* velcro-fly *
Well-known member
For sure but I gotta say the stain / dye / wipe on poly route is super easy and you can get some wild results. BTW that Tele of yours is freaking awesome!
Partscaster Pros....
- Thread starter japetus
- Start date
LP Freak
Well-known member
Thanks brother. I was considering putting it up for sale if anyone’s interested. Make me an offer
Rick Lee
Well-known member
This has been a work in progress for a long time, but I just finished it. Kramer Focus 3000 body, Musikraft neck made to my specs (birdseye maple, D-shape, abalone markers), Hipshot tuners, old Kramer Floyd Rose and the pickup - get this - Jalen built me a clone of the EVH Frankenstein with four conductor wire for coil splitting and clear bobbins. Pot is 500k push/pull. Totally slays.
partscaster_final
partscaster_final
SpiderWars
Well-known member
This is almost the exact same thing...Kramer Focus 3000 body, original Floyd, MusiKraft neck...even down to the Jalen bridge pickup (this one is a Hybrid). I bought the Kramer new in the mid 80's.
LP Freak
Well-known member
One piece of advice I will give is I’d suggest getting the body and neck from the same manufacturer for the best fit. There’s a chance you could run into issues if you don’t. It’s not usually things you can’t remedy but sometimes it can take some work. Other than some slight fretwork which is to be expected, every Warmoth I’ve built was perfect
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I dig this guitar!!!My most recent body with a Warmoth neck I've had for several years. The body is Sassafras (ebay) and this particular build came out stellar. It sounds/plays/feels killer! I had a MusiKraft neck being built for this but I don't want to even mess with this one it's so good as it is. And the neck was TIGHT in that pocket. I don't even want to separate them.
'Thin skin nitro'. You can still see the grain.
Looks nice and buttery’.
RAD line-up with the ‘90 in the ass end’.
I bet we like similar women!! LTFOL!
scriptphase
Active member
OP, I swear I’m not a believer in guitar tone mojo, and my mantra has always been if it sounds good it is good, but there are a specific set of specs on a Strat that more often than not has led to better traditional Strat sounds for me over other configurations. This isn’t just for fenders, but for other brands and partscasters as well.
Basically put: traditional Strat specs… Warts and all.
1 - Single acting truss rod.
Hate to recommend that, as it’s an inferior design to what’s available nowadays. Damned if the best sounding Strat necks I’ve had weren’t single acting truss rod, though.
2 - Rosewood veneer fingerboard instead of slab.
Fender made both veneer and slab fretboards, but my best rosewood necks were always veneer. No idea why, but it is what it is.
3 - Traditional six screw bridge
As an example, the Scott Henderson Suhr is the most “Stratty” sounding Suhr and I think this is because of the six screw bridge.
Opinions go all over the place about how tuners contribute to Strat tone. Some people like more mass on the headstock so they’re fine with heavier, better performing tuners (I get that vibe from Cory Wong’s interviews), but Bill Nash swore to me that the lightness of the Kluson-style tuners made a Strat copy sound more Fender-ish.
All of this stuff is head scratching to me. Don’t understand the physics behind it or know why it matters, but it’s been too consistent a pattern with the guitars I’ve owed not to make a difference.
Basically put: traditional Strat specs… Warts and all.
1 - Single acting truss rod.
Hate to recommend that, as it’s an inferior design to what’s available nowadays. Damned if the best sounding Strat necks I’ve had weren’t single acting truss rod, though.
2 - Rosewood veneer fingerboard instead of slab.
Fender made both veneer and slab fretboards, but my best rosewood necks were always veneer. No idea why, but it is what it is.
3 - Traditional six screw bridge
As an example, the Scott Henderson Suhr is the most “Stratty” sounding Suhr and I think this is because of the six screw bridge.
Opinions go all over the place about how tuners contribute to Strat tone. Some people like more mass on the headstock so they’re fine with heavier, better performing tuners (I get that vibe from Cory Wong’s interviews), but Bill Nash swore to me that the lightness of the Kluson-style tuners made a Strat copy sound more Fender-ish.
All of this stuff is head scratching to me. Don’t understand the physics behind it or know why it matters, but it’s been too consistent a pattern with the guitars I’ve owed not to make a difference.
Rick Lee
Well-known member
This is almost the exact same thing...Kramer Focus 3000 body, original Floyd, MusiKraft neck...even down to the Jalen bridge pickup (this one is a Hybrid). I bought the Kramer new in the mid 80's.
Looks fantastic. I'm doing a Hentor Sportscaster build for my Rush tribute and your Kramer is kind of close to what I'm thinking. Might go with the white one from the Exit Stage Left video or the red one from the Distant Early Warning video.
LP Freak
Well-known member
Yea, I’ll stick to the stuff made here in the good old USA
rstites
Well-known member
Given that you aren't concerned with appearance/looks, one thing worth considering is purchasing the body, and possibly neck, second hand. That saves some money, but also gives you the ability to flip and try again with a dud. I've had a lot of luck over the years of buying someone else's project and finishing it. When I get a dud, I can just flip it again.
I wouldn't say that if you wanted a specific color or fancy grain or something, but standard alder strat body and rosewood board neck is extremely common. Anyhow, just an idea...
Briman24
Well-known member
Their made in Canada about à 1 hour drive from USA! Right where RT mods and Morris amps are done.Yea, I’ll stick to the stuff made here in the good old USA
LP Freak
Well-known member
You sure about that? I’m pretty sure they are made overseas and sold in Canada
Briman24
Well-known member
I bought one of their necks last year and it was as good as any of my warmoth necks and it had stainless steel frets! They told me was made in Canada. I will look into it to see if i can find out if what you're saying is true.
Briman24
Well-known member
After looking on forums etc, there are mixed reviews on the fretwork of Northern Redfish. I can't find concrete answer if they are made in Canada or imported and sold from Canada. So i sent an email to Redfish asking that specific question.
Maybe what your saying is true and i got really lucky with my neck?
Jason_86_951
Member
Built the body (limba/maple) from scratch years ago, but just finished up installing a new Parklane neck and Thorn humbuckers. Turned out pretty damn good, still needs a bit of tweaking, but real close. The one hanging on the wall is the same body shape, but semi-hollow (ash/maple) and has a 27" neck.
PDC
Well-known member
I have slapped SO MANY guitars together over the years. I‘ve used equal parts Musikraft and Warmoth Parts. IMHO, both companies build remarkably fine, accurate parts. Some of my builds turned out ‘meh…’ Some have turned out astounding. Not sure what it is - luck of the draw, maybe? But it‘s always a lot of fun, and my least satisfying builds are still better than 80% of what anyone might pull off the wall ant any GC from coast to coast.
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bikerdude2
Well-known member
Funny you say that! I bought something recently for that very reason! Lmao! Take your time and research what you think will
Be a good combo for the tone you want. If it’s old school traditional, it’ll be hard to beat a old fender Strat. That would be my recipe right down to the materials used on the bridge, saddles, etc. looking forward to seeing build pics
