GUITAR BUILD PROJECTS, DRUM FETTLING, CUSTOMISATION & DIY TECH
I built this Joe Strummer relic project, partly for the hell of it - but also as a gift to a close mate, and lifelong Strummer fan. I've had a good deal of fun playing the guitar in, and I'm genrally pleased with the way the build has gone. The guitar will be moving on soon - so I've got a last chance to look it over, and make any final tweaks and adjustments.
A Joe Strummer telecaster, relic project seems to be a bit of a "right of passage" for self-builders. It's somewhat liberating to be able to put a guitar together whilst having a bit of freedom to "rough up" the finish along the way. Over the last month or so, I’ve managed to finish both the Jaguar and the Strummercaster. It'll be interesting to see how they match up against each other.
Seems like it's setup week in Garageland. Both the Jaguar and Telecaster projects are nearing completion at the same time. With thoughts turning to possibilites for the next project, it's time to setup the Tele and see if it sounds in keeping with its' looks.
The Telecaster control circuit is about a basic a circuit as exists for electric guitars. There's an additional modification in this case - the addition of a treble bleed - but the circuit is simple, and ideal for a relative beginner in guitar electronics like me, to get to know how things get connected
The pickups need to be screwed into place so they can eventually be wired into the guitar circuit. There are a few bits and pieces of hardware to follow up as well, before I need to move on to building and connecting up the switching circuit.
With the neck, scratchplate, body and now hardware, all having been "aged", and with other bits and pieces in various states of preparation - a couple of days focus should see the Strummercaster finally start to come together.
The body blank for the Strummer Tele came with no pre-drilled holes to attach the bridge, and therefore no way to use through body stringing. I need to go back to first principles and work out a way to locate the bridge and drill the holes in the right place.
I need to get the main components in hand, so I can lay out the front of the guitar, and eventually work out exactly where the bridge goes. one of the main parts of the design is the iconic stickers, including the famous, "Ignore Alien Orders". Thank goodness for the Interweb!
Garageland 