Phil,

I remember when I sent you that email, I was about halfway through my previous build “ Angela “ when I came up with an idea to create a strat project, but this wasn’t going to be just any strat, it was going to be something I always wanted to do years ago.

Growing up, being influenced throughout my younger years to the sounds of the one and only Jimi Hendrix was probably the reason why I bought my first strat to begin with. I have always loved the way Hendrix played a right handed guitar left handed and always wanted to try it. But as the years went on and being influenced by Hendrix, another great guitar player became a tremendous influence.  That person was Stevie Ray Vaughan, and seeing Stevie play you could see how Hendrix had played a role in the way he played and how Stevie just took that to a whole another level. So being such a big fan of both artists and them both playing such a big role in my life growing up and whaling to their tunes, I figured it was time to create something unique.

The funny thing was when I emailed you inquiring about a left handed strat, you had one right then and there. I know you don’t stock them normally and haven’t seen any lefty strats on your web site which is why I new this was fate. When I received the kit and looked at the invoiced listed as “ Fate Driven Strat “ I knew this was going to be a great project. So here it is, “ Jimi Ray “ a little tribute to my influences and it sounds amazing.

It took me 3 days to set up, trying to get it right, unfortunatley when people say you shouldn’t string a left handed guitar upside down, they are right, neck need to be adjusted and my vintage tremole is not what is the norm for a strat setup, but it sings beautifully.

I  dyed the guitar with transtint and alcohol to get that Stevie Ray look without the relic and wear his guitar has been through as his was once sunburst and now looks walnut color. I did the back of the neck the same and dyed the headstock with a vintage blond like the original strats. Once the dye was set I used straight tung oil, that is all that is on this guitar, a  ot of it.

The head stock was also tung oiled and then sanding sealer was then applied as I taped off just the head stock to add the deals. Once decals were added I shot the headstock with nitro and then wet sanded and buffed. The rest of the guitar, back of the neck and body were left to cure and once the tung oil was dried, I did several passes with straight carnuba wood wax , buffing it until I got a nice satin sheen. I love the way the grain came out and the feel of the neck is smooth. I did also grain fill and sand prior with timber mate natural before beginning, swap ash always needs it.

Hardware was all gold vintage and klusion tuners. Seymour duncan Texas Hots and SSL. My wiring was done in a 5 toggle blender rig done by Jonesy Blues which gives me some real different tones. Overall this project was by far a beautiful turn out. It took me a while to get used to playing it backward but I love it. P

hil, this would of never been possible if you didn’t have that kit when I emailed you, I thank you and I hope you enjoy the pics.

Hey Phil,

Sending you a new LP to add to you pics section I hope..

So first let me say thanks for helping out with that little neck pocket issue when the kit first got here. Like everyone has been saying your customer service is second to none and so are your kits!

As I had mentioned earlier this is the 8th kit I’ve built over the last year or so. However, it’s my first precision kit and I have never seen such amazing workmanship. The Body and neck cuts are flawless, and the fret job is amazing. The Mahogany and Maple you selected for the guitar sound amazing unplugged and are a beast when running through an amp. It’s been ready for 24Hrs now and it hasn’t left my side! This is my new favorite guitar.

Thanks for doing what to guys do!

Also, can we have an explorer model one day?

-Pavlo

Phil,

Well, I finally got her done.  What a great build, I really enjoyed every moment of it.  Fantastic quality and impressive wood selection.  The guitar is amazing and rings like crazy even when just playing acoustically.

I started with your LP Style Jr Special with P90 neck and Humbucker bridge.  I made the custom selections and picked the white korina body and neck (’59 size) with ebony fretboard (and it even came with some flame in the ebony).  The machining, fit and finish of the guitar right out of the box was of the highest quality.  I decided I wanted to go with a “working man’s” guitar that was not too flashy and would produce a large variety of tones.  So, I went with a Bare Knuckle P90 “Nantucket” in the neck and a Bare Knuckle Humbucker “The Mule” in the bridge position.  With the 3 way switch and the BK Jensen paper in oil cap for the P90 and an Orange Drop for the Humbucker, the tones are nothing short of amazing.

Finished it off with ReRanch’s Pelham Blue metallic nitro (which by the way was the hardest part of the build) topped with satin nitro.  The neck was finished with about 30 thin coats of CA (super) glue to make it smooth and lightning fast, even when the humidity is high.  This was a new technique I learned about and decided to try with great results.  The tuners are open back Grover 18:1 Sta-Tites in nickel and the bridge is TonePros AVT2P wraparound.  All the hardware, including the humbucker cover and even the plastic parts, were machine tumbled to give it that vintage played in look.

Everyone that has played the guitar, including musicians and other builders, has  been amazed by the feel, tone and overall quality.  This was my 4th build, but my first Precision Guitar Kit, and now my only problem is deciding what my next Precision build will be.

Here are the specs:

• LP Style Jr Special
• White Korina
• Ebony Fretboard with some flame
• 59′ Neck Profile
• Bare Knuckle P90 Nantucket 90 in neck position
• Bare Knuckle Humbucker The Mule in the bridge position
• Bare Knuckle (Jensen) Paper in Oil Capacitor for p90
• Orange Drop for Humbucker
• All Vintage Braided Wiring
• Grover 18:1 Sta-Tites – Nickel Open Back Tuners
• Bone Nut
• TonePros AVT2P Wraparound Bridge
• All parts, including tuners and bridge, were tumbled to give a vintage vibe
• Nitro Pelham Blue from ReRanch
• Nitro Clear with Satin Finish
• Bakelite Handmade Pickguard with Nitro Clear Satin
• Neck was finished with CA (Super) Glue to make if fast and non-sticky (and Eric Clapton trick)

Thanks again for such a great experience.

Ron Couch

Hi Phil just wanted to send you a few photos of this beautiful guitar I just finished! The kit you sent was of the highest quality wood and the neck joint was perfect! I put a nice satin black finish with a lollar p90 pickup and Grover tuners, cts pots, paua abalone inlay on headstock, and bone nut. She plays beautifully and I thank you for making such a high quality product!

The head stock was done with a fibre board overlay. I made a tool just for routing this small stuff and luckily it worked . then i cut pieces of paua abalone and laid them in place with black epoxy. There is a few mistakes but I’m pretty happy with it. Pic is of the tool I made for my Dremel

 This is becoming my go to guitar because it produces such a heavy tone!
Thanks again Mason.

phil,

 I had just finished a Goldtop project, using one of those cheapo Ebay kits and it was such a pain that I decided to use the best kit out there for my next build. Turns out the best  carved style kit out there is yours.

Compared to the cheap kit building your kit was a blast. Everything matched perfectly, the joints, the pickup (and other) cavities, just great. The quality of the wood was also way (!) better. For the lacquering process I mostly used StewMac and ReRanch lacquers and later StewMac polish to finish it. The pickups are Lindy Fralin P90s, the bridge is a WD ABR-1 variant with nylon saddles, the nut is bone, the tuners are TonePros Kluson vintage tuners. I’ve used pots that I had thrown out of my ex 2002 R8 (3 of the pots were 300k, not good for humbuckers, but good enough for the P90s). I’ve used NOS Sprague .033µF VitQ paper in oil caps, put on the Bigsby and Dunlop strap locks.

The Silver Fantail headstock inlay was done by Cliff from Sharkinlay, based on a logo I’ve used on all of my builds since 1998. And that’s about it …

It took me about 6 month to finish the project – working on it as a hobby in the evenings or on weekends + an almost 2 month cure period for the lacquer.

It sounds and plays great! And it’s definitely a looker.

This guitar turned out sooo well. I felt comfortable selling my R8 … well, and the initial plan was to reinvest some of that money in a new kit from you. But it turns out that planning (and paying for) a wedding is way more expensive than I initially thought. I seriously wonder why I didn’t become a wedding photographer.

However, the plan was a double humbucker-ed, wrap around, trans cherry top Les Paul … might have to wait a year or two. As I told you earlier, I started a thread at the German Musiker-board.de forum about the building process and you have no idea how many people are like “I wish there was a shop like PG in Europe!” Maybe you should think on expanding your business model. If you need someone in Europe, let me know, I might have to move back soon.

Cheers,
Sebastian

 

 

 
 
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 finally finished this project (sans pickguard, which I still have to make).

The guitar came out phenomenal. There are a lot of flaws you can’t see in the photos, mostly due to the learning experience that came with veneering the top, but I’ll wear those flaws as badges of the process.

Even unplugged this guitar sound fantastic. The whole thing is pretty unique.

The bridge pickup is a custom “Tele-90” from Zhangbucker. It’s built like a telecaster bridge pickup but housed in a p90 format. It even has the big nickel steel backplate. The sound is not quite the same as telecaster due to the shorter scale and different bridge style, but it gets quite close. The shorter scale helps mellow out the ice-pick sound a tele normally has. It’s super clear but can bite with a little overdrive. Moving it close to the strings sounds fantastic, as well. It’s an entirely different, aggressive sound.

The neck pickup is a cheap import p90 that I ripped the ceramic magnets off of and replaced with Alnico III. I put it in as a placeholder, but It sounds surprisingly good. I may keep it.

The pickup rings were designed by me in Rhino3d and then printed via Shapeways.

The bridge is a Gotoh 510 wraparound that I’m pretty fond of.

Tuners are cheapo import Sperzel style tuners (waiting for my schallers to come in). They do the job quite well, despite only costing $20.

The top is a veneer of curly Makore (african cherry).

To finish, I used z-poxy as grain filler (apply, then sand down–repeat), then I used MinWax wipe-on satin poly for the body and neck, and the MinWax brush-on glossy for the headstock. I particularly like the wipe on satin. It works well and was very easy to use.

The headstock decal was a Metallic Print of my own design from Mpix. I designed it to fit the headstock exactly, then cut it precisely. I painted the headstock black prior to applying the photo, then I attached it with photo adhesive as a headstock veneer. Once it was set, I sprayed some duplicolor clear adhesion promoter primer on top, and then applied minwax brush on gloss with a foam brush after the primer dried.

The back cavity cover was made with flamed makore veneer. I laminated 5 pieces together to make a heavier stock, then shaped as needed.

The back headstock veneer is also made with flamed makore. I cut a piece close to the dimensions, glued it to the back, cut away what I could with an exacto, then sanded to get a smooth taper.

I wish I had better photos, but my camera is in the shop. I’m just using my cell for these.

First off I have to say excellent quality kit, this guitar sounds amazing for a custom Tele, I couldn’t be happier with the way everything turned out.  Just a little history, Girlfriend bought me this kit for Christmas as it has been a long time dream to build my own custom guitar. I started it right before the New Year and final finish date was Feb 11, 2014. Guitar body was grain filled with timber mate black cut with water, which was a mess and a pain in the a$$ but well worth it. Once sanded back the grain really popped, and then I created a faux binding using sanding sealer before I stained the guitar. Once stained using transtint bright red and alcohol to avoid raising the grain anymore, I sanded the binding area with steel wool to remove any stain on the sealer. Finish was nitro lacquer wet sanded between coats with 600 until I got the flat level finish, and then completed the final coat with 1500/ 2000 and then 3000 all wet.  Once buffed I got
that mirror glaze finish which looked amazing, but of course trial and error, I had a few burn marks.  The neck, fingerboard and head stock were first done with Tung oil in its natural wood finish. Sanding sealer was then applied to the headstock and decals were applied. Once dried, decals were sprayed over with nitro then buffed, fret board was left natural with the Tung oil and later waxed and buffed. All gold hardware was given to her with some engraving done. Seymour Duncan neck and bridge pickups, vintage style bridge with brass saddles and vintage cream pearloid pick guard gives this guitar a look that just came out of the fifties. My first build and couldn’t be happier. As it was my girlfriend Angela who made this dream a reality, “Angela “was born when I finished her. Thanks Phil and precision for producing one of the best kits out there, if not the best kit, and in regards to that fate driven lefty strat…to be continued…very soon.
Thanks again

Damian

 

He used this guitar.

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Hi Phil, first I’d like to say thanks for making these kits available.  The quality is top notch and on par with custom shop models costing much, much more.  I have built about almost a dozen other bolt on partscaster guitars but this was my first set neck guitar as well as my first sunburst finish.  I was fairly nervous about the gluing in the neck, only because once it is set there is no going back, but the neck glued in nice and tight with no slop or play in the joint.  I used a laser level just to check that all was well, but it may have been overkill because everything lined up with no adjustments needed.

The finish was a new process to me as well, as this was my first attempt at a burst.   After filling the grain with some dark colored timbermate and sealing the guitar with sand and sealer I started mixing the lacquer toner.  I mixed the lacquer tones using various transtint dyes mixed into clear lacquer.  I used 2 cheap spray guns hooked up to my air compressor to shoot the finish.  I used a “touch up” spray gun for the burst colors and a larger hvlp gun for the clear coats.  I practiced on a bunch of scrap and once I had my colors mixed correctly and a feel for the spray guns I jumped right into finishing the guitar.  The whole finishing process was a lot easier than I imagined at first and I just love how the guitar cane out.  The guitar plays fantastic and would put the quality of this guitar up against guitars costing thousands.  I really can’t wait to start my next Precision Guitar project!

For those interested here are some of the specs on the guitar components:

• Novak custom wound p90 pickup
• Flamed koa control and truss rod cover
• Grover tuners
• Bone Nut
• Pigtail wraparound bridge
• Dakaware knobs
• Cts potentiometers
• Sozo tone capacitor
• Switchcraft jack

Hey Phil,

Just wanting to let you know how fantastic the instruments are you guys at Precision make. I read the previous reviews and other customers’ thoughts on how great your fretwork is and also the tightness of the heel joint. All of it is true, and I am truly grateful to actually have a company, such as yours, to order the best “bones” to a great playing guitar. Seriously, this guitar is amazing. I ordered the ’59 “a lil’ more girth” version of the neck, and wow. Perfect chunky neck to fit my hands. My wine red beauty has already held up to her first 4-hour gig. Can’t keep my hands off her! Attached are a few photos.

Thanks again!

Colin

So I got a call from John… his phone call to me was different, the sound was odd. I asked where he was and he say….. “300 miles south of hawaii running a tuna boat. I’m building one of your guitars on this trip during our down time… ”

Now this is cool.. thought I would share…

 

 

Truly a one of a kind. I set out to build an Alex Lifeson tribute guitar, and what followed was a journey that culminated with a spectacular instrument. I spared no expense with my hardware and the result was truly impressive. The combinations of voices are seemingly endless  between the piezo bridge, the coil splitting magnets, two three way switches, and a mid/dark switch. It also has stereo output via a combo jack and the magnetic pickups work with the battery for the pre-amp removed. The stats are as follows;

 

• Graph Tech Ghost Acousti-Phonic System
• Graph Tech Percision Tremolo
• DiMarzio pickups: DP159 Evo (Bridge) DP156 (Neck)
• Orange Drop Capacitors
• Switchcraft/Graph Tech switches
• Gibson Push Pull (Tones) CTS (Volumes)
• TonePros Kluson KB3 Tuners
• Locking Nut
• Combo Mono/Stereo Jack (Via Cable)

 

A note to builders regarding the bridge,  I feel I should mention this. Because of the nature of these arch top guitars, the swept back angle of the neck and the thickness of the body, I have had to modify the stock bridge to function in this guitar. The bridge height required for sufficient clearance is quite tall. I started by making a single master shim under all the saddles, 2/32 thick hardened bridge steel from an Edge Pro I used as a parts donor. This allowed me to set the base plate lower to the body. Also this high quality bridge came with a brass block, however due to thickness of the guitar, a brass spacer was made as well between the base plate and the block allowing for proper spring angle and clearance.

 

The result however is fabulous. Fully functional and tonally angelic. I am also quite blessed to have a small shop with a milling machine which I had to modify for the project. Without the mill, I would not have taken this on as the utmost precision is needed. The standard specs for the Floyd Rose route do not apply here and measurements were done custom by myself.

 

This is a great example of how anything is possible. I could not be more proud and happy with this guitar. This one instrument can sound like over a dozen guitars and can dive all day.  It is a tribute that became allot more. It is a love letter to the guitar itself.

 

Very special thanks to Phil at Precision. For working with me on this so very well, and providing the best by far arch top kits on the planet. This is the only kit I would recommend, the highest quality foundation. I would also like to thank master carpenter Steven Battles for teaching me how to glue wood properly, and providing me with this incredible burst which amazes me every day. Also a thanks to Gary over at Best-Decals for providing me with these fantastic vinyl cut decals for the headstock, which you can design yourself or thru their design team. I designed them myself and sent him the vector files.

 

Best of luck to all you builders. Build, play, smile…. and thank you again Phil.

Look at this.. awesome!

Phil,

Greetings!  Want to say my read the bread crumbs and for Christmas Santa left me your 58 Double Cut Jr Kit.  Gotta say I have lusted in my heart after one of these for years…..but not willing to plunk down several thousand bucks for one….well it just wasn’t going to happen.  And then I found your site!  I think I bookmarked every computer in the house this kit in the shopping cart.  IT WORKED!

So, I started on it just after Christmas 2013.  Have pics here after I glued up the neck, the tolerance is so tight that I am baffled as to how you do that.  Neck and body fit together so tightly that there is no “lining up” required of the two pieces as there simply is no play.  It fits perfectly!

So, went with Heritage Cherry for the body and neck.  Basic black for the front of the headstock.  Historic Kluson (tone pro) Tuners.  Historic Lightning Bar tail Piece, P90, MojoTone 50 style wiring kit, brass nut, tortoise Shell pick guard…………….and a whole lot of attitude!!

The pics speak for themselves.  It rocks as good as it looks.  I am thoroughly stoked, and completely satisfied, it could not have came out any better.  Actually had the pleasure of playing a 57 Jr (single cut) yesterday at a nationally known guitar super center (sorry no plug from me) and at the risk of angering the guitar gods and losing my mojo…….MINE IS BETTER!!! Plays better, sounds better, feels better….is better.  So I will not go forward thinking somehow its second best….don’t think so, I would not have swapped for the 57 (ok maybe I would have….I know I can build another of these).

At any rate, thanks…here are some pics showing some of the progress and the final product!!

He Used This Guitar

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This is exactly why I love doing what I do… best job in the world. Check out what Jim did with one of our humble lil pieces of wood…:)

Phil,

I wanted to write and thank you for putting out such a fantastic product!  I bought your SG jr kit last fall and was blown away by the quality, craftsmanship and service. I finished her in an antiqued Pelham Blue nitro with a Lollar dogear p90 and I have to say that it has become my absolute go-to guitar so I thought I’d send some pics of the build.

Can’t wait to start my next one!

Peace,

Jim

 

Check out how the grain pops on this beauty, Awesome work. You’ll also notice in the pics green grass and palm trees and no snow… lucky man!

Hi Phil,
Just thought you might want to see my latest one.
The kit was awesome, so I put the best into it.

Tronical tuners, supervee bladerunner with magloc, overdrive custom black pearl pickguard with a Fender custom shop fat 50’s neck pickup,fender custom shop custom 69 for middle pickup and a seymore duncan custom hand scatter wound reversed polarity bridge pickup. graghite nut and fender locking strap nuts.

These are pictures of final mockup before disassembling and doing the final sand and buff. Have 1 more week for lacquer to cure. Body was blacked first and sanded to bring out grain, the vintage amber and orange stain. sanded down to final color. and about 12 cans of lacquer to make a glass like finish. Once again I say youall make the finest kits. Can’t wait for my custom to dry and be built.

Thanks For Everthing
Have a Great New Year
Don

 

Okay okay, that’s a bit of a lame title.. but look at what Jay Cole did to one of our kits… absolutely awesome…

Here’s his words:

Finally!! Bought this kit from you about a year ago, and I’ve been working on it kinda casually, since I’m recently retired. It has a Curtis Novak MM-PAF humbucker in P-90 dogear case, Pigtail adjustable bridge, your Kluson tuners, handmade tortoise pickguard and control cavity covers, and handmade truss rod cover (I’m a home brewer). Finish is Behlen stringed instrument clear over Stew Mac Cherry Red aerosol.

Phil, I’ve built 3 other kits from different manufacturers, and yours is by far the highest quality. It’s easy to see that you use (and maintain!) good tooling, and pay attention to the details. Virtually no wood prep was required; I went straight to grain filling, sealing and painting. Some other kits I’ve built required gouge, tearout or scratch repair to the wood before any finish work could start. And this guitar is perfectly balanced; it hangs just right, so your hands fall in just the right spots. Super slick polished frets too; well done!

Keep up the good work, and thanks for a great build,
Jay Cole

Jay used this one to build his awesome guitar!

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I attached a couple pics of the finished guitar. Hope you dig it.

He Built it with this:

this is from Brent Blair… see adept I am at word play.. lol

Hi Phil, just wanted to give you an update on the DG Vee I ordered a few months ago.

I can’t get over how great this guitar is.
The whole body resonates when played.
The neck is amazing….amazing. I don’t know who does the fret work, but if you fire them…. I will have to kill you.(you know what I mean)
Workmanship on this body and neck is so clean and precise I could not find a flaw or misfit anywhere.

It was slow going at first due to work and other commitments, but I was able to finish her last week and wanted to let you know how fantastic this build turned out.
I decided to go with nitrocellulose lacquer just to keep the vintage vibe going. I sealed the grain with 5 minute clear epoxy, which turned out well but found the 5 minute epoxy would set a little quicker than I wanted. No biggie, just a little more level sanding.
The pick guard I ordered from you was beautiful. I had decided to try a 3 ply pick guard material I had laying around as a headstock veneer. I liked how this material looked on the headstock but it did not match with the single ply pick guard. I ended up using the single ply guard as a template and cut a 3 ply guard with the rest of the material I had.

Sprayed something like 12 thin coats of nitro, wet sanding every 3 coats starting at 600 grit to 1500 grit after the first 3 coats, to 1000 to 2500 grit for the final coats. Finish is like glass and the Korina grain shimmers. I did not add any amber to the clear knowing the lacquer will amber on its own in time.

Buffed out the finish with my Porter Cable buffer using Lake Country fine cutting and polishing pads with Meguiar’s Ultimate Compound.

All hardware ordered from Stew Mac.
Pickups are SD JB-SH4 in bridge and Pearly Gates in neck.
Switchcraft pots and switches
50’s wiring
Tusk nut

It has been strung for maybe a week. I have done the initial set up……Truss rod, filed the nut, adjusted bridge, intonate. I am going to give the neck a couple weeks to settle while I play the snot out of it. The action is super low and looks like I may not have to do any fret levelling at all. This is a killer guitar. Every body who has seen this guitar always comment on the quality of the wood grain.

I HAVE ONE BEEF HOWEVER WITH PRECISION GUITAR…………WHERE THE HELL IS THE MATCHING KORINA EXPLORER????

He Built It With This Guitar Kit:

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Hi Phil..

Here are my guitars.

I can not get the Jrs TV finish to work with a flash and it is too cold to take them outside.  I will keep trying!

My finish, while super thin, was like glass and not sunk into the finish (yes, it is all scratched now from being loved!)  I also went for the same idea for strap button placement.

Both guitars have as perfect an intonation up and down the neck as any guitar, the Mojoaxe stopbar and steel bushings (1 3/16″ long) as well as retrospec studs.  Both guitars have sustain that would make Nigel Tufnel blush!  (you could go out and have a 7 course meal….even unplugged!)  The guitars are so alive compared to any TOM & stopbar guitars I have played I am not sure I would go any other way.  Tuners are Tonepros, pickups are Zhangbucker Cherrick neck (7.2k) and Blues 90 bridge (9.3k) for the carve top (CT) and a Zhangbucker Honk 90 on the Jr (9.7k).  On the CT I use a silver Russian PIO .015 cap for the neck for great “Woman Tone” and a .033 silver PIO cap on the bridge to get wah-wah sounds from the tone knob.  The Jr uses a push/pull for the tone pot http://www.guitarelectronics.com/product/PMT-DMTG/Dual-Mode-High-Low-Pass-Tone-Control-For-Guitar.html  so I have a choice of regular low pass tone or when I pull up I get a high & mid pass filter to get a bit closer to a Tele sound!

You may notice that the controls on the Jr go to 11 as does the Swart Amp(s) I use.  The faux binding was scraped by me though I seem to have run a bit of the amber color top coat moved during the clear coating over a few areas.  All finish was Colortone and Reranch.  The CT has a rosewood fingerboard and as fate would have it the day I brought in my completed Jr and my half finished CT a guy at the store was showing off his real 57 goldtop and I could not get over how black the fingerboard was!  Silver switch tip is an old present from my friend for a long gone 335.

Both necks and bone nuts are held by hot hide glue!  Gunbarrel Custom Guitars will be officially open for business in Spring of 2014!