May Guitar of the Month

[deekay]

10 days from delivery to playing on my Hofner style Violin Bass. A few little hiccups along the way but nothing too difficult to solve or work around. Finish is truoil and I was not chasing a glass finish so some grain has been left. This is intentional and light very fine wire wool was used after cut and polish, The finish is exactly as I wanted. I found truoil a fantastic product and wet sanding achieved miracles. Sound is lovely, playability is great, heaps of sustain and lots of punch now I have the pups at the correct height. The control panel was purposely installed upside down so I could see it in the playing position. I used Fender Jazz Bass specs for the set up of action and buzz free, nice and low. All in all a good project and not too hard to achieve an acceptable result.

[Brendan]

"May Guitar of the Month (for Guitars and Basses finished in April)

Enter your finished guitar or bass here to be judged for the Pit Bull Guitars May Guitar of the Month.

Please remember:

For Guitars or Basses finished on (or before) the end of April.

One guitar/bass per member per month.
It must be a Pit Bull Guitars kit (mods and upgrades acceptable).
Guitar or Bass must be finished and playable.

We need at least 4 photos:
· full guitar shot from the front;
· close up of the body finish;
· shot of the back of the guitar; and
· close up of the headstock (please, no brand name logos)


Please post your photos in this thread. If you are having issues posting photos on the forum, please email them to brendan (at) pitbullguitars (dot) com

Please note: This competition is open to amateur guitar builders only. If you are making and selling guitars for profit, you are ineligible. Also while there are some stunning guitars around - you never know what the judges are looking for, so we encourage anyone who's built a Pitbull during the month to enter!

Competition for closes at the end of April (Perth Western Australian time).

The sorts of things we judge on include:
· How well have the body and neck been prepared
· Is the choice of finish for the style of guitar appropriate
· How well has the finish been applied
· How well has all the hardware, pickups, etc, been installed
· Does it have the 'Wow Factor'· Which guitar would you make a beeline for in a guitar shop. That is, which one would you most like to take home.

BTW - remember that the winner is invited to be a guest judge the following month!"

[blinddrew]

The control panel was purposely installed upside down so I could see it in the playing position.
Actually that's how they're installed in the originals. Lovely looking piece :)

[neverwas]

Haven't entered the comp for quite a while, so what the hell, why not.
FS-1 kit with some minor mods.
30982
Kit came with a rosewood fretboard, yes it's that old, and that probably influenced the colour choice. All hardware has been changed,
Frankentone filtertron style pickups with dress rings made by pablopepper (haven't noticed him on the forum for a while)
Full size 500k CTS pots, 0.022 Orange drop caps and treble bleed mod, Epi 3 way switch and Switchcraft jack
Gotoh TOM bridge and stop tailpiece (instead of the trapeze that came with the kit)
Grover locking tuners, PBG bone nut and Kluson string tree, also strap locks
Headstock has flame maple veneer added and routed the lower level to include a MoP inlay
Stains are a colortone mix over black base and then acrylic lacquer clear.
Had some stain bleed into the binding and painted those areas (it's in the build diary if you're interested)

The pics
3098330984
3098530986

Seeing as this thread started later than usual and if deekay and I are the only entries before it closes, I'm quite happy to roll over to next month if that's agreeable.

Grant

[neverwas]

The two attachments that don't want to show
3098730988

Grant

[Brendan]

Comp closed - new comp up soon!

[I’ll give it a go]

This guitar looks so awesome.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Brendan]

OK to the judges comments:

Deekay's HB-4S:
a nice traditional build, looks great. These spalted H basses always seem to come up well, this is no exception. Nice work - be proud and put your name on it!

Nice example of a spalted HB. Clean, natural and really appealing overall look. Would have loved some more photos of it to see it in all its glory. Very nice bass.

Well done to get the build completed so quickly and with a great finish. Classic look and a classic bass. Would like to have seen more photos and a close up of the headstock. Great example of what can be achieved with this kit.

Turned out pretty good in the short amount of time taken. Tru oil finish looks great and probably most sensible choice given the climate conditions where you are situated in Darwin. Commendable effort in this 2 horse race.

Made the most of a gorgeous spalt. Would have liked to have seen a truss rod cover upgrade. Lost a point because it didn’t have all the required photos.

Neverwas' FS-1:
these are an exceptional looking kit and you’ve done an amazing job with this one, the finish and details are great. Look the headstock treatment. I really like the one tone strain without a burst, very nice, congrats, great build

This is a striking finish. I can't imagine what you'd do differently with the timbers in this instrument. Absolutely nailed it. Good choice of modifications too. I'm a solid body fan but if I saw this guitar in a shop I'd be drawn to try it and buy it. Beautiful, all class!

I've never been a fan of this shape of body or headstock... but this thing is absolutely gorgeous. The deep almost liquid clear over the beautiful browns and blacks works so well and suits this perfectly. Nice hardware and upgrades and that headstock, wow! Love everything about it. Damn it, now I want one.

This is absolutely stunning. Was not a fan of this shape but you have won me over on this build. Worthy of GOTY status.

Gorgeous, glossy beast. Love the headstock. Great job.

[Brendan]

And the winner!

Congratulations to Neverwas! Your FS-1 is amazing and one of the judges GOTY comment I think was on the button!
https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.au/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=30987&d=1556611865

Which means the runner up was Deekay - great spalted goodness in a bass - couple of photos may have improved the outcome!
https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.au/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=30965&stc=1&d=1556440398

[DarkMark]

A couple of great guitars, well done fellas! It would be hard not to pick Neverwas’ guitar regardless as to how many entries were in the monthly competition. I kind of want an FS-1 now.

[neverwas]

Thanks for the kind reviews everyone.
Well done Deekay, that bass looks great and done in so short of a time, wish I could work that fast.
Was expecting a roll over to next month but that's ok. Seems like I may have swayed some of the judges to try one of these kits:)
Thanks again

Grant

[Brendan]

Late comments on the builds:
Deekay HB-4S

A very natural and understated build the spalt leaps out the finish is absolutely top shelf.

The effort taken to get the neck pocket absolutely right is yet another step up on the DIY trail and something for the rest of us to consider with our future builds.

The only let down for me is the lack of artwork on the headstock ( Deekayal )

Neverwas FS-1

This superb build screams wow.

The attention to detail, the fit and finish place this guitar in a stellar orbit all of it's own.

There is absolutely nothing anywhere in this wonderful instrument that anyone with a pulse could give a down tick to.

Duesenberg would be proud to have this in their range.

[dave.king1]

Two great builds that many of us could only dream of, congrats to both Deekay and Neverwas for nudging the bar ever higher.

Having missed the opportunity to own a 335 back in 1971 I have an itch for a semi and the FS is now definitely in the frame along with the ES kit.

Sound demo please, folks need to know

[Andy40]

Well done guys. both of these guitars are awesome:cool: