31
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: July 29, 2019, 01:19:32 PM »
Outta here tomorrow.
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32
The Outpost Cafe / Re: Etsy to acquire Reverb (no, not a joke)
« on: July 29, 2019, 01:13:04 PM »
"For hints as to what might come at Reverb, take a look at Silverman’s changes to Etsy: he has raised fees, pushed free shipping, and moved to an auto-renew listing model (which goes into effect on Thursday)."
What a surprise, higher fees.
What a surprise, higher fees.
33
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: July 15, 2019, 12:58:59 PM »Beautiful Esquire. Good to see that you didn't sell the neck.
Thanks, Dave. I'm at least going to play it for a while. There's always the possibility of swapping out the neck since the total value of the rest of the parts is about 10% of the neck and tuners.
12 string RR, ebony neck and Pelham Blue I custom mixed the basecoat from GM colors designed to be used under 2K urethane clear. Instead I used automotive acrylic lacquer. I did a test about six months ago and they're compatible as of this week. Advantage is no waste mixing up too much catalyzed material plus you get a durable thin topcoat.
Price of a gallon of Clear Acrylic Lacquer has gone up to $300, twice what it was when I last bought one. It gets thinned 1.5:1 with thinner to clear so that brings the price per usable gallon down to around $160. I estimate it comes out to around $45 in materials for a paint job adding in base coat, additives,etc. and primer. Probably another $5 for disposables.
Pin router jig for pick guard.
I cut the first four freehand, a lot quicker with the router.
34
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: July 14, 2019, 06:59:34 AM »
...and now for something not completely different...
I recently cleaned and set up a friend of mine's formerly Polaris White '65 SG Jr. He bought it in the early 70s from Lipham's Music for $75 with case after another friend of mine traded it in after stripping the body. On a new EB-1 reissue IIRC. Here it is next to my '65 EB0.
Hadn't really been played since then, frets almost perfect. What really amazed me was that the neck was bound with the binding filed to cover each individual fret end, just like you'd see on the most expensive Gibson. Amazing for what was basically a student guitar, although it originally had a vibrola.
Anyway, I played it for a while and it was FUN! So this resulted:
Tele swamp ash $100 body from a Reverb shop in NH I shot with toner mixed from white nitro/ sanding sealer mix.
Scuff sanded it with 400 the next day and shot six ounces of nitro clear on it. Day after that I hit it with some #0000 stell wool and attached my late brother's '57 Esquire "V" neck to it that hadn't been played since 1980. Also a Duncan Jerry Donahue pickup on Steve Soar's recommendation and a modded three way switch:
Gives a pretty good approximation of a two pup guitar
New calluses!
I recently cleaned and set up a friend of mine's formerly Polaris White '65 SG Jr. He bought it in the early 70s from Lipham's Music for $75 with case after another friend of mine traded it in after stripping the body. On a new EB-1 reissue IIRC. Here it is next to my '65 EB0.
Hadn't really been played since then, frets almost perfect. What really amazed me was that the neck was bound with the binding filed to cover each individual fret end, just like you'd see on the most expensive Gibson. Amazing for what was basically a student guitar, although it originally had a vibrola.
Anyway, I played it for a while and it was FUN! So this resulted:
Tele swamp ash $100 body from a Reverb shop in NH I shot with toner mixed from white nitro/ sanding sealer mix.
Scuff sanded it with 400 the next day and shot six ounces of nitro clear on it. Day after that I hit it with some #0000 stell wool and attached my late brother's '57 Esquire "V" neck to it that hadn't been played since 1980. Also a Duncan Jerry Donahue pickup on Steve Soar's recommendation and a modded three way switch:
Gives a pretty good approximation of a two pup guitar
New calluses!
35
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: July 02, 2019, 09:16:51 AM »Sparkle Plenty, now there's a cultural reference from long ago. At least you didn't name it after her father.
I think only you and I will understand either of those references.
36
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: July 01, 2019, 07:18:07 PM »
Sparkle Plenty gone to happy customer. 32" scale with Rotosound Jazz flats. 7.8 lbs.
NR 52 with ThunderBucker Wide5 pickups, 'doghaired' fumed white oak veneer and binding on poplar body. Satin hardware.
NR 52 with ThunderBucker Wide5 pickups, 'doghaired' fumed white oak veneer and binding on poplar body. Satin hardware.
37
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: June 02, 2019, 02:50:26 PM »They just keep improving Carlo.
That came out great.
Thanks, guys! Difficult painting last week with temps over 100 and humidity high. Heat index of 112 Tuesday.
38
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: June 02, 2019, 09:42:25 AM »
I custom mixed this from GM9792 waterbase/solvent basecoat with Kolorefx 'Silver Stunner' flake topped with Hi Performance Clear Acrylic Lacquer. It's a combo of modern basecoat/clearcoat without the Isocyanate high or pot life of Urethane. It's actually 3 stage: Flat black/ Base Coat/Clear Coats. The color coat required about five ounces of material.
It looks a lot better in this video:
Gets color sanded and buffed in about a week. The automotive acrylic lacquer is a durable but thin finish(compared to urethanes) with great transparency. I'm gonna add 2 drops Mohawk Pano Lacquer per gallon and call it 'Nitro'
Pretty much what everybody else does...
It looks a lot better in this video:
Gets color sanded and buffed in about a week. The automotive acrylic lacquer is a durable but thin finish(compared to urethanes) with great transparency. I'm gonna add 2 drops Mohawk Pano Lacquer per gallon and call it 'Nitro'
Pretty much what everybody else does...
39
Gibson Basses / Re: That's a clean '53
« on: May 22, 2019, 03:56:47 AM »Beautiful.
Wait, is the tone knob an amber replacement?
Yes, mentioned in the listing. Jack plate should be brown.
40
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: May 20, 2019, 06:11:21 PM »
I'm finally moving on from shimmed neck pockets. Made a quick jig that rises .030 from the 15th fret to the 20th which gives about a .125 rise at the bridge on a 34" scale neck.
I worked with the blank of a 32" scale G8r I'm building and then decided to upgrade my MAX41 to a 21 fret set neck with tilt headstock and ebony fretboard. Also going to do a raised center on it.
Harbor Freight $10 Wheel of Death makes a quick job of contouring.
One piece 1-1/2" poplar blank weighs 3.8 lbs. About the same as basswood but harder.
Saturday Shop Snap
I worked with the blank of a 32" scale G8r I'm building and then decided to upgrade my MAX41 to a 21 fret set neck with tilt headstock and ebony fretboard. Also going to do a raised center on it.
Harbor Freight $10 Wheel of Death makes a quick job of contouring.
One piece 1-1/2" poplar blank weighs 3.8 lbs. About the same as basswood but harder.
Saturday Shop Snap
41
Gibson Basses / Re: Cataldo Basses JAEbird through Hiwatts
« on: May 11, 2019, 08:02:58 AM »A 1x10 combo and in ears just can't compete with the experience and sound of playing through a big tube rig. My Cataldo Fenderbird and Thunderbucker pickups really are half of the equation.
I'll pass that on to Steve, Scott! Gotta keep him motivated
You're an inspiration!
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Gibson Basses / Re: 1967 EB-2.........Factory Black?
« on: May 09, 2019, 02:31:42 AM »
Wrong bridge for a '67, no matter if it's an early or late one.
44
Rickenbacker Basses / Re: They finally caved
« on: May 04, 2019, 02:18:00 PM »
Not surprised in the least.
A trademark application was $75 last time I checked. If Pistorio was in it for anything but fun he should have investigated the possibilities, especially before making expensive capital investment - and considering the Rick connection.
A 3D printer would make quick work of producing those things. Tech marches on.
A trademark application was $75 last time I checked. If Pistorio was in it for anything but fun he should have investigated the possibilities, especially before making expensive capital investment - and considering the Rick connection.
A 3D printer would make quick work of producing those things. Tech marches on.
45
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Re: CURRENT CATALDO
« on: May 04, 2019, 08:49:17 AM »That's great Carlo!
Thanks, Rob
Five... HUNDRED???
He auctioned off about 150 two years ago on Heritage including a dozen or so '60s Reverses. I'm sure he kept the best ones. Before I built this we had a good back and forth as to what to do including pix of a bunch of his 55-56 P's.
Ended up doing a little more relicing than this pic but less than originally planned.