Hi i,m Darren and have a few things planned for next year and would like any suggestions and comments please, my aim is to bridge a gap between a full custom build.These are still made by hand but you have the option to set up and finish yourself, all the donkey work is done for you, these are not a cheap kit.
I've been building for the last 5 years and started at merton college, i was on the same course with Tom from feline.
Anyway what i thought would be nice if i start doing good kits people can spec and put together themselves or have a full build.
I'm into vintage stuff so i will be offering proper spec 59 kits plus a 56 and 56 custom, all measurements are from a vintage 56 and have been verified by me through a vintage dealer and 2 56's, these aren't for everyone but if i want a 59 spec i want it right, feel free to ask anything.
Moving on i thought i'd do kits like single and dc juniors, reverse firebird and set neck tele and strat.
I don't like bolt ons so everything is set neck, i don't like bolts in the back.
I do nitro finishing with aniline dies and uv resistent.
I also work with another guy Paul who was at college with us and i do all his finishig too.
Here is a few pics of what i've done at college and after, i'll post some more stuff up as i go along.
I'll also have some demo guitars to play and some you tube clips coming up.
Cheers.
www.danielsguitars.co.uk
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One of the reasons i did my own personal 59 style is to find out if new honduran is as good as old honduran or old african for that matter, i'm into tone testing and rather than read about it i like to find out for myself, plan is to build 3 or 4 that people can try with honduran, african and the mysterious old growth, fretboards will be madagascan, amazon and brazilian.
I weigh all my wood before and after cutting so i know what a final weight will roughly be and i aim for around 8.5lb for a 59 style.
The idea with a custom kit is to pick and choose what wood for body and neck, different fretboards, if you wanted a different scale on say a junior style not a problem, hot hide glue.
i'll have a few things people can try limba and mahogany junior style, you might want a maple neck, you get the idea, any sugestions on pickup choice would be good, for a reverse firebird style i was thinking 2 p90's but a hss style might be good to.
I think most people want something familiar but also something they can't get, binding and or purfling on a junior or tele, bound fretboards etc.
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All this stuff are just ideas really, I can do fully built and ready to finish, or a kit in parts you glue together, set up etc and maybe send back to me for a nitro finish, I just think there isn't anything over here like precision guitar kits, although mine are built by hand and not cnc'd so cost is higher but wood will be better.
Also you could choose honduran over african for mahogany but it's more expensive.
I haven't worked out costs yet but it'll be alot lower than a full on custom build.
The other thing I might do is fully built and aged like a tv yellow aged jr style, it all depends on what you want.
If people can post up ideas of what they want and how much work they want to do if any, what do you guys think is a reasonable amount to charge or prepared to pay.
Thanks.
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If you take say a feline junior at £1600 bottom of the range, I would think if I can get in the 1k range that would be good for a fully built but unfinished guitar, full carved top is more though plus you can have me do a nitro finish for extra, I'll probably be doing ageing if wanted, there's alot more to come yet.
You also get to pick the wood and I'll give a rough final weight, I only use really good wood.
I'm not interested in set ups but I might do nitro finishes for people, alot depends on how busy things get.
The reason for doing set necks is everybody does a bolt on, I'm using an overhead router so doing set necks is ok for me, I think a long tenon set neck is one of the best joints too, I don't like seeing bolts from a finishing point of view, they're ugly to me.
I don't really like strats but Paul's got a set neck one he's doing and I really like it, I'll get some pics up.
I'm interested in offering a high end alternative to the full custom build.
Cheers.
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Once I've got some stuff out the way I'll be talking to you again.
I've got a limba tele body cut out so doing something like that to try is no problem, I've never been keen on single coils either so might put p90's in it, it's having a burst too, I was thinking about carved top tele's.
Any other suggestions welcome.
Cheers Darren.
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