Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

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ThePearDream
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Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by ThePearDream » Sat Jul 30, 2022 10:44 am

Alright gang, I have an exciting new project to start and I wanted to give it it's own thread.
So, last year (or the year before, I forget) I built this 22.5" Duo-Sonic for my wife's cousin's son, who was trying to learn guitar. He is a pretty small kid, and his late grandfather's strat was just too big.

(I did fix that tone control)
Image

Cut to Independence Day weekend, when we went to a birthday party for my wife's grandmother. One of her out-of-state cousins was there with his family. As it turns out, their teen daughter has fallen in love with guitar and even brought her gear with her to play a few songs for the birthday girl. She recently started a band with some friends and they play Smashing Pumpkins covers. I had told her that she sounded great and to keep it up and told her parents about SheShreds on social media.

Earlier this week, her Dad sent me a message to ask about building a custom guitar for her. I have him doing some sleuthing and I've been coming up with a plan for her guitar. So, she currently has a cheaper BC Rich Warlock, which is pretty heavy. So I want her to have something lighter, with more versatile pickups, and still be really eye catching like the Warlock. Warlocks are actually offsets themselves, but we don't see a lot of posts about them here, but I digress.

Image

Anyway, last year I build a re-imagined Fender Performer, that I call Mercury, I still need to take some glamour shots, but I've been busy. My idea was to cross the 1986 Fender Performer with the 1987-99 Fender Strat Plus. A kind of exercise of: What if the Performer shape had stuck around long enough to get some of the stuff Fender was putting into the new US strats. It did get some things like an early version of the TBX control. I did change the neck from 25.5"/24 fret to 25"/22 fret. Mine has the Blue/Silver/Red Lace Sensor Set, a Fender Strat Deluxe/Ultra vibrato, and weighs ~7.4 lbs.

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I thought this would be a great platform for her guitar. So I drew up a first draft of what I'm thinking. I made some changes to the pickguard outline, based on my first build and moved the controls around a bit (I may still swap the mini switch and tone knob positions), the jack is back on the side of the guitar too. Since she's a young player and starting to gig, I don't want to introduce any added complexity via a vibrato, so it will be hardtail and probably get locking tuners as well. For pickups, I decided to go with an H-S combo for maximum versatility now, as well as for future pickup options. To start though, since she is a huge Billy Corgan fan (also the Cure, Nirvana, etc.) and is playing those classic SP songs, why not get her those same Lace Sensors? I'm thinking that the LS and controls will be in a Tele Plus configuration, with a Blue neck and Silver-Red Dually bridge (instead of Red-Red) and the same 3-way mini toggle to select the bridge coils. I should be able to mount the dually with just one screw on each end to make it easier to change to whatever humbucker she may want later. It will probably be all black with a matching headstock, ebony or similar fretboard, black hardware etc. I'll probably select the fretboard radius and fret size to be close to her Warlock, so it's a bit familiar.

Image

What do you think? Any suggestions? Improvements?
Doug
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Shadoweclipse13
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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Shadoweclipse13 » Sat Jul 30, 2022 1:14 pm

That is friggin awesome Pear!!! I love most all build projects, but especially those going to young musicians!!!
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http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=104282&p=1438384#p1438384

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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Zeus » Sat Jul 30, 2022 1:48 pm

Everything about this is great!

I can't wait to see the finished product.

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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Steadyriot. » Sat Jul 30, 2022 2:09 pm

Oh man that’s so rad! A great gift.

Personally my mind would go Musiclander before it goes Performer seeing that BC Rich, especially with that taste in music but I love your rendition!
"If someone duetted with a Bald Eagle, they could rule the Country charts from here to eternity." ~shadowplay

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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Embenny » Sat Jul 30, 2022 2:19 pm

This is so awesome. No notes. 10/10.
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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by copacetic » Sat Jul 30, 2022 4:06 pm

Just the mere fact young kids are still getting into guitar playing smashing pumpkins covers and jamming to the cure and nirvana is enough to bring a smile to my face.

I will be watching this eagerly. Super neat design and very cool of dad and you to build her something all her own!
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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by ThePearDream » Sat Jul 30, 2022 4:33 pm

Thanks everybody!

Dad has approved of my design and provided material funds. I need to make a visit to the wood store near my work, they usually have nice light alder. A nice thing about this shape, is that it is 12-1/2”W and I have a 13"planer. I'll probably have lmii do the fretboard though.

One thing I forgot to mention is that I have a design tool I made and use in AutoCAD. It's a block (a drawing within a drawing) that I can change to different scale lengths. This block has zero point, 24 fret lines and the relative pickup locations for dozens of classic guitars and basses and I'm adding more as I find them. If it were scaled to 25.5" the strat pickup locations in the block would line up with a strat's pickups. Scale it to 24 and the Jaguar and Mustang marks line up to their respective models. Why this is actually useful is it allows me to say, build a 25.5" scale guitar with Jaguar pickups placed in the same position relative to scale length as they are in a normal Jaguar. Want a baritone with a single pickup in the P Bass location? Why not?

For this project, I scaled it to 25 and have positioned the pickups as follows: the neck single is in the same location (relative to scale length) as a Jazzmaster neck pickup. The bridge humbucker location is in the same location (relative to scale length) as a Les Paul.
Doug
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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by countertext » Sat Jul 30, 2022 4:59 pm

ThePearDream wrote:
Sat Jul 30, 2022 4:33 pm
One thing I forgot to mention is that I have a design tool I made and use in AutoCAD. It's a block (a drawing within a drawing) that I can change to different scale lengths. This block has zero point, 24 fret lines and the relative pickup locations for dozens of classic guitars and basses and I'm adding more as I find them. If it were scaled to 25.5" the strat pickup locations in the block would line up with a strat's pickups. Scale it to 24 and the Jaguar and Mustang marks line up to their respective models. Why this is actually useful is it allows me to say, build a 25.5" scale guitar with Jaguar pickups placed in the same position relative to scale length as they are in a normal Jaguar. Want a baritone with a single pickup in the P Bass location? Why not?

For this project, I scaled it to 25 and have positioned the pickups as follows: the neck single is in the same location (relative to scale length) as a Jazzmaster neck pickup. The bridge humbucker location is in the same location (relative to scale length) as a Les Paul.
Wtf as you were posting this I was posting a relevant thing in this thread and maybe if you check it you can help answer a question there.

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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Ceylon » Sun Jul 31, 2022 2:12 am

I was a teenage Smashing Pumpkins-fan and I would have been overjoyed with getting this guitar. A+ for going with the Performer body shape, I can see why it never took off and got more popular but aesthetically they did a great job of coming up with something that mixed classic Fender with 80s heavy metal without having it become just another Superstrat.
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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by marqueemoon » Sun Jul 31, 2022 11:15 am

Great project. My only comment is to try slimming down the upper horn the *slightest* amount.

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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Amon 7.L » Mon Aug 01, 2022 3:18 am

This is an amazing project, I'm sure the kid is gonna love it.
I mean, what's better than a custom made guitar? :-*

Speaking of the already cool design and considering this:
marqueemoon wrote:
Sun Jul 31, 2022 11:15 am
Great project. My only comment is to try slimming down the upper horn the *slightest* amount.
I tried to push the top horn a little further back than the 12th fret and ever so slightly tweaked the pickguard. Also the headstock mimicking the beak of said top horn:
Image

Same as above but a fully custom headstock shape that reflects the lines of the lower horn:
Image

Just throwing ideas, no disrespect intended whatsoever. :)
Keep us updated!

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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Shadoweclipse13 » Mon Aug 01, 2022 5:32 am

I'll be honest, I don't see any difference in the body for either of those 2 designs. I do, however, love that custom headstock!!!
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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Amon 7.L » Mon Aug 01, 2022 5:47 am

Shadoweclipse13 wrote:
Mon Aug 01, 2022 5:32 am
I'll be honest, I don't see any difference in the body for either of those 2 designs. I do, however, love that custom headstock!!!
Thanks, Jason!

I made a GIF:
Image
1st pic: the original;
2nd pic: tweaked top horn, pickguard and headstock's tip;
3rd pic: same as pic 2 but with full custom headstock.

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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by ThePearDream » Mon Aug 01, 2022 6:31 am

marqueemoon wrote:
Sun Jul 31, 2022 11:15 am
Great project. My only comment is to try slimming down the upper horn the *slightest* amount.
Amon 7.L wrote:
Mon Aug 01, 2022 3:18 am
I can totally see why you would say that and I appreciate the input. But, once the roundovers and rear countours are applied, the horn isn't actually very big. In fact, the body is deceptively small, plus on mine the balance is absolutely fantastic.

Here's a front shot of the contoured body. This has 3/8"R on the front and 5/8"R on the rear.
Image
Doug
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Re: Surprise! Custom Build for a Young Rockstar

Post by Shadoweclipse13 » Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:32 am

Amon 7.L wrote:
Mon Aug 01, 2022 5:47 am
Shadoweclipse13 wrote:
Mon Aug 01, 2022 5:32 am
I'll be honest, I don't see any difference in the body for either of those 2 designs. I do, however, love that custom headstock!!!
Thanks, Jason!

I made a GIF:
Image
1st pic: the original;
2nd pic: tweaked top horn, pickguard and headstock's tip;
3rd pic: same as pic 2 but with full custom headstock.
I see it now! Upper horn is definitely an improvement in my opinion!!
Pickup Switching Mad Scientist
http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=104282&p=1438384#p1438384

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