Finally... an update to this old P65 thread!
Currently I have all the parts for a correct '65 except for short bride thimbles, bound/dot neck, and original pickups. I have everything else, including the pot/harness, tail, bridge, shielding, L-plate, double line Klusons, decal, and ALL hardware, including strap buttons and string tree (with correct plastic spacer). All parts are vintage and era-correct except the logo.
I finally got around to fitting the original (badly shrunken) nitrate guard. It needed major surgery... but it came through OK. I had to drill the bridge cup holes out to 11/16". I wanted to keep them round, so that's how big I had to go to make the guard sit over them. I also had to drill out the pickguard holes to almost the same size as the screwheads... and a few of them are still in crooked. The five at the pots and jack were particularly off.
I used a dremel on the pickup cuts. I could really smell the nitrate... it smelled like putrid Pine Sol! A few times it went up in smoke and I had to back off quickly. But it was alot quicker than doing it by hand. I just kept going round and round the entire cut until the covers fit through.
I REALLY LIKE THIS BODY! I don't even think it needs stripped, just roughed up finely and sprayed right over (if the nitro will go over whatever is on there without wrinkling). The body needs no filler or any mods at all. It's not even dinged.
Tomorrow morning I'm going to assemble it with AVRI pups and the nomaster maple neck. I'd do it now, but I'm drinking margaritas and don't want to chance doing anything stupid!
Q. Are we not men?