahogany
Top Wood: Flame maple
Binding: none
Control routing: Strat-style (blade switch amp; 3 knobs)

NECK: Warmoth Pro with LP headstock
Shaft Wood: Mahogany or Korina
Fretboard Wood: Ebony
Peghead veneer: Flame Walnut
Inlays: none (side markers only)
Binding: cream
Back Contour: '59 Roundback
Radius: Compound (10-16quot;)
Frets: Stainless Steel SS6115

HARDWARE:
Bridge: Gotoh Stop/Tune-o
Tuners: Grover locking
Knobs: chrome dome

PICKUPS/ELECTRONICS
Bridge Pickup: SD Custom 5 w. nickel cover
Neck Pickup: SD '59 w. nickel cover
Switch: 3 pos. blade (neck,both,bridge)
1st knob: 500k concentric pots (like an old Jazz bass), outside volume, inside tone (.022 uf)
2nd knob: 500k no-load push-pull for series spin-a-split on the neck, push-pull switches neck to parallel
3rd knob same as above, but for bridge
(thanks Artie for the wiring diagram for this!)

FINISH
Body: I will be doing the Glacier Blue Chrysler colour on the body, except I want a quot;naturalquot; binding effect, like a PRS. High-gloss automotive clearcoat finish.
Neck: Glacier Blue on the back, natural on the peghead front. Light satin clearcoat finish, like the neck on my USA Strat.

I think that covers it.

Oh, and I will be making a little website to document this project as I go. It's my first guitar build, so it should be pretty interesting.

Also, please forgive the long rambling posts. This is very important to me, and I wanted to share it. Thanks for reading.

Sounds great!

I also like that colour... Looks cool for some reason.

if it was me, the neck would be bare and sanded down to #0000 with wire wool... i cant stand painted necks!

and have you considered jazz instead of the '59? depends what you're after, but i much prefer the jazz in the neck with mahogany..

tom

i thought this was going to be about the music label that had some of the best sounding instrumental CDs of the 80's but then swerved to become a smooth jazz softy label

good luck with the project
t4d


Originally Posted by Impif it was me, the neck would be bare and sanded down to #0000 with wire wool... i cant stand painted necks!

Funny you mention that: I'm planning on sanding the finish off the neck of my Number One Strat for that lovely feel you get. The neck ain't that great anyway, so I am not too scared of wrecking the guitar.

My reasons for not doing it on this guitar are:

1. Warmoth wants a finish on there if I want warranty service
2. Mahogany is fairly open grain wood, and as such is more unstable with regards to temperature and humidity. Not only do I sweat a lot when I play live, but I also live in a weird climate where the temperature and humidity change frequently.
3. I like painted necks on Gibson-style guitars ... I'm not really a vintage purist, but it just seems right somehow.

I would like the same satin poly my USA Strat has. It's not as fast as no finish, but it is MUCH faster than the high gloss poly you find on most necks. Hopefully I can get that to work and still have the colour on the neck. We'll see.

and have you considered jazz instead of the '59? depends what you're after, but i much prefer the jazz in the neck with mahogany..

I'm not ordering the pickups until everything else is set up, so they're not set in stone. I may change my mind by then, who knows. I am looking for pretty decent output from this thing, and the Jazz's relatively low output turned me off a bit. The other neck humbuckers I was considering were the Pearly Gates and the Seth, but I think the 59 will work better in this guitar.

Sounds like fun man. I'm waiting for my projects parts to arrive. I'll be sure to pass on anything I learn while building mine.