Andy40's TLA-1R Build

[Andy40]

@ Tony, I did look at the joe barden bridge but opted for the cheaper wilkinson. However, the Barden would have been way cooler, I did not realise that the string though holes were forward from the bridge mounts.

@ Wierdy, I think I will do that stain/timbermate test you suggest. I've got come uncoloured timbermate ready for the job. Regarding the drill guide, I hear ya, there is a bit of play there I will check that when doing the test run on scrap. The drill guide was just a cheap solution to me having to "freestyle". I did not think of the overhanging bench/ 2 bench idea. Thats a great idea and may be preferable to clamping the drill guide to the body. Thanks heaps.

[tonyw]

Andy after you put the plugs in, then repositioned the bridge mounts, one of these Bardens may have been a drop in, then the plugs would be hidden, but i wouldnt know 100% unless i got to measure one up.

I have 2 coming form the U.S.A for 2 standard series teles i am doing for a bloke, i will have to get some measurements.

[dave.king1]

@ Dave, Woah what a great tele! is that veneer on the headstock or stain (I cant tell from the photo). I was thinking of putting a veneer on mine but wasn't sure how it would come up with a natural colour maple neck. I think it looks awesome! You don't happen to have a build diary on that one?

G'day Andy,

It's an ash body with maple neck, the headstock is just a lot of coats of the same FW Mahogany stain as the body, it's rather nice to play but is quite heavy ( when the boss goes to the weekender next weekend I'll stick all my guitars on the scales and report back )

I have a bit of a description in the non PB guitars forum but no diary because it's a foreigner, Wilkinson compensated bridge and 1970s Schaller humbuckers ( not tapped ) with the standard controls & tuners.

I really should take the pots up to 500k one day

[Fretworn]

Edit: Also, with that type of 'drill press' frame the tensioning bolts tend to strip and slip, so beware. There can also be a fair amount of play and wander with the drill tip once you start drilling. Practice first on thick scrap wood, as accurate string-through holes are not easy. One thing that can sometimes work if you have an overhanging bench is to clamp the press to the overhang and have the workpiece/body on another bench under it, so you're not restricted by the press' throat depth. You would need a long drill bit and may even need to reverse the press by removing and inverting the press' handle/body on the shaft/pillar so the base is at the top of the shaft. If you can wrangle it into a useable position it could overcome some of its limitations. Another alternative is to mark the string through holes onto the body and then sit the press on the body but drill down through the hole in the centre of the press' base. Hard to do, but may be more stable.

I've got one of those "drill press" frames as well. I always pre-drill the hole manually to about a mm so I can be sure the holes are in the right place.

[Andy40]

OK I remeasured.

The distance from the front of the nut to the middle of the 12th fret is 313mm, thereby a scale length of 626mm.



The above photo shows that with the Wilkinson bridge covering the plugged holes, the end of the PBG adjustment screws do not make it to the scale length of 626mm.

The below photo shows that if I move the Wilkinson bridge forward so that the end of the PBG adjustment screws are roughly in line with the scale length of 626mm, the plugged holes are quite visible. It would also require a small amount of routing.

[tonyw]

Andy 626mm equates to 24.6457" round up to 24.65"

A Les Paul is 629mm or 24.75"

A Telecaster is 648mm or 25.5"

dont know if this helps you any

[Andy40]

Thanks Tony,

As it is preferable to sit the Wilkinson bridge back far enough to cover the plug holes, I guess my question is, the saddles being all the way forward sit at about 629mm - 630mm which is about 3 - 4 mm longer than the distance from the middle of the 12th fret to the nut, am I going to have problems with intonation? I will only be able to lengthen the strings during intonation at that measurement.

[tonyw]

Are you going to be able to bring the saddles in about 18mm .70 of an" so they measure at 648mm or 25.5" , mine on a squier affinity i did a bridge mod on, sit fully extended, as long as they intonate when you finger the 12th fret your in business, i have 1" of play between my saddles extended and the back of the bridge so you should do it easy if i am understanding what we are talking about haha

Bubba mod is replacing the old saddles with new brass saddles on the affinity tele

Out with the old


In with the new


Done

[wokkaboy]

Hi Andy, the low E string should be ok about 629/630mm from nut. The high E will have to be about 626-628mm.
Worse comes to worse you should be able to get longer saddle adjusting screws.
Place the bridge as close to the nut as possible to give you the best chance of getting good intonation

[Andy40]

Update

MOP Inlays fitted and ready for sanding



I saved the Eye of Sauron for the 15th fret



I followed Brendans sticky, which was brilliant, however, here's a few things I learnt.

1. In my brilliant foresight, I ordered one inlay more than I needed "just in case". High five past Andy.

2. Brendan recommends drilling the middle of the plastic inlay with a 2-3mm drill bit then gently prying the plastic dot out. My inlays were absolutley caked in with glue, so it didn't matter how gentle I was I ended uplifting a small bit of the rosewood. grrrrr. for the rest I switched to drilling the middle of the plastic dot with the 2-3mm drill bit then gently on backward rotation, then upping the size of the drill bit (on backward rotation) until the plastic dot was gone - that only left the glue. I then used a dremel with the engraving bit (as brendan suggests) to rout out the glue and prep the hole for the MOP inlay.



3. Dont, do not, never, push the MOP inlay into the hole to check your routing. It will N E V E R come out on its own, and all attempts to get it out only push it deeper. In the end, I had to drill it out, which did not bother me much because I had another one - hence the brilliant foresight I spoke of earlier.