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David Gilmour Strat Tribute
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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Mon Jun 17, 2013 11:58 am ]
Post subject:  David Gilmour Strat Tribute
Time for a new project. I have a '79 American Fender Strat that went through a
bit of a Frankenstein transformation over the years, and so this has been handed
over to Casper Guitar Technologies to be made 'new' again, and routed to include
a vibrato arm.

This is not a 'tribute' in the sense of re-creating the
Black Strat. Rather, it will be a 'concept' tribute Strat with:

Black
metallic fleck paint
Custom pickups designed by Brian Porter (he did an
incredible job with the Hendrix Strat tribute I had designed a few years
back)
Perloid styled knobs and black (via QParts)
Nebulus pickguard
(Gilmour's playing and sound is about as spacey as it gets, and so this tribute
will reflect his 'out of this world' psychedelia)

So far, here are some
body photos with the original paint stripped down:
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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Mon Jun 17, 2013 12:38 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
The knobs and guitar strap locks are coming from QParts, as shown below:

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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Mon Jun 17, 2013 12:41 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
And finally, the intended pickguard from Greasy Grooves:

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Author:  dzsmith [ Mon Jun 17, 2013 5:45 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
Cool, Brian.
What did you use to strip the original finish?
Dan
Author:  CasperGT [ Tue Jun 18, 2013 6:34 am ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
Hello to the forum and thanks again to Brian.

Just to add a bit of detail to this project from a builders point of view.
This body arrived in we'll say poor shape. Finish cracked, chipped, dyed.
There were several pick guard screws burred and broken off flush with the surface of the body and a very wicked humbucker "route" in the bridge position.

I quickly evaluated the body for usefulness and reported back to Brian the body would work for what he was attempting to do. The rest will be up to me.

To strip the old finish, I used a combination of Low VOC Stripper, steel-wool and 60 grit sand paper.
There is really no easy way to remove the old finish. The wood needs to remain intact so a grinder is not an option :lol:

I dug out the screws and over drilled the holes with a drill press and pressed / glued in dowel replacement pieces to give the new body a bit of new wood for the pick-guard screws to bite into. Besides, the screw buried on the upper horn will have to be removed and repaired or the new pick-guard will not have a spot for a screw. In addition, the holes need to be repaired since the new pick-guard may not have the exact same hole pattern and could possibly have mounting / alignment issues when we get to the assembly phase of the project-

Next to establish a center line and begin the tremolo route layout later today-
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Tue Jun 18, 2013 11:56 am ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
Brian Porter sent me info and a photo of the pickups:

"Basically a hybrid strat set. My 50's pickup in the neck. 60's in the middle, and Modern overwound in the bridge."

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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Tue Jun 18, 2013 3:37 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
* Masking off the area to protect the wood and a habit-
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* This is done to not only to protect the wood, but to allow me to be able to see the center line once
we have it established-

* Center-Line
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* By laying out the body on a board with graph markings allows me to use a drafting square to establish the center-line. There are several hints as to the rough location of this elusive line- 1- Strap Button. 2-Center between the pickup edge routs. 3-Centering holes created by the Fender manufacturing process.

* Routing Template Placement

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* By using the center-line and the known distance for the bridge placement, I am able to place the tremolo route properly by using 2-side foam tape-

* Route the Body – The point of no return…

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* Let’s route this puppy!

* Went pretty smooth-

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So the body has been routed and I’m ready to begin the sealing process to prep the body for the finish-
Author:  Sandywood [ Wed Jun 19, 2013 2:00 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
I don't understand why you would post about routing out for a tremelo and show
only the front side and go into sealing.
Surely it was intended to help a beginner or a first time electric builder but I find it
misleading.
Has me wondering if you're going to use some type of tremelo that doesn't need the
back cavity. If so, now would be a good time to mention that IMO.
Author:  charliewood [ Tue Jun 25, 2013 11:47 am ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
*(Gilmour's playing and sound is about as spacey as it gets, and so this tribute
will reflect his 'out of this world' psychedelia)*
Just a note on Gilmour's recorded playing - I understand that what he used to do to achieve that all over the place solo sound is record many solos on multiple tracks - then he would mark out the parts he liked from ea solo on a time chart... then he would use the faders to jump from solo part to solo part in ea track to create an entire solo... cool results!
Good luck
Charliewood
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Fri Jul 12, 2013 10:30 am ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
The pickguard (notice the pickup covers to match the pickguard), pickups and knobs are all in. This will be brought into a custom paint shop to select the right type of black metallic fleck paint (possibly one with gold flecks or something to coordinate with the various colors in the pickguard):

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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Sat Jul 13, 2013 9:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
Although the tribute 'look' obviously does not resemble the Black Strat, I am keen on obtaining the same pickup tones (which is why I'm going with Brian Porter, as he hand-makes to specs), as well as the wiring configuration, as shown.



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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Mon Jul 15, 2013 8:06 am ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
I have a talented custom-strap maker on board, who will be designing a Gilmour/Floyd tribute strap (one of a kind) to go with the guitar. I'll be posting photos and info as it comes to me. This is Anya's site:

http://anya-k.com/pink-giraffe-custom-guitar-straps/
Author:  nyazzip [ Mon Jul 15, 2013 6:59 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
...are you just trying to drum up business for yourself and/or vendors you have a relationship with? seems like it. your posts don't seem to have any point whatsoever, other than dropping names and making recommendations.
putting aftermarket knobs and pickguards and pickups onto an electric guitar is not "luthiery".
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Tue Jul 16, 2013 1:58 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
1. I didn't know a luthier was to actually construct knobs and pickguards (maybe if they were made of wood).

2. I'm not the luthier (no business to drum up, buddy... I work in the rehab field)... I'm paying someone to develop something that I'm creating in my mind.

3. This is a build thread, right? I'm sure mods are part of this, and I'm telling people where I'm getting the parts, etc., in case someone is interested.

4. If you're not interested, then move on.

5. The pickups are HAND MADE with Brian Porter (Porter Pickups)... how is that aftermarket? Seems you like to talk about things you know nothing about.

6. Best wishes.
Author:  theguitarwhisperer [ Sun Jul 21, 2013 5:44 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
Howz it looking? It's actually pretty common to tell people where you get your parts from, nothing unusual there. If someone likes what they see, they'll know where to get it.
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 5:59 am ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
The luthier is to get me paint chip samples soon, and he's waiting (2-3 week backlog, out of stock) for the bridge. I'm hoping to post something soon.
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 3:05 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
Intended Paint Effect:

A black base with sporadically placed silver flakes. This will give the illusion of stars and star clusters. The pearl will be the outer layer. Its effect will be a rainbow of colors, ( the colors in the nebula pickguard). This will show when illuminated from the side. So as you move the guitar, the rainbow will move along the edge of the guitar.

This may or may not show in photos, and so a video may have to be taken.
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Tue Jul 30, 2013 4:55 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
When I told Anya (the talented custom strap designer and maker) about the concept of this guitar, and how it will be very showy (including the black paint with silver metallic flake), she was not going to let the axe be the center of attention. The following is her design (currently a mock up): leather, hand painted and with the beams of light done in Swarovski crystals. Photos to be posted when available and as the work completes.

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Author:  dzsmith [ Tue Jul 30, 2013 6:06 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
I reckon the body is made from Ash? Sure has some pretty grain.
I believe Fender used Ash for their blond and translucent finishes and Alder for solid colors.
The strap design is cool. Reminds me of a Pink Floyd poster.
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Tue Jul 30, 2013 6:58 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
I could very well be wrong... I thought the body was maple (that's what I was told by the seller, but my memory could be way off). I'll ask the luthier... he must know his woods.
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Tue Jul 30, 2013 8:35 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
It was told it is swamp ash.
Author:  Brian Johnston [ Thu Aug 08, 2013 12:56 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
I received some photos from Anya, who is busy plugging away at the custom strap:

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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Mon Aug 19, 2013 7:22 am ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
I should be getting a pickguard with electronics photo soon. In the meantime, Anya has been working diligently on the strap; with construction and hand painting finished, crystals are next!

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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Thu Aug 22, 2013 12:06 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
OK, the base coat for the guitar is curing (which is why I'm slow on getting photos for that end of the project), but Anya has finished the strap... all hand done... with Swarovski crystals making up the beams of light between the prisms. Gorgeous!

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Author:  Brian Johnston [ Thu Aug 22, 2013 12:12 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: David Gilmour Strat Tribute
A closer look:

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