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Thread: Paddys TL-1TH Build

  1. #1
    Hi everyone, this is my first build and I'll be building a Thinline Tele. The kit should (hopefully) arrive at my place any day now. I'm looking to paint it a solid black colour, with a silver-pearl sparkle to it. I'm looking to achieve this with black gloss paint, combined with silver sparkles. This will hopefully match the pearl pickguard. I'm also looking to paint a thin silver trim around the f-hole.

    I've ordered a custom TV Jones Super'tron pickup with a chrome plating, and I'm on the search for some other silver/pearl hardware to really make this baby shine.

    My current plan for setup is:

    1. Shape the headstock
    2. Sand, seal, paint, and clear coat the body
    3. Lacquer and coat the neck and headstock
    4. Wire and solder the electronics
    5. Install hardware
    6. Fit neck, make sure everything is properly set up and aligned
    7. String, test, perfect!

    Am I missing anything obvious?

  2. #2
    Mentor jarrod's Avatar
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    Hey pshumack if ya look in build diary at my tele, on the last post you will get an idea at what black with sparkles looks like on a tele

  3. #3
    GAStronomist stan's Avatar
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    Sounds like a great plan mate- and if it's half as good as jarrod's, it will be pretty good indeed.

  4. #4
    Congrats on your first kit. Looks like you have a solid plan of attack.

    One tip I can give you is to do a mock build to check the fit of the hardware before you start sanding and finishing. It's much easier to make any adjustments before it's painted. Though your TL should be pretty straight forward.

    I like your idea of the silver outline around the f hole. That should look sweet

  5. #5
    Mentor robin's Avatar
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    Hi Patrick, and welcome to the PBG Family.

    I absolutely agree with Dan, make your mock-up build (No. 6 on your list) your first priority. I have learnt the hard way that making any mistakes early on in the build is much easier to fix that at the other end after you have applied your lovely finish. Ask me how I know LOL.

    A Thinline was my second build and it is a guitar I still play regularly to this day.

    I hope you enjoy the build mate, If you are like the rest of us, it won't be your last. Oh, and don't forget to ask lots of questions, there are plenty of helpful and knowledgeable people here to help.

    cheers
    rob

  6. #6
    Overlord of Music gavinturner's Avatar
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    hi Patrick,

    Welcome to the forum and I hope you enjoy your first kit - you've chosen a great one! Your plan looks solid - you seem well prepared. I agree with Dan & Rob in that you should definitely do a test fit before you start finishing - drill your neck bolt holes, mount your bridge and do all those things that might lead to marring your finish if you do them at the end. It really pays off in the final result. I agree with the other guys that your vision sounds awesome. Can't wait to see the pictures in your build diary!

    Here are a couple of other things that occur to me that you might also consider.

    1. If you are painting, you might want to fill the wood pores before sealing using a pore filler (a slurry of Timbermate is perfect for this) and sand back smooth as part of step 2. Not 100% necessary but leads to a smoother finish before the clear coats go on. I usually do this at 360 grit and 400 grit.

    2. There are several options as far as your neck finish goes. Are you going to spray colour on the neck and then lacquer, or leave it kinda natural (the traditional tele look)? I have tried several options for neck finishes, including: a) colour spraying + nitro, b) colour spraying + poly, c) no colour + tru-oil, d) wudtone neck finish. Many builders out there who spray their guitars with colour+lacquer/poly still prefer a tru-oil finish on their necks so that they get a much better feel when playing. I would agree with this wholeheartedly - I used lacquer on the neck of several of my early builds, but switched to Tru-Oil and was a convert. However, then I tried a Wudtone neck kit and believe me when I say that the feel is 100x better. If you want more of a standard tele neck look I would recommend a Wudtone neck kit if your budget can stretch to it. If you are going to spray colour the neck and headstock though, then by all means go with the lacquer. You'll probably want to matt up the neck finish with some steel wool though to make it nice and fast.

    Anyway, hope all this jibber-jabber helps in some way.

    cheers,
    Gav.
    --
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  7. #7
    Cheers everyone, especially for the mock build advice. I'll make sure I get that done nice and early.

    Gavin, at this stage I'm considering either a pale Tele finish, or going with a Wudtone vintage finish, the darker yellow tone. It's more of a Strat-type neck colour. That's about the only thing I can't make my mind up on at the moment. There'll be plenty of photos to come!

  8. #8
    Well, the big day is here, and according to Australia Post the package should be arriving sometime today. Hopefully it's early, so I can get stuck into it straight away. First on the list is to head down to Bunnings and pick up some smaller drill bits.

  9. #9
    Hi guys, so a week into the build and I'm loving it. Definitely a lot more challenging than I first expected, but I think I'm keeping up so far.

    I'll put up some photos asap, but at the moment I've made the most progress with the neck - the final shape has been cut and I'm sanding the surface back nice and smooth. I'm progressing with my mock build, but at the moment it's proving a little problematic. Hopefully someone can give me a bit of help here.

    I've figured out that the pickup's plastic mounts need to be removed, and the pickups will instead be mounted English-style to the pickguard. The problem I'm having is that the metal 'feet' of the pickup don't seem to fit properly into the cavities dug out for them in the body. Is the fix for this as simple as filing away the excess wood so that they will fit, or is there more modifications to the pickups that needs to be done? I'll post some photos if that helps!

    Cheers!

  10. #10
    GAStronomist wokkaboy's Avatar
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    Hi Paddy, post some pics please, sounds like you may have to file some excess wood in the pickup routed cavities, which reminds me I'm building a TL-1TH better see if I have the same problem.
    Hopefully you don't have to file much wood. Don't modify the pickup mounts.
    Current Builds and status
    scratch end grain pine tele - first clear coat on !
    JBA-4 - assembled - final tweaks
    Telemonster double scale tele - finish tobacco burst on body and sand neck

    Completed builds
    scratch oak.rose gum Jazzmaster - assembled needs setup
    MK-2 Mosrite - assembled - play in
    Ash tele with Baritone neck - neck pup wiring tweaks and play in

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