As most of you know, I'm a glutton for punishment. It is so hard for me to keep a guitar stock. I have to - just have to - tinker with it. I know a lot of you are in the same boat. Of course, there are plenty of folks who could care less about modding equipment and would rather play the guitar the way nature intended. Either way it's cool, but I thought we could discuss why you might be for or against modifiying your equipment...
-=- Steve
"If the moon were made of ribs, would you eat it?"
Working on the assumption that changing the strap buttons for strap locks doesn't count as a mod I voted keep it stock. That's not to say given the right guitar I wouldn't mod it in some way. I'm just happy with my small collection the way it is at the moment.
Some of the posts on here showing modded Squier '51s have given me a few ideas. I've also thought I'd like to get a white SG clone and do a job on it. It's not got past the idea stage at the moment though.
For the time being I'm happy with my stock guitars.
8)
I've had a lot of sobering thoughts in my time.
It was them that turned me to drink.
Dali, I voted to modify it - make it mine. After posting a while back that I had a hard time looking at my guitar because it looked like all the others, I received some very good ideas to change the way it looks. I decided to change out the pickguard and have ordered a Fender white pearloid. When I'm done it will look something like this:
Jim-Bone
I picked modifying cheap ones.
I recently swapped out the tuners on my guitar for a set of Sperzel that are worth about half of the value of the guitar itself. By the time I get some nicer pickups in it, it'll be almost as much stuff added on as how much it cost in the first place.
If you have a cheap guitar, and can mod it for a decent price, I think it's a win win situation. I'd be a bit sketchy about modding a high end guitar though, warranty issues and all that stuff.
Paul
Vacate is the word...Vengance has no place on me or her...Cannot find a comfort in this world.
It just depends. Almost definitely on a cheapo ... but I'm not sure where to draw the line on "cheap." Compared to those $10k PRS Private Stock guitars, almost any electric is cheap!
"Everybody got to elevate from the norm."
It just depends. Almost definitely on a cheapo ... but I'm not sure where to draw the line on "cheap." Compared to those $10k PRS Private Stock guitars, almost any electric is cheap!
Your right Mitch, I can't really see anyone modifying a 10 or 12 thousand dollar guitar. However, Maybe anything up to a Les Paul Studio, Standard, Classic, or a Highway 1 Strat isn't really that uncommon. I know people who've changed just about everything in an American Strat and it seemed to be a good move.
Paul
Vacate is the word...Vengance has no place on me or her...Cannot find a comfort in this world.
I didn't know what to pick. I have modified a few of my guitars, but no real value relationship I guess. I changed pickups on a Fender MIM Strat and an Epiphone G400, both about $400 instruments. I changed a pickup on a Squire Telecaster, $220, so that would certainly be considered a cheap guitar. I put a skull and crossed bones sticker on my Les Paul Special, but the finish had already been messed up on the neck so I figured I had carte blanche on that one. (Looks darn cool too) It only cost me $550 and usually only sells for $700. Is that expensive? I wouldn't dream of changing one little thing on my Les Paul Studio though, and it's value has a factor in that reasoning. It's a 1992 and is worth more than I paid for it. Still, I have lots of cheap guitars that I'm just plain happy with stock.
"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --
It just depends. Almost definitely on a cheapo ... but I'm not sure where to draw the line on "cheap." Compared to those $10k PRS Private Stock guitars, almost any electric is cheap!
Your right Mitch, I can't really see anyone modifying a 10 or 12 thousand dollar guitar. However, Maybe anything up to a Les Paul Studio, Standard, Classic, or a Highway 1 Strat isn't really that uncommon. I know people who've changed just about everything in an American Strat and it seemed to be a good move.
Paul
Yes, though I am surprised how many people buy a MIA Strat and Tele with the intent of modding them. Given the neck profiles and pickups you can get from Fender, it seems to me it would be easy enough to find a stock model that fills the bill. I might mod a MIM, but then again I'd probably just buy a Hwy 1 and keep it stock.
I played an EBMM Petrucci at GC last week, and there's no way I'd mod it (well, maybe I'd block the trem, but that hardly qualifies.) But for about the same price I could do a custom parts-build through Warmoth, with great woods, and have something totally "mine." Why spend $1200-2000 on a guitar you're not satisfied with, when you can have one built to your own specs?
TR: That skull and crossbones looks wicked! :wink:
"Everybody got to elevate from the norm."
Thanks Slejhamer, I figure it makes up for the lack of an arched top. :twisted:
"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --
Yeah. That looks pretty cool TRG.
Not sure I could bring myself to do that to a Gibson but if, as you said, the finish was hosed anyway I might be persuaded.
It looks like it means business. :twisted:
8)
I've had a lot of sobering thoughts in my time.
It was them that turned me to drink.
That skull and crossbones looks really good I think. I know a guy who did something similar, a different design though, to a Squier Strat, and it looked amazing.
Vacate is the word...Vengance has no place on me or her...Cannot find a comfort in this world.
Anything is fair game on any one of my guitars if I think it will make it better for me -- pups, tuners, electronics, neck mounting, hardware, pickguard, fret markers. I'm more likely to change appearance or body structure on a cheaper guitars. I have a router and will use it ...
Mods on this one are no-pickguard (+rhythm pup ring), neck threaded inserts + heavy bolts, change to thru-body stringing (ferrules + a lot of drilling), better pots and switch, locking grovers, graphite nut, clear nitro over a d@mn good beating and that obvious bit commercialism:
It's become one of my faves.
-=tension & release=-
i like to mod to my specs, example : i got an epi black beauty les paul- 3 humbuckers, gold hardware, great guitar but i love HOT PUPS, and epi pups
are not the best, ipaid 700 for the guitar, called dimarzio, ordered a super distortion, a tone zone, and a paf pro with gold tops, got them for 375
bucks, the guitar looks stunning and sounds better than any guitar i've ever played, i can't think of a guitar that i've played that sounds better, and i've played 100's of guitars 8)
even god loves rock-n-roll
Once I get older, have more money, experience, time, I'd love to modify my guitars. I voted that, though I haven't modified my Squier '51, I want to...so bad.
I voted "Keep It Stock" for the simple reason that when it comes to electronics etc I haven't got a clue what I'm doing....I've never so much as added a sticker to a guitar. Although I once put a bit of blu-tack near the bridge of an acoustic to act as a plec-holder - does that count?
No, when it comes to messing around with guitars, I'll leave that to someone who knows what they're doing....
:D :D :D
Vic
"Sometimes the beauty of music can help us all find strength to deal with all the curves life can throw us." (D. Hodge.)
