You need to give yourself a raise my friend.

I always outright lose money under these circumstances.

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You dig?

I'd bring it back to the Tech who did the work.
You'll then find out how good this person really is and whether to bring future back to them.

But by all means start doing your own small work and as you get comfortable do more and more. At some point the comfort level will tell you when to stop.

-t

I was thinking, wasn't that kind of one of the points of Leo's designs for the Tele and Strat , that it would be easier to repair and didn't require you to be a luthier to do it?

Yes, it was to give the option to replace parts such as the entire neck, etc.

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Hi Martian: reverse warp. Is that when they drive The Enterprise backwards? I guess reverse parking is useful, because they can get it into a smaller space if necessary, right?

Cheers - C

I thought that meant when a insane person suddenly becomes sane.

Bathead - you're right, all those original Fender manuals gave instructions for setting the guitars up, because the expectation was that you would be able to do that. Remember these guitars were first designed in the days when many people tuned their own car engines and did basic carpentry jobs around the house etc. Many many working guitarists had to be their own techs because they couldn't afford to pay someone else, until they got a major problem and took it to Fender to fix, or just sold it and bought another one!

Touring is great for learning to do your own maintenance, the longer you spend on the road the more you have to do for yourself, from stripping a carburetor to changing tubes or resoldering an input jack. When you're in a town for one or two days you can't always find a good tech, or one who can fix your stuff in the four hours before you need to drive to the next town!

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"...Compared to the flowers and the birds and the trees, I am an Apeman."

Greetings, Ceri! Yep, you got it and you're absolutely correct!!

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I always thought the difference between a repairman and a luthier was the luther actually made the instrument from wood stock, while a repairman fixes a guitar that needs work. I think the term "Tech" is far too overused. And when people refer to them as "My guitar tech", I feel as though they've violated some anti-slavery law.

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60th Anniversary AD Strat, Deluxe Nashville Tele, Player's P Bass. Mesa/Boogie Mk IV combo, Marshall JCM800, 1960A cab, Genz Benz El Diablo 60, Genz 2x12" cab, too many neat little practice amps and kit projects!

Actually, you are correct. Frankly, I never liked the term, "tech" because it is a catch-all term which really says nothing. This is especially true because the vast majority of 'techs' that I've come across surely don't have a lot of technical knowledge nor skills. They are glorified string changers in my eyes with a nice set of tools. A, "repairman" implies his or her knowledge is after the fact. In other words, they can fix it but they can't improve on what it is that they are fixing nor are they capable of any custom work because it is not in the 'do-all' books they keep hidden. Another term meaning the same as tech I used to hear bandied around a lot years ago is, "guitar mechanic". I personally like the term, 'service man' (or 'woman" as the case may be). This is what I call myself because to me, it implies no boundaries where a chat with the customer gives me an opportunity for a one on one where (s)he can get a comfortable indication of my knowledge and skills and I in turn, can get a specific handle on their requirements and get it right for him or her the first time. YMMV.

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Chet, you need to join the union. That will squeeze the hard earned dollars you deserve out of that cheap skate Feathers.

I've had the same image myself.
I get this image of a guy chained up in the basement who only works on your gear.

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It wasn't Willy-Nilly, it was at crows.

I have always worked on my guitars, since the late 1970s. Just in the last 5-7 years, I have really gotten into the details of it all. It has been a great journey of learning, frustration and discovery.
One thing that has really helped me is to work on as many guitars as I can get my hands on. I am very fortunate to have a local pawn shop that deals in used guitars in high volume. A TON of guitars come thru that shop, and I have access to a wide array of guitars. Since I have become a very good customer, the pawn shop is willing to sell me guitars for very little cash. I have bought quite a few guitars for between $25 and $100. They have provided me with all sorts of repair projects that have allowed me to gain valuable experience, with no risk of damaging a customers guitar. Everything from basic set ups and pickup replacement, to neck work and fine tuning Floyd Rose locking trems, to fretwork. I don't mind working on a Squire Strat that I paid $50 for.
In the world of surgery, med school students practice on cadavers(dead bodies) to hone their skills with no risk. Go to your local pawn shop, buy a few dead bodies( ya know, those Strat clones for $40), and get to work. You can't lose!!! I LOVE taking a beat up piece of junk, and turning it into a nice playing and sounding guitar. The ones that I don't care for, I sell for a profit.
Case in point, I just purchased a Yamaha RGX-420S for $25 the other day. Under all the dirt and grime, it was whole, complete and original. After a complete dis-assembly, cleaning and set up, I now have a really nice shredder axe that plays well, sounds great and looks good. The pawn shop is not interested in selling the guitar for what it is worth, they just want to flip it and make a few bucks. They win, I win, everybody is happy. And I have taken a dead guitar, and put it back into action making music!!!

I have enjoyed nothing more over the years than tech for myself. I am 40 now and anthough on disibility and cant play out anymore, it has brought me enough knowledge to start my own line of guitars starting this month, nothing big, just a few guitars for friends, but its all come from the knowledge I have gained from learning the in's and out's of my guitars over the past 25 years.

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Music makes the world go round....so lets keep the world moving.

MySpace:
www.myspace.com/strat_jammin_dude