Guitarist's!

iNVESTIGATE

iNVESTIGATE

Well-Known Member
Hhhho-kay, so.
i got myself a Fender Stratocaster. Black w/ a solid white pickguard... kinda. And i'm in the process of fixing it up a bit after being through some wear 'n tear... though i am what you could consider a "noob".

When i had inherited it i was fairly young, a Man of about 15/16.lol And had joined a ska band, eventually, only to draw checkers and a little shroom on the pickguard. In permanent black marker.. N' not just once, but many many times.

i got the majority of the marker off.. now its just the slightest stain. Like a grid with about 75% opacity..


anyweee, my pickups.. they're coloured a creamy kinda colour, aswell as the knobs. Like when yah put too much milk in your coffee/tea. lol

But yeah, ive always admired that full creamy/vintage look. So im looking to cream my guitar as it were..


Any General Suggestions For Fixing Up A Fender Strat.?

p.s. i am a noob when it comes to the guitar world, but am lookin' to change that.
 
growwwww

growwwww

Well-Known Member
Dude im a musician. My main instrument being bass. Ive had many many many tteachers nad i once had a guitar teacher who was literally a holy man, and i asked him how to clean my guitar. He said to me as long as it works who gives a fuck. Went through a whole sphiel about it.

Im telling you - if it works and it isint affecting the sound who gives a shit.

Dont get distracted from making music and art. Play the guitar who gives a shit what it looks like.
 
drumbum3218

drumbum3218

Well-Known Member
yeah, get some good strings, and as long as it doesn't sound like shit the pickups shouldnt need replacing. if the pick guard really bothers you, take it off and replace it or paint it. The fender strat black with all white pick guard is classic. That and the sunburst strat, oooh so nice. Just astetics tho, dont make a difference, unless your playing to pick up chics, then ur guitar looking sweet may help seduce. Tough call tough call, still I'd say fuck it, just play and impress with the playing.
 
iNVESTIGATE

iNVESTIGATE

Well-Known Member
Thanks All!


The body has some mean chips and scratches.. so im filling those in. And then the volume control/input is just right fucked. Causing the guitar to cut in and out when rockin'. Ill be replacing/fixing that as soon as i can get a sauder gun.


But yeah, the rest (colouring the pickguard & bridge). Isnt really NEEDED per se.
But i figure i might as well go all out and make it look nice as well as play nice.



Ill try to throw up some pics. before the end of the day.. dont even know where that damn forsaken cam is..
 
growwwww

growwwww

Well-Known Member
owww dont fill in teh chips and scratches i love that shit. Nothing better than seeing a warn isntrument be fuckeed over by a musician.
 
F

fdd2blk

Well-Known Member
do NOT "make it nice". you want that "worn look". do NOT fill in the nicks or fix the scratches.


CLEAN and OIL IT
fix your loose wire
change the strings
stop
play it
 
iNVESTIGATE

iNVESTIGATE

Well-Known Member
hahh lol aiight aigght


hey yoo fDD my rhythm guitarist has the same Ibanez as you (the white one w/ the floyd rose).


here's some pics.. sry 'bout the quality. shitlifecamera.

tarrd.jpg
 
drumbum3218

drumbum3218

Well-Known Member
fdd2blk said:
i got this for 15 dollars off craigslist, ... View attachment 722555


i cleaned and oiled it, then put on new strings, ... View attachment 722556
Click to expand...
Hey Fdd2blk, awsome, what kind of guitar is that? Looks a lot like an old Savoy I have somewhere...I need to get that back in action. Never seen another Savoy (maybe that means they're P.O.S.) but I like the the sound better than that on my old american made fenders strat and tele
And pic guard looks fine, iNVESTIGATE. U made it sound like it was all blacked out with chechers and mushrooms, but the faint imprint/left over marker looks good.
 
F

fdd2blk

Well-Known Member
drumbum3218 said:
Hey Fdd2blk, what kind of guitar is that? Looks a lot like a 1960's Savoy I have somewhere...I need to get that back in action. Never seen another Savoy (maybe that means they're P.O.S. but I like the the sound better than that on my fenders strat and telecastor
Click to expand...
it has no name on it anything. just a small "japan" stamp. it's got nice sound. :blsmoke:
 
drumbum3218

drumbum3218

Well-Known Member
fdd2blk said:
it has no name on it anything. just a small "japan" stamp. it's got nice sound. :blsmoke:
Click to expand...
all that matters.
I'm gonna go jam right now...maybe even use my bass drum from my drumset, add my harmonica to it and have a one man band. kidding, i miss jamming with other musicians, thats all.
 
iNVESTIGATE

iNVESTIGATE

Well-Known Member
okay.. fuck man. ive been slowly but surely fixing up my baby.

but then my buddy brings his fuckin '73 Fender over. And i havent been able to put it down.

But it's cool because its pretty much the exact opposite of what i was trying to get my strat to look like. Black w/ cream. As oppose to cream w/ black. kinda nifty lol


jamm 008.jpg
 
Cpl. CornB33F

Cpl. CornB33F

Active Member
To clean the pick guard just put it in a bowl of bleach and let it sit there. Don't fix the chips! That look makes it look it has history, which it probably does.
 
S

stevenr

Member
Well, there needs to be a acknowledgement that cosmetics and sound are very different things. A beat up looking guitar is a bigger appeal to some folks. I look at the wear on my six string with fondness --- ditches I've made in the rosewood from playing it so much, and the way hard picking has thinned out the body in spots. That comes from over a decade of familiarity with it.
But man, when frets loose their crown, you can't play in tune anymore. Necks got out of adjustment, space between the strings and pickups change, bridges get grooved -- that kind of stuff might make it play with one great tone, but you can have a hundred great tones out of a good set-up.
An old, quality guitar with a good set-up rules. I won't buy a new guitar. Leave the cosmetics alone, but pay for a set-up by the best tech in town. My two cents, Have fun!
 
ink the world

ink the world

Well-Known Member
It doesnt matter if an electric guitar is new or used, all i care about is how it sounds unplugged. Pretty much everything else can be fixed but if it sounds weak and thin unplugged it always will.
Although I have to admit a really worn maple fretboard looks great.
 
mexiblunt

mexiblunt

Well-Known Member
iNVESTIGATE said:
Thanks All!


The body has some mean chips and scratches.. so im filling those in. And then the volume control/input is just right fucked. Causing the guitar to cut in and out when rockin'. Ill be replacing/fixing that as soon as i can get a sauder gun.


But yeah, the rest (colouring the pickguard & bridge). Isnt really NEEDED per se.
But i figure i might as well go all out and make it look nice as well as play nice.



Ill try to throw up some pics. before the end of the day.. dont even know where that damn forsaken cam is..
Click to expand...
Nice I have a black strat with white/pearl pick guard too!! The volume switch was also screwed, but i like to buy after market volume switches that give me more dynamics for playing live, The one it had was kinda on/off no middle, I like to have some control in a live setting, usually run most of the time 3/4 full then I can just bump it up for certain stuff.


I went to the guitar store yesterday to maybe buy a new guitar and came home with Two! The acoustic is a Hagstrome that is very loud and warm for it's small size, and the Ibanez just looked awesome and i've always wanted a hollow body electric so I bought it too.... (didn't even plug it in:lol:) It just felt like it sounded good! lots of ressonance.
 

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