Gr-1sf

[Gunut75]

Ok, so, my documenting skills suck but I'm going to give it a go. I've spent the last year building non-PBG because I got a few of them for crazy cheap, and practice is working towards excellence.
Got a couple teles drying in the other room, and I can't touch them. Time to fire this kit up. Started the sanding tonight. Think it's going towards a transparent green or blue dyed face, with a nice brown/red hue back, sides, and neck. Headstock will match the face. High gloss all around.
Just ordered some ebony grain filler to pop the grain before dying.


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[Simon Barden]

It's a basswood plywood body with a figured basswood veneer on the top, so it is unlikely to 'pop', unlike a maple veneer. It's also as thin as any other veneer used, so be careful with the amount of sanding you do to it. On my ES-3, I went through the veneer between the pickups after a second (very necessary) sanding exercise, so I ended up using solid colours.

So maybe try some popping with just a weak black dye/stain. The basswood doesn't need grain filling per se, though some filler around the edges where the grain has splintered slightly is normally beneficial.

The pickup hole outline typically has very narrow mounting tab cut-outs, that fit the kit pickups. But aftermarket pickups tend to have wider mounting tabs, so you might want to consider enlarging those cut-outs if you are fitting different pickups before you start applying finish.

I'd also consider where you want to mount the front strap button. I wanted mine to be on the front of the top bout (e.g. as per a LP) rather than on the back of the body or on the heel, so I added an internal block before I glued the neck on. Detailed here:
https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.a...l=1#post196665

Again, something best done (if you want to) before the finish goes on.

[jack]

hi i have a question first time on this forum, i am unclear on the copper shielding instalation for thrGR-1ST is there some where to check this out?

[Simon Barden]

hi i have a question first time on this forum, i am unclear on the copper shielding instalation for thrGR-1ST is there some where to check this out?

Hi

It's pointless even trying. You've got no ability to stick it all over the interior of the body; and unless it goes all over, it simply won't work.

I don't know what wire comes as standard with the kit, but I'm assuming it's just the normal single core wire. The best you can do is replace that wire with either braided screen wire or screened single core wire for the long wiring runs to reduce noise pickup. The pickups are humbuckers, so noise pickup is pretty minimal to start with, and it's those long single wire runs that are most likely to pick up any noise if there is noise to pick up.

If you are building a kit, best to start your own build diary so we can see and answer questions all in one location. even if you only ask a couple of questions. We'll try and help you the best we can.

[jack]

thanks i will be starting a diary

[Gunut75]

Wow, is DOES have a veneer top?! Good to know. I only did a very light initial sanding with some worn 320 to smooth the grain. It's surprisingly flat.
You are correct about the edges. A little hair there. I'll look into the pickup holes, and the strap button. I do prefer it in the position like a les paul as well. Thank you.

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[Simon Barden]

You could just call it the top layer of the plywood (rather than veneer), but it's been selected to be a sheet with a nice figure to it, as basswood can often be very plain looking. But it's definitely not a very thick layer, so treat it like a veneer to be on the safe side.

[Gunut75]

So, I have birchwood casey sealer & filler (one product). Do I simply apply that, then go to dying the wood? Mild black dye like you said, sand back a touch, then green. Then a poly clear once it's all dried.

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[Simon Barden]

A good sealer is going to seal the wood so it won't absorb the dye. I've used the Birchwood Casey sealer stuff over a stained maple veneered body that I had darkened, sanded back and then stained red (my ES-1 build). That seemed to work OK. But I'm far from an expert on this.

I'd always recommending testing it out on some scrap wood first to see what happens. Also (unless you've done this before) to make sure that the sealer doesn't react with the poly, as not all finishes are compatible. It probably is fine, but obviously the sealer is designed to be applied under Tru-Oil, not poly.

[Gunut75]

I just ordered an IB-6S...........lol. geezus. Cheers!