Prop Guitar For Hendrix Flaming Guitar Re-creation Video:

Yngwie on Stratocaster setup:

"It has totally to do with the way you string and tune the instrument, the way you SET the strings when you tune them so they don't slip. And the order in which you tune them can make a difference, as well as the direction in which the strings are wound on the peg. Proper stringing and tuning is a very sensitive business. Since I decided at an early age that the Strat was my guitar of choice, I knew I'd better damn well learn how to string them properly. I don't have a locking tremolo or any such device, and my guitars never go out of tune. The strings may be dead after a concert--if you've been to one of my shows you know why--but they don't go out of tune."
Yngwie says: "I use a hybrid set of Ernie Ball strings. The gauges on my standard Strats right now go 9, 12, 15, 24, 34, and 48. But this can vary somewhat, depending on which Strat I'm using (how deep the scallops are). On my Gibson, I use 9, 14, 16, 26, 36, and 48. I have all my Strats refretted with Dunlop 6000 frets. That's a big fret, but it works well with the scalloped neck and string height. Above the fret for the 12th position (high E) is about 4.5mm to 5mm. From the actual wood to the string is about 6 or 7 mm--it's really high, but I've become accustomed to it that way. I used to have it a lot lower, but I kept gradually moving it up because it sustains more."
 
Here's a fun little clip for you guys of Yellow Strat in action on a recording:

Yellow Stratocaster 01-13-2021.jpg


Bridge pickup - Bridge tone control at zero - Direct out into my Blackstar ID-Core 100 - Reverb and Delay FX from amp. You may notice a kind of 'Wah' effect in this tone. No wah pedal was used. The 'Wah FX' you hear is a byproduct of very aggressive pick attack combined with the zero position of the bridge tone control, which is made possible by the use of a 0.01uf tone capacitor.

While this tone certainly isn't for everyone, this is the "kind of grind" that gets me excited...

Dropbox - Error - Simplify your life

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I'm not totally happy with the Dirty Fingers Neck (clone @ 9.45k) pickup in the bridge. What I noticed is (and it's very dramatic) the high strings (g/b/e) don't really "jump out" like they do on a dedicated bridge pickup when playing chords. For example, when playing a E-major sus-4 and then dragging the pick upwards across the g/b/e strings. A very good example of this movement is in Van Halen's "Pretty Woman," where Ed picks the open b/e twice (backwards/upwards) at the end of the ascending/descending phrase. This pickup is very muted when playing those kind of phrases across the higher strings when playing chords, but ironically, the response from the individual strings is acceptable.

Another example - the pick slide in the intro to my clip is raked upwards across the open g/b/e (a trademark of mine) and you just don't hear the g/b/e in that movement, even when the tone control is all the way up...

At any rate, a vintage DiMarzio Super Distortion DP-100 is on order to replace this.

The stock, 6 screw tremolo is used with 3 springs and is set up off the body approximately 3/32" which is Fender's published spec. When pulling up on the bar, an open 'G' (string) will go up to a minor third (b-flat) and when the bar is pressed all the way to the pickguard, the tone drops 11 semitones to D# (a major 7th I think) and comes back to perfect pitch even after 15 to 20 divebombs.
 
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Here's the custom Fender tremolo that is going to be built for my Yellow Strat. "Yellow Strat" is a 1982 Japan-Built Standard Stratocaster (actually fairly rare) and as such, it has some unique dimensions. This guitar requires 52.5mm spacing (narrow) and a 39mm block to clear the rear cover. A 'standard' 43mm block will prevent the rear cover from being installed.

Here is an image of one of his tremolos:

s-l1600.jpg

The dude's name is Csaba and he lives in Hungary. He is a craftsman of the highest order and I have seen several of his tremolos and fixed bridges on the guitar's of my musical colleagues. He sells on E-bay under the handle 'Twangmart.' Despite the work required to make these parts, his prices are reasonable and he is still (at least for now) offering free worldwide shipping. He will also make ANYTHING you want from brass.

Here is a link to one of his all-brass tremolos for the USA spec Stratocasters:

Csaba's E-Bay Store Fender Vintage Spec All-Brass Tremolo
 
Headstock decal just for the upcoming video shoot...The Warmoth neck will have no decals...

20210126_144852.jpg
 
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Observations:

With the custom "short" (37mm) brass block and custom-made 10.5mm (narrow) brass saddles, the guitar's unplugged volume is louder. I haven't noticed any difference when plugged into the amp though, but I believe the change might be too subtle to measure....
 
Damn you guys....

You have once again tossed a carrot down the rabbit hole and I have dived headlong in pursuit...

What started out as a prop for a video, has become an obsessive project.

Warmoth Quartersawn Roasted Maple neck 1-3/4" Nut Width, 1.00 Soft 'V' Profile Jescar Gold Frets, Tusq XL Nut

Gold Gotoh Vintage 11/32" Tuners

Custom-Made DiMarzio AlNico 9 Humbucker - 16.5k / 710Mv

Pickguard Planet Custom .090" Black/Yellow/Black Pickguard (1985 MIJ Strat HSS Template 6 Screw Trem)

We are at $526.92 thus far on this silly-ass project.

Funny how these things just seem to creep up on me.
 
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