Project Bronco 3000

Mr Mustache · Post by **Mr Mustache** » Tue Dec 19, 2006 1:21 am

Aug wrote:heh...no need to apologize...I was just curious.

Aug i don't care who call you an asshole on this forum, I like ya!

DGNR8 · Post by **DGNR8** » Tue Dec 19, 2006 3:22 am

I know you guys must hate kind of this shit, but let's pretend this is purely from a design standpoint. I have always liked 55-58 Chevys. Who doesn't? Yet by now they lead the parade of the obvious. Even so, the fins and grilles are overblown chromium masterpieces. The dashboards are also la creme. The rest of the car is bloated and heavy and unremarkable, like the 54 Chevy was. For some reason, although I like 57s and strats, I have always been drawn more to the 55s and 58s. Maybe it's because they were both featured prominently in American Grafitti, which I saw during my deformative years.

Grafitti was George Lucas's last film before he died in a car accident in 1974 and his body was taken over by subhuman pod creatures. It was a bland film about 1950s car culture, on which the TV show Happy Days was weakly juiced from. Happy Days was an inexplicable phenom during the 1970s. It is said to have been the last great TV show, because at the time it was popular, it only had two other networks to compete against. Therefore the episode where Joannie blew three teens in Arnolds malt shop mens room (true story) got more of a mass audience than any show since. Now we are fragmented by cable, syndication, HBO, iTunes, PS2, la intronutz, DVDs, and strangely, Tim Russert.

The 57 and the strat are so ubiquitous, as to be boring and invisible. To come upon one in a junk pile, having never heard of one, I would appreciate the lines and simplicity of it. But after 50 years of being inundated by hype and copies and reissues, it only makes sense that we would get as bored with is as we do with xmas music, which rarely changes from year to year.

The other Fender models are therefore fresh because of how they differ from the strat, and we can appreciate the things about Fenders in general that made the company so popular. there is also something to be said for retrieving beater guitars out of the past, and saving them from attics, and pawn shops everywhere. Anyway, when I saw this pretty green Bronco, it reminded me of a 55 Chevy. Hopefully you can see what I mean from these pictures. It has more to do with their familiarity than actual lines.

Billy3000 · Post by **Billy3000** » Tue Dec 19, 2006 8:05 am

I see what you mean DGNR8... and it makes me feel like my bronco is even nicer!!! Thanks!

Thanks a lot guys, I really like the way that it looks with this color combo. I got halfway back from greenville and realized that I forgot my fucking soldering iron... so wiring won't be taking place til after the new year... but that'll probably be about the time that I get the neck back from aug anyway, so no worries.

And yes aug, it would be nice if you got off your ass and finished the neck!

Aug · Post by **Aug** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:43 pm

With the minor exception of gluing/clamping two small parts of the fretboard, this bad boy is done.

5 coats of clear, wetsand, buff, polish, tuners installed, bone nut cut and installed and refretted.

I'll glue and clamp this afternoon and then do a final cleanup (excess wax on the fretboard, etc.) I'll ship after the weekend. Also, I don't recall getting a string tree with this neck, and have no spares...

Billy3000 · Post by **Billy3000** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 10:56 pm

OH MY GOD!!!

I am so hard looking at that neck right now! I can't wait to get this! It looks amazing! I'm gonna try and have the whole body ready to go by the time I get the neck back from you so all I'll have to do is just screw the neck on and string it up!

I don't think I sent a string tree with it, I'm pretty sure I did take that off before I sent it. It's all rusty as shit, I'll probably just end up picking up a new one for it so don't worry about that. I'll try to remember to do that sometime before I go back to greenville. PM me when you're ready to send it, and I'll let you know which address to send it to.

Justin · Post by **Justin** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 11:50 pm

Hard. Uh huh.

Billy3000 · Post by **Billy3000** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 3:21 am

Any progress on the neck Aug?

Aug · Post by **Aug** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 4:58 am

I have the flu...it's the worst ever. The neck is done...but, I want to hit it again with a good buff...and I'll ship it out. I promise.

Billy3000 · Post by **Billy3000** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 5:13 am

It's cool dude, if you're not feeling well enough to do any work on it, don't overwork yourself right now. I was just wondering because in your last post you said it was gonna be done by last weekend... no worries though!

Aug · Post by **Aug** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 5:18 am

Billy3000 wrote:It's cool dude, if you're not feeling well enough to do any work on it, don't overwork yourself right now. I was just wondering because in your last post you said it was gonna be done by last weekend... no worries though!

thanks billy...I'll get it out to you as soon as I can.

Aug · Post by **Aug** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 11:07 pm

Billy: it's been sent. Look for the old bushings in the bottom of the box. You'll have it in 3-5 days.

Billy3000 · Post by **Billy3000** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 11:14 pm

Aug wrote:Billy: it's been sent. Look for the old bushings in the bottom of the box. You'll have it in 3-5 days.

Awesome! thanks dude! I was actually gonna pm you tonight and ask if it had been sent. Thanks for letting me know!

Billy3000 · Post by **Billy3000** » Mon Jan 22, 2007 11:41 pm

Update:

I got the neck today! It looks awesome. It is really dark like Aug was saying, but I like it, it looks vintage! Here's a pic of it on the body. I have to assemble it all still. I don't know why I didn't try it out earlier, but I am going to have to sand the route for the pickup on the pickguard wider, because a pickup cover won't fit through it. I have to finish up some homework tonight, then I plan on starting on this guitar, and I probably won't be able to finish it tonight, but hopefully tomorrow I will be able to finish it!

I have to redrill for the straplocks, drill some new holes for the pickguard, put the bridge in, sand the pickup route on the pickguard, wire it up, then just screw it all together and string it up! I can't wait to get this thing rawkin!

I'm pretty sure I'm still going to get a Seymour Duncan Lil screamin demon for it, but for now I'm going to put a Fender Hot Noiseless in there. I also want to test out the original pickup to see if it works.

More Cowbell · Post by **More Cowbell** » Tue Jan 23, 2007 12:09 am

LOOKS SO DAMN HAWT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Billy3000 · Post by **Billy3000** » Tue Jan 23, 2007 12:22 am

More Cowbell wrote:LOOKS SO DAMN HAWT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Indeed it does! I can't wait to get it all together!

DGNR8 · Post by **DGNR8** » Tue Jan 23, 2007 2:34 am

NICEY! It would be even better with a working trem!

Does anyone have a Bronco along with a vintage Mustang, Jag, or any other whammy they can test to see if those other bars fit in a Bronco HOLEz? I want want want one. I don't care what it comes from so long as it fits and stays in. Yeah, babay.

theshadowofseattle · Post by **theshadowofseattle** » Tue Jan 23, 2007 2:57 am

Gorgeous! You gotta bring it to the ECMU!!!

Billy3000 · Post by **Billy3000** » Tue Jan 23, 2007 3:02 am

theshadowofseattle wrote:Gorgeous! You gotta bring it to the ECMU!!!

I definitely will be!

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Tue Jan 23, 2007 3:03 am

DGNR8 wrote:NICEY! It would be even better with a working trem!

Does anyone have a Bronco along with a vintage Mustang, Jag, or any other whammy they can test to see if those other bars fit in a Bronco HOLEz? I want want want one. I don't care what it comes from so long as it fits and stays in. Yeah, babay.

they don't fit. the hole is smaller than any bar i own

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Tue Jan 23, 2007 3:05 am

i hope the bronco pickup works for you.

its a fucking rad sounding pickup. it doens't sound like anything else I own.