NGD First Warmoth Build

[rcm78]

My first Warmoth build. Here are all the parts laid out.



Here is the finished guitar



Nice shot of the body



Hipshot open gear locking tuners



Specs:
Warmoth Chambered Strat Body
Mahogany with Quilted Maple top
Heel Contour, Belly Contour, Arm Contour
Wilkinson VS100 bridge
DiMarzio AT-1 bridge pickup
DiMarzio 36th Ann bridge pickup in the neck position
CTS500k volume pot
Switchcraft 3-way toggle

Warmoth Vintage Modern neck
Mahogany shaft with Ebony fretboard
10"-16" compound radius
Wolfgang profile
6105 Stainless frets
Graphtech TUSK nut
Hipshot open gear locking tuners

For my first build it went pretty painless. Got it all together and strung up in one night. Let it settle in for about a week tweaking in the truss rod. Fretwork feels great and I didn't notice any high spots with my 6" straight edge. Action is 1.5mm off the 12th fret at the high E and 2mm at the low E. There's a bit of rattle from the strings above the 12th fret but it's very minor. I'm sure Warmoth doesn't build any fallaway into their necks.

Sounds great. I'm new to the AT-1 and so far I'm diggin it. Lots of mids probably due to all the mahogany in the guitar too. Nice smooth high's, and the lows are a bit tighter then the Tone Zone I have in another guitar.
The 36th ann bridge pickup is a bit hotter then the neck version so I chose that for the neck. It's working very well. Funky clean stuff is very clear but there's enough output for fluid solos in the neck position. Pretty good pickup combo for a shot in the dark.

I'm going to play it for about a month and then send it down to Philtone to get the fretboard edges rolled and a PLEK job. That should take care of the rattle high up on the neck.

Overall a great experience!!! I'll probably build a few more down the road!!!

 

[jinch0]

I'm on the fence for 24 fret soloist one,but I heard issues with the access on the higher frets.

 

[mystixboi]

Great job. Enjoy

 

[Kelly]

Really nice. Looks like the way to go for my next guitar. I have the AT-1 in my PRS. It's a great pickup.

 

[Death by Uberschall]

I'm on the fence for 24 fret soloist one,but I heard issues with the access on the higher frets.

What ever you heard was a lie, no access problems at all.

These Warmoth Soloist are mine and all three are 24 frets. First two are carve tops, the 3rd one if a flat top.

 

[crankyrayhanky]

Wow! Great looking axes

 

[glpg80]

WOW that guitar turned out great

how are you liking the VS100? looking to get one soon for my new strat and wondering about feel/build quality. what size trem block do they come with?

 

[Kapo_Polenton]

What was your final $ cost all in?

 

[rcm78]

WOW that guitar turned out great

how are you liking the VS100? looking to get one soon for my new strat and wondering about feel/build quality. what size trem block do they come with?

The bridge is super smooth. There is no play at all in the bar and it returns to pitch just fine. It was also a no brainer to set up. Set the string height with the pivot screws, then set the radius by raising the inside four saddles. Set the intonation with the screw at the rear of each saddle. Once everything is set each saddle gets locked down to the baseplate with an allen screw. It's a rock solid bridge. I dont know what size the block is...

 

[rcm78]

What was your final $ cost all in?

I'm at $1200 and change. The body was a showcase body, and the neck was a custom build. Would've been a couple bucks less if I found a showcase neck.

 

[sixstringking713]

Wow that looks sick! I'm digging the blue and natural wood showing on the edge!

I built a warmoth guitar a few years ago and it's my main guitar still. Overall was very happy with the purchase but i ended up not liking the neck over time. The neck on the guitar as it sits right now is a muikraft neck. I'm probably going to buy another musikraft neck in the near future for my other main guitar.

I will probably never buy an "off-the-shelf" guitar again...

 

[chobley]

Very nice..I really enjoyed my first warmoth build..I did have to get a fret file for the edges though..

 

[Pastor of Muppets]

How do you like the pickups? Always wondered about the 36th anni.

 

[rcm78]

How do you like the pickups? Always wondered about the 36th anni.

I have the 36th Ann bridge in a Jackson PC-1 and the Bridge/Neck set in a Washburn N4.

I really like them a lot!!! They can be bright if you're used to high output pickups but they are very balanced. Very good sustain and harmonics.

The AT-1 is hot. The first thing I noticed is the breakup is much faster. Hard to explain. I hear the same difference when compairing most speakers to a good greenback. You get that nice chewy fast breakup. The low end is also tight. I have another guitar with a Tone Zone and that can get a bit loose. The AT-1 has decent lowend response but stays tight.

So far I'm diggin it.

 

[jinch0]

I'm on the fence for 24 fret soloist one,but I heard issues with the access on the higher frets.

What ever you heard was a lie, no access problems at all.

These Warmoth Soloist are mine and all three are 24 frets. First two are carve tops, the 3rd one if a flat top.

thanks for the input!!! are any of those 7/8 s-style

 

[Death by Uberschall]

I'm on the fence for 24 fret soloist one,but I heard issues with the access on the higher frets.

What ever you heard was a lie, no access problems at all.

These Warmoth Soloist are mine and all three are 24 frets. First two are carve tops, the 3rd one if a flat top.

thanks for the input!!! are any of those 7/8 s-style

No 7/8th, all full sized.