How pickups should be wound....

[Elliot]

http://gizmodo.com/5898438/watch-how-fender-builds-its-iconic-stratocasters

at 2.37 ish - boy they work fast in Corona  :P - Leaves more time for surfing apparently

[Sifu Ben]

Really shocked at the amount of handwork they do. Surely some of those jobs would actually be better done by machine (drilling holes in bridges for example)? Begs the question, if they can produce a guitar with that much handwork and entirely bespoke parts for under a grand then what exactly are you paying for with more expensive brands?

[Stevepage]

I think with other brands it's about wood quality and how they are constructed. PRS for example uses a set neck construction which means some one has to glue the joint and then let it dry where as with a Strat the neck and body are made and then simply bolted together.

On top of that Fender is a very big company making hundreds of millions or more every year so they can afford to pay more workers to make more guitars and even have production lines in different countries for low cost. Compare that to a company like Tom Anderson, who are a relatively small company and employ a lot less people then you see why they may cost more.

[Elliot]

I think with other brands it's about wood quality and how they are constructed. PRS for example uses a set neck construction which means some one has to glue the joint and then let it dry where as with a Strat the neck and body are made and then simply bolted together.

Yeah - that Leo Fender, more like a used radio salesman than a luthier... 8)

[Sifu Ben]

The amount of work required for a set neck vs a bolt on is roughly similar. While I accept that the drying time is a factor, not really going to double the price.
Labour costs are the single biggest production cost for guitars. In the amounts people like PRS are buying it the wood cost certainly isn't creating a £1000 difference.

[dgg3jab]

Cool vid.