Monday is the last Bank Holiday in England, Wales and Northern Ireland before Christmas so the usual holiday dispatch rules apply – orders received up to 1pm Friday will be dispatched as normal and orders received after that will dispatch Tuesday.
In order to receive your orders by Saturday make sure to order today and select an appropriate shipping service. (Royal Mail Tracked 24, while not a guaranteed timed service is in my experience very reliable.)
Another batch of 50s inspired blondes have arrived, once again beautifully aged by SC Relics. As with the last batch they show various levels of ageing but without a case queen or road warrior this time – more light to medium ageing with tan lines, grain sink and checking. Unlike last time they don’t have catchy names – the well of inspiration has run dry! Also included is another Micawber inspired tribute, with relocated humbucker route and wear based on the original.
Click on the pictures below to go to galleries of detail pictures.
Once again apologies for the lack of updates. I aim to start posting more regularly either here or on instagram/facebook so prepare yourself for reposts and dodgy memes! (just kidding).
A new batch of thinline and double-bound Telecaster bodies are in stock and photos are on the blog bodies page.
In the “better late than never” category I now have hardtail hipshot-style bridges available in nickel* and Hosco radiused bone nut blanks in 7.25″, 9.5″ and 12″ to give a jump start on cutting nuts.
Finally a new batch of bodies is being finished by SC Relics which should be ready in about 6 weeks. Keep an eye on Instagram for progress pictures.
*Ageing tests coming this week.
“Hipshot” is a registered trademark of Hipshot Products, Inc. and Axecaster is not affiliated with Hipshot Products, Inc
A new batch of aged bodies are now available with finishing and ageing work expertly undertaken by Scott at SC Relics as usual.
This batch had a theme – blackguards through the years. We wanted to show various levels of ageing from almost new to 50 years on the road in smokey bars.
We used this picture from the Scotty Broyles Archive of a 52 Tele on stage in 1952 as our reference for the base colour. This gave us our “case queen” starting point. Almost no wear at all and no yellowing, there are a few minor dents that you might expect to accumulate over the years on a well-kept guitar going in and out of the case. The finish is sinking into the grain but is still shiny and there is no checking.
At the other end of the spectrum we have the “road warrior” – lots of yellowing, tan lines, abundant checking, buckle rash, arm wear, edge wear, it’s got the lot.
You can find them all in the New Products section of the site. Make sure you check out the linked galleries with higher quality detailed pictures.
Case Queen Ageing Beauty (my favourite!) Honky Tonk Baby Old Smokey The Road Warrior
For those that missed it I have Allparts roasted maple necks back after a long absence.
Quarter sawn Strat and Tele and “regular” sawn (rift? flat?). I’m not sure why the non-quarter sawn are only available in Tele but it means I can offer them for a decent saving over the quarter sawn version.
I have pics of each neck in the following galleries SMO-CRQ TMO-CRQ TMO-CR
Also back after a long absence are Telecaster Bigsby-fied bridges. Wouldn’t you know, B5s are now rare as rocking horse poo, but if you have a Bigsby or an AliExpress clone one of these will save you the trouble of grinding out the valleys in the back of a plate and the grooved Gotoh In-Tune saddles will help with string alignment.
Finally (for now) I have brushed aluminium Electro-sockets in stock for those needing to shave a few crucial grams off their build.
CITES continues to frustrate things…
Last week Allparts informed me that due to needing to renew their CITES license the rosewood order may be delayed up to 90 days.
I have been trying to find an alternative for the models/specs I buy from Allparts but have so far come up short. The companies who produce the same spec necks either don’t have dealer/trade pricing or have unrealistic minimum order quantities. I can’t get the same specs from Hosco unless I can commit to 30 pcs of each model, which is again unrealistic. (Hosco won’t even change one spec on a stock neck without the minimum quantity requirement eg different size fretwire)
So as things stand it will be a while before I get more rosewood Allparts necks. If anything changes I will of course post an update.
As usual I will be answering emails over the long weekend (but not the phone ). To account for Bank Holiday Post Office/Royal Mail closures, posting/dispatch times for Easter period are as follows:
Non courier orders received before noon Thursday 18th April will be dispatched the same day. (This includes necks with standard free shipping option) If you want your parts before Good Friday I would suggest placing orders by 1pm tomorrow Tuesday 16th for same day dispatch and selecting First Class or Royal Mail Tracked 24.
All orders received after 1pm Thursday 18th April will be dispatched on Tuesday 23rd April when Royal Mail and The Post Office resume business.
Parcelforce will not be collecting or delivering from Good Friday until Tuesday 23rd. For Parcelforce delivery before Good Friday orders must be placed before noon Wednesday 17th.
Order early to avoid disappointment!
It’s been a while but I have a few available.
I’ tried every avenue for a cheaper alternative as prices have risen quite a lot the last 18 months (exchange rate + price hikes). My Korean supplier was going to start offering them but the cost of the mold* was excessive ($8k) so they scrapped the idea. Hosco used to make them but their mold broke and it would appear they don’t want to lay out for another. I bought some of the Chinese clones to see if they would be suitable but unfortunately the are slightly the wrong size making a poor fit – they tend to pop off the bridge. Plus the finish/plating was not up to scratch.
So it’s back to the original. Grab one while you can here.
*Is “mold” the right word? These are press formed so”stamp” might be more appropriate, I’m not sure.
In case you missed it I received a batch of double bound alder Telecaster bodies from Hosco last week. You can find links to pictures of each body with weights on this page. Most are right around 4.5lbs and some lookers just crying out for an oiled or burst finish.
I have some interesting new things coming in a few months, so keep checking back.
I hope everyone had an enjoyable (and safe) night last night. I was so engrossed in end of month accounts yesterday I completely forgot to make a post!
Thanks to all my customers for another year of keeping me off the corporate ladder – it is most appreciated!
I hope you all have a happy and healthy 2019 and I’m cautiously optimistic I will even get round to finishing a couple of my own builds this year…
