RobinTheHood Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 I ended up doing the mods on the SG Junior over the weekend. I'll tell ya, theres nothing like drilling out tuner holes on a brand new guitar. Luckily I've had plenty of practice on the beaters, though my nerves were up a little. I ended up intalling the Gibson Duluxe green-key tulip tuners...and I think they look great. I drilled them out to 25/64ths, which is surprisingly close to 10mm BTW. I did a couple of test drills on some wood chunks to make sure the drill bit was nice and sharp. Dont want any chipping. The shaft housing on these tuners only goes about 3/4the of the way through the headstock, so there was no need to drill the holes through to the other side. There is about 1/8th" from where i stopped drilling to the top of the headstock. Nice and clean! The option for the 3-up plate tuners, as Kai suggested, was out of the question as the holes do not form a straight line. So the individual Deluxes went on. I checked them with a straight edge. You can really tell by how the tops of the bottom tuners are slightly out of line with the bottoms of the middle tuners. I tried to get them all lined up on the back, but the spacing between the keys was out of whack. But thats ok. The faded green keys against the TV Yellow look awesome. These pics dont do it justice. I also installed the Schaller 456 fine tune bridge that I had laying around. Its a beast, but it looks sweet and gives me full intonation control as well as a good break angle. I've been waiting to use this thing for awhile. This guitar weighs in at a whopping 8 pounds now. That may seem light, but its pretty hefty for a Junior. I dont have a scale that weighs in ounces, but the needle on my 1950's Health-o-meter was just a hair under the 8 lb. mark. I figure that in the summer when it gets humid it will probably weigh in just over 8 lbs. The only other plans I have for this guitar is maybe some nice reflector knobs or 70's style witch hats. I'm not a big fan of speed knobs or bell knobs. Here are the pics: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Great stuff Rob, by the time Chrissy comes around that's gonna be one magic junior, those tulips look a million. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 Thanks, Rob! I love the tuners on this thing now. They look and feel great. I'm going to have a really hard time giving this guitar up. I think I'm in love! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 RTH, Fantastic Job! I'll bet it plays as good as it looks. The tuners came out very good looking. Yup, working on a brand new one can always be a little nerve racking. I'll bet witch hats would look great on it. Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 RTH, Fantastic Job! I'll bet it plays as good as it looks. The tuners came out very good looking. Yup, working on a brand new one can always be a little nerve racking. I'll bet witch hats would look great on it. Willy Thanks Willy! My first thought was "OMG I hope I dont screw this up" and my last thought was "Well, I'm pretty sure I've voided the warranty!" Great work Robin Love those Schallers Over here the Schaller 456FT chrome is 89 €uro - and the whole guitar is 88 €uro So you doubled up the price - not counting the Gibson tuners.... Yep, and the Gibson tuners are around $60 USD from what I can tell. These Gibson branded tuners seem a bit hard to find. I can find Kluson branded tuners like this all day long and for about the same price. They were on a really beat up LP Junior i paid $50 for last year. I knew you would like that Schaller, Pete. And it went on without having to do any type of neck shimming or major adjustments. I did have to lower it a little bit more than the wraparound was set at, but its a great fit. I just had to swap out the bridge posts. Over here, the 456FT is about $80+ as well. I got this one for $20 used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueEpiphone Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 The tuners really look great with the yellow. I noticed my Epi. Jr. is heavy as well (at least a pound heavier than my LP Special II). I like the pickguard much more than the LP Jr.'s. Great bevel lines as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brad1 Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Terrific job Robin! And the tuners DO look GREAT!! I like the bridge too. 8 lbs! Wow! That is quite heavy for a Jr. What a great Dad! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 The tuners really look great with the yellow. I noticed my Epi. Jr. is heavy as well (at least a pound heavier than my LP Special II). I like the pickguard much more than the LP Jr.'s. Great bevel lines as well. What type (and color) of Junior do you have? Les Paul? I hear that the Cherry LP Juniors are mahogany, which may explain the weight. This SG Junior is mahogany, so its balanced quite well even without the huge bridge. No neck dive on this guitar. I think the tuners and the bridge even each other out. lol. Terrific job Robin! And the tuners DO look GREAT!! I like the bridge too. 8 lbs! Wow! That is quite heavy for a Jr. What a great Dad! yep. Its a tank. Its solid and resonate. It should be all she need for years to come. I cant keep my hands off this guitar! I'm actually GASsing for a guitar that is already in my possesion! Thanks for looking and the comments, guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersonic Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Looks killer. Especially that bridge, WOW. Great job. You better stop modding that thing or you're never going to give it away! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 I know. I might just have to get one for myself. Of course, modding it will be WAY more expensive since I dont happen to have anymore high quality tuners or bridges just laying around. Part of me is kind of hoping that she doesnt like the TV Yellow and would rather have the Cherry model. I know...I'm terrible. Its not like I cant play it whenever I want! Thanks for the compliments, SS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggs Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 Oh yeah Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted November 15, 2011 Author Share Posted November 15, 2011 Yeah, Stu. I like them too. I wont lie, they were a lucky find. If I had to buy them new from a store or online, I would have probably gone with the easier to acquire Klusons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianh Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 Yo Rob - love the guitar, love the color, love the Gibby tuners. But I just think Juniors should have a wraparound bridge. They're fine on the four LP Jrs I have. That microtune bridge should go on an ES-347 or something - it looks huge and out of place on that guitar. Even a compensated wraparound would be OK. Anyways, put a Tonepros AVT-II or VTNA and a P94 on that guitar, and she'll never, ever let it out of her hands... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted November 16, 2011 Author Share Posted November 16, 2011 Yo Rob - love the guitar, love the color, love the Gibby tuners. But I just think Juniors should have a wraparound bridge. They're fine on the four LP Jrs I have. That microtune bridge should go on an ES-347 or something - it looks huge and out of place on that guitar. Even a compensated wraparound would be OK. Anyways, put a Tonepros AVT-II or VTNA and a P94 on that guitar, and she'll never, ever let it out of her hands... The Tonepros looks pretty good, but I would like to see some detailed pics of it. Their website leaves a bit to be desired. The standard wraparound bridge is out of the question. There isnt enough stability for her heavy little hands. Its just too easy to pop the strings up and move them around. She needs real saddles, or at least something diveted to hold the strings in place. I am kind of fond of the Schaller, though. I think our generation gap is showing. I grew up in the 1980's when big bulky bridges and loud colors were popular. lol. I have a feeling I may buy another one of these Juniors though. I wont be putting a 456 on it, but I still like the idea of fine tuners. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
animalfarm Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 Oh yeah I think I see color-matching CRAYOLAS in your future - for the tuner screw holes! Bee-u-ti-fullllllll.. Ya dun a good 'un, Robin! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SketchyEtchy Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 Okay lets get one thing straight. I said straight 3 buttons its all juniors can have... youve gone opposite to what ive said. Insulted :o. Nah im messsing, they really suit the guitar if im honest. I really like them, great choice. Have to agree with brian though... has to have the wraparound, it makes the junior. But im sure your daughter with love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted November 16, 2011 Author Share Posted November 16, 2011 LOL. You guys and your wraparound bridges... I knew some of you wouldnt like the Schaller. If this guitar was vintage or even had a P-90 in it, I might go that route or something close to it. I still may in the future, but for now, the Schaller is staying on the guitar. And since I got a $140 ticket for speeding this morning, I REALLY dont have any plans of buying a bridge or other guitar parts in the immediate future. Yes, I was a leadfoot this morning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vomer Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 And since I got a $140 ticket for speeding this morning, Ouch. That's harsh. What did you do, run down the speed camera cop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted November 16, 2011 Author Share Posted November 16, 2011 No, I live right next to a really posh neighborhood that I cut through to get to the main drag. The road is on a hill and I coasted up over the speed limit. I'm usually very careful when driving through the area, but it was just one of those mornings. I havent had a ticket in almost ten years and he gave me a ticket with no points: impeding traffic. He said the speeding ticket was more expensive as well, He was very nice and we actually chatted for a few minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.