Jeff R

I got an inquiry today from a guy who says he's in Connecticut and he's looking for general set-up work, possible fret work and possible Floyd Rose nut height fine-tuning. 85 Soloist and a Warmoth "Green Meanie" partsmutt clone. I told him I appreciate him reaching out but it makes no sense to ship to me across country when there are surely guys right there who do stellar work. Give those techs, not UPS or FedEx, your money, that's my logic, plus just driving distance from Conn is NYC - a kinda big guitar market from what I remember, right? LOL One problem ... I need suggestions on who does stellar guitar tech work in or very close to Connecticut. Leads? Better yet, have any old New Hartford employees opened pure repair/tech shops or gotten jobs at any shops doing it?

Google Maps indicates no less than 23 hours drive from Connecticut to me, so he's still winning. All he said was he's "out of Connecticut."

Finish and clearcoat oversprays in the trem route work to your advantage as well. Makes it easy to knock that block's dabdot of glue loose if you need to. Even if finish was to come loose with the block (I've never had that happen) it won't be in a readily visible area.

Don't laugh, but go check out a Squier Classic Vibe Jazzmaster. Shockingly good for the asking price, and perfect for a JM noob. Most people love the way the offsets hang on you, but their pickups, electronics packages and trems are either loved or, um ... not loved. The Squier will let you figure out in which camp you fall for a fraction of the investment.

Found some reference photos ... blocking a custom tele build's Gotoh Floyd-license ... Guesstimating my needed thickness... Fine tuning thickness, held loosely with one spring Dabdot of glue and slightly tightened claw. After I tapped the block into that exact position with a small screwdriver and a mallet, I put on the two missing springs and tightened the tension up just enough so that the bridge wouldn't pitch forward on a fingerboard bend unless the bend was more than a full step. The view from the top/side

Dabdot of Titebond Original, or any decent general wood glue really. Holds it in place when the trem isn't, but the block removes easily with a flat head screwdriver and a gentle whack with a small hammer should you wish to make it go bye bye.

I've had many of the Indonesian-made Soundgear basses cross the bench and none have been bums yet, they've actually been pretty good for their price points. If I was shopping for me, however, I'd look for a used MIJ SR first, solely for the guaranteed better, older wood. The SR platform has been on the market for well over 20 years so I'd think there is a rather robust used crop from which to pick.

Here's a tip for you too ... my hidden weapon when I block a Floyd for dive only is rosewood. Watch what it adds for resonance, low-mid growl and throat, and overall snap/recoil under your hands. An acoustic blank should be very close to what you need thickness wise. Cut it down length-wise with a hand saw. To find tune its thickness, use coarse adhesive sandpaper on a tabletop. These are what I use. https://www.stewmac.com/Hardware_and_Parts/All_Hardware_and_Parts_by_Instrument/Acoustic_Guitar_Parts/Acoustic_Guitar_Bridges_and_Tailpieces/Flattop_Guitar_Bridge_Blank.html

I have a problem with ALL tribute bands that pay tribute to a band I can still actually experience. SP played HOB in NOLA this past weekend. And they are a tribute band to boot. So these guys are a tribute to a not only tribute band but a working and aggressively touring tribute. You've gotta be kidding me.

Don't send that to me. Dehydration via tear ducts has got to be an slower, more painful decaying than what that Junior has and continues to endure.

Unless the buyer is trying to find tirekicking fuel to nickel and dime the seller's ass, I wouldn't worry about it. Here's my '55 when I got it, your buddy is WAAAYYY ahead of the curve already ... Here she is after me and HEL Shaneshannon did our magic.

Assuming the Floyd is non-recessed, you need to "flatten" the degree/pitch of the neck as it pertains to the body. Factory shims usually create that pitch if the pocket was cut perfectly horizontal. Remove any shim put in the pocket at the factory and see if that lowers the bridge flush where you want it. If there are no shims to remove, you may need to shim the opposite side of the neck pocket to get the neck and bridge where you want it.

Is the guitar holding string tension and tuning with no issues ... no clues above as to if it's up and running or a husk being brought back to life, maybe I missed it. My point is if it is holding string tension and tuning with no issues, and if you need beyond the naked eye to figure out if the head was broken and apparently well prepared on a refinned, refretted guitar ... why's a possible well-fixed head snap matter on an already modified guitar?

My new to me '85 ESP Random Star would look great atop that tree. And it's sparkly white to boot! LOL

I forwarded all the links, thanks y'all!

Buddy of mine needs a needle for this Magnavox Micromatic console. He doesn't have a model name or number but here's quick photo for now ... any of you guys have an online vendor to whom I can recommend for finding styli for these jewels of the past?

If you feel you are acting in the true spirit of protecting buyers by pointing out what I also think was an honest oversight on his part, go right ahead. I don't have a horse in this race.

I could understand your review dilemma if he pulled the Dimarzios and put in GuitarFetish knockoffs, if you called him out on on a move to pull a fast one on you, and he did nothing to make it right on the back end. But don't penalize the guy because he made what is likely an mistake/oversight/whatever (that left potential net profit unrealized) with more expensive, less readily available and highly desirable pickups in the world of "hot rod guitars" (what is the mission and to who Charvel has marketed, with no changes in philosophy, for 40 years), in a non-custom shop, non-one-off assembly line piece from said original hot rod guitar company. If you hold back a star because you got a more hot rodded hot rod, you need to case the Charvel and go back to playing a Lester - and that b!itch better be bone stock, no "upgrades" LOL

Cut and paste this response: "If excessive weight is a concern, I am also selling a PRS Sweet 40 in another thread. It weighs 16 pounds."

Cut and paste this response: "I don't know how to decipher the SN to date the pedal because it is in Danish numerals."

The song, the voice, the musicians and musicianship, individually and packaged ... This could be the best five minutes of music I've experienced in years.

Echoplexing the above ... and I'll add that if you sell it, there is a HIGH, HIGH likelihood you're going to regret it and be looking for another just like it in the future. They are that cool and horridly underrated in the world of Hamerdom. There's a good reason why it's very hard to find a clean Cent, let alone one with a maple board. And yep, it's probably alder as most of them were.

The camera I use for my shop's videos is a Zoom Q2N. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. Effective, small and affordable. I've never tried to edit the audio feeds, what you hear below is the raw audio I got. It has clickable presets for the type of room from an audio and video standpoint, you can set the audio sensitivity via a knob and a VU meter (very nice). As for ease of use, the manual is only 24 pages and very little has to do with the actual features or operation. Battery life and memory storage is good as well.

As hard as it is to find a 2HB nowaways (look at the dates on this thread alone) ... The ringed one above is exactly what you seek if you add eight tiny dowels and a pro Stike refin (in your finish of choice, added bonus). Even after investing in Stike paint, you will be in for what I'd consider a very fair price, actually less. Plus it's a maple board ... even more rare. The more I think about that one ^^^, the more I think you ought to hit it and if you don't, that I should hit it LOL

The Daytona/G&G case fitting thread made me think this is worth sharing for anyone with a caseless Chap, or a deteriorating Chap case, etc. Gwayne's recently overhauled Chap arrived to me a husk cocooned in bubblewrap. G wanted to case it for the trek back home from LA to GA, so I took the finished guitar to the local GC to test-fit every case they carry for strats and superstrats. The best fit was Gator's latest generation of molded ATA/TSA-approved flight case. It fit PERFECT, it hugged the body and neck and wiggle roomed the headstock PERFECT. It is much better than the OEM Hamer case in fact. The SKU on my receipt doesn't match up to online listings so I can't give you a specific item # to search, but I'm 90 percent sure it's this one ... https://gatorcases.com/products/guitar/tsa-ata-guitar-cases/tsa-guitar/electric-guitar-case-gtsa-gtrelec/ Heads up ... and a legit reason to show off Gary's finished guitar again, plus the custom neoprene promotional fret guards I had printed up for my shop.