1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Self built and self assembly ;)

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GrantB
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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by GrantB »

Starfire wrote: Wed Apr 21, 2021 9:05 am I heartily approve of the tort though.
ANd we can thank China for manufacturing real 50’s style celluloid...scratch n sniff the camphor.
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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by jeremyb »

GrantB wrote: Wed Apr 21, 2021 8:28 am
bender wrote: Wed Apr 21, 2021 7:50 am I’m sad for no p-90
I have thy base well covered. This should be some fun.
And that to me is the key right, this will rock hard!
Slowy wrote: That's the problem; everything rewarding is just such hard work. Regret takes much less effort.

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by GrantB »

Complete...notes to follow massive photo dump.
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"Man is the most insane species. He worships an invisible god and destroys a visible nature. Unaware that this nature he's destroying is this god he's worshipping." - Hubert Reeves

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GrantB
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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by GrantB »

So, how does it sound? It's impossible to be objective...but I think it sounds fricken' amazing! Airy, chimey, huge sustain and overtones.
How does it play? Smooth as. Neck is just right and the rounded edges on the f/board were worth getting perfect. Big frets don't feel big.

F/ups - always need to share these to help others in their own mission.

- Tuners are 3mm too low on the pegged. Why? Because I used three reference points - R9, '62 LP Jr and paper plans. The paper plans I used for the headstock and they were wrong. BIG learning on this whole project - just measure an original guitar and use that...the internet is full of shitty work and in more than one occasion (fret!!!) I was led down the wrong path.

Does the tuner position matter? Nope. Is it noticeable? Not really. But the learning is very valuable.

- Making nitro nice and hard has its drawbacks - see close up of tuner above...crakced the surrounding lacquer. Upside is, this is going to do the mild ageing real nicely.

- Neck angle - exactly where I wanted it to be but far out...I cut it very fine. I suggest maybe going for that extra 1 degree to give you options.

- Grain fill - I was lazier than I should have been. Suggest the following for TV Yellow. Make the base coat of white a little thicker than a brief pass. Not enough to fill any pores, but thick enough to withstand a little sanding. Then, grain fill more than once and sand it back...I paid for it in time spent wet sanding, instead of mowing lawns yesterday.

Cool non-F/U's next post....
"Man is the most insane species. He worships an invisible god and destroys a visible nature. Unaware that this nature he's destroying is this god he's worshipping." - Hubert Reeves

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by GrantB »

Cool things

- It plays and sounds way beyond my expectations. There is something in old wood. Internet explodes.
- I managed to correct the screw ups the seller had inflicted on the wood blanks. For eg, the whole neck heel etc is my work as he had the heel in the wrong place.
- In the end, my intonation was so right, there is no need for set screws on the bridge. It's just sitting there hard and low against the posts.
- Truss rod works perfectly. I glued the f/board onto the neck with a slight concave relief to ensure I wouldn't get back bow.
- Adrian's beautiful rosewood was fab to work with and looks great.
- My parts drawer provided for every piece of hardware on the guitar. I made the plastic (excl pick guard). Still need to make final tweaks to rear plate, incl cutting the ground wire to size).
- The VI Pots are worth the upcharge. Great vintage taper and coupled with their caps, very usable.

The coolest thing is, I am totally going to gig this sucker...if we get any gigs!!!
"Man is the most insane species. He worships an invisible god and destroys a visible nature. Unaware that this nature he's destroying is this god he's worshipping." - Hubert Reeves

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by Lyle »

Fantastic work! Have you weighed it?

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by GrantB »

Lyle wrote: Sat Apr 24, 2021 11:28 am Fantastic work! Have you weighed it?
3kg's on the dot.
"Man is the most insane species. He worships an invisible god and destroys a visible nature. Unaware that this nature he's destroying is this god he's worshipping." - Hubert Reeves

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by Slowy »

Wow!
:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by Danger Mouse »

It looks absolutely stunning!
The older I get, the more disappointed in myself I become.

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by Dharmajester »

Thoroughly splendid..
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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by KNNZ »

whoaaa!!!!!!!! are you even human??

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by IMOCD »

...and there I was feeling pleased with myself for assembling my new kettle bbq.

Simply stunning Grant. Well done!!

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by Jay »

Absolutely marvelous, that finish looks fantastic!
When faced with quality, I recognise it every time.

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by Zaulkin »

Yes!! Amazing work Grant.

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Re: 1959 Les Paul Junior Build

Post by hamo »

Reading this today has made me really happy. To see the results of your work pay off, and how much joy it's given you is a tonic. Well done Grant.
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