Topic: ok Guitarists! what is your favorite brand and weight of string?

[bucky katt]

the same neghbor that gave me the hondo les-paul over the holidays dropped off my next guitar project, it's a telecaster body and neck, it has the bridge/tail piece and neck pickup, now i need a bridge pickup, pickguard and screws, switch plate, 3 way switch, pots for tone and volume, neck plate and screws and strap buttons.

[bucky katt]

i got ernie ball regular slinkys the other day. i put them on, but i'd decided that they were going to play like crap because i've been using either DR's or Thomastiks for so long. after getting the sg re-strung, truss rod adjusted and all that, i started to play hard, i did a couple of Chuck Berry numbers and man oh an was i surprised. these string feel so nice and slick and smooth and theyre super easy to bend. i'm still waiting to see how long they last but right now, the initial satisfaction is really high.

[azuredesign]

the same neghbor that gave me the hondo les-paul over the holidays dropped off my next guitar project, it's a telecaster body and neck, it has the bridge/tail piece and neck pickup, now i need a bridge pickup, pickguard and screws, switch plate, 3 way switch, pots for tone and volume, neck plate and screws and strap buttons.

I'm a big Telecaster fan, so I'll look forward to seeing a photo or 2 of your project. I've been looking for a decent body and neck for a tele as well. I've always liked the idea of having a humbucking neck pickup in a tele but have never had the balls to rout an old body. I want to do so with a parts guitar.

[bucky katt]

someone tried to do a "relic" treatment on the poor guitar, sanded corners with what looks like some 80 grit, some pretty good dings too. i've been able to get some of the dings out with a damp washcloth and an iron but some of the dings may need a little bondo or duraglas, something like that. i've got some feelers out now to get me used parts as cheap as possible, except for the tuning machines, i will NOT cheap out on the tuning machines. i have the bridge/tailpiece and a neck pickup but thats it so far. looking for a pickguard (any color) and the necesary screws, all the necesary hardware and screws to mount the pickups and tailpiece/bridge. needing a switch plate and 3 way switch and pots for the volume and tone, jack and jack plate and yes, you guessed it, screws a neck plate and screws and last but not least strap buttons and screws. i've got some nitrocellulose in fenders surf green and ideally i'd love to have a paisley pickguard but i'll take whatever i can find. any sugestions for used guitar parts besides e-bay? they suspended me after the nasty and hostile email i sent to several of their higher-ups, which is cool because i'd had enough of Evil-Bay anyways, i swear the execs there must have taken their business management courses on the Deathstar

[Inigo Montoya]

Have you thought about a wood resin on the dings? I don't know if it makes a difference but it might affect the tone less?

[bucky katt]

Have you thought about a wood resin on the dings? I don't know if it makes a difference but it might affect the tone less?

i'm thinking i'm going to e-mail fender and ask them. i worked on the neck and fretboard this evening, the edges of the frets were bad rough in spots so i took an emery board to the rough spots, i used the iron and damp washcloth trick on some dings on the beackside of the neck and all is now smooth as babys backside. i'm thinking i'm going to get a cream colored pickguard to go with the surf green paint. maybe a nice amber clear on the neck like fender used in the 50's and 60's too. i found a bridge pickup in a box of stuff so i'm that much closer now.

[bucky katt]

How does it play compared to other trem, besides stying in tune?

it doesnt seem to drop the pitch as much as a fender style of tremolo

[Inigo Montoya]

Well that is not so bad really.
If I ever get my 335, I will have to check on the bigsby site and see what model would be recommended.
I will have to hit the local music store and see if they have one in stock so I can check it out. They just have that classic look to them that I think goes well with the 335.

[bucky katt]

i prefer the bigsby to any other tremolo. the guitar stays in tune until youre over using the tremolo bar, and thats if youre pulling UP on the bar instead of pushing down on it dropping the pitch. this is a pic of my guitar with the bigsby style tremolo on it

[Retro Rocket]

i prefer the bigsby to any other tremolo.

Hi Bucky, have you never used a floyd Rose tremolo? When set up well they are the best Tremolo by a country mile. I used to swing my guitar around with the bar on mine and it stayed in tune regardless of which way i used it..

Mick

[bucky katt]

back in the mid 80's i had a desert yellow Ibanez 540 s limited with the floyd rose system, and it was ok, better than the fender one. to be fair i havent owned a guitar with the locking nut since 1984 and i imagine theyve improved since then. if the price was right i'd get another guitar with the floyd rose system. didnt Kahler do a similar locking tremolo?

[Retro Rocket]

They sure did, i had a Jackson super strat {that i should have kept} that had a kahler on it and it was pretty good as well..

Mick

[azuredesign]

Anybody in the U.S. got an online site that's cheap for strings?
Thanks!

[Fritz]

Regarding the thread's topic:

For those who play jazz I recommend D'Addario Chromes (flatwound)
Currently I'm playing 013  on my semi and I really like the heavy but smooth feeling - even better than Thomastik-Infeld.

[bucky katt]

Anybody in the U.S. got an online site that's cheap for strings?
Thanks!

i usually buy from musicians friend  http://www.musiciansfriend.com/   they give fantastic service and the lowest prices i've seen.

[Inigo Montoya]

I buy my strings for under $5 in town. thats why I have been getting d'addario strings. ernies are something like 8 I think so I have not bothered to go online. I have checked out musicians friend for guitars and it is nice to know they have good service. I will have to remember it for the future.

[azuredesign]

Regarding the thread's topic:

For those who play jazz I recommend D'Addario Chromes (flatwound)
Currently I'm playing 013  on my semi and I really like the heavy but smooth feeling - even better than Thomastik-Infeld.

Perhaps when I run out of the case and a half of Labella flats that I already have, I'll try something different. The Labellas have been consistent and they give you two High E's and B's with each set. I hardly ever break strings but it's nice not to have to rob another set if I do.

[bucky katt]

the strings that at our local (and really large) local music store sells Ernie Ball regular slinkies (i didnt want to wait another 5 days to get strings on the new SG) for 6.99 10-46. musicians friend has the same exact strings for 3.99 a single pack OR a 12 pack of them for 39.99 (you buy 10 packs and they give you 2 more for free)   http://accessories.musiciansfriend.com/product/Ernie-Ball-2221-Nickel-Regular-Slinky-Lime-Buy-10-Get-2-Free?sku=101772    musicians friend have been great to deal with in the 10 years i've been doing business with them. the one time i had a problem with an order (sent the wrong guitar) they shipped a new one right away, now making me send the wrong one back and then recieving it before sending the right one. and their sales staff seem to really know their stuff.

[Uncle Ernie]

40 years ago, a blues guy told me D'Merles (sp?) go flat soon, but then they don't get any flatter.  By golly- he was right.  Then, I think D'Merle became D'Angelico?  So that's what I have now on my acoustic.    Guess I don't play enough- I've had the same strings on there for years. 
So anybody even heard of these strings?  Not fancy enough for youse gize?

[azuredesign]

40 years ago, a blues guy told me D'Merles (sp?) go flat soon, but then they don't get any flatter.  By golly- he was right.  Then, I think D'Merle became D'Angelico?  So that's what I have now on my acoustic.    Guess I don't play enough- I've had the same strings on there for years. 
So anybody even heard of these strings?  Not fancy enough for youse gize?

I think I still have some D'Merle strings. I used to use them on my Super 400. As I recall they were nickel round wounds. There didn't seem to be as many string manufacturers years ago as there are today. I remember Fender, Martin and Gibson marketed strings,  I remember GHS was around after 1970, but they could have been available before, and perhaps produced some of the strings for the others. There was a guy on cape cod named James Boyce that made and sold strings as well. We used to like to get them because they were local.

[bucky katt]

the wife surprised me with a present when i got home. someone on our local craigslist had 12 sets of dean markley blue steels for 25 dollars. if i felt better i'd be doing a happy guitar string dance. and theyre 10's just like i use. she said that for that money, if they werent the right strings i could make my money back on the things. if i hadnt just put new strings on everything i'd be tempted to re-string the danelectro with these blue steels

[ANVkevin]

I am very big into Cleartones. Not the cheapest strings (around 9 bucks a set), but with out a doubt my favorite sounding and playing. If not cleartones, I go DR. 'Tite-fit's on my tele's and strat, 'Pure Blues' on my pauls and other humbucker guitars.

[bucky katt]

about 5AM my curiousity got the better of me and i put the blue steels on the Danelectro. i've remembered just why i fell in love with the blue steels all those years ago when they were first released. i guess my hand is gaining in stregth becuase the 9'si've been usiing since getting back into playing now feel too "spiderweb-like) i'm liking these 10-46's