Jagcaster Jazzcaster build

[Steev3d]

My first build.

I sold my fender Jag and bought this kit to replace it. I loved that guitar but it was a hard tail and I wanted a trem and a challenge.



This was the raw body out of the box
I fancied the finish on a ibanez artcore I saw in my local guitar shop and thought I might have a crack at a similar finish.

Mocked it up in photoshop



I decided to go with hardware store stains from bunnings figured that Black Japan fading into Oak would do the job

[Steev3d]

The thing is Patience is not a virtue I possess in large quantities so I ripped into this build pretty fast.

I gave the body a sand. Probably lighter than I should have and applied the stain.

Came up ok I thought.



I then clear coated that sucker with Rustoleum 2x Satin finish (on reflection not a great choice of finish but I will get to that later)

I wanted that Artcore Relic Bourbon burst look and decided that the grain in the wood actually looked kinda awesome showing through so I didn't sand it much between coats and let the texture of the wood show through.

I haven't seen many guitars with this finish but I liked it and it took a lot less time than trying to get some OCD super shiny finish which I didn't really want.



Note I went with the Bonnie Rait style headstock I liked the rounder curves and fatter profile it gives it a kinda old school look I think...

[king casey]

G'day Steev3D.
Impressive looking finish you have on that.
Only issue I had with the JM-1 was the pickups looked too cramped together.
I took great pains to space mine apart.
Everyone to their own though eh?


cheers, Mark.

[Steev3d]

Funny thing King I actually wanted 3 pickups.... I found this wiring mod where you can have any one pickup or any combo of the 3 in series or parallel using 4 dpdt switches. I haven't worked out how I am going to mount the switches yet ... I am thinking of cutting the scratchplate where the 5way switch goes and adding a chrome plate of some kind.

I have to admit the middle pup gets in the way of your pickin some

[Steev3d]

So I was pretty happy with the finish it turned out pretty much how I imagined and the stain does a good job of hiding the 2 piece body... kinda if you sorta squint a little.



I like the wood grain anyways.



This build is inspired by rat rod culture anyway if that makes any sense so the idea of it being sort of rough but cool was my intention. I didn't really want to get all pussy about it being perfect so long as it plays well.



This was my general inspiration

[Steev3d]

So it took a fair bit of monkeying around but I got the Jagcaster finished.



Im pretty happy with the result for my first build



a couple of things that challenged me were a lack of wiring diagrams or instructions for wiring



And the holes for the trem mounts werent drilled deep enough and man once you get those suckers in .... they are never coming out. In the end brute force punched them through which cracked the timber inside the tremelo cavity. not an ideal solution but it was the only way I could get the trem to mount flush....
the lesson from that? Make sure you measure your posts and the depth of the holes before you mount them.



It took me 2 weekends to put the kit together and I have spent the last month tweaking the setup.

• Intonation is good now but I had to get some longer bolts for the bridge saddles to get full intonation of all strings.
• Also I had to do more nut adjustment than a fat dude on a hot day but finally got it to pitch on the top 3 frets by cutting the slots deeper.
• The fretboard itself didnt require much adjustment I didnt level or crown them just tapped in a couple that were sitting high with a woodblock and lady's hammer. (a little hammer from supercheap auto)

I mentioned in an earlier post I wasnt totally happy with the Rustoleum 2x satin finish clear coat. Well its not great and to be honest still feels a bit tacky when you are playing for a while. Im not a fan of the sensation but Im trying a few things to resolve it. trying to cure it longer in the sun may help I have heard using turtle wax can help or light sanding it. Im not sure which will work best .

Anyways I may update this thread if I sort the sticky neck or else I may just move on to my next build.

It arrived during the week ... A Starcaster .... Im pretty pumped about that one

I think once I get that built I may revisit this one and hotrod the wiring... 3 individually selected pups each with a separate tone and volume control selectable in any series or parallel combo. The ultimate tone machine!

Stay tuned.

[G-Axe]

Looks fantastic. I like the dimension to the grain and the subtle burst. It really draws you in for a closer look.

[Steev3d]

glad you like G-Axe

[wazkelly]

I built an Ash J Bass that has a similar grain contour finish and really like that look which accentuates the grain even further.

[Steev3d]

Agreed Waz, the Rat Rod feel is what really does it for me. Functionally awesome but minimalist finish. If I was the kind to make statements this could be one of them.