Epi V-Style Project | Part 2

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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

With body finishing taken care of, let's move on to the ES-300 neck, or more specifically; the rosewood fretboard. Here, more than 10 high frets have been identified after straightening the neck. This being the case, I've had to undertake a full fret dressing; involving leveling, recrowning and polishing. 

Fret Dressing Completed

 

Next on the list is the 'hockey stick' headstock. The factory issued generic trapezoid machine heads are really wonky and totally unreliable after years of use. They have been upgraded to a set of six-in-line Kaynes locking tuners.

Stock Trapezoid Machine Heads

Kaynes Locking Tuners Installed

Kaynes Locking Tuners - Top View

Something new has also been added to the mix -- a TUSQ 5042-00 nut. I believe the 5042-00 will outperform the stock plastic nut in many ways, and better complement the Bigsby-style vibrato system and locking tuners.

TUSQ 5042-00 Nut

Back of 5042-00 Package

Test Fitting the TUSQ Nut

"To shield, or not to shield, that is the question." Well, we've decided to go the whole hog and splurge on conductive paint and copper foil. It's conductive paint for the pickup and control cavities, and copper foil for the back of the pickguard and control cavity cover. The wiring scheme for this project could not be simpler -- a lone Alpha A500K volume pot connected to a Switchcraft #11 output jack. There's also an additional ground connecting the back of the volume pot to a lug screwed into the control cavity wall.

Pickup Cavity and Pickguard Shielding

Control Cavity Shielding

Control Cavity Components and Wiring

I've just tapped in the bushings for the bridge and vibrato tailpiece mounting studs, and screwed on the pickguard. Now you have a sneak preview of what the front of the body will eventually look like. The complete installation of top-mounted hardware will have to wait until the neck is reattached and setup commences. Meanwhile, I hope you like the custom wooden control cavity cover. It's the client's idea, and a good one at that.

Pickguard and Bushings Installed

Wooden Control Cavity Cover

Epi V-Style Project | Part 1

Related Posts
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

This project is a work in progress, and involves mating the neck from an Epi ES-300 with a Legit Guitar Kits V-style body. What this particular client wants is basically a V-style with a pickguard, a Wilkinson M Series Stacked P90, a volume control, and Bigsby-style vibrato tailpiece.

 

Epi ES-300

Legit Guitar Kits V-Style Body

Vibrato Tailpiece

Wilkinson M Series Stacked P90

A number of modifications need to be carried out on the body before finish is applied. These include plugging existing strings-through body channels and bridge bushing holes, lengthening the bridge pickup cavity to fit the P90; and drilling new bushing holes for the bridge and vibrato tailpiece.

 

Holes Plugged - Front of Body

Holes Plugged - Back of Body

Holes also have to be drilled for neck plate and neck attachment, while existing screw holes in the neck heel need to be plugged and re-drilled. The client has chosen a rather attractive black and gold neck plate with a snarling tiger motif.    

 

Existing Neck Heel Screw Holes Plugged

Test Fitting the Neck Plate

Neck Pocket and Mounting Screws

You might have noticed by now that the hardware and electronics layout on this guitar is quite unlike any production model Gibson or Epiphone Flying V. As such, ordering an off-the-shelf pickguard is definitely out of the question. The custom black pickguard you see below is the result of three long days of careful measuring, sawing, cutting, drilling, filing; and lots of sanding. Its outline is based on that of a 1967 Gibson Flying V.

 

Handmade Black Pickguard

With modifications to the body complete, it's time for final sanding, pore filling and finishing. For this project, the body has been sanded to 400 grit and the pores filled with StewMac ColorTone Clear Grain Filler. There's no need to stain the body as the grain filler itself has darkened the wood somewhat. For the clear coat, I've chosen Samurai 1/128 Clear.

 

Body After Final Coat of Clear

 

 

Rest in Peace, Haziq Ramli

I've just received the sad news that Kuala Lumpur City Hall [DBKL] drummer Haziq Ramli has lost his life in a motorbike accident. The incident occured along the Lanchang stretch of the East Coast Expressway [LPT] on the evening of April 26 [yesterday]. Haziq, 34, was a Kuantan lad who graduated from ASWARA in 2012. He then honed his skills as the resident drummer for Kombo SUK Pahang, before moving on to bigger things on the west coast. Rest in peace, Haziq. You will be missed.

 

Stadium Darul Makmur, 2016