Loaded Squier Affinity Telecaster body...
A quick mock-up of the soon to be Affinity Vintage Modified Tele...
Cruising Kijiji (more popular than Craigslist in these here parts), I ran across a nice loaded Squier tele body (the neck had been removed for another project) for cheap cheap. "Hmmmm" I thought to myself, I have a tele neck and some misc. parts kicking around from my "Modified Vintage Modified" project. So I'm going to build an "Affinity Vintage Modified" tele.
It's going to take some modification as the neck p'up route is single coil only. Gonna have to dig it out to fit the humbucker - that should be interesting - ha ha.
- Candy Apple Red Squier Affinity tele body w/ hardtail bridge
- 9.5 in radius maple neck
- Duncan Designed humbucker (neck) and stacked tele p'up (bridge)
- New 3-way switch and pots
- white pearloid pickguard. Maybe - would look good, but I have a white tele pickguard for a neck 'bucker to use. The pearloid might be better eye-candy for resale though.
The goal is to a) practice my wiring, soldering and woodworking skills; b) use up some spare parts that are just gathering dust; and c) flip it and make a little bit of moolah. A new VM Tele runs about $350. For an investment of about $75-$80 I should be able to sell it for $250.
I'll post pics of my progress. Wish me luck!
Electrics: Hagstrom Ultra Swede (Gold Eagle Burst) Gretsch 5120 Electromatic (Orange) Custom Nashville Blackout Telecaster (Black, Stat mid/neck p'ups; Lil Puncher (Modern Vintage) bridge p'up; Wilkinson Compensated Bridge w/ 3 brass saddles, Warmoth Vintage Modern Birdseye Maple Neck) Fender MIM Stratocaster (Blue Agave, Rosewood Fretboard, Fender Tex-Mex p'ups; GFS Trem/Block Kit) Highland Spitfire (semi-hollow, flame maple top w/ bubinga inlay)Acoustics:Washburn D10CEQSB, Yamaha FG160E
Bass: Westone Spectrum ST, Warwick Rockbass Corvette Basic Active
Amps: Vox NT15H/V112NT Night Train, Peavey Bandit 112, Hartke HyDrive 210C Bass Amp, Vox DA5
Loaded Squier Affinity Telecaster body...
A quick mock-up of the soon to be Affinity Vintage Modified Tele...
Electrics: Hagstrom Ultra Swede (Gold Eagle Burst) Gretsch 5120 Electromatic (Orange) Custom Nashville Blackout Telecaster (Black, Stat mid/neck p'ups; Lil Puncher (Modern Vintage) bridge p'up; Wilkinson Compensated Bridge w/ 3 brass saddles, Warmoth Vintage Modern Birdseye Maple Neck) Fender MIM Stratocaster (Blue Agave, Rosewood Fretboard, Fender Tex-Mex p'ups; GFS Trem/Block Kit) Highland Spitfire (semi-hollow, flame maple top w/ bubinga inlay)Acoustics:Washburn D10CEQSB, Yamaha FG160E
Bass: Westone Spectrum ST, Warwick Rockbass Corvette Basic Active
Amps: Vox NT15H/V112NT Night Train, Peavey Bandit 112, Hartke HyDrive 210C Bass Amp, Vox DA5
Wicked I like!
I really like the maple neck paired with the candy apple red body.
Nice! Looking forward to seeing the finished project.
-Sean
Guitars: Lots.
Amphs: More than last year.
Pedals: Many, although I go straight from guitar to amp more often lately.
Looks great! I like the grain on that neck.
Guitars:
Fender 2006 MIM Fender Stratocaster HSS in 3TS
Ibanez RG 570 with a bridge Invader
ESP M II Deluxe with a Tune-o-Matic bridge
Eleanor, the magical, mystical Road Worn wonder Tele
Blackstar HT Club 40
Good luck with the build Trev... you might just find yourself a keeper when you're finished!
Have fun!
Gearlist:
Electric: Ibanez 'AS103', Fender Dlx Nash Pwr Tele, Fender Squier '62 JV Strat, Squier '51, Squier 60's Classic Vibe Strat, Epi Elite LP Studio, Hagstrom Swede Acoustic: Larrivee LV-03RE, A&L AMI, Yamaha FG340-T Bass: Yamaha BB 450 Amps: Roland JC-120, JC-50, Peavey Classic 30, Fender Super Champ XD Pedals: Marshall Guv'nor Plus, Danelectro Cool Cat Drive, Transparent Overdrive, Digitech Digiverb, Bad Monkey, Ibanez TS-9, Boss AC-2, CE-5, CS-2, DD-3, DF-2, DS-1, FV-100, GE-7, OC-2, PSM-5, SD-1, TU-2, DVM~BYOC 'Lush Puppy' Chorus
That's certainly a pretty neck. It looks great with the body.
UPDATE: new pots and 3-way switch on the way from guitarfetish.com. In addition, I'm going with a white pearloid pickguard. Once it arrives, I'll lay out what I need to scoop out of the pickup route to accommodate the neck humbucker. Excited to get started! I'm just afraid I won't be able to sell it once it's done - LOL!
Electrics: Hagstrom Ultra Swede (Gold Eagle Burst) Gretsch 5120 Electromatic (Orange) Custom Nashville Blackout Telecaster (Black, Stat mid/neck p'ups; Lil Puncher (Modern Vintage) bridge p'up; Wilkinson Compensated Bridge w/ 3 brass saddles, Warmoth Vintage Modern Birdseye Maple Neck) Fender MIM Stratocaster (Blue Agave, Rosewood Fretboard, Fender Tex-Mex p'ups; GFS Trem/Block Kit) Highland Spitfire (semi-hollow, flame maple top w/ bubinga inlay)Acoustics:Washburn D10CEQSB, Yamaha FG160E
Bass: Westone Spectrum ST, Warwick Rockbass Corvette Basic Active
Amps: Vox NT15H/V112NT Night Train, Peavey Bandit 112, Hartke HyDrive 210C Bass Amp, Vox DA5
In my experience selling partscasters south of your border, you can reasonably expect $150 from something made from MiM standard parts. That said, the thinner, lighter Affinity body and top loading bridge might be pretty cool. Both of my current Tele (one is a Samick) styles are top loaders and I dig em.
STEP 2: Found a friend with a router
Naked body before surgery:
Post surgery:
Close up:
It fits!! :
Electrics: Hagstrom Ultra Swede (Gold Eagle Burst) Gretsch 5120 Electromatic (Orange) Custom Nashville Blackout Telecaster (Black, Stat mid/neck p'ups; Lil Puncher (Modern Vintage) bridge p'up; Wilkinson Compensated Bridge w/ 3 brass saddles, Warmoth Vintage Modern Birdseye Maple Neck) Fender MIM Stratocaster (Blue Agave, Rosewood Fretboard, Fender Tex-Mex p'ups; GFS Trem/Block Kit) Highland Spitfire (semi-hollow, flame maple top w/ bubinga inlay)Acoustics:Washburn D10CEQSB, Yamaha FG160E
Bass: Westone Spectrum ST, Warwick Rockbass Corvette Basic Active
Amps: Vox NT15H/V112NT Night Train, Peavey Bandit 112, Hartke HyDrive 210C Bass Amp, Vox DA5
Nice!
Very nice. How did you do the route? Is that something a dremel could do?
Nope, used a good ol' Black and Decker. (Carefully) peeled about 1/2 inch depth, then set the bit to do the bottom 1/4" or so. Made sure to tape off the top of the body first, one set of hands holding it steady and another set of hands gently working the router... easy if you go slow and take your time. If need be I can clean it up or open it up a bit with a dremel or similar rotary tool, but I think it will work fine.
Electrics: Hagstrom Ultra Swede (Gold Eagle Burst) Gretsch 5120 Electromatic (Orange) Custom Nashville Blackout Telecaster (Black, Stat mid/neck p'ups; Lil Puncher (Modern Vintage) bridge p'up; Wilkinson Compensated Bridge w/ 3 brass saddles, Warmoth Vintage Modern Birdseye Maple Neck) Fender MIM Stratocaster (Blue Agave, Rosewood Fretboard, Fender Tex-Mex p'ups; GFS Trem/Block Kit) Highland Spitfire (semi-hollow, flame maple top w/ bubinga inlay)Acoustics:Washburn D10CEQSB, Yamaha FG160E
Bass: Westone Spectrum ST, Warwick Rockbass Corvette Basic Active
Amps: Vox NT15H/V112NT Night Train, Peavey Bandit 112, Hartke HyDrive 210C Bass Amp, Vox DA5
OK got everything together, wired up and ready to go, BUT...
I'm having issues with fitting the neck. It seems like the neck pocket on the Affinity Tele is not as deep as a regular Tele. Can this be possible - I know the body is thinner but I would have thought necks were fabricated to a standard dimension? The neck from my Squier Vintage Modified sits too high out of the pocket... even with the saddles cranked up a ridiculous amount the strings still barely get off the 21st fret. What's going on here?
Electrics: Hagstrom Ultra Swede (Gold Eagle Burst) Gretsch 5120 Electromatic (Orange) Custom Nashville Blackout Telecaster (Black, Stat mid/neck p'ups; Lil Puncher (Modern Vintage) bridge p'up; Wilkinson Compensated Bridge w/ 3 brass saddles, Warmoth Vintage Modern Birdseye Maple Neck) Fender MIM Stratocaster (Blue Agave, Rosewood Fretboard, Fender Tex-Mex p'ups; GFS Trem/Block Kit) Highland Spitfire (semi-hollow, flame maple top w/ bubinga inlay)Acoustics:Washburn D10CEQSB, Yamaha FG160E
Bass: Westone Spectrum ST, Warwick Rockbass Corvette Basic Active
Amps: Vox NT15H/V112NT Night Train, Peavey Bandit 112, Hartke HyDrive 210C Bass Amp, Vox DA5
That looks like a really nice project! I had not checked in in a while. I hope the neck sorts out for you!
Steve Thompson
Sun Valley, Idaho
Guitars: Fender 60th Anniversary Std. Strat, Squier CVC Tele Hagstrom Viking Semi-hollow, Joshua beach guitar, Martin SPD-16TR Dreadnought
Amphs: Peavey Classic 30, '61 Fender Concert
Effects and such: Boss: DS-1, CE-5, NS-2 and RC20XL looper, Digitech Bad Monkey, Korg AX1G Multi-effects, Berhinger: TU100 tuner, PB100 Clean Boost, Line 6 Toneport UX2, Electro Harmonix Little Big Muff Pi, DuhVoodooMan's Rabid Rodent Rat Clone, Zonkin Yellow Screamer Mk. II, MXR Carbon Copy Delay
love is the answer, at least for most of the questions in my heart. . .
- j. johnson
Well I figured it out. The screw holes in the neck from my Vintage Modified Tele were not as deep (apparently) as what an Affinity Tele has. Also, I think the screws from the Affinity Tele were a bit bigger in diameter. This made it very difficult to screw the neck down tight enough to seat properly in the neck pocket. I drilled them out (carefully, with shaking hands and sweat on my brow) and voila... all good. Needs a bit of a set up, but other than that sounds and plays pretty good. I don't think I'll sell it. I'm going to keep it as a backup and for my kids to bang around on. That was a fun project... can't wait to see what's next
Electrics: Hagstrom Ultra Swede (Gold Eagle Burst) Gretsch 5120 Electromatic (Orange) Custom Nashville Blackout Telecaster (Black, Stat mid/neck p'ups; Lil Puncher (Modern Vintage) bridge p'up; Wilkinson Compensated Bridge w/ 3 brass saddles, Warmoth Vintage Modern Birdseye Maple Neck) Fender MIM Stratocaster (Blue Agave, Rosewood Fretboard, Fender Tex-Mex p'ups; GFS Trem/Block Kit) Highland Spitfire (semi-hollow, flame maple top w/ bubinga inlay)Acoustics:Washburn D10CEQSB, Yamaha FG160E
Bass: Westone Spectrum ST, Warwick Rockbass Corvette Basic Active
Amps: Vox NT15H/V112NT Night Train, Peavey Bandit 112, Hartke HyDrive 210C Bass Amp, Vox DA5
Pics of the final product!
Guitars: Gibson LP Studio, MIA Fender Precision, Carvin C350Originally Posted by Spudman
Amps: Genz Benz Shuttle 6.0 + Avatar B212 / Genzler 12-3, Acoustic B20
Pedals: Pod HD500X, Diamond Compressor, Tech 21 VT Bass, Sonic Research Turbo Tuner