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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 7:18 pm
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Frank is the ONLY guy to deal with for a TK EC... don't bother anywhere else. His prices are great, and he is just really an awesome guy that will look after you.

I love the nitro finish. It is nitro on the body only though... the neck is satin polyurethane (also called "WLS"). Nitro body/poly neck is the best combination IMO. You must get the satin poly neck on the guitar... no one does it like TK... Alain will back me up here.. it will simply be the best feeling neck you've ever held.

Clapton's guitars used to be nitro body finish and superglue finish on the neck. This changed around 1996 when Mark Kendrick had to deliver some guitars quickly. EC has had poly ever since I believe.

Mark's been building some "throwback" EC Strats for Frank recently . These guitars are based on the early 90's ones that Mark did for EC. Same neck shape and 80's/early 90's headstock shape, with Lace Sensors. Sadly he was not able to do the superglue finish... simply too toxic to do anymore. They are very cool guitars and worth checking out... I think Frank has a couple 7-UP green ones in stock now.


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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 7:29 pm
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[quote="StratoKazter"]: All of this has been simply enlightening over the several months. 'Kazter' replying to one of my earliet posts and again herein still causes me puzzlement as to why my request for the same guitar was turned aside. Perhaps they thought I was asking for the Ferrari paint. History now. Have the Gilmour and the '89. That will do. I learned today that my CS swap out was scooped up by some avid collector of CS guitars. It didn't stay on the wall long. Lucky buyer. It was well conceived. All it needed was that neck. I still think the rosewood board had something to do with the final shape.

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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 7:32 pm
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zzdoc wrote:
StratoKazter wrote:
: All of this has been simply enlightening over the several months. 'Kazter' replying to one of my earliet posts and again herein still causes me puzzlement as to why my request for the same guitar was turned aside. Perhaps they thought I was asking for the Ferrari paint. History now. Have the Gilmour and the '89. That will do. I learned today that my CS swap out was scooped up by some avid collector of CS guitars. It didn't stay on the wall long. Lucky buyer. It was well conceived. All it needed was that neck. I still think the rosewood board had something to do with the final shape not being to my liking. The first neck they sent the guitar with was a 65 C. I had specified Clapton profile and sent it back for same. Returned 6 mos later, close,but no cigar, and tired of waiting..

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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 7:44 pm
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yeah.. perhaps they though you meant the paint. No one from Fender will even officailly confirm the color, though Lee Dickson did disclose the color when one of EC's tour strats was lent for a gallery opening last year, the placard next to the guitar said Ferrari Grigio Silverstone. You can ask TK all day long and he won't tell you the color... so officially it doesn't exist and cannot be ordered. (not yet anyway)

The neck shape can be discussed with the builder at the time of build.

It's kind of like the EC signature... officially it has to be there. But in reality you can have one built without it.


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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 7:46 pm
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[quote="StratoKazter"]

At least our persistent colleague out there may benefit from all this enlightenment. :wink:

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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 10:04 am
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[quote="StratoKazter"]

OK...now I need to shave a little ice to get down to the basics..

The Artist Series Eric Clapton Stratocaster was introduced in 2001. The Custom Shop Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster was introduced in 2004. (I assume that these qualify as TB guitars.)

You maintain that the latter guitar has the TK 368 neck. Could it be that the former now does so as well in 2008? By the way, I also believe the neck tint on the Artist Series guitar is darker.

Next comes the great TBX controversy. Specs on the CS guitar still read 'no TBX". Threads and discussions earlier this year from a very upset member were prompted by his observation that his newly acquired CS guitar had a TBX pot. Fender seems to coroborate this but it is still not clear.

From these discussions it appears that the major concern is whether 'uf' presently has the same neck carve (TK 368) on his CS Clapton that he will ultimately wind up with on the Masterbuilt and, therefore, if the juice truly be worth the squeeze.

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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 10:12 am
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zzdoc wrote:
StratoKazter wrote:

OK...now I need to shave a little ice to get down to the basics..

The Artist Series Eric Clapton Stratocaster was introduced in 2001. The Custom Shop Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster was introduced in 2004. (I assume that these qualify as TB guitars.)

You maintain that the latter guitar has the TK 368 neck. Could it be that the former now does so as well in 2008? By the way, I also believe the neck tint on the Artist Series guitar is darker.

Next comes the great TBX controversy. Specs on the CS guitar still read 'no TBX". Threads and discussions earlier this year from a very upset member were prompted by his observation that his newly acquired CS guitar had a TBX pot. You'll find these commentaries at the beginning of this thread. Why Fender doesn't either pull the pot, or change the specs is beyond me.

From these discussions it appears that the major concern is whether 'uf' presently has the same neck carve (TK 368) on his CS Clapton that he will ultimately wind up with on the Masterbuilt and, therefore, if the juice truly be worth the squeeze.

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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 10:40 am
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[quote="zzdoc"]

that was EXACTLY the nature of my question re: necks - if i did not specify anything to TK, would it be the same neck as on my TB....but, as everyone has suggested, that is probably something best discussed with TK before the build.

I hope you meant 'persistent' in the best possible way :D

[quote="stratokazter"]

i was actually wondering what those kendrick models were on the MG website. they said '80s but looked new. if it had been pewter, rather than candy green i may have been tempted. i dont know why, but i really associate those late '80s models with pewter - maybe because at that time, when i was young and could only dream, the pewter looked sooooo cool and modern to me.

is this WLS the same finish as the TB - i thought these were also satin poly finished necks...though, i do kind of recall (you?) someone saying that the MB used a much thinner finish on the neck.

Your thoughts on the nitro finish have now injected another factor to consider :) See, this is part of the whole joy of a true 'custom' shop!

with they myriad of options available i can also see how it is going to be such a slippery $@!&#...one MB leads to another that had some features you went without on the previous one, which leads to another, and another....


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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 11:05 am
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I hope you meant 'persistent' in the best possible way :D


It's obvious that you are trying to obtained as detailed an understanding of this whole process as possible. Personally, I could never understand the need for three categories of guitar. The fine points are never really explained. I would be surprised if there were any differences in the electronic components )other than the TBX) or the hardware. The neck radius and fret numbers are identical. The signature placement changes. On the MB, there is none. So that leaves woods, and paint. We would have to assume that quality of wood improves as one goes up the ladder both in body and neck and that, perhaps, the number of pieces which make up an Artist Series body, and the quality of the maple chosen for the neck and fingerboards are different. The finish options differ between the Artist and Custom Shop Signature Guitars. According to 'Kazter', Clapton covets this new finish of his. Why he should is beyond me. Wanting to keep one step ahead of one's audience and fan base with respect to guitars is something I couldn't understand. He's certainly has a royalty on every one of those headstocks, for sure.

Personally, I agree with your preference for the Pewter. I have an '89 in that finish presently. I owned a '93 'black' which I swapped out. I missed that guitar enough to want to get back into one. I prefer the Lace Sensors over the Vintage Noiseless. I feel they have more meat. If I was building a TK 368, I'd have Sensors put in the guitar and finish it in two-tone sunburst, '58 vintage triburst like alain's '58, or sienna sunburst. Good wood should have the grain pattern, which I believe you do not covet. Quite honestly, that kind of investment should have something unique to it, which is why I designed my CS the way I did. Unfortunately, it came up short. Someone else owns it now, and didn't think twice about the purchase. I wish him much pleasure out of that guitar. That's what they are all about.

Go ahead and order your 'Burgerstrat' already! Have it your way :P

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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 11:11 am
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zzdoc wrote:
According to 'Kazter', Clapton covets this new finish of his. Why he should is beyond me. Wanting to keep one step ahead of one's audience and fan base with respect to guitars is something I couldn't understand.


I reckon it's Fender, not EC. When I asked TK to build me an EC strat in "that new colour" he said he wouldn't because 1) Ferrari would have to give permission and 2) he wanted Eric to be able to enjoy them before copies appeared on ebay.


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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 11:24 am
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LeftyElliot wrote:
zzdoc wrote:
I reckon it's Fender, not EC. When I asked TK to build me an EC strat in "that new colour" he said he wouldn't because 1) Ferrari would have to give permission and 2) he wanted Eric to be able to enjoy them before copies appeared on ebay.



That's an interesting point with respect to trademark. However, there's a price one has to expect to pay for fame and notoriety. It's been said that 'imitation is the greatest form of flattery.' He knows he was resurrected from the dung heap of life, and has done much in the way of payback in his own right, so he certainly cannot be faulted in that regard. However, if his guitar-playing fan base wants to keep pace with him, why should it be a bother. EVH once maintained, with respect to his first EB Signature Guitar, that the guitar off the wall in the store, anywhere in the world, must be exactly the same as the one heperforms with.

The most Fender can really do in this case is to make it clear to any Ebay purchaser that, other than initial purchase from an authorized Fender dealer, warranties are void on the the guitar.

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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 11:24 am
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Going slightly off subject, anybody took away the block and fitted the trem arm to the EC


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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 11:30 am
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jaiyenyen wrote:
Going slightly off subject, anybody took away the block and fitted the trem arm to the EC


I've never done it and, in point of fact, the earliest photos of EC with the old Blackie show it with the trem arm in place, and the guitar never had a 'blocked' trem. He wanted a five spring 'stopped' trem block and the only reference to a reason for anything is in Duchossoir where he states that he wanted it 'blocked' because he never uses it, but did not care for the tone of a 'hardtail.' Yet the Blackie, who's tone he loved was without.

Go figure this. :roll:

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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 11:47 am
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Just one technical point is that both the WLS and the superglue have the same chemical basis so once dried they have almost the same qualities.
My luthier still use superglue as a filler and to isolate vintage bindings from the rest of guitars to prevent ( for some time) decaying.


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Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2008 11:57 am
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zzdoc wrote:
Good wood should have the grain pattern, which I believe you do not covet.


actually, i am starting to change my views on this. and, believe it or not, actually want to add a sunburst (horror) to the stable at some point!


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