First build - PRS-1F

[Andyxlh]

How's your soldering skills?
Things that make soldering easier are a good iron with a clean tip, wire strippers and push back cotton covered wire (not the thin stuff that comes with the kit)
You can lay out the potentiometers through a card template so they are spaced the same as the body holes and then solder all the wires between them, referring to the Pitbull wiring diagram for your kit. That way you don't have to reach into the body cavity with the iron, and you can solder most of the joints before you assemble the instrument

[PhilB]

Hi Andy, I think my soldering will be OK. Im no guru but I've dibble-dabbled. Great suggestion to do as much as possible out of the guitar body!
I added a couple of pictures that show the the new head shape and the colour that the tru-oil is getting on the sides and back. I think in the end it will look good, even if it says a bit paler than I first imagined.
Cheers
-Phil

[Andyxlh]

That looks nice! It will yellow a bit with age too which I like the look of.

[McCreed]

That looks familiar...



Mine is a PRS-1TS (Tiger Stripe). It looks a little different now as I have since changed the knobs to black strat-style ones and I did a scallop on the lower horn for better upper fret access (similar to a real PRS).
I have Wilkinson Alnico V mini-humbuckers installed. I really like mini's!

It is also a Tru Oil finish. It would be a minimum of 24 coats, but likely closer to 28+. My minimum has always been 24, but sometimes I loose count or forget to write it down (I try my best to keep a tally sheet) so I'll just do another coat for good measure if I'm unsure.
Your target of 20-30 is good, but some go as high as 50. It just depends on what kind of look you want in the end, as well as your level of patience and commitment!

This is a before and after of the scalloping:

[PhilB]

Wow! I really like that. If I can get a finish anywhere near that I will be happy.

[PhilB]

My glue arrived yesterday so my plan for the weekend is to fit the neck - this actually feels like progress!
I clamped the neck in place and am happy with the string alignment. I checked the scale length and got measurements of 313mm and 627-632mm so I think that's ok.
My only concern is a gap under the neck when it is clamped in place. It's only on one side and is under 1mm. I'm not sure if I should just try adding an extra clamp and tightening it right or if I should do some sanding.
Any advice would be much appreciated and possibly stop me from doing something dumb!
Cheers
Phil

[Simon Barden]

Some gaps around joins are almost inevitable with these kit guitars so all my set-necks have needed a bit of filling. But there's a big difference between a small and a relatively large gap and the action you take. A photo of the gap would help a lot here.

The thing to be wary of on set neck guitars is changing the neck angle if you sand the pocket or neck heel. Unlike a bolt-on, once it's glued, you can't add a shim to correct the angle later. So if you do decide to sand, then before you do, get an idea what the neck angle is to begin with (straight edge along fretboard and measure the height above the body at the bridge position), so that you can get back to the same angle later if necessary.

[McCreed]

Good advice from Simon there, and I was also going suggest a photo... the old "a picture is worth a thousand words" thing.

I was fortunate with my PRS kit in that the joint was a really good fit out of the box. What little gap that was there, filled in with the Tru Oil top coat.

I didn't need to play with the neck angle either. I can get the action lower than I need without any issues, but I happen to like a bit of "air" under my strings or I have trouble bending properly (and I bend a lot).

[Simon Barden]

I bend a lot but like a really low action. As long as the frets aren't really low, I'm fine.

[PhilB]

Hi guys. I have added some pictures of how the neck sits. I'm having some issues posting here though so had to add them to my previous post. I would really appreciate your advice.
Phil