A while back, while browsing the Trade-In Corner at the local Guitar Center, I found a 60th Anniversary Strat in blizzard pearl that I really liked. And I also picked up a heavily discounted, but brand new, Blues Junior amp. Total investment, less than $600.



When I got home I started tinkering with the Strat, working at getting the neck set up the way I wanted it. It had played pretty nicely at GC, but once here in the Music Room I started getting a little annoyed that I couldn't get it exactly as I wanted it, so I decided I would commit an utter blasphemy, at least in the eyes of some.



I decided I would operate. It would mean that two guitars would have to die so that one could live...



And so it began...

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

BUILD THREAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Just adding a neck wasn't going to be enough. If the Strat had to be reborn... and a Tele had to give up it's neck for the process to be complete, more had to be done. An order was placed... and the wait began.

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

This is going to be a good thread...I love strats with Tele necks, and vice versa. And who doesn't like blizzard pearl with a maple fretboard?
I'll be following along, I'm intrigued.

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Now at this point in my life, I am not equipped - time-wise, at least - for a complete pickup build, so I called upon some people I know to build what I wanted for StraTele... and I wanted humbuckers - I have plenty of Strats with S-S-S or S-S-H configurations. I was delighted when just three business days later a package showed up at work.



Of course, when something can get screwed up, it will. I wanted a white Pearloid pickguard like the one the Strat was born with, not a plain-Jane white/black/white. In the course of ordering and emailed conversations, a misunderstanding occurred.



So with a little tomfoolery and a couple of emails I managed to get the pickguard I wanted shipped to me Express delivery. Now all I had to do was swap everything from one pickguard to the other.

I should mention here that it has been quite a while since I did much soldering, though I do have all the right gear, including my old preferred real lead solder. But in the process of this minor build, I discovered two things: my eyesight is not as good as it used to be and my hands aren't quite as steady as they used to be. Not all aspects of aging are good.

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

+1!

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Tele neck securely in place, the Strat body rested inertly, waiting for the heart transplant to come, but there was some serious work to be done. The body cavity wasn't large enough for the transplant to proceed. It was time to do what could never be undone. Would casual observers condone or condemn the carving to come?





Using the pickguard that would eventually grace this body, it was easy to see what had to be removed. The point of no return was fast approaching and that new pickguard was going to need a little trimming, as well, to snuggle up against that Tele neck. It was time to get to work.

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

Ooohhh this is about to get juicy

It's about time that we have another build thread. Looking forward to watching your progression sir!!

Looks good, but...

Hmm...wondering what yer gonna do with that Strat neck?

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

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That's a good question, Miami. Do I stick it on another guitar? Do I throw it on eBay? Do I use it to drive tent pegs when I take the grandsons camping this weekend..? Well, probably not.





I was just checking Fender Strat neck prices on eBay - they are insane! I guess that's why so many sellers are parting out brand new guitars. Even plain-Jane MIM Strat necks are bringing in $200+ - of course, with a real Strat neck you can make any fake body look like the real thing.

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

The point of no return has been reached and wood removal begun. I have to admit I have never turned my professional woodworking skills loose on a Strat body before, so it was a little weird, but I started in anyway. Happily, the body was alder, a very good wood for chiseling - light, but fairly dense. I made my daughter an entire bedroom set out of red alder in the early '80s.



Once the pilots were drilled for the corner of the upcoming excavations, it was time to turn to the good old hammer and chisel. In almost 50 years of serious woodworking, I have spent a lot of time working with these tools, but those first chips of finished alder were a little nerve wracking. No going back now. Working alder with a finely honed chisel is easier than buttering bread.





Though I've plenty of experience with most aspects of woodworking, this is the first time I've done any excavating for the purpose of installing a humbucker where a single-coil once resided. It looks good, but I goofed - though the humbucker fits and the screws fit, the tab the screws go through does not fit, so the chiseling continues. Live and learn.

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

Hurry what happens next, wahts next? Best thread ever, period. Orgasmic

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Once I refigured the opening I needed, I quickly did some more wood removal and finally had a hole that would accommodate that pesky humbucker. That extra chunk removed from the far side had to be taken out to allow the wiring from the humbucker to get out of the way of the pickguard. Not the prettiest excavation, but it did the trick. I had to bore a couple of small holes (don't really show, but they're there) near the center of the cavity to allow the humbucker screws the depth they required to get out of the way. Nothing was quite deep enough, but when all was said and done, the pickups fit perfectly and the trimmed pickguard lined up with the appropriate screw holes.



After I swapped all the electronics from the W-B-W pickguard to the white pearloid, it was time to set the whole works in place and screw it all down. Happily, everything went well, including the soldering of lead wires to the output jack. Test tapping on the pickups told me that everything was still wired right and the StraTele was good to go. All it needed now was a nice set of strings, in this case a set of DR-TITE FIT 9-46 for that little extra bottom end I like for surf tones. I know, I know - humbuckers for surf tones..? But she was definitely looking good!

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

Nice. Is the pickup in the bridge position upside down?

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