Both builds are sitting in my son's room, and he's at work, so... I've gone and taken more photos.
I drilled every hole in advance, and then used candle wax as a lubricant for every single screw. And with how the ash stood up to the wire wheel (both builds are the ash kits), I think you're right. At least, the parts that aren't the soft grain are VERY hard. Very hard, at least as hard as any part of the maple. Arguably, the difference between the two timbers is that ash is both hard and soft, where maple is more consistent in hardness across it.
My son's noticed the weight of his ST. That's partially because he takes it on the bus to uni (2 hours each way; he bought an Artist case), and he often ends up wearing it for 1.5 hours when he's performed with it.
Detuning the bass... I bought a bone nut, but was a bit nervous. So I just used the plastic nut in the kit, and tried it. I bought some nut files (I did buy the welding cleaner-type files from Pitbull, but they weren't very effective - so I bought two packs (guitar + bass - 12 file sizes!) and worked the plastic nut, filing it out for BEAD strings. I did buy a string pack for 5 string, and chose not to use the G string.
Oh, and I'm pretty sure I've got a shim in each guitar neck pocket. It took me a bit to get the JB action close to where I wanted it. I'd have been ok with it as it went together, but I've got a mate with an American PJ, and he complained about the action. So... Had to have a few more attempts at it. The ST's maybe 0.25mm higher in action than I'd like (I have a 1998 Godin SD and a 2019 Gretsch, the Godin is lowest, the Gretsch next, and the ST's just a little higher than that); the JB's probably higher than that beyond what I'd prefer. But I'm not really a bass player, so it's not a big deal. And it's probably better if I wanted to pretend I could slap!
.............
I know a kid who has a cajon his brother made for him. The kid keeps snapping the timber faceplate... So, from watching his experience, if your son's heavy handed (as that kid is), maybe make a few of those faceplates! Because the brother's regularly annoyed. "Again? Bro..."
It's definitely fun when your child uses gear you've made for them. Even better when you get to play with them. It's always great to play with the boy.
Not sure that'll ever happen with the 16 year old. I'm not allowed in the house when she's practicing an instrument.
She asked for an ML style guitar. I pointed out that she's tiny, and it might weigh more than her. So she's now thinking of something shaped like a Jackson-style offset V. But there's a real scarcity on the Pitbull website, and I don't know that I trust anyone else at this point. Well, maybe GFS, and they have the right kit (offset V with a Floyd - can't go 80's shred style without a Floyd!), but it's US$250 shipping.
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