ShortScale.org

A bit back I was gifted a lefty Mosrite body by our buddy here cooter. The catch on it, was that I needed to find a neck for it to finish it. I still have not found a neck that doesn't cost like $800.

Through several days of searching, and weeks of emailing every neck-making luthier I could find, I basically had to shelf the idea for now. However, the searches brought me to a site doing licensed Fender necks. Left handed, and for a reasonable price. I spec'd out a neck like I had before with Guitarmill, when I did my other two projects. The price was pretty much the same as it was back then. It got my thoughts going to do another shortscale build.

Unsure what to make, though, I went through several ideas I'd had in the past. A shortscale Tele, Strat, etc. None of them seemed exciting or useful, I already have two perfect guitars that I built before. I started playing some new stuff with a guy, melodic off-time stuff. I tended to play stuff like that every time I picked up my Jaguar. I really like my Jaguar for that sort of thing, but it's just too rare of a guitar now to use live, or shuttle to practice. If it got stolen, busted up, or lost, I could not replace it. Also, it has things I don't like about it. I thought I could just make my own "Player Jaguar" that fucking Fender refuses to make in lefty. It's thanks to those assholes my Jaguar is so rare anyway.

But the cost of one of these projects, I really couldn't justify it.

Meanwhile I decided I didn't like my Ibanez ORM-1, I kept trying to use it in place of the Jag, but it just didn't feel right, and it didn't sound right. I really loved the mahogany body and neck, but otherwise it didn't feel good. I decided if I sold it, I could fund the Jaguar project. I put it up on Reverb, still hasn't sold yet, but I'm probably going to drop the price soon. Got about 30 watchers over the last month, but no offers, other than scam emails trying to get me to sell it off-site. I am probably asking too much for it, it's just hard to price considering there are basically none of them in left-handed in the US, I got it from Thom in the UK, where they were actually released in lefty.

Anyway, I got excited and started specc'ing out the new guitar. I went back to my old thread for the "Supersonic", and I had mocked up variants in the beginning to be more Jaguar-like, but ended up making the upper horn a tracing of my green Broncomaster. I liked the idea of a lighter-weight, slightly smaller Jaguar.
I am keeping the one thing I liked about the ORM, the mahogany neck/body, and inspired by my Martin D-15, I decided on this:

(This is technically a mockup of a Jazzmaster that I did some editing on) - Musikraft Jaguar neck, mahogany, rosewood fretboard, pearl dots and side dots. 40mm nut width (emailed and asked if they could, they said no problem) like my Sonicstang, which is one of my most comfy guitars to play, but this time I'm doing vintage 7.25" radius to match the bridge.

- mahogany body, smaller lines than the Jaguar, based on the tracing of my Supersonic. I overlaid my Jaguar and got the horn from that, then blended the lines. Since mahogany is heavier, I figure the smaller size of the Supersonic would be a better base than my actual Jaguar. To reduce weight more, I am using the same thin body thickness we used on the Broncomaster, 40mm, which in alder is extremely light. It makes the guitar extremely comfortable.

- Jaguar/Jazzmaster trem, Mustang bridge. I was originally going to go with the Musicmaster bridge like I did on my last two projects, it's just the best bridge Fender has ever made, but the weird ringing/natural reverb effect the real Jaguar has convinced me I had to go with the actual Jaguar trem. I am not really happy about this, I'd rather the string through setup, and I'll have to do the trick I used on my Jaguar of cutting some aluminum tubing to lock the bridge posts into the thimbles to make it stable. But, that weird bridge angle is necessary for the sound of the Jag, and this has to replace that guitar, so that's the plan.

- Dark brown tort pickguard, I basically was trying to figure out what color looked the best, and looked at my D-15, and that settled it. Dark brown tort looks amazing on mahogany. I might need to find some transparent black paint to darken it up, finding a decent source of this guard material has been a challenge.

- Bridge pickup, my standard trem-spaced Duncan JB. This time, I am actually going to use a neck pickup, so I'm putting a Duncan JB Jr there, since I already have one on hand. I'm not positive if it'll be the right spacing, though, since that's meant for bridge, but I suppose I'll find out. I'm going to have the neck spot routed for a full size bucker, just in case I want to switch to the Duncan-suggested pairing of a Jazz in the neck, though I haven't been able to find those in white. I'm not sure they exist. I just want the option if I decide to do that later.

- Right handed Mustang control plate, for my Sonicstang I found out that getting a left-handed Jaguar control plate is impossible, so I ended up using a right-handed Mustang Bass control plate instead. It worked out okay, but it has a slightly odd shape that Cooter and I had to do some work on to make it fit, and ultimately it's the one thing I wasn't happy with on that build. I realized that lefty Mustang plates were also impossible to get, hence I had to use a right-handed one and flip it over to use it on my Broncomaster. That's when I realized, if I put a right-handed Mustang guitar plate on this, it would curve the same direction as the Jaguar plate is supposed to go. So, I'm using that this time for the control plate. 1M volume pot, no tone pot. I don't like them. I normally put a switch where the tone should be. Which leads to the next bit:

- 3-switch Jaguar plate. Again, this is to bring over a feature I added to my Jaguar, the series-parallel switching. I have plans for these switches, but I have really been scratching my head trying to come up with a way to make this actually work the way I want it to. I don't think it's actually possible.
-- I want the sliders to each control series-parallel for each pickup, and then the last one put the pickups themselves into series-parallel, how I have my Jag wired up. This leaves me with no selector switch, but I have that switch near the jack to use. However, I haven't yet been able to sort out a wiring configuration that allows me to leave them in series, and then toggle to single pickups. There's going to be one of them not connected right in that situation. I'm still working this part out.

I wasn't going to start this thread until I ordered the neck, which I was waiting to do when the ORM sold, which still hasn't happened. I just figured why not, I ordered the white Duncan JB and it arrived today, so I'm now committed to making this build.

Let's just hope this doesn't take me 9 goddamn years to complete like my last one.

I love the Firebird style burst, looks great. As I said in the other thread it might be worth looking at okume for the body wood, it looks pretty much like mahogany, but is lighter at a more reasonable cost - light mahogany is out there but expensive.

This is going to be sweet-

I wasn't going to start this thread until I ordered the neck, which I was waiting to do when the ORM sold, which still hasn't happened. I just figured why not, I ordered the white Duncan JB and it arrived today, so I'm now committed to making this build.

it’s funny how buying just one part can be the motivating factor to finishing a whole damn guitar build.

Nick wrote: ↑Wed Nov 30, 2022 3:51 pm This is going to be sweet-

I wasn't going to start this thread until I ordered the neck, which I was waiting to do when the ORM sold, which still hasn't happened. I just figured why not, I ordered the white Duncan JB and it arrived today, so I'm now committed to making this build.

it’s funny how buying just one part can be the motivating factor to finishing a whole damn guitar build.

Indeed. Once I ordered that part and it arrived, this guitar is going to happen now no matter what.

Looking forward to seeing this

NickD wrote: ↑Wed Nov 30, 2022 7:49 am I love the Firebird style burst, looks great. As I said in the other thread it might be worth looking at okume for the body wood, it looks pretty much like mahogany, but is lighter at a more reasonable cost - light mahogany is out there but expensive.

I will check into this, thanks for that tip!

Also, after watching Robroe's video about his Supersonic, I just got another idea for the switching. Instead of putting a selector switch where the tone would be, I could maybe just put in a second volume knob, and have each pickup with their own volume, before being sent to the forward switches. I have to think more about it, but I think that might resolve some of my problem with the switching I was wanting to do. It's just an option that I'm mentioning now so that I remember it later.

The ORM-1L finally sold, shipped to a dude in Ottawa. Plays in a powerpunk band up there, he sent me a link to his Spotify. So, it's gonna get some use. That made me happy.

I ordered the neck from Musikraft, though since I delayed in ordering it, prices have gone up a bit. Came out a bit higher than I originally specc'd, which sucks, but it is what it is.

Just waiting for this now, the rest of the build depends on the neck.

Glad it sold. Looking forward to seeing the next step.

Pens wrote: ↑Sat Feb 25, 2023 5:12 pm I ordered the neck from Musikraft, though since I delayed in ordering it, prices have gone up a bit. Came out a bit higher than I originally specc'd, which sucks, but it is what it is.

What is the damage on a Musikraft neck these days? They have always been a premiumpricey choice but the quality of the couple I’ve had were amazing.

Thomas wrote: ↑Sat Mar 11, 2023 6:14 pm

Pens wrote: ↑Sat Feb 25, 2023 5:12 pm I ordered the neck from Musikraft, though since I delayed in ordering it, prices have gone up a bit. Came out a bit higher than I originally specc'd, which sucks, but it is what it is.

What is the damage on a Musikraft neck these days? They have always been a premiumpricey choice but the quality of the couple I’ve had were amazing.

So, the options I went with are the reason it was a bit more. The base price for a shortscale neck was I think $215, like straight maple-on-maple. I went with mohagany, dark Indian rosewood fretboard, and MOP dots/side dots. Those were the additional cost items on my order, and originally when I was pricing this out that came to $275, but costs have gotten crazy since then and it ended up at $315 by the time I placed the order. Normally I'd have just done a maple with rosewood, pearl dots, and it would have been around $265, which isn't really that far off from the $225 I paid for the same neck config at Guitarmill 10 years ago.

It might sound a bit pricey, but after building the last two guitars, it really isn't that much if you are getting the exact guitar you really want, and the guitar you want doesn't exist otherwise.

$100 for "upgrading" from maple to mahogany doesn't sound like all that much. I'd have thought it would have been a good bit more.

I suppose the most part of the money is in the work, rather than the wood.

I think that’s still a really good price for those options.

The reason I’m wondering is I have a a Vintera Jaguar coming and if I don’t like the PF fretboard I’ll most likely opt for a Musikraft replacement and just sell the Fender one.

Did you get them to drill the neck screw holes? And if so we’re they lining up fine?

Bacchus, I agree. The extra cost wasn't as much as I really expected, so that was fine for me.

Thomas, I don't have it yet to find out about the screw holes. I had them drill them as an option. Further, the body will be custom made so I can just make sure the holes all line up at that point. However, the option was "standard Fender screw holes pattern" so I honestly expect they are identical, MK claims to be officially Fender licensed so I would expect them to all line up.

I should note, however, that the price I quoted was for an UNFINISHED neck, as in I have to apply the clear coat or not when I get it. I prefer to do this, as I've applied finish to two necks now, and its an easy process for me, additionally I get to choose how to do the finish. I think it's another $100 if you have them do the finish coat.

Pens wrote: ↑Sun Mar 12, 2023 5:23 am

Thomas wrote: ↑Sat Mar 11, 2023 6:14 pm

Pens wrote: ↑Sat Feb 25, 2023 5:12 pm I ordered the neck from Musikraft, though since I delayed in ordering it, prices have gone up a bit. Came out a bit higher than I originally specc'd, which sucks, but it is what it is.

What is the damage on a Musikraft neck these days? They have always been a premiumpricey choice but the quality of the couple I’ve had were amazing.

So, the options I went with are the reason it was a bit more. The base price for a shortscale neck was I think $215, like straight maple-on-maple. I went with mohagany, dark Indian rosewood fretboard, and MOP dots/side dots. Those were the additional cost items on my order, and originally when I was pricing this out that came to $275, but costs have gotten crazy since then and it ended up at $315 by the time I placed the order. Normally I'd have just done a maple with rosewood, pearl dots, and it would have been around $265, which isn't really that far off from the $225 I paid for the same neck config at Guitarmill 10 years ago.

It might sound a bit pricey, but after building the last two guitars, it really isn't that much if you are getting the exact guitar you really want, and the guitar you want doesn't exist otherwise.

I got a promotional email from Fender the other day notifying me that you can buy replacement necks directly from fender(already finished) for $299. Link: http://www.fender.com/en-US/parts/elec ... rt=0&sz=12

Shit, these pics suck. Hold up, gonna rotate and reattach them.

Okay, so it arrived today.

First impressions, they did a great job. It feels very smooth, nothing needing to be dressed or anything like that. This is quality. They 100% nailed the 40mm nut width, confirmed with calipers (1.57 inch, Robroe. NOT Fender A WIDTH 1.5in) so it's to spec with my Supersonic neck, and the same very comfortable nut width I used on my last build.

Second, it's unfinished so it should darken up some once I put finish on (I hope), but I was surprised how light the mahog is.
Third, I am really really happy with the decision to pay $5 and get the side dots in pearl. The last two, I tried black dots, and then white dots, and neither of them are easy to see. These pearl dots are like perfect.
I am considering what finish to do, and I need to do a bit of reading on if I need to seal the grain on this or not. I don't think I do, but I'll double check.
I am thinking of maybe doing a simple tung oil finish, rather than the usual nitro. Need to do some reading. Before all of that, I'm going to have to ship this off to have the body done, probably will wait to finish once I get the body and it back, since I'll be doing the finish on both anyway, might as well do it all in one go.

71Smallbox wrote: ↑Thu Mar 23, 2023 8:34 pm
I got a promotional email from Fender the other day notifying me that you can buy replacement necks directly from fender(already finished) for $299. Link: http://www.fender.com/en-US/parts/elect ... rt=0&sz=12

Right, but, there is no left handed option there. That's always been the issue, Fender is bullshit and fucking refuses to provide left handed shortscale necks in the US, and prevents me from ordering them from Japan. Fuck them.

Also, I don't think I'll ever warm to that gross look of Pau Ferro. It is just no where near as nice looking as rosewood. You're also locked into 9.5" radius, so fuck you if you want to use a Mustang bridge. And the nut width is set to the 41.3mm Fender standard. I wouldn't buy that shit.

Oh no, they got it backwards etc.

Looks great. I'd be interested to see how the mahogany looks when finished too. I used tru-oil on a guitar a few years back and it darkened up nicely. Feels great, easy to use, looks great.

I watched some vids last night about finishing mohag with tung oil, and it does look light before the oil application, and darkens up afterwards. No grain fill done, apparently one technique is to apply oil, then 4000 grit light sand to clog the oil-soaked grain with particles of the wood. The oil eventually dries seeped into the wood with the particles in the grain, filling it up.

The other I'm looking at is teak oil, which is tung+linseed oil blended with a drying agent, which puts it more in the realm of how I prep wood panels for oil painting. Less dry time. I've worked with raw linseed and "japan dryer" agent for sealing canvases and wood, so I'm leaning on that due to familiarity.

I am wondering about how to finish the body with the edges being darker like a burst, I wonder if I'm going to need some kind of compatible oil-based stain to add to the process.

I know tru-oil isn't teak or tung, but I followed the advice in this thread:

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/index ... sh.711780/

when I made this kit:

viewtopic.php?t=64337

The poster "Quarter" in the TGP thread seems to be THE internet tru-oil guy.

Did you apply any kind of tint or stain on that project?

I've been doing some research, and I bought some tung oil to mix up my own teak oil with linseed oil. I was planning on doing a top coat then with oil+beeswax that I have, but I am thinking how to get the edges darker.

From what I've read, I can mix a tint with a bit of ethanol or mineral spirits, then mix with the tung oil. Just curious as to what other methods might be out there.

On the body originally or on the oil finish?

On the body originally, then yes (obviously, hence it not looking like whatever cheap wood the body was made from).

http://www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-tradi ... /p/0315776

On the oil finish on the neck (and the varnish/finish) on the body, then no.

I would also point out that it's darkened again, since then. It's also softened in a way that is gorgeous for the neck, and kinda less so for the body. I like it, but it isn't as shiny, and it's clearly wearing.

Oiled finishes benefit from the fact that if you do it well, it looks great. If you do at badly, it at least looks better than good and feels great.

I might take photos again....