Guitar Gear Forum

So here's one of my main axes, the Alumitop.

Started here:



I bought this Yamaha for cheep and played it for a while, noticing how much I loved the neck, which also quickly appeared to be ultra straight and rigid. SO I wanted to rebuild it.

First I removed the trem and replaced it with a block of wood and then shaved the top flat, removing some material. I later sent the trem for some dude in Scotland who needed one - luckily I kept the thing, you never know when someone needs it.

Anyhow, while at it I shaved off the 'waddle' from the headstock and fixed up the frets well, full recrown and all, painted the headstock after I had removed the locking nut of course.

Then I clamped and glued an aluminum sheet on top, and installed a bridge, now a Schaller fine-tuner bridge, on some pics here it still has a Badass bridge by BC Rich but that was crap. Followed by installing a single EMG-85 pickup and an SPC controller as well as a PA-2 onboard preamp. Later added some bolt inlay stickers too.

Polished the aluminum and lacquered it, and then used Tru-Oil to condition the wood on the backside.

Note I left the springs there, hooked at both ends, because I like the way they tingle gently when played unamplified.

Now it's really sweet a guitar, and the neck has proven to be spectacular - in several years I have NEVER had to adjust the truss for instance at all, despite having strings ranging from 12-60 to nines on it. Superb action and very versatile sounds as well. This guitar just kills now. The only thing I could imagine improving on it would be adding an EMG SA neck pickup. Maybe some day!

interesting - a couple questions

did it change the sound of the guitar?
how did you deal with the bevel/rounding but the lower cutaway?
Did you have to fill it in before you put the aluminum on?
or did you mold the aluminum to match that contour?

As for sound change, not really at all. It does sustain very well but then again I also made it a hardtail so that would explain it well. I have never really found any real difference between woods and such in the body, unless there is also a big change in mass accompanied and even then the sound amplified doesn't change. I even made a guitar out of stone once just test it and even that sounded just the same as a wood body, and tested 3 different bodies in the same strat otherwise and you just can't tell them apart no matter what you try.

Acoustically there was a clear change of course, the guitar is much more rigid than before and the clear flat surface bounces the sound of strings outward nicely...and rigidity is also one of the key factors in achieving good sustain.

The aluminum is bent to the guitar shape and the bevel also almost vanished as I planed the top to get a good flat surface for the metal sheet.

do you have a picture of this stone guitar?

Sure...an old one here from when I made it:

http://deeaa.pp.fi/22.jpg

deeaa wrote:Sure...an old one here from when I made it:

nice - minimalism at it's best!!

Out of necessity...it is VERY heavy even in that size. Still have it but I made the neck myself as well and it was my first...in quarter century it's twisted so bad it is pretty unplayable...have it hanging on my rec room wall.

That's pretty brutal