Squier California Series Strat Upgrade | Part 9

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Part 9

Custom Aluminum Nut

Hi there folks! It's been quite awhile since ole' Blackie's been up to anything, besides switching from 11s to 12s (and liking it). Anyhow, I'd always wanted to replace his stock plastic nut, and so began a series of experiments with various pre-slotted plastic and cow bone nut blanks in late February. 

But nope, it just was not happening. Then, after ruining my hacksaw blade on brass, I decided to try aluminum instead. Sorry, you won't find any aluminum nuts at Woh Fatt. Got to make them yourself. Took me about a week of sawing, filing, shaping, slotting, fitting, polishing and testing a couple of prototypes, before finally choosing the winning candidate. 

Good buddy Izzat Jalil was the first to field test the new nut out on a gig at the Zenith Hotel in March, and reported that it was "sweet." Having tried it out at RF MusicWorks and during rehearsals for the MSSM opening ceremony in May, I quite agree with Izzat. It's much smoother than the old nut, with more midrange and twang. Guess I'll be sticking with this one.

Photo Credits
Izzat Jalil at the Zenith - Don Quek.
Raptai Penuh Perasmian Pembukaan MSSM - Tengku Hisamuddin Tengku Mohamed.

 

Stock white plastic nut

Stock nut after removal

Assortment of pre-slotted Strat nuts

A bone nut blank. This one broke in two.

Blackie's new aluminum nut.

Yes, there is a slight gap. I can live with that.

Izzat field testing the new aluminum nut

Stadium Darul Makmur, May 2013

Blackie/Korg AX3000G

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Part 9

Regent Semi Acoustic | Part One

Part One | Part Two | Part Three

Here is a vintage sunburst Regent semi acoustic that came in earlier tonight, courtesy of my pal Izzat and his buddy Tojeng (the owner). Based on my research, I am of the opinion that this guitar was manufactured by Guyatone in Japan in the late '50s to early '60s, and then exported to Canada under the "Regent" label. Now, although the guitar looks pretty beat-up, the intonation is almost spot-on and it plays like a dream; testimony to the quality of Japanese craftsmanship in those days. The Bigsby-style vibrato tailpiece is smooth and stays in tune. The volume and tone pots are all functioning as they should except for intermittent contact and some scratchiness every now and then, so they'll have to be serviced. Tojeng wants the tuners changed, the wood and hardware cleaned and polished, and a fresh set of 10s put on. Next, in Part Two, we'll look at what was done to get this guitar back in shape.

References
1960’s Vintage Guitars
Hoshino Gakki Ten: IBANEZ and related brands
 

Note zero fret

Note non-original bridge pickup

Neck plate with six bolts

 

Part One | Part Two | Part Three