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Post by GuitarAttack Forum on Apr 4, 2019 5:15:19 GMT -6
All - I just rewound a pickup from a ‘64 Strat. It was dead, and suffered from a poor rewind from some point in its life. I used original-style Formvar insulated wire, and got it back to life. The poor work on this pickup is emblematic of what happened to a lot of old Strats in the 70s and 80s; ie, poor repairs and upgrades. I’m surprised this guitar didn’t have a Floyd Rose or Schaller tuners. Sadly it did have a refin at some point. Bringing a guitar back to life is satisfying and habit- forming! Here is a photo of the pickup. John
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Post by dnic on Apr 4, 2019 7:02:17 GMT -6
Very cool John. I'll bet playing that Strat is a blast. I never got why so many people love Strats but over the last few years I've set up and played a few and I really like them now. What neck profile does that 64' have? I played a 57' at Gruhn's with a V neck while I was in Nashville last year. Very nice feel to it.
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Post by antares on Apr 4, 2019 9:04:17 GMT -6
Nice work John. I take it you scatter wind? I don't know the process so it's like a nice mystery to me. I know that tension is very important and layer winding must present fewer obstacles in that respect. I'm still well impressed whatever. I used to prefer Strats to all others and including my Pacifica 904 I have five "S" types, but only one (1973) is a Fender. In recent years the Telecaster has got its hooks into me. A Strat still fits and hangs so well and feels so instantly familiar, but a Tele is my first grab these days. Within the confines of an "S"-type design, the Yamaha is far and away a better instrument. I realise that much is in the set up, but all of my Strats have been through that process in more competent hands than mine. e&oe...
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Post by dnic on Apr 4, 2019 17:41:53 GMT -6
Hey Antares, funny you like the non Fender strats better cause I think the reason I thought I didn't get on with strats was because I had a Yami strat that just never felt right to me. But my Yami looked just like a Fender except the neck was 3/8 short of a stock Fender neck. I found that out the hard way when I copied it for a tele I was building and the scale length was off. Said all that not to say either of us are wrong or right but that we all have different tastes and likes.
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Post by antares on Apr 5, 2019 1:26:29 GMT -6
Here I go again. This is difficult to put into words Dane but I'll try. It's not that I prefer non-Fenders- not at all, it's just that the Pacifica is built and set up so slick that there's no comparison with my others once "in your hands". The Warmoth compound radius neck is like honey. I think those top end Pacificas came out of Yamaha's Custom Shop over your side, not Japan nor any of the satellite Asian manufactories. I like to think of it as being closer to a well set up Gibson feel while Fenders always seem to me to have more of an acoustic guitar feel to them. It even has a backwards set headstock- on an "S" type!
Upstairs I have an interview with Rory Gallagher in a copy of the long since defunct 1970s UK "Guitar" magazine where he made just that observation and I had to agree. Would I prefer to play the Yammy than my Strat on any given occasion? That's not so clear because there's that indefinable vibe going on with Leo's baby, but I cannot ignore the "togetherness" feel of the Pacifica. I've yet to try any Strat that feels like that irrespective of the skill in the set up. Maybe folks don't want that Gibson-ish feel in a guitar and that's why they go for Fenders. Something to strangle and work with. Not badly set up, just different. I can understand that and largely agree too so there's room for all and sundry. Last night I was playing my 1977 SG2000 (until the age wearied jack socket disintegrated inside!) Another superb and buttery player...
e&oe...
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Post by dnic on Apr 5, 2019 7:05:39 GMT -6
Steve, I never thought about it in "acoustic feel" terms but that definitely cements why i'm so at home on my tele. It feels wonderfully like my Aria acoustic guitar that I've played for 40 years next month. It's a lot like my Aria but somehow sleeker and speedier.
I need to get my hands on a Pacifica and experience this for myself.
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Post by antares on Apr 5, 2019 8:42:00 GMT -6
It would need to be a 904 like mine, a 912, 921 or even an 8 series (maybe...) I've played workhorse low end ones (012 and 102 series) which are great VFM and do indeed give (earlier) Squiers a run for their money, but compared to my 904 they're not in the running.
Anyway, this distracts from the thread. If I didn't have to suffer transport and customs charges, I have a pickup that needs rewinding and it would go to John. No hesitation. It's the double single coil from the aforementioned Pacifica. The Yammy has a mint green scratchplate but the rest of the plastic was white, so I set about changing that. I cut replacement Gibson style rear plates from 3-ply "mint" stock and swapped out the pickup covers, knobs and vibrato arm tip for matching mint green. All went swimmingly until the hummer (which is actually two single coils side by side.) The covers wouldn't budge and with such fine wire, despair soon set in. I replaced it temporarily with a Bare Knuckles "Crawler" and laid up the wreckage that was the bridge pups. Nothing wrong with Tim Mills' pick ups for sure, but it's no longer original. They're in the to do box! As I said, I'd entrust it/them to John in a heartbeat.
In that context, Sateside postage to Europe has become really heavy these last few years. No doubt it's a reflection of the true cost, but it must have had an impact on transatlantic mail order. I used to get stuff sent from "GuitarPartsResourceLLC" for under six bucks. Not for a long time though. I kind of suspect that sellers might do it on purpose to avoid the logistics at their end? And as for eBay's "Global Shipping Program"...
e&oe...
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Post by GuitarAttack Forum on Apr 5, 2019 14:52:36 GMT -6
Very cool John. I'll bet playing that Strat is a blast. I never got why so many people love Strats but over the last few years I've set up and played a few and I really like them now. What neck profile does that 64' have? I played a 57' at Gruhn's with a V neck while I was in Nashville last year. Very nice feel to it. The '64 Strat has a "B neck", which is a standard C profile with a 1 5/8″ nut. It is much smaller and softer than a V neck, and it feels like a modern USA Standard neck. Those V necks are addictive, and they do feel great. I worked on a '57 Strat not long ago, and the neck was fantastic. John
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Post by GuitarAttack Forum on Apr 5, 2019 15:00:13 GMT -6
Nice work John. I take it you scatter wind? I don't know the process so it's like a nice mystery to me. I know that tension is very important and layer winding must present fewer obstacles in that respect. I'm still well impressed whatever. I used to prefer Strats to all others and including my Pacifica 904 I have five "S" types, but only one (1973) is a Fender. In recent years the Telecaster has got its hooks into me. A Strat still fits and hangs so well and feels so instantly familiar, but a Tele is my first grab these days. Within the confines of an "S"-type design, the Yamaha is far and away a better instrument. I realise that much is in the set up, but all of my Strats have been through that process in more competent hands than mine. First, the pickup was wound like Fender wound them back in 1964; that is, using Formvar-coated 42 AWG magnet wire guided by hand onto the spinning bobbin. This is why they all look and meter a little different, and they all sound different, too. Tension and layering is critical, and I've devoted an inordinate amount of time to this pursuit over the years! I always liked the Yamaha Pacificas. The early ones had necks made by Warmoth, and they always played great. I have several Strats I play regularly, and there are so many permutations on features, necks, and woods, saying you have a "Strat" really begs for more questions. I always believe you can tell a great deal from playing an electric guitar unplugged. You can tell a great deal about the stiffness of the action, the resonance of the wood, and whether or not the strings buzz prior to plugging in. Generally, and based on my experience, a guitar that sounds good unplugged will wind up sounding good plugged-in. John
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Post by antares on Apr 5, 2019 17:09:18 GMT -6
Sounds like scatter winding to me John. Bravo. As you said- very rewarding work and a measure of confidence and respect to be asked to do the rewind on such a pick up. My 1973 Strat that left Anaheim (?) had a maple neck but now has an ebony fretboard. It was pretty much unheard of over here when I had it done and I had to underwrite the risk of failure in the surgery. Of course that ruined its value but it is all the better for it and not many folks would shed tears over 1970s Strats. As stated, my PAC 904 has a Warmoth compound radius neck and (unusually) an angled back headstock. It's creamy. I discovered both Warmoth and Sperzel when I bought that guitar.
e&oe...
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Post by antares on Apr 6, 2019 11:04:32 GMT -6
I agree regarding the unamplified test John, but by the same token some of my guitars sound peachey unaided, but plugged in a little underwhelming in comparison. I put this down to a combination of the dynamic range that is inextricably linked to volume together with the amp itself. "The amp" is a small phrase for such a broad church. I have long settled on the idea of the acoustic test, but reserve judgement until I've turned the wick up on a few different amplifiers. The keepers have two hurdles to jump. Disclaimer: I've found that with advancing years comes an attendant intolerance of higher volumes.
e&oe...
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Post by GuitarAttack Forum on Apr 7, 2019 8:49:17 GMT -6
I agree regarding the unamplified test John, but by the same token some of my guitars sound peachey unaided, but plugged in a little underwhelming in comparison. I put this down to a combination of the dynamic range that is inextricably linked to volume together with the amp itself. "The amp" is a small phrase for such a broad church. I have long settled on the idea of the acoustic test, but reserve judgement until I've turned the wick up on a few different amplifiers. The keepers have two hurdles to jump. Disclaimer: I've found that with advancing years comes an attendant intolerance of higher volumes. e&oe...True - the guitar is part of the larger ecosystem, and when you crank that Marshall, you need a good sounding guitar. I think the way a guitar feels really sets the stage; that is, a good playing guitar inspires the player and hopefully inspires a spirited performance. Speaking of inspiring, I did a "near full-volume" demo of an old JTM-45 and a newer Gibson R9 for a customer at the shop on Thursday. That was a cranked combination for the ages! The customer took the amp and let's hope he gets the same thrill I got during the demo. John
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