# Guitarist's!



## iNVESTIGATE (Feb 17, 2010)

Hhhho-kay, so.
 i got myself a Fender Stratocaster. Black w/ a solid white pickguard... kinda. And i'm in the process of fixing it up a bit after being through some wear 'n tear... though i am what you could consider a "noob".

When i had inherited it i was fairly young, a Man of about 15/16.lol And had joined a ska band, eventually, only to draw checkers and a little shroom on the pickguard. In permanent black marker.. N' not just once, but many many times.

 i got the majority of the marker off.. now its just the slightest stain. Like a grid with about 75% opacity.. 


anyweee, my pickups.. they're coloured a creamy kinda colour, aswell as the knobs. Like when yah put too much milk in your coffee/tea. lol

But yeah, ive always admired that full creamy/vintage look. So im looking to cream my guitar as it were..


*Any General Suggestions For Fixing Up A Fender Strat.? *

p.s. i am a noob when it comes to the guitar world, but am lookin' to change that.


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## growwwww (Feb 21, 2010)

Dude im a musician. My main instrument being bass. Ive had many many many tteachers nad i once had a guitar teacher who was literally a holy man, and i asked him how to clean my guitar. He said to me as long as it works who gives a fuck. Went through a whole sphiel about it.

Im telling you - if it works and it isint affecting the sound who gives a shit.

Dont get distracted from making music and art. Play the guitar who gives a shit what it looks like.


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## captain792000 (Feb 21, 2010)

I can see you cleaning the pick guard man but as for the rest, leave it alone...thats what makes it a vintage classic.....


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## drumbum3218 (Feb 21, 2010)

yeah, get some good strings, and as long as it doesn't sound like shit the pickups shouldnt need replacing. if the pick guard really bothers you, take it off and replace it or paint it. The fender strat black with all white pick guard is classic. That and the sunburst strat, oooh so nice. Just astetics tho, dont make a difference, unless your playing to pick up chics, then ur guitar looking sweet may help seduce. Tough call tough call, still I'd say fuck it, just play and impress with the playing.


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## fdd2blk (Feb 21, 2010)

clean and oil it, throw on some new strings, then stop.



got any pics?


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## iNVESTIGATE (Feb 21, 2010)

_Thanks All!_


The body has some mean chips and scratches.. so im filling those in. And then the volume control/input is just right fucked. Causing the guitar to cut in and out when rockin'. Ill be replacing/fixing that as soon as i can get a sauder gun. 


But yeah, the rest (colouring the pickguard & bridge). Isnt really NEEDED per se.
But i figure i might as well go all out and make it look nice as well as play nice. 



Ill try to throw up some pics. before the end of the day.. dont even know where that damn forsaken cam is..


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## growwwww (Feb 21, 2010)

owww dont fill in teh chips and scratches i love that shit. Nothing better than seeing a warn isntrument be fuckeed over by a musician.


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## fdd2blk (Feb 21, 2010)

do* NOT* "make it nice". you want that "worn look". do *NOT* fill in the nicks or fix the scratches. 


CLEAN and OIL IT
fix your loose wire
change the strings
stop
play it


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## growwwww (Feb 21, 2010)

fdd2blk said:


> do* NOT* "make it nice". you want that "worn look". do *NOT* fill in the nicks or fix the scratches.
> 
> 
> CLEAN and OIL IT
> ...


Someone likes cleaning and oiling


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## fdd2blk (Feb 21, 2010)

growwwww said:


> Someone likes cleaning and oiling


that's all a guitar should ever need.

and new strings.  



i got this for 15 dollars off craigslist, ... 


i cleaned and oiled it, then put on new strings, ...


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## iNVESTIGATE (Feb 21, 2010)

hahh lol aiight aigght


hey yoo fDD my rhythm guitarist has the same Ibanez as you (the white one w/ the floyd rose).


here's some pics.. sry 'bout the quality. shitlifecamera.


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## fdd2blk (Feb 21, 2010)

iNVESTIGATE said:


> hahh lol aiight aigght
> 
> 
> hey yoo fDD my rhythm guitarist has the same Ibanez as you (the white one w/ the floyd rose).
> ...




get that bad boy screamin'.


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## drumbum3218 (Feb 21, 2010)

fdd2blk said:


> i got this for 15 dollars off craigslist, ... View attachment 722555
> 
> 
> i cleaned and oiled it, then put on new strings, ... View attachment 722556


Hey Fdd2blk, awsome, what kind of guitar is that? Looks a lot like an old Savoy I have somewhere...I need to get that back in action. Never seen another Savoy (maybe that means they're P.O.S.) but I like the the sound better than that on my old american made fenders strat and tele 
And pic guard looks fine, iNVESTIGATE. U made it sound like it was all blacked out with chechers and mushrooms, but the faint imprint/left over marker looks good.


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## fdd2blk (Feb 21, 2010)

drumbum3218 said:


> Hey Fdd2blk, what kind of guitar is that? Looks a lot like a 1960's Savoy I have somewhere...I need to get that back in action. Never seen another Savoy (maybe that means they're P.O.S. but I like the the sound better than that on my fenders strat and telecastor


it has no name on it anything. just a small "japan" stamp. it's got nice sound.


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## drumbum3218 (Feb 21, 2010)

fdd2blk said:


> it has no name on it anything. just a small "japan" stamp. it's got nice sound.


 all that matters. 
I'm gonna go jam right now...maybe even use my bass drum from my drumset, add my harmonica to it and have a one man band. kidding, i miss jamming with other musicians, thats all.


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## iNVESTIGATE (Mar 18, 2010)

okay.. fuck man. ive been slowly but surely fixing up my baby. 

but then my buddy brings his fuckin '73 Fender over. And i havent been able to put it down. 

But it's cool because its pretty much the exact opposite of what i was trying to get my strat to look like. Black w/ cream. As oppose to cream w/ black. kinda nifty lol


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## Cpl. CornB33F (Mar 18, 2010)

To clean the pick guard just put it in a bowl of bleach and let it sit there. Don't fix the chips! That look makes it look it has history, which it probably does.


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## stevenr (Mar 19, 2010)

Well, there needs to be a acknowledgement that cosmetics and sound are very different things. A beat up looking guitar is a bigger appeal to some folks. I look at the wear on my six string with fondness --- ditches I've made in the rosewood from playing it so much, and the way hard picking has thinned out the body in spots. That comes from over a decade of familiarity with it.
But man, when frets loose their crown, you can't play in tune anymore. Necks got out of adjustment, space between the strings and pickups change, bridges get grooved -- that kind of stuff might make it play with one great tone, but you can have a hundred great tones out of a good set-up. 
An old, quality guitar with a good set-up rules. I won't buy a new guitar. Leave the cosmetics alone, but pay for a set-up by the best tech in town. My two cents, Have fun!


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## ink the world (Mar 20, 2010)

It doesnt matter if an electric guitar is new or used, all i care about is how it sounds unplugged. Pretty much everything else can be fixed but if it sounds weak and thin unplugged it always will.
Although I have to admit a really worn maple fretboard looks great.


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## mexiblunt (Mar 20, 2010)

iNVESTIGATE said:


> _Thanks All!_
> 
> 
> The body has some mean chips and scratches.. so im filling those in. And then the volume control/input is just right fucked. Causing the guitar to cut in and out when rockin'. Ill be replacing/fixing that as soon as i can get a sauder gun.
> ...


Nice I have a black strat with white/pearl pick guard too!! The volume switch was also screwed, but i like to buy after market volume switches that give me more dynamics for playing live, The one it had was kinda on/off no middle, I like to have some control in a live setting, usually run most of the time 3/4 full then I can just bump it up for certain stuff.


I went to the guitar store yesterday to maybe buy a new guitar and came home with Two! The acoustic is a Hagstrome that is very loud and warm for it's small size, and the Ibanez just looked awesome and i've always wanted a hollow body electric so I bought it too.... (didn't even plug it in) It just felt like it sounded good! lots of ressonance.


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## Ten bag (Mar 30, 2010)

geetar looks rather swish fella!
if your ever after fully re-conning it then giz a shout cos ive done it a couple of times, and not the shabby way either haha 
it was gunmetal grey before this, and its original blue before that.
Dont know if you can see, but theres hairline cracks in the paint all over the body and neck, wasnt something i originally planned on but i think its makes it look even better. And i know its a banger of a guitar but it was my first and its never leaving me!
pickups are out of my old bc rich sig series warlock, real heavy/muddy/djent-y tone. EXACTLY how i likes it


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