Why Do This To A Guitar?!, it's just cruel... :P Options

[Marcus Lavendell]

I just bought a second hand guitar, a 1972 Stratocaster.
As always when I get a new guitar I take it down into pieces to make adjustments, but also for cleaning of course

And this is what I see when removing the pickguard - Basically all the wood has been carved out (and it's definitely not made by a professional)!! Amazingly, this doesn't affect the tone much. I miss a little treble, but that's all. Other than that it sounds great Just don't know what the guy was thinking when he did this!

[USAMAN]

holy crap....that is all

[chast]

That really doesn't look good
When do we hear your new guitar Marcus ?

[Bondy]

Ohh my god thats amazing i cant believe someone butchered it like that

[Marcus Lavendell]

holy crap....that is all

Hehe... yeah, It looks pretty ugly!
But when the pickguard is on, it looks alright though!

Ohh my god thats amazing i cant believe someone butchered it like that

There should be a law against guitar-cruelty!!

[fkalich]

I just bought a second hand guitar, a 1972 Stratocaster.
As always when I get a new guitar I take it down into pieces to make adjustments, but also for cleaning of course

And this is what I see when removing the pickguard - Basically all the wood has been carved out (and it's definitely not made by a professional)!! Amazingly, this doesn't affect the tone much. I miss a little treble, but that's all. Other than that it sounds great Just don't know what the guy was thinking when he did this!

I would have liked to see your face when you saw that. and the Swedish words for ours, such as "oh crap", and the f word, you probably used our f word a bit, that is universal.

At times like this, the thought that in centuries to come all things will pass, all will be dust are comforting. part of your guitar just jumped the gun on this.

in answer to your question....there are generally a small finite number of ways to be sensible. but the number of what to be friggin out of your gourd approach infinity.

i can't feel sorry for you right now, damaging my bumper significantly on my toyota truck backing into my own boat trailer. a second way to be totally stupid, something the guy who did that to your guitar would probably also be good at.

[skennington]

Thats Insane! But on the brite side, Marcus you could prolly make a broomstick with twine sound good!

[Toni Suominen]

Wow, that's like super weird, maybe he just wanted some extra-space for the wires? but that still doesn't make sense since the wires fit in there great without making the body hollow

But it's ok since it sounds good anyway, btw Marcus, what pickups does that strat have?

Congrats on the new guitar!

[fkalich]

Wow, that's like super weird, maybe he just wanted some extra-space for the wires? but that still doesn't make sense since the wires fit in there great without making the body hollow

But it's ok since it sounds good anyway, btw Marcus, what pickups does that strat have?

Congrats on the new guitar!

a lot of times if you just use the explanation "guy was an idiot", that is good enough, too many ways to be an idiot to analyze them all.

but if I were to guess, I would say either:

1) termites
2) he had a bad back, and it was done long ago, possibly by someone who was not aware that the guitar had value. strats have always had value, so I go with the guy was an idiot explanation.


edit: 3) angry girlfriend, letting him know what she did after she had left town.

no way to sugar coat this. But you might like it better if you finish it a bit, smooth all the rough crap, and consider it art.
maybe paint it. do something weird to make you like it more.

This post has been edited by fkalich: May 18 2008, 10:41 PM

[Marcus Lavendell]

I would have liked to see your face when you saw that. and the Swedish words for ours, such as "oh crap", and the f word, you probably used our f word a bit, that is universal.

At times like this, the thought that in centuries to come all things will pass, all will be dust are comforting. part of your guitar just jumped the gun on this.

in answer to your question....there are generally a small finite number of ways to be sensible. but the number of what to be friggin out of your gourd approach infinity.

i can't feel sorry for you right now, damaging my bumper significantly on my toyota truck backing into my own boat trailer. a second way to be totally stupid, something the guy who did that to your guitar would probably also be good at.

Hehe... yep, lots of bad words came in handy when I first saw this!
Sorry to hear about your truck, and boat

[fkalich]

Ok, I AM THE MC IDEA MAN.


Transparent cover, and a bunch of LED's inside, maybe flashing.

There you go, I solved it for you. Seriously, that is what I would do, finish it off a bit to make it nicer, and show it, not hide it, with flashing lights. Great idea. If I don't say so myself.

[Marcus Lavendell]

Wow, that's like super weird, maybe he just wanted some extra-space for the wires? but that still doesn't make sense since the wires fit in there great without making the body hollow

But it's ok since it sounds good anyway, btw Marcus, what pickups does that strat have?

Congrats on the new guitar!

I've hear about things like this before, but I never actually seen it! I think it's about making more resonance, like in an acoustic guitar (or something like that).

I have no clue about the pickups, there's no mark on them probably some no-name cheap stuff...

but if I were to guess, I would say either:

1) termites
2) he had a bad back, and it was done long ago, possibly by someone who was not aware that the guitar had value. strats have always had value, so I go with the guy was an idiot explanation.

edit: 3) angry girlfriend, letting him know what she did after she had left town.

termites?! hm... could be

[Kristofer Dahl]

Oh my!

Could this be the reason for the more "hollow" vintage sound? If so there is an interesting lesson to be learned!

Thanks for sharing the picture - also it's interesting that the first thing you do after having bought a guitar is to dissect it, that is the last thing that I would dare to do! However I am probably the kind of guy who would make those kinds of amateur fixes...

Either way I hope to get to try the axe some time!

[Strungout180]

It almost makes me want to cry seeing that done to a vintage Strat, and a sunburst vintage at that

[audiopaal]

There should be a law against guitar-cruelty!!

I agree!

But why do such a thing? Think he'd make a chambered strat or what?

[Nick325]

wow ive seen all the wood around the pickup area gone but never this much hope it wont affect it that much. are you gunna customize it? (scallop neck, new pickups, etc)

[fkalich]

It almost makes me want to cry seeing that done to a vintage Strat, and a sunburst vintage at that

i am going with the angry girlfriend theory now, either that or this guitar makes a good poster child for why you should not take drugs.

[MickeM]

Nasty!

Seriously, I think someone was trying for a semi-hollowbody... Freaky!!!

[seagull]

Yeah, I'm guessing he had the idea that it would give it more resonance. No other explanations sound reasonable, because if he just wanted to make space for some humbuckers for instance, he probably wouldn't carve out the lower "horn" of the body.

Nice guitar though! Great year for fenders.

[Hisham Al-Sanea]

how much you payed for that Marcus ?. i think you bought only the neck from stratocaster1972
if you have a chance to turn it back would be better