Left Handed STRATOCASTER (!) build questions

ThePrettyDamned

Also, I have a black magic woman wudtone kit with silver highlights you could have, and a fair amount of experience to pass on some tips

frankus

I might have some lefty oftset 3 barrel saddles if you go down that route.

I might have enough wudtone for a maple neck too.

ThePrettyDamned

Crap, lefty! My stuff is righty.

I do have the black magic woman kit though, and will have some glossy and (better! Imo) satin top coats, which I'm happy to send your way.

Edit: I have a gold neck plate, screws, and also some other odds and sods, probably a switchcraft jack socket and stuff).

That way, you could start with a fairly cheap kit (such as those in the fretboard challenge) but upgrade a few bits such as saddles, pots etc.

The thought will go a long way, no doubt. And by all accounts, those kits are really quite good for the money!

frankus

I'd start with an electrosocket - thse things are just gorgeous!

ThePrettyDamned

frankus;408293" said:

I'd start with an electrosocket - thse things are just gorgeous!

Yarp, I love them, put one on my jazzmaster with a switchcraft jack.

It's a screw in one, rather than the plain cup, so it doesn't work loose. And looks fabby.

themeinside

@ThePrettyDamned and @Frankus I can't get over the generosity of the people on this board. I've been grinning ear to ear whilst telling friends and family! @ThePrettyDamned, you can't have known that the 'Black Magic Woman' finish was precisely the one that I was going to go for, so that's pretty amazing. Not sure I can accept it for free though- I'm sure we can work something out! Same goes for you @Frankus for the neck finish  

ThePrettyDamned

Nah, take it for free. Or a few bob for post - I was going to use it on the bass, but after one light coat of the base coat I loved how it made the bass antique brown! So I left it there

I've dug it out, I also have some tinted and clear neck finish - I'd recommend adding a little tinted to the clear as the tinted is very orangey, so you can mix up a nicer tint in my opinion.

And, obviously, we need a build thread. there are *loads* of great posts in the making and modding - go on that, then look at the fretboard challenge section. In particular, @wezv has a thread with loads of tips on fettling with a basic tool box. Very informative and useful.

themeinside

I'll certainly pop a few quid for the postage, and if you're ever up Oxford way, there is a pint with your name on it!

A build thread there shall be; I am a COMPLETE novice, and this is my first foray into things like this, so it may well turn into a 'help something has gone completely wrong' thread, with a few nice pictures thrown in, but we will see :P

frankus

We used to run a "Clarksonesque Challenge" where everyone pitched in to make guitars for under £100. So freebies are something we're familiar and okay with.

I had to buy an extra pot of stain for a Black Magic Woman... which might be helpful depending on how porous the wood is. Basically the stain sinks in to stuff like swamp ash really easily but alder less so iirc.

I might be able to help with pots - as a lefty the tone sounds better with a reverse log pot at 250k - I might have one - if not that can be rigged up with a resistor on some of the lugs... volume (unless your Dad always plays clean) would be a linear pot.

I'll have a look if I've got a 3 way or 5 way switch to add.

Really, you need to find a body so you can measure out the spacing on the bridge, some bridges are longer than the vintage length - so be sure before ordering.

themeinside

@frankus Well, it still has overwhelmed and touched me, however commonplace it is here I am hoping to get an alder or ash body, though the majority of left handed kit is basswood, which I don't know how well it would stain up?

Has anyone had any experience with this website? I can get, with free international shipping, an ash bodied, flame maple topped tele, but I don't know if the risk of shipping it from Australia outweighs the benefits?

Hrmmmm...

(Link: https://guitarkitworld.com/product/guitar-kits/te-guitar-kit/)

themeinside

Well... a predicament. I have got in touch with one of the kit makers and he has sent me through this picture of their most grain/colour matched body...

It looks fine, with a nice tidy grain, but there is one very obvious join. Could I have opinions as to how well the wood will take up the Wudtone? Will it accentuate the joint, or cover it up nicely? Also, the body is basswood, how does it take Wudtone, from general experience?

ThePrettyDamned

Basswood *should* take it fine. Do you want a solid colour kit of a translucent one? Solid could will definitely be fine, trans should also be fine - the glue join shouldn't be enhanced, but you might still see it. A solid finish like black magic woman would sit on top and the grain wouldn't be visible.

Hope that helps! Contact Andy at wudtone if you want more specific advice. Sand it to 220 grit and it should be fine.

themeinside

@ThePrettyDamned Solid is perfect, it just seems like Black Magic Woman still leaves some grain showing through. If it is more dense than that, then brilliant!

ThePrettyDamned

themeinside;410774" said:

@ThePrettyDamned Solid is perfect, it just seems like Black Magic Woman still leaves some grain showing through. If it is more dense than that, then brilliant!

It'll sink into the grain, but basswood isn't a very grainy wood compared to something like swamp ash.

themeinside

@ThePrettyDamned No indeed, a very subtle showing of grain would be nice. How does Wudtone deal with flamed maple veneers?

ThePrettyDamned

If you want a nice sunken finish, definitely get swamp ash.

Flamed maple works - there was a recent thread on here where the azure lagoon was used with a flamed sycamore top and it looked great. As an alternative, some folk here like using calligraphy ink which would probably work better for a really intense colour. Look around the making and modding section you could have black back and sides and a coloured veneer on top.

themeinside

That's a great idea indeed! So many options to consider. Unfortunately that kit only comes in basswood, though I'm keeping an eye on a couple of guitarbuild's eBay auctions, though left handed parts are extremely difficult to come by

GuitarMonkey

How about this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/381046553020 ?

 

EDIT: Sorry, just seen that you're probably watching it!

themeinside

Indeed I am! There seems to be a distinct lack of left handed tele necks around though, let alone hardware. 

It makes it seem like the kit builds are an even greater deal, when you consider the amount it costs to collect together left handed hardware separately, even of the lowest quality!

frankus

the difference in cost of the cheapest and most expensive hardware is actually not as great as the return for buying better gear.

Sperzel locking tuners can be flipped to be lefty... Tone Pros are a good price...

there's not so much of a second hand market but that means that anything selling second hand is priced to move.

For the money you're spending I still think the Squire is the best deal money-wise