Esquire-esque

[WeirdBits]

If you’re not set on using a chrome control plate then making one is a possibility.

I’ve made a couple of plates using 2mm aluminium which once cut and shaped I then epoxied on some 1.5mm maple veneer. The maple was stained black (full thickness) first and then once glued on was sanded and tidied up then coated with multiple coats of CA glue or poly.

Old work in progress pic, top plate was coated with poly and bottom is CA glue with a beveled edge to show the Al.


Cutting the slot accurately was the hardest part, so it should be a lot easier without one. You could maybe try brushed or even etched aluminium using 3mm pieces if you wanted.

You could possibly even use some pickguard acrylic as a tester to design a plate, but it would likely flex too much just using two screws to hold it. Some 1mm Al on the back probably solve that.

Or, be really slick, and do a rear control cavity so you don’t have to worry about a control plate at all. You can get a jack with longer thread for mounting from a rear cavity too.

[Trevor Davies]

+1 for Weirdbits reply.

+ I think 3-ply pickguard material could work, or 3 ply wood!

[EsquireEsque]

Hi -

I'd be interested in how you shaped the aluminium..

A rear cavity is probably out of my range as yet.... and I'm liking the control plate right now.


as an aside - I was not aware you could epoxy wood to Aluminium - given that wood expands and aluminium doesn't.
I'm wondering if a sheet of aluminium foil could be epoxied between a body and a cap (shielding?)

[EsquireEsque]

I've thought of using pickguard material - but I've more or less decided that a metal plate is the way to go aesthetically.

[fender3x]

Off the topic of the control plate and back to the switch... I got hung up on the question of what a switch would do...and remembered that the original Esquires had one:


https://www.premierguitar.com/diy/mo...esquire-wiring

Wouldn't be any harder to wire than a standard Tele if you felt like giving it a go ;-)

Sent from my LE2125 using Tapatalk

[EsquireEsque]

I've read that article too..... but then we do have a shared interest...

1 - basically a "no load" tone pot
2 - normal volume and tone controls
3 - same as "1" but runs a resistor to temper the tone a bit....... that's what I don't know: what kind of tone I'd like or what value resistor to use. I'd also need a longer control panel in order to have both a switch (or toggle) as well as the output jack.


What I'd probably end up with - at this stage of thought anyway - is a two way toggle:

1 - normal volume and tone
2 - normal volume and tone but with a resistor to temper the tone a bit "darker"

... as well as a "no-load" tone pot.

I might also use push/pull pots and have them replicate the above....

But we'll see what i think as I gradually get an idea of what sounds I want. Right now I think I'm such a clever boy when I get a "C" chord right!

[WeirdBits]

[…] I'd be interested in how you shaped the aluminium. […]

IIRC hacksaw, files, bench grinder, Dremel with a cutting wheel, and a sanding drum.

Of course, I had to make it twice as hard for myself… I bolted two layers of the aluminium together onto an old control plate as a template so I could cut both plates at once. If there’s a next time it’ll be only one plate at a time.

[EsquireEsque]

In using the old control plate as a template - is that just to guide you as to shape or could you use it as an edge - like you'd use a router...
Of course you couldn't use an actual router but if you did use it as an edge - does dremel have a tool with a bearing?

It's the rounded ends that i think would be the hardest (apart form the switch slit...)

It's worth a try I think - although one at a time one might be more my "speed"!

Then it's just a small matter of learning how to electroplate chrone onto it!

[fender3x]

I've read that article too..... but then we do have a shared interest...

1 - basically a "no load" tone pot
2 - normal volume and tone controls
3 - same as "1" but runs a resistor to temper the tone a bit....... that's what I don't know: what kind of tone I'd like or what value resistor to use. I'd also need a longer control panel in order to have both a switch (or toggle) as well as the output jack.


What I'd probably end up with - at this stage of thought anyway - is a two way toggle:

1 - normal volume and tone
2 - normal volume and tone but with a resistor to temper the tone a bit "darker"

... as well as a "no-load" tone pot.

I might also use push/pull pots and have them replicate the above....

But we'll see what i think as I gradually get an idea of what sounds I want. Right now I think I'm such a clever boy when I get a "C" chord right!

The no-load pot basically takes the pot out of the circuit--something you could also do with a switch too. But prior to that you might want to see how you like the sound of the pickup going straight to the amp. To my ears this generally sounds too harsh--but if you like it, go with the no-load pot. You could also try different values of pot to see what you like best. The most common pot for a Tele would be a 250K. If that does not seem bright enough for you, you could try a 500K or 1Meg pot.

If you can't find a longer control plate you could use a concentric pot (two knobs on one pot).



Or, you could use a mini switch which doesn't take up much room...



Or...better yet maybe, get a control plate drilled for three knobs and use the last one for the jack:



These all use standard size plates and reasonably easy to find.

[EsquireEsque]

Hi Fender,

I do like the idea of the concentric pots - but I've read that they can be a bit bothersome given they are a bit taller than the normal knobs.

I do like the idea of a mini switch - but that means a custom control plate anyway (having that on one side of the two knobs with the output jack on the other end).

a no-load pot taking the tone control out of the circuit would no doubt result in a harsh tone - but I figure pedal controls would do a better job?

But for now I'm happy to just have a "junior" volume/tone control setup but with a single tele pickup.

I must also admit the idea of fabricating an aluminium control plate is "interesting"...