#7 - a birthday 12string

**Marcel** · 15-04-2018, 08:44 PM

Thanks Waz, but I think I'll might go down the Jet Black route which will be interesting with a Maple neck ..lol. A photo search on Google shows plenty have taken that path with both White and Black guards. I have a selection of guards for a Tele mostly due to indecision from the denim build so finding one I like shouldn't be too big an issue.

I have some Black shoe ink which parties well with shellac... yep, the stuff to make your shoes Black... and it is a good deep and damn Black... Not sure if I should keep the binding as is or replace it with something else. I still have some Pearl binding from the denim build I could use but I think White could/would be nicer if I went that way. The alternative is to only Black the front, keep the Black binding and keep the sides and back the dark Yellow. It can't be seen in the photos but the sides have gone a lovely and even dark butterscotch colour and few see the back anyway so it will give away the reason as to why the front has been 'inked'....

**wazkelly** · 15-04-2018, 09:15 PM

Eric Clapton's colour combo, Black & Maple.

**blinddrew** · 15-04-2018, 10:20 PM

I was thinking from your photos that the back doesn't look too bad, so a jet black top and then interesting back and sides might be a nice unusual take?

**Marcel** · 17-04-2018, 04:18 PM

Thanks Adam, the replacement Maple fretboard neck arrived safe and sound this morning. The return will hopefully be in the mail tomorrow.

Nice clean and bright Maple too... contrasts strongly against the body so far. Has me having thoughts of re-thinking the whole colour scheme. Best is that it fits the body better than the Rosewood fretboard neck the kit came with, being not infernally tight but much more snug in the pocket... Only downside is the tuning peg holes on this new neck aren't quite perfectly straight but that might just be me in being increasingly fussy and grumpy in addition to my ever older age...

**wazkelly** · 18-04-2018, 07:54 PM

From a distance most of the inherent tuning peg hole dilemmas are not so obvious, even more so for some of us older more visually challenged specimens.

**Marcel** · 18-04-2018, 08:40 PM

Originally Posted by wazkelly

From a distance most of the inherent tuning peg hole dilemmas are not so obvious, even more so for some of us older more visually challenged specimens.

Lol...I know where you're coming from Waz... but some things you can't but help notice particularly after being recently exposed to some near perfect ruler straight professional examples. It doesn't help when edges are still rough, un-sanded and ever so slightly chipped from drilling. The mind can often dwell on any and all perceived flaws...

But we will work with what we have, make the best of it, and regardless of the visuals pray this build sings too like the sweet stringed rock-n-roll birds we hear in our imaginations... ;-)

**Marcel** · 20-04-2018, 06:17 PM

NGD.... It arrived today, more or less direct from the factory, One Mexican built Vintage Blonde Fender Stratocaster Deluxe with Maple neck...

Ordered on-line as a birthday present by the one who approves these sorts of purchases and it basically came 3 weeks late .... and HELL YEAH I'm not complaining on the delay and loving playing it !! I'm gunna go with the idea that this was built on the day of my birthday and it simply took 3 weeks to get into my hands....

It sounds as it should, the standard C shape neck feels slightly thicker than I'm used to but it's way fine to hold and play, and I'm sure I'll get used to it... Vintage Blonde is everything I expected it to be with a slight showing of the Ash grain through the finish. Sweet as satin finish on a very clean Maple neck, Fender locking tuners, 2 point trem big block bridge, neck heel cutaway, three vintage noiseless PU's, S1 switch (adds bridge PU to pos# 4 & 5), 22 well finished frets, action and intonation out of the box near perfect ....

But there is something amiss visually, and I can't quite put my finger over it....