ES-3, GR-1SF, and ST-1Jr

It's always a good day when a PBG package arrives. I won't have a chance to start on these kits for a while, so I thought I'd post some pics for those interested.

First up, the ES-3 aka 175 kit.

It's fat, it's hollow, it's got some nice grain and it looks to be put together really well considering the price. Very pleased. In fact, I may have to relent and bump this one up the queue a bit.


Scale: 627mm
Body thickness (max): 115mm (approx.)
Side thickness: 85mm
Weight: 1.9Kg (bare body + neck)




http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...au-ES_3_03.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...90-ES_3_02.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...67-ES_3_05.jpg

ES-3 cont.

The neck mounts into a cut out block, there is a small block at the tail and a small bridge block that is glued to the top and then braced with another block glued to the back.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...z4-ES_3_12.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...va-ES_3_07.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...b8-ES_3_08.jpg

(Bridge holes are in the correct position and ground wire hole is present)

ES-3 cont.

Other than the bridge block and its brace there is no additional support across the inside of the top or back.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...nm-ES_3_09.jpg

And, here's a close-up of the inside of the cut-away (looking down through the neck pup cut-out.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...vy-ES_3_11.jpg

Finally, it has some unusual inlay on the fretboard… I didn't think I'd like it, but it's growing on me. The centre triangles seem to be semi-translucent with the green MOP-style colouring underneath.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...r4-ES_3_04.jpg

GR-1SF

Again, it's fat, it's hollow, it's got some nice grain and curves, a really great neck with a nice pre-shaped headstock. Overall, it looks and feels really good but it's a little rougher than the ES-3 and mine has a HUGE issue which I'll discuss in the next post.

Scale: 626mm
Body thickness (max): 115mm (approx.)
Side thickness: 85mm
Weight: 2Kg (bare body + neck)

It's supplied with Filtertron'ish looking pickups, but they have all slug coils rather than screws. It'll be interesting to hear how they sound.





http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_01.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_02.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_07.jpg

GR-1SF cont.

Construction is the same as the ES-3, with a small block at the tail and a braced bridge block glued between the top and back.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_08.jpg

The HUGE issue

Unfortunately, the quality control on my kit seems to have been lacking as the bridge block has been glued in too far back, leaving the bridge post holes completely unsupported. I checked the scale length and the holes are in the correct position, it's just that the bridge block and brace are about 2+cm too far back. This makes it unusable in its current form.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_05.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_06.jpg

I was planning on using a floating bridge on this, so the post holes don't really matter. But I will have to either try to unglue/separate the current bridge block and brace and reposition it, or (more likely) add another block and brace in the correct position. I don't want to be alarmist but I'd recommend that anyone with a GR-1SF should check the position of their bridge block.

(Don't worry Adam, I'm not too stressed about it… I hope it's just a one-off, but maybe mention it to the factory for the next batch)

GR-1SF cont.

Inside view of the cut-away from the neck pup cut-out.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_10.jpg

And, finally the very comfortable neck.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_11.jpg

ST-1Jr

It's a baby strat!

Total length: 890mm
Total width: 285mm
Scale: 575mm
Weight: 1.9Kg (bare body + neck)





http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-ST_1Jr_01.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-ST_1Jr_02.jpg

ST-1Jr cont.

And, for a real size comparison, here it is beside a STA-1M.




http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-ST_1Jr_03.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-ST_1Jr_04.jpg

You are a cruel man, Weirdy. I'm not in the market for a build at this stage but the ES-3 had me drooling when I saw it in FB the other day. Now you've gone and pruiked it's glory and it's making me want to lash out. I can only hope Ads has sold them all. I'll be watching your build on this VERY closely. And how did you get your head in there with a camera?

Hey Weirdy, thanks for the feedback. I must admit, I was worried that these kits looked so good, there must be some major flaws that would render them unsaleable. The price they are selling these for is just ridiculous.

I'll check out the other GR-1SF kits to see if they all have this centre block issue, but hopefully it was just a a bad QC on your kit.

It should be an easy fix, to move that support block, if you need to. And don't forget, if you ever feel like the kit you've received has an unrepairable fault, you can return it for a full refund.

Adam, return a PBG kit? Inconceivable!

Lawry, I'll tell you what, if you finally stop procrastinating and mount your Purgatory pedal in an enclosure... I'll start working on the ES-3 along with my other current builds ;)
And, re the photos: a compact digital camera that I carefully inserted into the cavity before turning it on and extending the lens.

ES-3 purchased, Ad's will be sending you a commission!

Quote:

---

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from WeirdBits on May 26, 2014, 22:35
Adam, return a PBG kit? Inconceivable!

Lawry, I'll tell you what, if you finally stop procrastinating and mount your Purgatory pedal in an enclosure... I'll start working on the ES-3 along with my other current builds ;)
And, re the photos: a compact digital camera that I carefully inserted into the cavity before turning it on and extending the lens.

---

Deal! I'll get into it this weekend and post updates as proof. In truth, I really do need a kick up the bum to finish that thing :)

That ES-3 looks awesome. I've built one from a US-based kit supplier in the past and it's a great guitar. I'm saving my pennies for one of these now! Thanks so much for the rundown Scott! Adam should definitely be paying you commission on this one ;).

cheers,
Gav.

Hey Guys, I've just checked the other GR-1SF here and that one also has the bridge holes not lined up over the block. And Jarrod's also has this same issue. I'm wondering if they are meant to be this way. It seems strange the Chinese would get all 5 I ordered so wrong. They've been making these for some time.

All the ES-3's I've seen do have the bridge holes over the block.

As the GR-1SF has a Bigsby style trem arm, I'm wondering if the block is in that position to support the bridge and take the trem arm screws?

Anyhoo, I'll send Scott's excellent photos to the supplier and ask what they think.

My two cents worth on the block is they screwed up..
I would have thought that the block should be wider to accomodate the trem and the bridge lugs....

Agree with DB, they stuffed up. Chinese quality control as I've said before only goes so far as to count the correct number of screws etc. the poles would tear that top/soundboard in a matter of days they way they have it.

Adam, the block isn't back far enough to support the trem either, so if it was intentional then it's not really helping the bridge or the trem. As Gav said, the bridge post bushings wouldn't hold for long in just the ply especially with the trem's sawing action of the strings over the bridge. The supplied tremolo has two top mount screws in addition to the tailpiece screws, rather than a true floating unit used on fat bodies like a B6/60, so those top screws would also just be pinned in the ply.

I took some more internal pics and it definitely looks like the block was positioned where it was marked, I just think it was marked incorrectly. The ES-3 has the same pencil marks for the centre of the block but in that case they are in the right spot. Images are bass side first, then treble side.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_13.jpg

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_14.jpg

And, here I have a piece of paper showing the actual size and position of the block. As you can see, it doesn't support the trem or the bridge, so it will be interesting to get the manufacturer's response.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_17.jpg

For comparison, here are pics showing the ES-3's block position and marks (bass side, then treble).

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...gq-ES_3_13.jpg

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ne-ES_3_14.jpg

And, for those interested, here's the ES-3's tail block.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...oj-ES_3_15.jpg

Hey thanks Scott, they are excellent photos. I'm not defending our Chinese friends, it just seems odd they would get all of them wrong, as I think they've been knocking these out for a while. However, it could be a "new guy" problem or something else.

Anyhoo, I've sent an email to my factory contact, so we'll see what they have to say. If they say "they are meant to be that way" then we can go back and instruct them to do it differently.

Scott, does your GR-1SF have a tail block like the ES-3?

Ad's, while they are at it they need to do something about that tail block. it is way to thin. It needs to be at least 25mm thick if it is going to provide adequate support to the guitar strap pins. Plus it should be shaped away from the top/ soundboard and the back of the guitar. by not being shaped, there is a strong likelihood that the wood above and below the ply will crack as the tail piece breathes (expands and contracts).

This is what a finished block should look like at the tail.
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...o-IMG_0541.JPG

Will do Gav, although I am really tempted to just delete the GR-1SF from our catalogue. I had a bad feeling ordering this model and my gut feelings seem to have been confirmed.

And I'm going to refund everyone who bought one of these to the value of the landed cost price, which is $238 (including postage). So, standby for a refund you GR-1SF owners and apologies for receiving a sub-par kit.

Adam, my previous post and images was just me being curious and wanting to investigate the issue further after you said it appeared to be consistent across all the kits. Nothing more.

And yes, like the ES-3, my GR-1SF does have a tail block, like so:

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_15.jpg

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...-GR_1SF_16.jpg

(thanks Gav, great info about how a tail block should be shaped, it always good to get an expert's view)


Edit: Adam, I just saw your latest comment, and that wasn't the intent of my posts. It's a very generous offer, thank you.

Ads, shame about the GR1-SF kit - looks like a cracker.

Scott - just goes to show how good a bloke Adam is - if it's sub par, he'll look after you.

Shame how the GR1-SF is going... Such a good looking kit...

Lads with the GR1-SF - looking at wiring diagrams... Looks like you've ended up with 4 pots and a 3 way. Could do it as a 2 vol, 2 tone and a 3 way ("standard" humbucker setup), but was wondering if anyone had a better idea for a setup using the standard parts in the kit. Checking the original guitar, it seems that they have a bridge vol, neck vol, master vol and 3 way and a mysterious other switch / knob. Nothing in the electronics about a tone knob at all.

Any ideas?

The 'mysterious other switch' was typically a 'tone switch' providing a normal/high-cut/dark setting via grounded capacitors instead of a normal tone control. This type of circuit can be done with just an on/off/on switch and a couple of caps. Diagrams are available on the Gretsch site.

Given that the kit comes with 4 pots and a 3-way toggle, the standard 2 vol, 2 tone is probably the easiest option, but not the best for the layout. So, something more inline with the original would probably work better: master vol, master tone, and individual pickup volumes (master vol on lower lobe, tone at the top with the switch). I've got something a little different planned for mine... we'll see.

How heavy is the ST1-jr, and do the junior guitars work well with lower tension strings?

I'm interested in making one for some classes I take so we can look at contemporary instruments as well as orchestral instruments, and it'd be real cool to have one the kids can use and we can pull apart...

Thx