:D Cheers Andy! Several very good points there, so rather than quoting your whole post:
1. Yes, the purple body looks much better in the flesh - it goes from a deep rose pink colour in the middle to actual purple on the edges, with the grain showing through even on the darkest parts. None of which shows in the pics! In fact on my computer here in work it looks almost black. :?
2. The natural body looks absolutely mind-boggling! That's just a clear finish, no tinting or filler to enhance the grain. I've always loved the look of ash Strats, but the 2 and 3 piece bodies always seem to have really obvious, ugly joins. This one is centre joined and the grain matches beautifully, in fact I think the two pieces are bookmatched.
3. Rosewood board is getting increasingly likely, but that's not the actual neck I'd be using. I'd prefer another big CBS headstock, but although it's dead easy to get a nice maple H1 neck, they don't use such nice rosewood on the H1s as on the more upmarket Fenders (especially Deluxes)....
3.5. .....Which leads me back to Warmoth, which also means small headstock (they do CBS, but it looks rubbish without the big Fender logo). If I get a Warmoth neck, I may go for a kingwood or pau ferro fingerboard - I think the lighter colour would look nice with the body.
4. Tortoise (brown rather than red) and cream/aged white parts are a certainty - I tried lots of scratchplates (I have piles of old ones at home) and torty looked best. I don't have an SSS torty scratchplate, but since I'm throwing all this money around I might as well just get one and keep my options open. :lol:
5. I called Tommy and Chris - they seem up for it but I didn't think they realise what a shiteeeee guitar player "that little English guy" actually is yet (I keep telling them I'm Welsh, but they just don't get it :roll:).
