Building a strat vs. buying one

lance3witt · February 8th, 2010, 10:32 PM

I have been wanting a strat for a while now but I am also a close to broke college student with a low budget for music. I was thinking a couple days ago about fixing a guitar and if it would be cheaper than buying a new one or used one (cause for the American strats like I want no one wants to come down on the price). I also like taking things apart especially guitars and amps and learning how they work so I though this would be a fun project. After I posted an ad for broken strats on craigslist I got a surprising amount of replies from people with American, MIM and squire strats that where broken and they wanted to sell them. It gave me the Idea of buying a couple of them and combining the parts all except for a few things like pickups that I could get from a store to make sure I got the ones I wanted. Then I could sell the rest for parts and keep a few parts for spares. Would this be a good Idea or would it end up costing way more than buying them. I was also wondering if i did this what would be some good combos as far as necks and bodies ect. go and if anyone had strat parts they wanted to sell.

Thanks im new to modifying guitars and to strat forum and any help would be appreciated.

UmpaHimself · February 8th, 2010, 11:00 PM

I parted my strat together and it came out way better than I anticipated. I wanted so many specific features that it was more cost effective to do it my way.

tonyw · February 8th, 2010, 11:04 PM

I take it your not actualy 11?

I do it my way . I like a style of guitar but if i got someone to even wire it for me it would cost a fortune. Watch out doing your own as it becomes addictive.

67Strat · February 8th, 2010, 11:07 PM

I prefer to assemble one, cheaper and you will have a better guitar when it's said and done. Amazing what you can toss together for a few hundred.

lance3witt · February 8th, 2010, 11:34 PM

I have a fender starcaster at the moment that was given 2 me what parts would you guys recommend using off of it for a decent guitar. I know I want a different neck, tuners and pickups. But is the body decent when paired with a good neck?

lance3witt · February 8th, 2010, 11:57 PM

and yeh I am 21 I meant to type 1988. It wont let me change that so im just hid my age

chuckdup · February 9th, 2010, 01:59 AM

wassup lance.. welcome to the forum.. i really like your idea to post for busted guitars. think you could probably cobble some pretty nice axes togather that way & sell the refuse off after..

dont know enough about the starcaster to say about the body. but. if you'll let on a bit more about what kinda music you like or sound your after i'm shure the nice folks here will be glad to help..

post often make fun if you have nothing useful to add..

if i can misslead you in any way please feel free to listen to anything i might have to say......................laters,chuck

lance3witt · February 9th, 2010, 02:03 AM

Im lookin for an Hss setup im new to fender I have been playing an epihone les paul and I love the bassy humbuckers but i have recently played a couple of friends strats and decided I wanted one. I like the hss or fats strats (i think thats what they are called) cause you got the twang of the single coils but the added humbucker for versatility.

Nigel T. · February 9th, 2010, 04:27 AM

Basically you answered your own question. You like to take things apart... In other words, if you buy a complete guitar you are going to take it apart anyway.

My advise, if you know what you want pickup wise, whammy wise, wood-wise, etc. build your own guitar. Otherwise get a complete (or broken guitar) and replace parts. Personally I stopped buying "off-the-rack" guitars as I found I was replacing too much stuff on it (my Fender only has the original wood left, the rest has been replaced for example). So now I have them built to my specifications. Electrics and acoustics!

amstratnut · February 9th, 2010, 04:08 PM

Putting one together is definately fun. I have a mexican parts caster. I'm not too handy so I had a friend help me. The only thing stock is the neck and hardware.

The only thing I have an issue with, is when you want to buy a good neck from a supplier. I'm never sure how to know what I'd get. Warmoth is pretty good about describing their necks, but they are pricey. The dimensions given don't mean that much to me. I already happened to have a neck I liked. For me the neck is the crucial thing. Buying parted out fender necks can get pricey.

Anyone?

Axeaddict · February 9th, 2010, 06:59 PM

Well guess im going to have a different opinion than everyone else..I doubt youre going to be able to get all your parts for under $200.And then you will still have a Starcaster..If were me i'd buy a $120 bullet and change the bridge pup to a humbucker to start with..As you get more money to do some mods to it you will have a nice playing good strat..

Nigel T. · February 10th, 2010, 04:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Axeaddict

Well guess im going to have a different opinion than everyone else..I doubt youre going to be able to get all your parts for under $200.And then you will still have a Starcaster..If were me i'd buy a $120 bullet and change the bridge pup to a humbucker to start with..As you get more money to do some mods to it you will have a nice playing good strat..

Did I miss something? Where did he put the budget to 200 bucks? I am in Euro territory and a truly custom guitar will always be big bucks (mine was some € 2000,00).If there is a budget look at off-the-rack guitars.

Axeaddict · February 10th, 2010, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lance3witt

I have been wanting a strat for a while now but I am also a close to broke college student with a low budget for music.

Yes I think you did miss something...

Nigel T. · February 11th, 2010, 04:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Axeaddict

Yes I think you did miss something...

Yep... Hadn't seen that. In that case I agree, get a Bullet and mod the hell out of it in stages (read: when you have the money to change things on it).

lance3witt · February 11th, 2010, 12:17 PM

No i can spend more that 200 on it especially if i spread that out over time buying parts. This biggest reason is I was going to buy an mim strat but to me unless im gonna buy and American strat that will hold its value I might as well build a prats caster that way it would be unique and be setup exactly like I wanted. for example I like the HSS but has any one tried putting a soap bar instead of a humbucker? And another question whats is the differences in a usa, mim, and a squire body?

amstratnut · February 11th, 2010, 08:35 PM

I hope someone here can answer the body question better than I can.

From experience and hearsay, people often complain about the pickups on squires and mim strats. they say they sound too thin, shrill etc. While pickups do make a difference, the few "lower end" guitars I've played and swapped pups out of seem to be naturally brighter/thinner because of the body. And sometimes not brighter in a good way. What I'm trying to say in a round about way is that I think the bodies on some lower end guitars are the primary cause of the dreaded ice pick effect. I don't know why, and I honestly don't even know if its universal. It has just been my experience.

Most guys will probably tell you that the lower end bodies are made of more pieces. I don't know what that does either, but there it is.

A few shops now sell drop in strat sized soap bar style pups. I'd look into those.

lance3witt · February 12th, 2010, 12:50 AM

Im thinking bout gettin an mim to mod slowly. It would blow my budget for now but later i could upgrade the pickups. And since it will be my first fender it might be a good idea to play with it stock for a while. Then I would know what I wanted to upgrade when the time and money came to do so.

UmpaHimself · February 12th, 2010, 01:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lance3witt

And another question whats is the differences in a usa, mim, and a squire body?

Woods, finishes and quality control. You just have to do some research man, there are tons of threads on partscasters, choosing the right woods for you and finishes.

On squires your going to have pine, maybe basswood which are not bad but also not traditional fender tonewoods. MIM come in many varieties including the most sought after, Ash and Alder (traditional Fender tonewoods). MIA are to my knowledge always Alder or Ash unless stated otherwise (ex. Quilt Maple Top or something).

Most of the finishes are always going to be Poly or something cheaper unless stated otherwise. Ask anyone here and most will tell you the most highly regarded finish is Nitro, also very traditional and sought after but more costly.

The wood and finish also have a large affect on tone. However quality control mostly will affect playability and intonation. If the trem or neck holes are drilled off then you may have some big time issues.

Everything matters on a guitar, but some things more than others. For instance I was willing to go MIM for body and neck because it had the specs I was looking for and was very good quality (not the best but good enough to not spend more on MIA stuff).

Wow thats an essay, hope it helps.

lance3witt · February 12th, 2010, 10:31 AM

Well im lookin either for black or cream white for the finish so im prolly gonna buy the body used and keep the finish thats on it if i can find one i like. How could i tell when buying a used strat if the body is ahs or adler or another mim variation or if the original owner just put a mim neck on a squire body. I have come across some cheap mims and im not really sure how to tell if they are legit.

amstratnut · February 12th, 2010, 05:54 PM

Be sure to check out squire classic vibe guitars. You may have much less modding to do. I'm gonna go try one myself, because everyone on this forum whos into squres raves about the quality for the money.

tonyw · February 12th, 2010, 06:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lance3witt

No i can spend more that 200 on it especially if i spread that out over time buying parts. This biggest reason is I was going to buy an mim strat but to me unless im gonna buy and American strat that will hold its value I might as well build a prats caster that way it would be unique and be setup exactly like I wanted. for example I like the HSS but has any one tried putting a soap bar instead of a humbucker? And another question whats is the differences in a usa, mim, and a squire body?

Warmoth Showcase finished bodies

Start looking here for ideas.

FInished strat bodies

I think if anyone is worried about resale then dont build your own guitar. I dont even think about resale value as i keep all my guitars no matter what.

I take it by soapbar you mean P90 well theres a few that make them to fit a HB route i currently have Harmonic Design Z90 in a HB route.

lance3witt · February 13th, 2010, 01:52 PM

yeh a p90 are you happy with the z90?

lance3witt · February 15th, 2010, 11:34 AM

So I have a Squire strat now and possibly a neck the squire strat was free from a friend and the neck will be around $40. So that leaves a big budget for pickups and a bridge. I know I want 2 single coils but im not sure a bout the bridge pickup. I like the hss strats but I was thinking of either doing a p90 at the bridge or I have heard of something called a split coil im guessing it is some typ of humbucker that has the ability to turn the coil thats wound backwards off to make a single coil. that sounds cool but im not sure how well it would play. Any opinions?

Nigel T. · February 16th, 2010, 04:02 AM

On pickups everyone has a differing opinion. Many people go for the vintage stuff, and in the case of humbuckers the diMarzio Super Distortion is a very popular one. You can almost not go wrong with Seymour Duncan or Lace. Personally I am a EMG guy. I have a Strat with 3 SA-Vs on them and a hand built one with 2 SLVs and a 89 which has a coil split. A P90 is a single coil pickup so there are no coils to split, there's just the one.

I'd first lift the pickguard to see whether the body has been routed for humbuckers, because if it isn't you'd either have t do it yourself or have a customizer/luthier do it for you. Or go with 3 single coils (duh!).

As for how do coil splits play... The same as other humbuckers or single coils. I have it in humbucking state most of the time as I play much with overdrive. When I have to do single coil, for example for a ballad, or "more vintage sounding" rock (think Hendrix, trower, etc.) I pull the knob and it is in single coil mode. And play on.

tonyw · February 16th, 2010, 05:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lance3witt

yeh a p90 are you happy with the z90?

Mine arnt set up in my Baritone yet so i cant comment much other than they are probably one of the most professional companies i have dealt with and the pickups are very very well constructed. Dont think i have heard a bad word about these pickups or the company ever and any tracks i have heard using them have been superb. I had a very quik play with them aligator clipped into my friends Les Paul and they sounded very nice even without a proper set up.

lance3witt · February 16th, 2010, 12:11 PM

ok I have decided to keep the humbuckers that came with the guitar and put a single coil in between them I have lined up a pick guard from warmoth and gotten the wiring diagram that i want (splits the humbuckers) from seymore duncan. What brand and model single coil will give me a traditional strat sound in between my humbuckers? Im going for versatility here as much as possible. And yes its routed for hsh.

lance3witt · February 16th, 2010, 12:13 PM

also im replacing the hardware cause I dont like black on black Im gonna go with chrome. What do you guys thing of getting a floyd rose locking trem and nut. Pros? Cons?.

EGrier65 · February 16th, 2010, 03:18 PM

The Floyd won't be a direct drop-in for ya. I'm guessing you have a 6 screw vintage type bridge? The Floyd has a 2 screw fulcrum so, you're going to have to mod your body to accomodate it. Also the nut on the neck will have to be modded. It can be done but you may want to take it to a luthier to make sure everything is aligned properly.

lance3witt · February 17th, 2010, 02:44 AM

where can i get a decent neck for under $150?