Jaden Rose kit build (thanks, Royal Mail....)

digitalscream

JMP220478 said:

good save despite PF's  bast  efforts .. whats your hardware of choice ? and will you add the logo ?

I'm mostly using Jaden's Series 2 hardware. There's a Graphtech nut and locking tuners, but the rest of it is the vanilla stuff he used to use on his S2 guitars, because I actually really like it all (despite its cheapness, it's actually all pretty high-quality - and I like the light action of the pots and the switch). The pickups are pretty good too, in a DiMarzio-like way.

I probably won't add the logo, at least not yet. While I'm reasonably happy with the finish, it's not up to his standards (obviously), and I don't want to tarnish the name with my hamfisted attempt.

randella

digitalscream said:

randella said:

That's going to be a nice looking guitar.

And another upvote for the crack repair, I genuinely had to look twice at the 'after' photo to see where it was.  Did you have to force the crack wider to get some glue in there?

Yes, which was extremely nerve-wracking, not least because it's a really thin body. I cut a 5mm x 50mm strip of thin plastic from the packaging of some glue sticks, splodged some wood glue across the crack, applied some elbow grease to open it up a bit and then pushed the glue into the crack as far as it would go from all angles.

Then stuck a block of wood either side and clamped it overnight. If I'd thought about it a bit more, I'd have put some greaseproof paper between the back of the body and the wood block, because it stuck to it a bit when the glue squeezed out of the rear crack (fnar); nothing particularly bad, though, and easily cleaned up once removed.

Good stuff, I imagine that wasn't fun.  Result in the end though.

I've done the same thing when clamping work with blocks of wood only to have to knock them away with a mallet and clean up after.  I actually have several blocks now which I've planed true and covered in packing tape just for the purpose of clamping.

This is how rock and roll my life is these days  

Roland

randella said:

This is how rock and roll my life is these days  

It’s called “expertise”

randella

Roland said:

randella said:

This is how rock and roll my life is these days  

It’s called “expertise”

Not a word you'd have used if you'd have seen the "toddler set loose with the Titebond" experiments that led to me gaining that bit of knowledge.

As re. the OP's guitar - I have an old Fender HM Strat, a short-lived experiment of theirs in the 80's before they gave up and just bought Charvel.  I managed to put a very similar crack it once when I dropped it (accident, *not* rock and roll) and it hit the deck not quite flat on its back.

The crack in this case started where yours did but from the lower (treble) side of the neck and ran halfway down the body.  My dad fixed that one for me, in exactly the same way as you did yours.  It's held up ever since, rock-solid - I've taken the guitar on the plane and played gigs with quite a few times now.  The crack has never shifted, despite the fact I repainted the body in thin cellulose a couple of years ago which I'm sure would show any movement.

Hopefully that gives you a bit of faith anyway.

Funkfingers

digitalscream said:

Funkfingers said:

This Discussion has reminded me that I have a Jaden RG-inspired body stashed away. I ought to order a neck to fit it.

Give him a shout

I did.

digitalscream said:
he might have a spare neck lying around

He didn't. Instead, he pointed out that an RG550/560 OSNJ 24 fret neck will fit exactly.

Ideally, I would want something with that neck joint shape but a deeper-than-shred-stick profile. 

digitalscream

Ah, OK. Well...Warmoth might be your best bet? You might have to reshape it near the heel, but I'm sure you could get one of their Ibby-style necks with a thicker profile.

ICBM

Funkfingers said:

Ideally, I would want something with that neck joint shape but a deeper-than-shred-stick profile. 

JEMs have thicker necks than RGs - I’m not sure if the cheaper ones do.

There’s a cheap Ibanez neck in the shop I work for, not sure what model but it’s an RG-style guitar of some sort... I can find out if you like.

Funkfingers

ICBM said:

There’s a cheap Ibanez neck in the shop I work for, not sure what model but it’s an RG-style guitar of some sort. I can find out if you like.

Yes, please. Photographs would probably answer my questions more quickly than words.

digitalscream said:

Warmoth might be your best bet ... I'm sure you could get one of their Ibby-style necks with a thicker profile.

Good call.




THINKS: Does Graham "GSP" Pollard make anything in this vein?

digitalscream

OK, lots of progress today:





Had to cut a slot in the end of the neck so that the pickup ring fit in the right place, just under the fretboard, and then had to cut the pickup screws down to size to fit in the cavity (thank you, Sabrecut Dremel-alike).

Also had to deal with this happening:



That wasn't much fun, I can tell you.

The nut's now slotted right - first time I've done that successfully, so yay me (I only screwed one up). It's now playable, just needs the intonation adjusting a tiny bit and I might end up raising the action a touch.

Jobs left to do:

- Intonation
- A light setup
- Copper foil in the control cavity
- Electronics
- Mount the jack socket and strap buttons

Bonus job:

- Take everything apart again because I forgot the earth wire on the bridge

Should have it done by the time I go to bed

TTony

Don't forget the earth wire from the bridge.

[edit]
I have done the same myself, though *after* I'd tapped the  bushings into the holes (for a wraparound) where there were nice tight fits.  Fixed it without taking them out too!

digitalscream

Right, it's all put together - no photos at the mo, 'cos I finished it last night and this morning I had to do a code release for work.

I'll sort that later.

There's a minor bug with the electronics, which I suspect is something being grounded when it shouldn't be. The kind of thing where it's probably easier to start again rather than try to figure it out...

Aside from that, my late-night clumsiness has resulted in a couple of very minor dings already! Not to worry, though, because it's going to pick up plenty of those and that's why I like stained/oil finishes anyway - they wear battle scars much better IMO.

Anyway, it's a bloody lovely guitar - plays brilliantly, and the neck profile is almost exactly the same as the unicorn Series 2 (the first guitar I had from Jaden). Not only is it nostalgic in the extreme, but it's also shaping up to be my #1.

Oh, and it's light as anything

digitalscream

Okay, the finished article (apologies for the dog hair, Coco's blowing her coat)...







Yes, there are a couple of scratches here and there already. They seem to show up more in the photos than in real life, but...meh, I don't mind - they're gonna happen anyway, 'cos I like my guitars to have a lived-in feel to them.

Ain't that neck gorgeous, though?

Only issue at the moment is that the L500XL bridge pickup is much taller than the stock pickups, which I hadn't accounted for. There's about 1mm of clearance on the treble side despite my best efforts, so I'm going to have to endeepen the cavity to make it a bit more reasonable. There's about 10mm of wood between the cavity and the back, so I reckon I can probably take another 5mm out without causing any problems.

TTony

I can understand why you might have tea making facilities in your workshop ... but why have you got a box of eggs in there too??



Go very carefully with the router in the pickup cavity ...

DrBob

Can I ask a question about the L500XL.
Does it have “legs” that sit lower than the baseplate for the mounting screws like on a regular humbucker or are they flat like on an EMG ?
I’ve got a guitar routed for the EMG type but I’d like to put a different type of pickup in it and looking at pucks of L500’s you can’t tell as the wrap the cables around the lugs.
Guitar is looking killer btw. I’ve been talking to Jaden about following your lead, just pondering options 

digitalscream

DrBob said:

Can I ask a question about the L500XL.
Does it have “legs” that sit lower than the baseplate for the mounting screws like on a regular humbucker or are they flat like on an EMG ?
I’ve got a guitar routed for the EMG type but I’d like to put a different type of pickup in it and looking at pucks of L500’s you can’t tell as the wrap the cables around the lugs.

No, no legs - it's a sealed unit. At least, this one is (with the chrome surround).

DrBob said:

Guitar is looking killer btw. I’ve been talking to Jaden about following your lead, just pondering options 

Go for it. Honestly, this is the joint-best guitar I own (along with the lightweight Tele he did for me), but the fact that I managed to put it together myself without screwing the pooch puts it over the top into #1 position

EDIT: Oh, and for what it's worth...this one has all the cheap Series 2 hardware on it (with the exception of the slightly-upgraded locking tuners), and it's all bloody good - doesn't feel cheap at all.

digitalscream

TTony said:

I can understand why you might have tea making facilities in your workshop ... but why have you got a box of eggs in there too??

Everyone gets the munchies on occasion, and I make a mean omelette.

TTony said:

Go very carefully with the router in the pickup cavity ...

Therein lies the problem - I'm not massively keen on taking the whole thing apart again, and I also don't want to damage the finish, so I'm left to wonder if there's an argument to be made for eyeballing/freehanding it with a Dremel...

steamabacus

digitalscream said:

Only issue at the moment is that the L500XL bridge pickup is much taller than the stock pickups, which I hadn't accounted for. There's about 1mm of clearance on the treble side despite my best efforts, so I'm going to have to endeepen the cavity to make it a bit more reasonable. There's about 10mm of wood between the cavity and the back, so I reckon I can probably take another 5mm out without causing any problems.

Would simply shimming the neck and raising the saddles a bit give you enough clearance?

digitalscream

steamabacus said:

digitalscream said:

Only issue at the moment is that the L500XL bridge pickup is much taller than the stock pickups, which I hadn't accounted for. There's about 1mm of clearance on the treble side despite my best efforts, so I'm going to have to endeepen the cavity to make it a bit more reasonable. There's about 10mm of wood between the cavity and the back, so I reckon I can probably take another 5mm out without causing any problems.

Would simply shimming the neck and raising the saddles a bit give you enough clearance?

Possibly, but the sheer tallness of the L500XL looks ugly to me, so I'd rather just make the cavity deeper. If, of course, I can do it without ripping a hole in the back of the guitar

Roland

digitalscream said:

Therein lies the problem - I'm not massively keen on taking the whole thing apart again, and I also don't want to damage the finish, so I'm left to wonder if there's an argument to be made for eyeballing/freehanding it with a Dremel...

Recipe for disaster. You don’t want anything which wil obstruct the router, or distract your attention whilst cutting. It won’t take long to unscrew the bridge. You’ll need to unsolder the pickup leads, loosen the pots and switch, and push them into the cavity. You can leave the rest of the wiring in place, and the neck on.

TTony

^^ Agree.

I don't think he'd even need to remove the bridge.  Simple 3-sided template to balance the router on (around the bridge), and a bearing guided bit that follows the shape of the existing cavity, just 5mm deeper.  Remove the pickup, unsolder the wires (from both) and pull them out of the cavity.  Deepen the cavity.  10mins.  Put it back together - another 10mins.

Result is a lot better (neater) job than a freehanded dremel bodge.