A New Rig
A large box was dropped off for Matthew. Special Delivery, COD.
I wonder what could be in that box?
Why it is a Grizzly Heirloom Telecaster Kit! Let’s open it up and see what is inside.
A very nice piece of Alder with a quilted maple veneer top.
That should look really sharp once it is sanded down and stained. Anything else in there?
A rosewood neck no less.
This kit is part of a special project that Matthew is doing at school. His project is to build his own Telecaster guitar. This kit came with all of the pieces however it requires work to complete the instrument. The body and neck will need to be prepared, sanded and finished. The head of the instrument will need to be shaped. The instrument itself will have to be assembled and then a complete setup will have to be performed.
Matthew is going to put “Cleaver” on the headstock. A Cleaver Telecaster. I like the sound of that name. Pretty cool to build your own guitar at 14.
What a great project, and good luck Matthew! I am sure it will turn out to be quite a player.
I built a Stratocaster recently from a collection of used Strat parts and started with a black, well worn body. After sanding, I chose to stain it and apply a clear coat rather than paint.
For finishing the body, (if you are going to go the natural wood look, rather than paint) an excellent product I used and offer up for your consideration is WATCO Danish Oil. It actually penetrates into the wood and hardens, giving a beautiful finish after several coats. The flame on this body looks nice and will be enhanced with a natural finish rather than a solid colour (just my opinion). The nice thing about this oil finish is that it lets the body breathe and vibrate nicely. No thick coats of finish to dampen the tone.
Good luck and I hope you will be posting updates. I will check in to see. I’ll send your Dad a picture of it.
Regards, Rob