Helping with a Build your own Guitar project - Cheapcaster // Telecaster style kit - PART 2

OK.......... you've seen the kit as shown in PART 1, right?

I won't go into the woodworking / finishing details (unless relevant);  it is EXPECTED that you will need to spend a LOT of time on sanding, colouring and finishing.  

For this particular build - my dad decided to avoid the Nitro / Poly finishes - and go down the route of wood dyes, stains and varnishes.  If you have ever used aerosol based lacquers / varnishes - you'll know that a) it gets everywhere - and b) you need a decent face mask so you don't breath the stuff in.  

For the bulk of the woodwork - he used Liberon Finishing Oil.  This is available easily in the UK and offers a natural finish with a good level of protection.  Liberon Finishing Oil seems to be a firm favourite of luthiers and guitar builders in Europe.  

Oils / varnishes are generally easier to apply - as you can put them on with a brush or rag.  No MASKS or spraying booths were required !

Kit Quality - Good and Bad

Woodworking aside - let's examine the good points and the bad points... of this kit.

• Neck / Body Matched Components
• GOOD - The neck / body have factory numbers to ensure that the body and neck have been matched to each other - during the final QA process.
• BAD - In reality - this did not guarantee that the 'fit' was a good one.
• Neck
• GOOD - The Maple Neck is actually not too bad - the fretwork is already pre-done - and on the whole - they've made a fairly decent job of it.  No sharp fret-ends, no overcut fret slots in the Rosewood fingerboard. 
• BAD - the supplied nut is plastic
• Headstock
• GOOD - allows for you to cut your own headstock profile / shape.
• BAD - nothing really
• Body
• GOOD - In this case - the body was 3 piece basswood body with the Ash Burl Veneer.  The veneer was quite thin....  but allowed for a nicer overall top.
• BAD - at some point in the manufacturing process - a knot was likely removed in a section of the basswood - and a 'wood plug' had been inserted back in.  (This was on the side on the guitar).  UNFORTUNATELY - they did not orientate the grain of the plug - so it was obvious that a piece had been put in.  Not a problem if you were going down a Nitro / Poly finish - as this could be hidden....  but a bigger problem with translucent oil / varnish finish.

The 'dry-fit'

• On the first dry-fit - it was observed that the neck pocket was routed slightly too large - making for a looser neck to body joint.  As the neck was bolt-on - this was not a huge issue and could be easily corrected.
• The supplied BRIDGE pre-drilled holes in the body were not square with the neck / nut alignment.  The bridge would have been askew if the original holes had been used.  This is NOT GOOD and had to be corrected. *See bridge / saddle replacement
• Fretboard Radius - measured at 10" (More common for a Gibson than Fender)
• Scale Length - measured and checked at 25.5" (Fender Standard)
• Marked on guitar body to help with rough saddle positioning

Supplied Hardware

Overall, the quality of the supplied hardware was quite poor.  The three worst items supplied were a) the tuners, b) the ashtray style bridge with 3 x saddles [steel], and c) a dodgy set of strings.  Everything else was of a reasonable quality to be used initially.

Ch-ch-ch-changes........

• TUNERS - The supplied Tuners were ditched.
•  I donated my old Yamaha Pacifica tuners to the project  that I removed when I fitted the Grover Locking Tuners.   (Additional cost £ FREE)
  
• BRIDGE / SADDLES - there were a number of issues with the bridge saddles on the supplied kit.  The saddles were a 3x2 string pair - Vintage Fender Look-a-likey saddles - but were made of steel.  The biggest problem here is stability, and trying to intonate the instrument was almost impossible to get it right.  The supplied bridge was ditched, and a new replacement was purchased.  
• New Bridge / Saddles - Wilkinson Ashtray Style Telecaster Bridge (WTBCR) with 3x2 Brass Compensated Saddles.   MUCH BETTER without compromising the Telecaster look-a-likey aesthetics or TONE ! (Additional cost £20 GBP)
  
• STRINGS - supplied Strings
• Used initially for bridge alignment - and to check string spacing on neck.  
• REPLACED with Ernie Ball REGULAR SLINKY (10 gauge) for final setup and fit.(Additional cost around £5 GBP per set)

Wiring the pickups, output jack and grounding

In this kit - a lot of the wiring is pre-done for you.  HOWEVER - the biggest problem is that they DO NOT INCLUDE A WIRING DIAGRAM for the 3-way / 3-position switch.

Typically - Fender Telecaster style 3-way switches have EIGHT terminals for a 3-way switch.  However, with this kit / switch - you have 7 x terminals....and NO WIRING DIAGRAM.

I spent a large amount looking for a diagram - but couldn't find one....  

So, for those of you POOR SOULS - who have purchased this ROCKTILE KIT, or a similar one from another manufacturer - and you are faced with wiring a 3-way 7 terminal switch - I've created a nice wiring diagram for you.  YOU ARE WELCOME !

This 7 terminal switch seems to be used a lot on the Chinese made guitars, it's not the best quality switch - but once wired correctly it works OK !

FINAL SETUP

• New set of Ernie Ball REGULAR SLINKY (10's) fitted
• Truss Rod adjusted to add a small amount of neck relief
• String Height set for 'comfort' play-ability.
• Intonation checked and set (MUCH EASIER to intonate with the COMPENSATED SADDLES and a lot more stability) - plus the BRASS SADDLES make for a nice tone.

Still-to-do

• The plastic NUT will be replaced with a Graphtech TUSQ nut at the next strip-down // string change.

Well that's about it for the BUILD.   I'll get some finished pictures from Dad - and upload them for you all to enjoy !   

..and FINALLY one more thing.............   In many ways - building a guitar is a good way to understand how guitars *truly* work, and how to get the best from them (once they are setup correctly).

If you found this useful - feel free to comment below.  We'd love to hear from you.