Making a UV777 with Handle grip *pics inside* 56k beware!!!

[caparison_x]

So people I made a natural finish jem last time and the opportunity arose for me to buy a UV777 neck from a forumite (jtm45) which I intended to keep as a back up neck should my own UV777 neck ever spaz out and break

But after much thought I've decided to try a home assembly project using a pre made Alder body from LEG enterprises (they're not great on customer services so buyer beware)

the specs so far are

original UV777 neck F03xxxx serial
Maple neck
Rosewood board with pyramid inlays
Sperzel pro tuners
Ibanez Lo pro 7 (thanks to AK_DRAGON)


As for pick ups and finish im undecided but im thinking of leaving the body blank and oiling it with a few coats of tru oil

side by side comparison shots

hardware close ups

And the finally the Tremolo

Any suggestions on the final fit and finish are welcome as im having a tough time deciding whether to go with passive/active or have some custom wound pups made for me.

If any one has experience with raw alder for a tone/body wood and can make some suggestions i would appreciate it

What im aiming for is something that PLAYS as good as my UV but SOUNDS different.

Mark

 

[jymellis]

at first i thought, oh wtf? then i saw who was posting and knew it would be good! as far as pups im not sure. but if your thinking of keeping it natural forever, think of possibly having it sprayed with a hard polyurethane type coating after you oil or stain. the poly coating will keep it from dinging. over kill, maybe. but its a universe!

 

[caparison_x]

at first i thought, oh wtf? then i saw who was posting and knew it would be good! as far as pups im not sure. but if your thinking of keeping it natural forever, think of possibly having it sprayed with a hard polyurethane type coating after you oil or stain. the poly coating will keep it from dinging. over kill, maybe. but its a universe!

I was thinking of maybe trying to make the body a complete reproduction with bindings etc but. and its a big but. I actually want this sound somewhat different to the UV777. I was thinking of whether to add a coat of nitro to the body though since the poly interferes with the sound more.

its all in the "what should i do stage though" so im not 100% decided on final specs right now.

When I ordered the body I was thinking of trying a home swirl. But im such a noob that the thought of wrecking a nice piece of alder scared me off.

 

[jymellis]

I was thinking of maybe trying to make the body a complete reproduction with bindings etc but. and its a big but. I actually want this sound somewhat different to the UV777. I was thinking of whether to add a coat of nitro to the body though since the poly interferes with the sound more.

its all in the "what should i do stage though" so im not 100% decided on final specs right now.

When I ordered the body I was thinking of trying a home swirl. But im such a noob that the thought of wrecking a nice piece of alder scared me off.

im needing my green dot painted. i talked to some local auto painters and they said to let them know when its prepped and ready for primer and paint. then they will call me in when they are painting a car black.
you can try this if your considering a solid color or just a clear coat.

 

[scherzo1928]

After seeing your other thread and what you can do, I would love to see you do another veneer.

Then again, the body doesnt exactly look ugly as it is now.

 

[caparison_x]

After seeing your other thread and what you can do, I would love to see you do another veneer.

Then again, the body doesnt exactly look ugly as it is now.

Im not sure a veneer would work with the black painted head stock though?

what do you think?

 

[JaeSwift]

Im not sure a veneer would work with the black painted head stock though?

what do you think?

It'd work fine for a darker veneer.

 

[caparison_x]

It'd work fine for a darker veneer.

im just looking at some veneers now.

Do you think I should match the veneer to fret board or the headstock?

also what about a different application of the veneer? like maybe one huge piece instead of bookmatched

 

[BlackMastodon]

Love the inlays on the Universe, not a fan of the price though. This should be really interesting.

 

[Sebastian]

That will be very interesting ... Why not try out some Duncan Blackouts ?

Finish... I think You should... Swirl it!

 

[caparison_x]

That will be very interesting ... Why not try out some Duncan Blackouts ?

Finish... I think You should... Swirl it!

i dont think i have the skill to swirl it and i dont want to massacre a nice piece of alder XD

 

[Sebastian]

i dont think i have the skill to swirl it and i dont want to massacre a nice piece of alder XD

I understand

Any chance for a really "hot" color ? Like maybe Green, Yellow or Orange ?

Other than that a White Body would go really well with those Inlays with a Matching headstock of course

 

[kmanick]

you could always try something like a Honey or amber stain , I think that would look great.
A good seven7 string pickup for an Alder body/maple neck would be a BK Holy Diver.
It's supposedly voiced a little darker and fuller than some of the more "Djenty" BK pickups, in Alder it would probably kill.

 

[caparison_x]

you could always try something like a Honey or amber stain , I think that would look great.
A good seven7 string pickup for an Alder body/maple neck would be a BK Holy Diver.
It's supposedly voiced a little darker and fuller than some of the more "Djenty" BK pickups, in Alder it would probably kill.

Ive actually grabbed an Evo7 and Blaze from a forum user here I think I will go with a Bareknuckle single coil, but after using coldsweats , nail bombs and trilogy suites i dont rate BK's as being that much better then most other pups ive used.

The best 6 string passive ive heard so far has to be a SD Custom.

 

[ahull123]

I like the tray of bullets, nice touch, two of my favorite hobbies.... second thought, I didn't know they had guns left in the UK? The guitar is going to be nice...

 

[Ryan-ZenGtr-]

Dude, you need to take that to Rob @ deadlight designs.... He will do whatever you want. Sprays up my guitars nice. If your anywhere near Croyden you should pay him a visit.

Deadlight Designs Custom Guitars Graphic Workshop (autoplay music)

He could do a nice mona lisa on it for you, if you want. Very skilled graphic artist.

I'd dodge the Oil !!! Can't pain on oil EVER!!!

Veneering the top and headstock could look expensive when done, but Rob could do something more unique, if you want.

And what's with the BKP salesmanship everywhere on the internet right now. I had the nailbomb on a 2nd hand guitar that came in for a while, harsher than an EMG.

Your DiMarzio pickups will be fine, I only use EMG's for rythms and you'll want to play leads on your UV, I'm sure.

 

[caparison_x]

Dude, you need to take that to Rob @ deadlight designs.... He will do whatever you want. Sprays up my guitars nice. If your anywhere near Croyden you should pay him a visit.

Deadlight Designs Custom Guitars Graphic Workshop (autoplay music)

He could do a nice mona lisa on it for you, if you want. Very skilled graphic artist.

I'd dodge the Oil !!! Can't pain on oil EVER!!!

Veneering the top and headstock could look expensive when done, but Rob could do something more unique, if you want.

And what's with the BKP salesmanship everywhere on the internet right now. I had the nailbomb on a 2nd hand guitar that came in for a while, harsher than an EMG.

Your DiMarzio pickups will be fine, I only use EMG's for rythms and you'll want to play leads on your UV, I'm sure.

Spoke to them today on the phone, im awaiting some pics of his swirls before i hand him the body

 

[ahull123]

Alan, at "Out of this swirled" does awesome work and to top it off he's a nice guy... always responds quickly.

 

[caparison_x]

quick update new pups from Mesh!

 

[djpharoah]