Competition Stripe Placement/Schematics

crofty · Post by **crofty** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 10:39 am

Just about to start a new project and was wondering some stuff about comp stangs:

has anyone got any info or drawings/dimensions regarding the exact placement of the stripes?
would be super handy

also. do comp stangs always come with arm contours? what about body ones?

thanksinadvance.

James · Post by **James** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 10:40 am

Rodvonbon made a video detailing the dimensions and how to do it.

James · Post by **James** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 10:47 am

http://www.shortscale.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31613

Details in there.

[youtube][/youtube]

crofty · Post by **crofty** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 1:38 pm

cheers for the lank.

really handy for working out stripe thickness, but i still dont know where they actually need to be placed on the body. if that makes any sense? like, where the stripes actually go is hard to understand cos that part of that in the video when he measures it relatively theres tape over the rulers....

rodvonbon · Post by **rodvonbon** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 6:40 pm

crofty wrote:cheers for the lank.

really handy for working out stripe thickness, but i still dont know where they actually need to be placed on the body. if that makes any sense? like, where the stripes actually go is hard to understand cos that part of that in the video when he measures it relatively theres tape over the rulers....

I just took a bunch of pictures for you and after they're uploaded to my server I'll give a better explanation :}

Phil O'Keefe · Post by **Phil O'Keefe** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 6:48 pm

do comp stangs always come with arm contours? what about body ones?

Yes on both.

crofty · Post by **crofty** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 6:57 pm

thanks guys

rodvonbon · Post by **rodvonbon** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 7:01 pm

Ok, I'm going to use vintage Mustangs for this to show that there are variations from one to another. The reissues are more consistent as far as placement, but you will see that the old ones follow more of a general guide, leaving room for error.

They all start generally around the strap button on the butt end of the guitar. Centering your inner most (towards the bridge) stripe on the hole for the strap button is a good place to start.

*edit* After you get the first stripe in the right place all others will follow it.

If you look close at these pictures none of them are exactly the same, but pretty close.
The exception is the red one because the stripe goes all the way around.

crofty · Post by **crofty** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 7:06 pm

great help thanks.

is it just me or is the angle of the stripes pretty consistent between models? ill definately start from just where the strap button is but where is a good spot for the other end of the stripe to end up?

rodvonbon · Post by **rodvonbon** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 7:12 pm

Next up is where the stripe ends on the back of the guitar on the butt end.
I do this by feel and use the edge where the round over meets the back. In the video I curved a piece of tape along this line to end the stripe and that works well.
After getting the tape over the hole for the strap I let it lay down naturally while pulling it around the back, overlapping the curved piece at the end.
Looking close again at these pictures and see that no two are the same.

rodvonbon · Post by **rodvonbon** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 7:21 pm

crofty wrote:is it just me or is the angle of the stripes pretty consistent between models? ill definately start from just where the strap button is but where is a good spot for the other end of the stripe to end up?

That's the hardest part to get right. Be patient and I'll show you.

The next step is getting the other end of the stripe and again I go by feel for this too. There is an edge on the inside of the belly contour that I run a piece of tape along. Right where the round over goes into the concave and it's hard to photograph. If you run your finger along that edge you can feel it.

crofty · Post by **crofty** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 7:30 pm

perfect. thanks a lot dude.

rodvonbon · Post by **rodvonbon** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 7:34 pm

Now the big question, How do you get the angle?
For the most part they are all roughly the same, but there is a variance of about a quarter inch on some of my guitars.

To figure it out I use a T-square. At one edge I butt it up to the strap end of the guitar and let the the other edge touch the upper horn and the arm contour part of the body. I also use a couple rolls of electrical tape to lift the T-square off the ground.
It will not be square, but is the best way I've found to get the right measurement.

rodvonbon · Post by **rodvonbon** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 7:45 pm

crofty wrote:perfect. thanks a lot dude.

No problem.

For the most part the upper end of the stripe is about 8 inches up from the bottom.
Since I already ran a piece of tape along the contour where the stripe will end I can mark it with a pencil.
These pictures were done with the T-square in the same position as the previous post and I used a hand square to triangulate where the pencil mark will go.
8 inches is not an exact number either. Some are just under or just over that mark and one of them is a full quarter inch off, so there's room for interpretation.

rodvonbon · Post by **rodvonbon** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 7:53 pm

After I get the start of the stripe set up at the butt end and my mark made at the contour, I pull the tape evenly and naturally to follow that line. I usually have to lift the tape up and down again until I get it just right.
That's the hardest part.
Once the first stripe is laid out I use it as a guide to do all the other pieces of tape. Keep in mind though, this first piece that took all the time to get right is one of the pieces that needs to be pulled off to create the stripe.

crofty · Post by **crofty** » Sat Sep 11, 2010 9:20 pm

Perfect advice man, really appreciate all the pics etc. Hope i can get it right.

Phil O'Keefe · Post by **Phil O'Keefe** » Sun Sep 12, 2010 1:40 am

Priceless info there Rod - thanks!

I have a friend who has a vinyl cutter machine for stickers and signs. I was thinking about asking him if he could do a run of "inverse stripes" - in other words, masking for painting stripes. You'd still have to mask to either side of them and then mask off the rest of the guitar, but getting the alignment of all the stripes would then (hopefully) be no more difficult than putting on a set of those pre made vinyl Mustang comp stripes like the ones they sell on Ebay.

rodvonbon · Post by **rodvonbon** » Sun Sep 12, 2010 2:48 am

Phil O'Keefe wrote:Priceless info there Rod - thanks!

I have a friend who has a vinyl cutter machine for stickers and signs. I was thinking about asking him if he could do a run of "inverse stripes" - in other words, masking for painting stripes. You'd still have to mask to either side of them and then mask off the rest of the guitar, but getting the alignment of all the stripes would then (hopefully) be no more difficult than putting on a set of those pre made vinyl Mustang comp stripes like the ones they sell on Ebay.

Thanks, Phil.
It would be cool if he could do a sheet that has all the dimensions including an extra inch on either side of the outer stripes you could tape some paper on to. And if they could be cut without going all the way to the ends with an extra inch or two. It's kind of hard to explain what I'm thinking, but if the beginning and ends of the cuts don't go to the end of the sheet, but have a start and stop point. That way you could peel the whole sheet off the backing and keep the ends intact and have all the stripe dimensions including the spaces in between, that you could go back and peel off.
Does that make any sense?

My biggest worry would be the thickness of the vinyl material. When I paint stripes I use very low tack 3M blue tape that is super thin. If the vinyl is too thick it will create channels where the paint could build up, making it hard to bury in the clear coats.

Still, a great idea!

Phil O'Keefe · Post by **Phil O'Keefe** » Sun Sep 12, 2010 8:49 pm

That's a good point about the vinyl thickness and paint buildup - I didn't think of that.

I'll ask him how thin he can go with the vinyl - the thinner the better.