Let's see your guitar and bass gear!

In reply to Paul_VR6:

Oops. Forgot about this discussion...

I'm in NH right now for work, so meeting up may be difficult to schedule.

I forget where in PA you are? I'm near Philly.

I am in the south western tip of chester co. I have a standing offer for 300 shipped for the 1922, if you can do 200 its yours. Lmk asap as I have to accept it or not here shortly.

Accept it. I can't give a solid guarantee on when I'll be able to meet up.

I will let you know if it falls through, thanks!

Do any of you have a Music Go Round nearby? We have one that's kinda nearby, and it's pretty cool. They mainly deal in used gear, and their prices are great. I was browsing their site yesterday, and found this thing:

http://www.musicgoroundboston.com/p/461251/used-kramer-700st-bass-with-gig-bag

I have had a thing for maple fingerboards lately, so this thing is doing it for me. I would totally go buy it, but I keep reminding myself I already have two P/J basses and I don't really need another one. I've been thinking about getting something close to a P-Bass lately with a maple fingerboard to build a Steve Harris-style bass.

Also, Kramers are kinda weird. This particular one is interesting. It has a nice cast Kramer bridge, Kramer-branded cloverleaf tuners, and the neck plate says USA on it. I think it's still an overseas-made instrument, though.

Lancer007 wrote: In reply to BlueInGreen44: PM me with a number shipped, that sounds perfect.

Ok, expect a pm sometime next week.

In reply to SilverFleet: I LOVE MusicGoRound. Its like a treasure hunt. When I lived in Columbus Ohio I hit the 2 stores there all the time. I think 90% of the gear my band used was from there. Both of my Peavey basses came from the store in Troy, Michigan. Ive already bought a bass from the store in Wilkes Barre. Last summer when I was in Worcester for business I shopped the store in Natick, but left empty handed.

In reply to BlueInGreen44:

Cool

I bought my first guitar from the Music Go Round in Novi. Then they moved to Farmington and closed (I think) a few years ago

In reply to BlueInGreen44:

Ive been to the one in Ann Arbor but I like the one in Troy alot better. They always seemed to have cooler stuff.

Music Go Rounds are like the self serve junkyards of the music world.

Especially when you dig through the parts guitars that are always stacked in a corner somewhere.

Paul_VR6 wrote: I will let you know if it falls through, thanks!

...and still waiting for payment.

They have replaced Daddy's Junky Music as my favorite local music store. In the Northeast, Daddy's was THE place to find screaming deals back in the day. That's where I bought my German made Warwick there for $299. It was in near mint condition, too.

I have been thinking about taking an old drum kit and that Epiphone Les Paul Special II I keep talking about there for trade bait on that Kramer.

Plugged the epi into the triple and turned it to 11 while my wife was out with the kids today. Likely everyone in PA heard it. gonna miss it

Paul_VR6 wrote: Plugged the epi into the triple and turned it to 11 while my wife was out with the kids today. Likely everyone in PA heard it. gonna miss it

Turn it to 12 next time. I barely heard you up in Wayne County.

I will just roll it outside. That'll do it.

Did some work on the Squier Black Strat today.

The tremolo block on this thing is pretty lightweight. Guitar Fetish makes a solid steel block to upgrade Mexican and other imports. They do brass as well, I figured the steel would have a little more clarity. Here's how the stock and upgrade compare.

It didn't quite fit in my Strat body, slightly wide and too deep. I took about 1mm off each side and a couple of mm off the bottom. Then sanded the other sides just to make it look purty.

I still left it pretty deep, so I needed to cut a bigger window in the back cover to clear the springs. They don't protrude. Btw, I set the trem up to float but with a lot of resistance to movement.

I also changed springs, as the deeper block meant I needed longer springs. Went for a Gilmour set. And of course, intonation and action setup.

New tuners (Wilkinson Deluxe) with metric bushing inserts and a small name change rounded out the work. I've got a Mini with a vintage Cadillac badge on the back too :)

Result? Wow. The instrument has a much bigger tone and improved presence. It sounds great. I'm assuming this is all due to the mass of the new trem block. Best $36 I've ever spent musically.

Remember back on page 2 when I posted this? In 2012?

Jay wrote: I am not a guitarist. Whenever I try to play one, my fingers do similar things to an old mechanical typewriter when you push too many keys at once. I don't even like a lot of "typical" guitar music. Which is why it would be a terrible idea if I bought this off the local auction site, right? Seriously, I haven't got the first clue what I'd do with the thing, but it looks like something Darth Vader would rock out on. Damn do I want it.

..

...

...

One does not merely ... ROCK into the future.

Oh hell yes. My neighbors are going to hate me so much.

Bought an oddball guitar a few weeks ago. Zero percent wood. Not a single piece of wood on the whole damn thing. And it is an acoustic! We're living in the future folks, Carbon Fiber guitars.

It is a Carbon Acoustics Cargo travel guitar. I played it and was shocked at how big it sounded. It is about halfway in size between a Baby Taylor and a GS Mini, which is what I was comparing it to. It blows the Baby out of the water. I think it sounds better than the GS Mini, but that is a personal decision. It really does hold its own as a guitar; it isn't a novelty item or anything. I was shocked.

It is expensive, and it does have a short scale--those are the two downsides I've found. I don't know if I'd get a full size Carbon Fiber guitar--I don't think they sound better than wood, although they do sound good (it is different than wood)--but to me the big draw is its portability due to its durability and size. You lose that with a dread. However, if I lived somewhere that it was often extremely dry, I'd probably have a few more.

Oh, and since I've bought it it has been about about all that I've played, just because it is so easy to play anywhere. I can be fully stretched out in my recliner and play it. I can take it anywhere and not worry about the temp or humidity; I can play it drunk and not worry about dinging it. I'm sure when I have a house that will change, but in my small apartment I don't have room to keep my guitars anywhere but their cases. This guy sits leaning against a wall, and I don't have to worry about it.

Jay wrote: Remember back on page 2 when I posted this? In 2012?

Jay wrote: I am not a guitarist. Whenever I try to play one, my fingers do similar things to an old mechanical typewriter when you push too many keys at once. I don't even like a lot of "typical" guitar music. Which is why it would be a terrible idea if I bought this off the local auction site, right? Seriously, I haven't got the first clue what I'd do with the thing, but it looks like something Darth Vader would rock out on. Damn do I want it.

.. ... ... One does not merely ... ROCK into the future. Oh hell yes. My neighbors are going to hate me so much.

You sir are a true badass!!!

On Saturday, I decided to take my nephews to Guitar Center to kill some time. While I was there, I picked up a few guitars and basses. I've been kinda looking to get a cheap bass or guitar to add to the "fleet", so this was a dangerous trip.

First up was the Kramer Focus VT211S.

Kramer guitars are back for better or worse, and they have an ultra cheap line that they just started selling at Guitar Center. I've been looking for a Strat or Super Strat-style guitar with a maple fretboard, so I was surprised to see this for under $200 new. The neck radius felt nice, but the fret edges were sharp and nearly cut my hands! Pickups were pretty weak, and the tuners were hot garbage. Too bad, because it could have been a winner. Might be a nice one to mod if you can find a used one for under $100.

Next: a Squier Bullet Strat HSS.

The one I played looks exactly like this, which looks nearly identical to the very first guitar I bought for my nephew, except this one had black hardware. I played it and loved the way it felt, but the one I played had a fixed bridge and I want the full Strat experience if I were to buy one. I also learned that they make them with maple fretboards for the same $129 that this one was going for and that one has a real tremolo. PASS.

Onto the basses....

Fender Mexican P-Bass

I haven't played a P-Bass in years, and I've wanted one lately, so I picked one up to play. I used to hate the P-Bass neck, but this one felt great. I tested out some Iron Maiden on it and it felt fantastic. I wasn't going to pay $500 for one, so I put it down and will keep my eyes peeled for a cheap Squier or one on Craigslist.

Fender Aerodyne Jazz Bass:

My younger bass playing nephew has been looking for another bass to take his playing to the next level, and he wanted a Thunderbird. While I like T-Birds (and I have one!), I find it uncomfortable to play after a while and don't recommend them for an everyday workhorse, especially for a kid growing into bass playing. He found one of these and LOVED it. I played it as well and also loved it. It's basically a Jazz Bass neck with a thinner Jazz body with P/J's. Very versatile and easy to play. Looks cool with the black body and cream binding.

Fender Marcus Miller Jazz Bass:

I picked this up initially thinking it was one of those Squier Vintage Modified Jazz Basses, and boy was I wrong. These things go for over $1000, and it certainly played like an expensive bass. Tone for days, and the thing felt awesome. There's a toggle switch that when flipped adds a fatness to the tone that is borderline addictive. I had trouble putting it down.

I didn't leave with anything except a couple pairs of sweet drumsticks:

Trilok Gurtu is is a world percussionist/jazz drummer that I had never heard of until I picked up these sticks. They are coated on the bottom for better grip, and that milled recess in the handle is super comfortable. I've been waiting for sticks like this for years, and I didn't even know it.

For what it's worth, I am digging my Mexican P-bass. It's a '99 model fitted with a Seymour Duncan pickup. Price was $199.

Still have the Mesa Triple and the LP Classic needs gone. Offers!

Can we do some "bench racing"?

I've been pining for an easy to play traditional style bass lately. I've been looking around for a cheap P-Bass, and I've had no luck. Then, I realized that I pretty much have a bass that will fill the need already, but it needs some work.

It's an Ibanez TR70 from the mid-90's. Basically, a P/J style traditional bass to compete with Squiers. It was my first "real" bass, and I've had it since new. It has a great neck and decent pickups, but the hardware sucks and the tuners rattle. The tuners look like this:

I was thinking that instead of buying another instrument, why don't I pay attention to one I already have? That leads me to the next question: what should I replace the stock garbage with?

Not a lot of people mod these. They were cheap when new, and not many people have them anymore considering they were only really made in the 90's. I have, however, seen one with Fender-style cloverleaf tuners, so I am pretty sure they will fit. I am thinking those might work better than the pegs on there now and look better. I am also thinking of adding a cast bridge instead of the cheap stamped steel one that's on there. I'm also thinking of going with black hardware because I've always wanted black hardware on my all-black bass.

I'm thinking something like these for tuners:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Wilkinson-Elephant-Ear-tuner-Black_p_877.html

And one of these:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Oversized-Top-Mount-Bass-Bridge-SUSTAIN-Black_p_579.html

I'd like to keep it as cheap as possible, while still getting upgraded parts. If I can do it for under $50, that would be fantastic.

Any places I should be looking for parts? Is this a stupid idea?

In reply to SilverFleet:

Last time I bought some tuners I got some stock MIM Fender tuners from ebay for pretty cheap. There was a store that only sold new take-off guitar pieces.