DIY Thread - post your guitar DIYs and ask your DIY questions here

[jobo_ph]

Just a slight update with my ongoing DIY refret project...

Last night, I removed the nut (gentle tap with a flat blade screw driver and hammer) and cleaned the slot with a very small taper file...



Tonight, I got around to cleaning the fret slots. An important step so that old glue is removed and possible obstruction when seating new frets is avoided.

I had to read about tools people use to clean fret slots. Some used Stew Mac's fret cleaning tool while some used a Japanese fret cleaning tool that can also deepen slots. Some used a modified thickness gauge blade, and some used a modified cutter blade.

I first thought of using a hacksaw blade but it's too thick to fit in the slots. I even tried to make it thinner by grinding it down using a knife sharpening stone but it was too much work.

Found an old cutter blade at home, na for some reason, may bungi na and it was quite suitable for the task.


It takes several passes with a subtle press on the cutter until the slot is free of the old glue. It can be felt when you are still scraping glue and when you've already hit the wood.


After doing a few slots, you can notice the difference between cleaned slots (left side) which look lighter and uncleaned slots (right side) which looked darker...


Looking from the side, cleaned slots on the left side, uncleaned slots on the right...


'Til the next update... 

[free2rock]

A luthier in Australia told me to use a triangle file and run it through the slot lightly before putting the fret in. This will let the fret push in more easily.

[jobo_ph]

A luthier in Australia told me to use a triangle file and run it through the slot lightly before putting the fret in. This will let the fret push in more easily.

Salamat sa paalala! Did see this procedure being done in a Youtube refret video I watched previously.

Will keep this in mind when I'm ready to hammer in the frets!

[albumin]

Good pm.

may tanong ako.. im planning to mod my 10/15watt SS amp.. just curious kung pwede kong gawin yung parang nandito:
http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/squawk-box/76772-peavey-valveking-royal-8-mod.html

and my question is.....


tapos, ikakabit na lang ba yung wires nung "amp->speaker" dun? then pwede nang ikabit to an external cab?

my plan seems feasible naman diba? nagagandahan na kasi ako sa clean and overdriven sound nung amp ko with its 8" stock speaker... i was wondering kung ikabit ko sa may malaking speaker baka mas gumanda pa yung tunog... BTW, the amp is a Maxon GX10...

[free2rock]

Are you talking about the jack?

[albumin]

yezzir!

gusto ko lang malaman yung exact na tawag para pag hinahap ko sa mga local hardware shops or online, madaling mahanap...

[markcasq]

Good pm.

may tanong ako.. im planning to mod my 10/15watt SS amp.. just curious kung pwede kong gawin yung parang nandito:
http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/squawk-box/76772-peavey-valveking-royal-8-mod.html

and my question is.....


tapos, ikakabit na lang ba yung wires nung "amp->speaker" dun? then pwede nang ikabit to an external cab?

my plan seems feasible naman diba? nagagandahan na kasi ako sa clean and overdriven sound nung amp ko with its 8" stock speaker... i was wondering kung ikabit ko sa may malaking speaker baka mas gumanda pa yung tunog... BTW, the amp is a Maxon GX10...

Bro - this is cool mod!  Mas cool if you find snake skin leather   Yup, jack ang tawag dun.

[albumin]

Bro - this is cool mod!  Mas cool if you find snake skin leather   Yup, jack ang tawag dun.

jack lang talaga ang tawag sir?

what should i do para maiconnect yung amp dun sa "jack"? actually, may line out feature yung amp.. should i just use it?

ang hassle lang dyan, 4ohms yung impedance nung amp.. gusto ko sana ikabit sa isang matinong 12" na speaker... at bihira ang 4ohms na 12" na speaker... and, i dig vintage looks .. actually, nakakapanghinayang yung tolex nung maxon.. vintage look as it is.. pag nakahanap ng cream tolex, sarap. yun na...

[r_chino18]

jack lang talaga ang tawag sir?

what should i do para maiconnect yung amp dun sa "jack"? actually, may line out feature yung amp.. should i just use it?

ang hassle lang dyan, 4ohms yung impedance nung amp.. gusto ko sana ikabit sa isang matinong 12" na speaker... at bihira ang 4ohms na 12" na speaker... and, i dig vintage looks .. actually, nakakapanghinayang yung tolex nung maxon.. vintage look as it is.. pag nakahanap ng cream tolex, sarap. yun na...

1/4" female jack to be specific. 

Jomar iba yung Line Out. Wag ka mag plug ng extension speaker doon.

Yang jack na nasa picture, jan lang kinabit yung wires na pupunta dapat sa positive at negative terminal ng speaker. Ganun lang. Kasi diba ang Royal 8 ay combo? So ayun. Ginawa lang head tapos kinabit yung wires papuntang speaker sa jack para mas madali.

Putulin mo lang yung wires na papunta sa speaker nung combo tapos siyang isolder mo sa jack..

Lagyan mo na lang ng dalawang 10" speaker na tig 8 ohms, tapos parallel wired para 4 ohms ang total impedance.. Pwede rin dalawang 12" na tig 8 ohms..

Medyo mahirap nga maghanap ng 4 ohms, pero may available niyan na mga speaker.. 

[markcasq]

And when you buy speaker wires to connect the head to the speaker, do not use a guitar cable, kelangan mas makapal yung wires.  Speaker wires dapat.

[albumin]

1/4" female jack to be specific. 

Jomar iba yung Line Out. Wag ka mag plug ng extension speaker doon.

Yang jack na nasa picture, jan lang kinabit yung wires na pupunta dapat sa positive at negative terminal ng speaker. Ganun lang. Kasi diba ang Royal 8 ay combo? So ayun. Ginawa lang head tapos kinabit yung wires papuntang speaker sa jack para mas madali.

Lagyan mo na lang ng dalawang 10" speaker na tig 8 ohms, tapos parallel wired para 4 ohms ang total impedance.. Pwede rin dalawang 12" na tig 8 ohms..

Medyo mahirap nga maghanap ng 4 ohms, pero may available niyan na mga speaker.. 

Boom yeah! Thank you so much kuya chino! hehe.

available naman sa local hardware shops yung jack diba? Lez get diz started!! Actually, I'm considering Eminence's Texas Heat para sa speaker... May 4ohm ver kasi yun... and priced quite cheap. kaso, 150watts RMS... di kaya sobrang overkill yun para sa 10watts na amp? mejo mahal kasi yung customized na weber speakers... at mahal din ang jensen...

ok lang kasi, yung plano ko na bilhing head talaga, pwede din sa 4ohms might as well, makapagstart na muna sa cab

And when you buy speaker wires to connect the head to the speaker, do not use a guitar cable, kelangan mas makapal yung wires.  Speaker wires dapat.

Will consider that! Thanks!

[r_chino18]

Boom yeah! Thank you so much kuya chino! hehe.
available naman sa local hardware shops yung jack diba? Lez get diz started!! Actually, I'm considering Eminence's Texas Heat para sa speaker... May 4ohm ver kasi yun... and priced quite cheap. kaso, 150watts RMS... di kaya sobrang overkill yun para sa 10watts na amp? mejo mahal kasi yung customized na weber speakers... at mahal din ang jensen...
ok lang kasi, yung plano ko na bilhing head talaga, pwede din sa 4ohms might as well, makapagstart na muna sa cab

Not sure kung may 4ohms speaker na sa Lyric.. Mukhang puro 8ohms pa lang ngayon eh..

Available sa mga local electronics shop yung jack.. Kung gusto mo branded, may Switchcraft sa Audiophile, parang 120php ata ang isa. Mas ok na yun kesa bumili ng tig 40php na jack dito sa Los Baņos.. Hahaha..

Ok lang yung mataas ang wattage, wag lang lower sa wattage ng amp mo.. 

Try mo Jensen MOD. Medyo mura lang sila. Meron ako dito MOD 50 di ko pa nagagamit. 50 watts, kaso 8 ohms..

[albumin]

mamamaximize mo ba yung output nung speaker kahit sa low wattage amp mo siya isaksak?? i mean, hindi ba kelangan na mas malakas yung source ng energy para makuha yung "full bloom" nung tunog?

may effect din ba sa headroom ang mas mataas na RMS wattage ng speaker??

$4 lang difference ng 12" na 4ohms na jensen mod sa eminence texas heat.. I saw good reviews nung texas heat.. mukang magfififit sa gusto ko... low end ng jensen yung MOD diba??


kung may 4ohm ver lang sana cannabis rex... (

[ryechua]

May 4ohm ver kasi yun... and priced quite cheap. kaso, 150watts RMS... di kaya sobrang overkill yun para sa 10watts na amp? mejo mahal kasi yung customized na weber speakers... at mahal din ang jensen...

when it comes to power consideration, di bale nang sobra wag lang kulang 

[r_chino18]

mamamaximize mo ba yung output nung speaker kahit sa low wattage amp mo siya isaksak?? i mean, hindi ba kelangan na mas malakas yung source ng energy para makuha yung "full bloom" nung tunog?

To some extent, not much.. Pero, mas ok yung mataas ang wattage, imo.. Less break up, more clean headroom kahit na 10 watts lang yung nagddrive sa kanya..

may effect din ba sa headroom ang mas mataas na RMS wattage ng speaker??

Yep. More wattage, more clean headroom. Lower wattage, easier to break up at a certain volume. Depends on what you want to achieve, one may be better than the other.

$4 lang difference ng 12" na 4ohms na jensen mod sa eminence texas heat.. I saw good reviews nung texas heat.. mukang magfififit sa gusto ko... low end ng jensen yung MOD diba??

Hahaha. Low end? I dunno.. Pero they're bang for the buck speakers.. Low end din ata ng Eminence ang Texas Heat, hindi ba?

kung may 4ohm ver lang sana cannabis rex... (

Hahaha.. Start ka muna sa head bro.. Tapos try mo mag hanap ng speaker/speaker cab na magffit ng maganda sa sound niya.. Mas ok yun kesa unahin yung cab.. Hit and miss kasi speakers eh.. Hindi lahat ng magandang speaker ay maganda tunog for a particular head..

Pag may cab ka na, mapipilitan kang tanggapin na maganda tunog nun with the head na bibilhin mo kahit di talaga sila tugma.. dahil lang kasi may cab na.. Just some insight. 

[albumin]

Yep. More wattage, more clean headroom. Lower wattage, easier to break up at a certain volume. Depends on what you want to achieve, one may be better then the other.

Like!

Hahaha.. Start ka muna sa head bro.. Tapos try mo mag hanap ng speaker/speaker cab na magffit ng maganda sa sound niya.. Mas ok yun kesa unahin yung cab.. Hit and miss kasi speakers eh.. Hindi lahat ng magandang speaker ay maganda tunog for a particular head..

Pag may cab ka na, mapipilitan kang tanggapin na maganda tunog nun with the head na bibilhin mo kahit di talaga sila tugma.. dahil lang kasi may cab na.. Just some insight. 

points taken! malapit na din akong makabili ng tube eh.. konting ipon pa

[r_chino18]

Like!

points taken! malapit na din akong makabili ng tube eh.. konting ipon pa

Cool..
If makabili ka ng head, try natin sa Jensen MOD ko dito sa bahay.. malapit ko na rin naman na matapos yung cab ko, before matapos ang June malamang go na yun.. 

Good luck bro! Ano yang head na tinatarget mo? Bogner din ba?

[albumin]

Cool..
If makabili ka ng head, try natin sa Jensen MOD ko dito sa bahay.. malapit ko na rin naman na matapos yung cab ko, before matapos ang June malamang go na yun.. 

Good luck bro! Ano yang head na tinatarget mo? Bogner din ba?

lol. cant afford a bogner.. no plans of buying one kahit yumaman ako.

dadalhin ko na lang sa elbi pag nakabili na..

[markcasq]

@jobo_ph - commercial muna habang antay sa ginagawa mong re-fret.


I replaced the volume pot of my RG.  I thought it's just a simple replacement, hindi pala kasya yung shaft sa hole, kasi mas malaki yung replacement pot.  Dami pala pwede gawin ng file!  Mas malinis pa.  Before I used drill bits, and ang dumi tingnan.

Here's the process:

Stock pot not working properly anymore.  So I'm replacing with Dimarzio 500k pot.



Oops, the shaft is bigger than the hole.  Should I drill this?  Nope, too messy and sawdust can enter the pots and switches.  I don't want to remove everything either for a small job.



Maybe a circular file can do the job.  I recently bought a file set after learning from DIYers here.



Soldered the wires to the pot.



Then, job done.

[r_chino18]

lol. cant afford a bogner.. no plans of buying one kahit yumaman ako.

dadalhin ko na lang sa elbi pag nakabili na..

Hahaha.. Tele + Bogner Duende.. 

I replaced the volume pot of my RG.  I thought it's just a simple replacement, hindi pala kasya yung shaft sa hole, kasi mas malaki yung replacement pot.  Dami pala pwede gawin ng file!  Mas malinis pa.  Before I used drill bits, and ang dumi tingnan.
Here's the process:
Stock pot not working properly anymore.  So I'm replacing with Dimarzio 500k pot.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-zYQ9_xBHgRk/T9AZDH7t0RI/AAAAAAAALsY/IJV3fFurQP4/s640/P1000980.JPG
Oops, the shaft is bigger than the hole.  Should I drill this?  Nope, too messy and sawdust can enter the pots and switches.  I don't want to remove everything either for a small job.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sidQ2eb92Fg/T9AZfH4iacI/AAAAAAAALso/9oBjS6RFWYY/s640/P1000993.JPG
Maybe a circular file can do the job.  I recently bought a file set after learning from DIYers here.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-4HfH-mvnVto/T9AZjD0zYkI/AAAAAAAALsw/CrMvPC9vaPM/s640/P1000985.JPG
Soldered the wires to the pot.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Rks3uSDLT3s/T9AZpfNslRI/AAAAAAAALs4/o_-eK2nR0zU/s640/P1000996.JPG
Then, job done.
]https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-j_cUXm_VwJY/T9AZtP1LTWI/AAAAAAAALtA/RKDRP-cXJR8/s640/P1000999.JPG

Nice! Ganyan talaga bro. Metric versus Imperial/US spec... Metric yung stock pots ng Ibanez eh, mas maliit yung shaft nila.. Mas malaki ng konti yung US spec kaya lalakihan mo talaga yung hole.

Ang ginawa ko naman dun sa akin, pencil/ballpen wrapped with sandpaper. Tapos yun, up and down strokes hanggang lumaki yung hole. Job done!

Ang hassle na lang jan, kelangan humanap ka ng knob na magfifit sa shaft ng US spec pot. For sure di na kakasya jan yung stock dome knob mo. Panget naman pwersahin or pagdikitin yung split shaft ng Dimarzio. Pag lagay mo ng knob ay hindi pantay ang ikot saka unstable.

Good luck bro! Cool mod. Congrats din pala kasi nasolderan mo ng madali yung pot. Baka nag-iba ng design ang Dimarzio or maganda soldering iron mo.

[rmanala]

@jobo_ph - commercial muna habang antay sa ginagawa mong re-fret.


I replaced the volume pot of my RG.  I thought it's just a simple replacement, hindi pala kasya yung shaft sa hole, kasi mas malaki yung replacement pot.  Dami pala pwede gawin ng file!  Mas malinis pa.  Before I used drill bits, and ang dumi tingnan.

Here's the process:

Stock pot not working properly anymore.  So I'm replacing with Dimarzio 500k pot.



Oops, the shaft is bigger than the hole.  Should I drill this?  Nope, too messy and sawdust can enter the pots and switches.  I don't want to remove everything either for a small job.



Maybe a circular file can do the job.  I recently bought a file set after learning from DIYers here.



Soldered the wires to the pot.



Then, job done.

sir my piezo ba guitar nyo, kasi my switch sya sa gilid?

[markcasq]

@ rmanala - yup, may piezo sya.  the concentric knobs are for bass/treble control for the piezo.

Hahaha.. Tele + Bogner Duende.. 

Nice! Ganyan talaga bro. Metric versus Imperial/US spec... Metric yung stock pots ng Ibanez eh, mas maliit yung shaft nila.. Mas malaki ng konti yung US spec kaya lalakihan mo talaga yung hole.

Ang ginawa ko naman dun sa akin, pencil/ballpen wrapped with sandpaper. Tapos yun, up and down strokes hanggang lumaki yung hole. Job done!

Ang hassle na lang jan, kelangan humanap ka ng knob na magfifit sa shaft ng US spec pot. For sure di na kakasya jan yung stock dome knob mo. Panget naman pwersahin or pagdikitin yung split shaft ng Dimarzio. Pag lagay mo ng knob ay hindi pantay ang ikot saka unstable.

Good luck bro! Cool mod. Congrats din pala kasi nasolderan mo ng madali yung pot. Baka nag-iba ng design ang Dimarzio or maganda soldering iron mo.

Thanks.  Ganun pala yun, US vs. EU pala, kaya iba.  Very helpful info.  O nga no, pwede din yung ballpen and sandpaper!  Very resourceful!
Normal lang yung soldering iron ko, 30w from deeco hehe.  And I guess most likely iba nga yung design nung dimarzio na mahirap solderan.

Nag kasya naman yung knob, buti na lang.  Medyo mataas nga lang since I don't have the right spacers.  Pero pwede na.

[r_chino18]

Thanks.  Ganun pala yun, US vs. EU pala, kaya iba.  Very helpful info.  O nga no, pwede din yung ballpen and sandpaper!  Very resourceful!
Normal lang yung soldering iron ko, 30w from deeco hehe.  And I guess most likely iba nga yung design nung dimarzio na mahirap solderan.

Yep. Most Asian guitars kasi, metric ang gamit para sa hardware and stuff. Mga USA or other western countries, US spec ang gamit..

Nag kasya naman yung knob, buti na lang.  Medyo mataas nga lang since I don't have the right spacers.  Pero pwede na.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-vAY6zDx8Pco/T9AZvXpi-TI/AAAAAAAALtI/7Tdm7FqAI8s/s640/P1010001.JPG

Haha. Nice. Good for you bro. 

[Gunslinger]

Any tips on how to remove these? Parang dumikit sa top coat eh. Notice the whiter area at the truss rod cover. Medyo dumikit din yung cover pero natanggal ko naman.



A closer look.

[free2rock]

Soldering iron.