Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Guitars, Amps and Effects => Topic started by: AndyR on September 19, 2009, 11:29:45 AM
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... I still managed to buy another feckin geetar yesterday :lol:
A new strat to do the strat-stylings what my other strats won't do for me 8)
I'm not making any potentially rash statements along the lines of "I've got everything I need now", but I can say that this guitar fills a "Hole" in the armoury that has been there for a couple of years, ever since I got my beloved Fiesta Red strat, Edith.
I can even admit that my last two purchases, at least, while valid in their own right (a tele and an SG), were kind of "compensatory" purchases - because, on that particular day, I couldn't find the guitar that would eventually fill this hole...
I wasn't expecting it to happen yesterday, but there she was, she played right, and we were able to strike a deal I was happy with...
The pics just about do her justice. It's funny, this one don't look very pretty on a stand (compared to my other guitars) but she looks DAMN GOOD when you're playing her. And she sounds, well, fabulous...
I'm afraid I'm not allowed out, on my own, with my wallet, for a few weeks now... but "that's alright I still got my guitar" :lol:
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Looks great, Andy! Is that one of the Road worn 60s Strats?
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Yeah, c'mon Andy man, more info!
What does this one do that, er, Bowman doesn't?
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Sorry, chaps, too busy a-twangin' :lol:
Yep, it's a Road Worn. I tried the 50s tele when they first arrived - stunning player but I already had several teles, and price-wise it was too rich as far as I was concerned. I've only seen one other RW 60s strat in the flesh before, it was in a window display, and it looked "unpretty" enough for me to "not ask to try it" - I knew that if I tried one, and it was as good as that tele felt, then we'd possibly be looking at a purchase whether I was happy about the price or not...
When I saw one yesterday, I felt strong enough to try it and walk away if I thought it was too much.
If asked to debate it, I'm still in the "undecided" camp over relicking and all - I've no particularly strong feelings against it, but it's "probably not my personal cup of tea..."
So why on earth have I got a relicked guitar??! It's cos it really doesn't seem to matter with this particular guitar. I had to get over the relicking in order to buy it, obviously, and I did...
I've had it less than 24 hours, in fact I probably first plugged it in in the shop about this time yesterday, and in that time it's turned into "my guitar". I've done my usual "convert to master tone", "put extra springs in and drop the bridge flat" (and yeah Philly, I heard the tonal change this time :D), "string-it/set-it-up with 11s", and I've also started bri-waxing the bare neck. But even without these little personalisations, she's already mine - she'd decided in the shop, but I only really got it this morning... And so it don't matter how the "knocks" got there, I'm playing her now - and she looks extremely "rocknroll" in the mirror! :D
What does it do that Edith don't?
- Looks. It looks like my old JV used to before I stripped it. Tall, thin, with a tailcoat, sometimes a top hat (this was before Slash appeared - the thief!!), and a rosewood/sunburst strat, is what ole Angus looked like for 100-odd gigs in the 80s... This guitar is also what I wanted my JV to look like at the time but it wouldn't no matter what I did in gigs (bashed :lol:). I deliberately avoided the sunburst when I got Edith (she's Fender Japan, remember, and she had two friends in sunburst in the shop), because "that's the colour I had before... and i stripped it..." but I've realised since then, that for nostalgia purposes, I did kinda need a sunburst again :roll:
- Sound. Edith is slightly warmer and thicker accoustically - I picked her from among many that day for that very reason. I think it might be one of the reasons I don't find Irish Tours quite as bright and trebly as others do, I get a nice chewy tone out of her (I think the same thing might have happened with my new SG and Riff Raffs).
Anyway, amongst other sounds, you'll have read me citing "Steve Gaines's Lynyrd Skynyrd sound" as something I'd like to get my hands on - got it now in spades :D
It's hard to describe, but this one is a "lighter" possibly more "woody" sounding strat accoustically. They both resonate enough, but they're different. Luckily it turns out they complement each other - Edith doesn't make the new one sound thin and scratchy, and the new one doesn't make Edith sound muddy (either might happen to someone else using them, but they are both fab to my ears...)
Something has really surprised me. Strangely, this is the first guitar I've got (singles, humbuckers) that actually makes any sense through the Marshall Plexi models on my VOX Tonelab (not tried the POD XT, but I was never that fond of the plexi on there neither) - everything else tends to get played through JTM45 types, or AC30, possibly Fenders, and possibly late 70s/early 80s M/V Marshall... but this little girl makes the plexi model sound good.
Obvously, it's really early days on this one, but I'm extremely happy with it so far (even if the nut does need some attention/replacing :lol:)
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Another epic post! :lol:
You've got to start gigging again, you've a proper little guitar army now.
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Ooh, i've played one too and found it very nice, just couldn't get past the relicing.
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Sounds awesome! I played a few of the Road Worn guitars at the start of the year when they first came out, I played the 50s teles, 50s and 60s Strats and found them to be very nice instruments, especially the 50s teles and 60s strats. The only thing holding me back from buying one is that I would have to spend a fair bit on upgrades to get it to how I wanted it. I would have to change out the tuners, I'm not a big fan of slotted head ones, and I wasn't entirely convinced by the Tex Mex pickups either. I would probably swap them out for some ITs or Apaches.
I really liked the neck's on the Road Worn guitars though, they have a huge chunk of the finish taken off which makes it really smooth to play and really gives it that played in feel.
Glad you are hpayy with your purchase, from the pics it looks like a really nice Strat!
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Good to see the old self control didn't let you down Andy.
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I really want that mug of coffee!!!
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Those silver rizlas are far too fiddly! Nice looking guitar though, bit too "normal" for a strat though for me :)
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Looks good!!
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I'd forgotten the coffee and fags were in the picture!! :lol: (would've looked better even with the coffee pot as well) I must admit I could do with a coffee now, but I've had my caffeine for the day.
The only thing holding me back from buying one is that I would have to spend a fair bit on upgrades to get it to how I wanted it. I would have to change out the tuners, I'm not a big fan of slotted head ones, and I wasn't entirely convinced by the Tex Mex pickups either. I would probably swap them out for some ITs or Apaches.
We're on opposite sides of the fence :D - I much prefer the slotted heads.
On the pickups front, I'm very surprised by these Tex Mex jobbies. They were "ok" while I was testing it in the shop.. but I was thinking, hmm... BKP??
And having seen the insides (to do the tone pot rewiring), they look very cheap and fragile. But once I put my 11s on, screwed down the bridge, adjusted the action, etc... I started to adjust the pickups exactly how I would a set of BKPs... and bugger me, these pickups sound good! :lol:
They're not as powerful as ITs, and they are loads clearer than Texas Specials. I don't think they respond as well as BKPs do to volume and tone control fiddling, but they'll do for the moment (which is a blessed relief to my wallet :lol:).
My "original plan" of a year or so has been to get a sunburst strat of some description, move the ITs in there, then stick Mother's Milks or possibly Apaches in the Fiesta Red. The "in development" 62's added to the possibilities...
Now I've got this guitar, it feels fairly obvious that the ITs probably ought to stay where they are, and this guitar is the one that gets the lower-powered woody/transparent strat treatment - that way guitars and pickups will be playing to their strengths.
Those silver rizlas are far too fiddly! :)
I prefer the taste, and other people can't handle rolling their "own" with, er "mine" :lol:
Good to see the old self control didn't let you down Andy.
Don't go near these Road Worns!!! I suspect that your tastes in strat and tele "mojo" might put you in the same dangerous position as me. The right one of these could easily be "good enough" to argue it's way through any perceived shortcomings (aesthetic or financial :lol:)
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I much prefer the slotted heads.
Me too - they look so much neater.
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By slotted heads you mean the small 50's headstock? If so, I'm on +1! Hate the big CBS headstock!
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its the tuners fernando.
and i love the big 70's headstock - as long as its on 70's strats
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I have to say I think that looks lovely and if it plays as described it looks like a belter has been acquired. I'm very mixed on the whole relic thing but I think, as has already been mentioned here, if the right guitar came along, and it felt like my guitar when I played it, I'd probably forget my grumpy mumblings about fakery and all that stuff. Glad you're enjoying it and when the time comes Apaches would be worth the extra I think.
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sweet :)
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its the tuners fernando.
Thanks!
I prefer the look of these vintage tuners in Fenders (even with the CBS headstock - the only way they get acceptable to me :lol:)
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Just been doing some maintenance/improvements on it:
Moved the backplate. I've had this problem before, "they" positioned the plate for when the bridge is floating, when you flatten it, the string holes didn't line up, you'd have to take the plate off to restring!! (Gits!)
I managed to do that without leaving the old holes showing (but it wouldn't have matter anyhow :lol:) and also so that it will be ok if I float the bridge again.
The look of the headstock had been bothering me - then I realised what it was. The string tree is in the "wrong" place, and it has a spacer to raise it - just didn't look right to me :lol:. So I moved it. Filled the hole with matchstick, used Winsor Newton inks, finger dirt, and the Briwax in use for the back of the neck, and now it just has another little ding, albeit a suspiciously round one in a strange place :lol:
Did another Briwax session on the back of the neck, but this time I bothered to get the 0000 wire wool out (and protect the pickups, big pain in the @rse, which is why I hadn't use the wool before).
- this last improvement, ooo, oooo, OOOO!! :D :D
Before, she was nice and rustic to play... now she's nice and rustic, AND slick as a b@stard :D
Back to the Rory impersonations now...
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Awesome!
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Nice going Andy. Hope it ends up being a keeper. It sounds much loved already, so guess thats a good sign.
Enjoy :D
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I see you smoke silvers - care to give a review?
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I see you smoke silvers - care to give a review?
I smoked blues for years and years in preference to the heavier greens. One day my shop didn't have any, but did have the "new" silvers, so I tried those. They're even lighter and therefore could cause issues to some people for rolling, but I have no trouble. I much prefer them taste-wise, if I have to use blues, and especially greens, I can taste unreasonable amounts of burning paper now.
I seem to prefer vintage/vintage-hot in my pickups, but contemporary in my rolling papers :lol:
Nice going Andy. Hope it ends up being a keeper. It sounds much loved already, so guess thats a good sign.
Enjoy :D
Oh yeah :D (in as much as I never seem to shift anything on), this one's definitely a keeper. She goes like a train, and looks SO good in the mirror :lol:
I do have to replace the nut though. The material is "ok" but it's been cut like/by a donkey. I was getting damping and vague sitar effects on the high E and B - managed to fix that enough (the slope back to the headstock wasn't enough). I can't really blame the builder though, I had just moved the string tree!! :lol:
The D slot, though, is cut (visibly) too wide, and the string vibrates behind the nut - this caused nasty noises when hit hard, hardly noticable through an amp, but annoying at neighbour-friendly volumes.
After the success on the B and E slots, I decided it was "double-or-nothing" time (should have quit while I was ahead) - the nut is actually cut higher than necessary (bluddy good for slide though :D), so I had some room "downwards", I felt, to "focus" the slot... er... nope... it now makes nasty noises, all the time, very noticable through the amp!! :lol:
It has an old fashioned fix at the moment - piece of rubber band behind the nut, tying the D and A strings together (complementary rubber band from that free supply we all have in the UK, courtesy of the Post Office :lol:). Works perfectly, "sweet as a nut" etc... - looks a bit naff though... It's a true "Rory Gallagher" fix though... in keeping with the rest of the guitar :D
Anyhoo... I'm now about to order a bunch or tusq pre-cuts (I have some other strat/tele nuts that could benefit from these). My previous form on fitting pre-cuts is two (huge) successes to one (epic) fail, so I'm ordering "spares" this time :lol:
As an illustration of what this guitar is already worth to me - if I can't get it right, it's going straight down Jonathan's for full a fret dress etc as well as "sort this b@stard nut out for me pleeze..." All my other guitars could benefit from the fret-dress thing, but they're extremely livable with, so not worth the expense as far as I'm concerned... this one, still livable with, is slightly different :D