Fender Blacktop Modification

Painting? Routing? Set-up tips? Or just straight-up making a guitar from scratch? Post here, and post pics!

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poorhillbilly
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Post by poorhillbilly »

the cavity makes it sounds like a hollowbody. I don't even have to plug it in. !!
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seb_ennis
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Post by seb_ennis »

Nice work, I like it. Where did you get it from originally? And if you don't mind me asking, where about in Australia are you from? It doesn't seem like there are many of us on here and I'm yet to meet someone who is even remotely interested in shortscales, vintage or non. Unless it's a Strat or Les Paul, people aren't interested.
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poorhillbilly
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Post by poorhillbilly »

Ok so I thought ''I wan't a guitar''. Didn't know what to buy but I wanted something great. seen a few people play Fender Jaguars, Kurt Cobain, Wayne Coyne, Ronald Jones. allways like the shape. thought they were completly different to like your strats and teles, allmost curved as opposed to angular. Jazzmasters, they are cool but never do anything for me. I wanted something small that wasn't too complicated. Like I don't even regard myself as a great player, just wanted something to look awesome and was comfortable for me. I've had problems with guitars in the past that were just to big to play, i lost interest in them. I saw Jaguars in my local guitar shop in Launceston, Tasmania once. but they were usually vintage and expensive, rare, only in stock once or twice. I ve seen them around for $5,000 in buy and sells though. Just thought i like, it but surely to hell it why are they that expensive! So i thought the best place to go look and find out a bit of info is the internet. starting looking at the Fender website, then I realised they only make like 6 different guitars but in a stack of models. Read up on the history of the Jaguar, Its kind of played second fiddle to the Jazzmaster, it was rejected for years. people hated it. This is all in the charm though. I started seeing the difference bewteen the Mexican and American, Japanese makes.

went onto Ebay. saw alot of Jags, mostly too expensive. I had a limit to spend $1,500. you basically find Japanese Specials HH, Classic Player Specials (HH) around the $1,000 mark, Vintage American Reissues go up to anything. theres Squires, didn't come in black. I like Black. the only ones that came in black were Japanese Specials HH and the Blacktop Jaguar HH. All that special stuff is too fidgety for me. I thought the Blacktop was perfect for me. alot of guitars on Ebay can be cheap, but they cannot be shipped to Aus. this guitar was in Aus. It was perfect I just bought and it was filthy cheap. Then I went through thinking had i bought a fake. but i got it in a week played it for months, I had just bought an oldish 82 II series Fender Stage lead amp at a buy and sell place for $350. both together was perfect, just dirt cheap and quality.

Then noticed the parts that people mod their guitars with. Tremelo systems, Pickguards, Knobs, Tailpieces, switches, Pickups, bridges. Its like a whole aspect to guitars that i'd never really thought about. Thought this definitly needs something, looked at pcikups, some are just astronomical, hundreds of dollars, Bigsby arn't cheap too around $100 chrome. I just Bigsby were way too old school for my guitar, It needed something ridiculous, so I I was looking at this Bigsby and noticed in related sales this fuckoff massive chrome tremelo system called a wigsby! blew my mind at first never seen anything like it, satrted researching it, found out you have to route a cavity. went through the process of thinking my guitar be damaged by this thing, but It was the Cheapest Tremelo System, It was almost like they were meant to go with on another. then saw the Wilkinson Roller bridge and the cruves on that and it was chrome, all sold by the same guy coming from California. I found out that Trevor Wilkinson escaped Britian to set up shop in California, and made his stuff in China. Thought that sounds like a smart entrepeneur. Order the stuff and it came weeks. Then I saw some Knobs like that on the Classic Player Special. Talked to a Guitar tech about what he thought and he'd never heard of a Wigsby. I thought i'd never undertake this by myself. It arrived and I got it put on, and the tech had it for a week. He rang me saying ''It looks good but i have never encountered anything like it" So i went round and saw it and it looked great and played and the weight in it was so much heavier and the strings were bigger, and th bridge was rokin, and I whammed it and It started going out of Tune the tech said I've been working on it and its a bit tricky, I just said it fine its only the tuning , I can but a tuning pedal if i want, Ive bascially figured out that it only needs a light tap more than anything works fine. I have been playing it ever since Its awesome! I can just grab it now and play without an amp more durable.

Yeah It boggles me that there are som many yanks making builds whenever and allways talking about shortscales.

Yeah I know what you mean alot of people like their Gibsons. I just think shortscales look nicer, they play louder, that have retro modern charms about them. They are easier to play too. Allmost like an electric banjo? i dunno
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Post by ekwatts »

poorhillbilly wrote:I found out that Trevor Wilkinson escaped Britian to set up shop in California, and made his stuff in China. Thought that sounds like a smart entrepeneur.
We weren't holding him prisoner or anything. And he's now situated in the UK again and works for Burns London, Italia and has restarted his Fret King brand.
Last edited by ekwatts on Mon Jun 06, 2011 1:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Brandon W wrote:you elites.
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poorhillbilly
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Post by poorhillbilly »

who's capital city can't even buy their own mayor tickets to a Olympic Games to be held in London? Who's Royal family lack to offer the invitation for Tasmanian born Princess Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark to attend their Royal Wedding? ''Files obtained by the website Wikileaks have revealed that al-Qaeda got more recruits from Britain than any other country in Europe.'' BBC, They can supposedly recruit from the street over there. and the added factor of the weather.
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Post by ekwatts »

lulwut.

I'm fairly certain the UK isn't the only country with problems, and the things you just pointed out don't seem like huge deals to me, quite honestly.
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Brandon W wrote:you elites.
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poorhillbilly
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Post by poorhillbilly »

you are just lacking a bit of respect, to be honest.

If I lived there, I'd be running.
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ekwatts
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Post by ekwatts »

Why, because you're fat? Take your petty racism elsewhere, fool.
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Brandon W wrote:you elites.
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poorhillbilly
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Post by poorhillbilly »

right.

are you aware of what racism is?

Britian is a shit country.

England is a horrible country.
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Post by Mike »

poorhillbilly wrote:'Files obtained by the website Wikileaks have revealed that al-Qaeda got more recruits from Britain than any other country in Europe.''
Law of averages?
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Post by Mike »

poorhillbilly wrote:Britian is a shit country.

England is a horrible country.

Britain is several countries, and it's wonderful.
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Post by avj »

Neat looking guitar, despite the unnecessary vitriol. I wouldn't have imagined myself liking so much black and chrome, but it really works.
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George
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Post by George »

Fuck this thread, I liked the guitar but DO NOW WANT BUILT BY HATRED AND IGNANCE
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poorhillbilly
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Post by poorhillbilly »

Ive been there once, I didn't mind London and the east end. but Buckingham Palace, why? Also went to a few surrounding towns and didn't see a soul. for a country to have Page 3 Girls in their papers, thats horrible.
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Post by timhulio »

.... anyway.

Why is the Jaguar writing so small?
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poorhillbilly
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Post by poorhillbilly »

George wrote:Fuck this thread, I liked the guitar but DO NOW WANT BUILT BY HATRED AND IGNANCE
hahaha

all criticism is good feedback i'sn't it?

still a country that kills over 1,000,000 in the Irish potato famine shouldnt have a clear conscience, should it.
timhulio wrote:.... anyway.

Why is the Jaguar writing so small?
where?
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George
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Post by George »

Ek's new sparring partner has landed.
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Post by timhulio »

poorhillbilly wrote:
timhulio wrote:.... anyway.

Why is the Jaguar writing so small?
where?
Here. It's ridiculous.

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Post by poorhillbilly »

''poorhillbilly
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Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 7:33 am Post subject:

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You are a fucking wizard.

well done.!

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ekwatts
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Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 9:28 am Post subject:

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We aren't strict here; they're more guidelines than rules.
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So what no swearing on this website? not even allowed once you get 5 PMs and you turn into a big kid?
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poorhillbilly
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Post by poorhillbilly »

timhulio wrote:
poorhillbilly wrote:
timhulio wrote:.... anyway.

Why is the Jaguar writing so small?
where?
Here. It's ridiculous.

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Image

I guess its just Blacktop specific. is that worthy of shortscale rewards?