newbie with a few questions

Rydawg · Post by **Rydawg** » Tue Feb 17, 2009 3:17 pm

hey guys, i was looking for info on a guitar i have and want to rebuild/refinish. I got the guitar as a gift when i was about 15-16 yrs old or so. it got put aside a few months later and has basically sit like that since, about 15 yrs. i moved recently and found it and would like to refinish it as a project. i dont know anything about it really, i got it in the early 90s, it looks like a strat copy of some sort. would anyone know a model or anything like that, where i'd get parts. stuff like that, any info would be great!

how would i strip the finish and refinish it?

thanks in advance,
ryan

heres a pic of the guitar in question

Post by **charles** » Tue Feb 17, 2009 7:35 pm

It's a Strat copy likely form the mid 80's, made in Korea era.

You should have no trouble finding replacement Strat parts in a myriad of options made by Fender and any other number of vendors & makers. Check out sites like Guitarfetish (GFS), AllParts, and Guitar Parts Resource for parts.

I'd suggest you do a Google search or search the Harmony-Central message board for tips and techniques on refinishing or check out Reranch.

Best of luck!

Rydawg · Post by **Rydawg** » Tue Feb 17, 2009 7:55 pm

right on, i was hoping that i could just use strat parts (wasnt sure if there were different sizes or what not. any idea what the body is made of?

im hoping to end up with a guitar that sounds half decent for bluesy and clean sounds. my other guitar with two humbuckers is great for the heavier stuff, but doesnt really clean up as nice as id like.

anyone else do something like this?
this is my first time doing anything like this

Post by **charles** » Tue Feb 17, 2009 8:02 pm

Only thing to watch for with the parts is that you'll probably need parts with import/metric spacings and specs (as opposed to USA spec parts).
GFS has a good selection of import spaced stuff.

As far as pickups and configurations, do your research and you should find what will work for what you want to do. Also you might want to try playing lots of guitars to see what else works out in the world.

The body, if it is anything like the strat copy I had like that, is basically MDF board (fibreboard)... so transparent finishes are probably out!

Rydawg · Post by **Rydawg** » Tue Feb 17, 2009 8:32 pm

well i got the guitar apart today, the body doesnt look like its made of mdf, it looks like there are several plies of some material...the final finish almost looks like a plastic coating of some sort... will have to see what it is when i get to that point... heres a few more pics showing the different layers

im not sure if that type of marking could be left by a router or whatever hollows the cavity... at this point its still kinda hard to tell..

hope to start stripping it down by the weekend

Post by **charles** » Tue Feb 17, 2009 9:21 pm

Might be plywood or it may be routing marks on MDF, can't remember what mine looked like inside and I have since sold it.

Barry · Post by **Barry** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 2:57 pm

Hi,
At the risk of being a Johnny-come-lately, my 2 cents' worth would be to think twice before wrecking the thing.

While El Degas is not a premier name in the collector world it does have small but dedicated following and many of the guitars are superbly made. If you don't give a damn about any future value then go ahead. But if you do be aware that it could no longer be called an El Degas.

It would be your version of what you think the guitar should be and not likely of interest to anyone else if you decide to sell or trade up.

Something to think about.

Cheers,
Barry

Post by **charles** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 3:04 pm

I love El Degas guitars but I'd gut that sucka.

...although I'd probably stick to reversible mods like pickup & pickguard changes if the guitar is decently playable.

The one I had like that was not at all playable, so I gutted it completely and extensively modded it - dif'rent strokes for dif'rent folks.

Personally, I wouldn't be concerned about the resale on the later MIK strat copies, but again dif'rent strokes... and Barry does raise an interesting point about the argument for modding vs. preserving.

Rydawg · Post by **Rydawg** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 8:20 pm

i half considered that before i decided to do this project. the body has a few dings in it, several scratches, the volume/tone pots are no good anymore, they barely turn from sitting for a bunch of years. also, im pretty sure the neck is twisted (from what i can tell) and the tuning pegs are complete garbage. one of the pickups doesnt work (although i dont know if thats a problem with the pickup or the electronics elsewhere)
i dont believe any guitar in the condition this one is in would be of much value to anybody. i was gonna get rid of it, but ive never done a project like this before and i figured id give it a shot, may as well breathe new life into it instead of sending it to a trashheap somewhere right?

Barry · Post by **Barry** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 8:42 am

Okey Dokey...I didn't realize this axe was in such a sad state

.
Considering everything you've mentioned I guess major surgery is in order after all.

I must say though that the body appears to be well finished, um, under the stickers, and the electrics routing looks to have been done with some precision and care, so it's hard to appreciate that the rest of it is trash.

Carry on, and good luck with the project!

Rydawg · Post by **Rydawg** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 11:36 pm

the finish definitely looks better in the pictures than in real life...as for the stickers? well... i was like 15 when i got the thing, played it for a few months and its basically sat since. its scratched, nicked etc. i tried pulling a sticker or two off of it and the paint came with it...so im not so sure of the quality of finish on it

it was neglected for years and it shows
i dont htink id hack up a good working/condition guitar

i think im gonna start a project thread, taking pics and describing as i go
i found a neck for it locally yesterday and hope to have it by the weekend

Barry · Post by **Barry** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 7:54 am

The paint pulled off with the sticker? Yikes!

Obviously a crappy finish too!

It's up to Charles if he wants this sort of content, but sure, let's see your progress with this thing. It will no longer be an El Degas in the end but it might give someone else the spark to get into some guitar rebuilding and resurrect what might otherwise end up in the trash heap.

I gotta say that it was a shock to hear that the neck was "twisted". That's a head scratcher and I don't think that I've ever heard of a neck actually torquing like that. That's a major materials defect, and unfortunate too, since you will be missing a key part of the original guitar identification.

Seems like the MIJ guitars were subject to more serious quality control. After looking at this mess, sounds like the MIK stuff leaves a lot to be desired and might not be as consistently desirable to buy or collect.

Cheers,
Barry

Post by **charles** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 10:07 am

Feel free to post your rebuild process - no problem.

I have a lower opinion of the MIK strats, but I have heard from folks that had real gems from that era. Like any brand, El Degas had its share of good guitars and lemons (and remember that it was the generally-considered lower-quality Norlin era of Gibson and CBS era of Fender that paved the way for the huge influx of MIJ copies in the late 60's to late 70's).

I also have a few MIK El Degas guitars in different models that are top-notch. So they can't be totally dismissed as lower quality than the MIJ's.

Barry · Post by **Barry** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 10:28 am

Hey Charles...instead of a new thread in this forum maybe a new forum topic might be in order?

You can then capture future activities and questions like this concerning mods, refurbishing, refinishing, parts, etc. instead of mixing it in with the *ahem* pristine exhibits in the Showcase.

Just a thought.

Post by **charles** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 10:58 am

I've started a new topic area for open discussion.
viewforum.php?f=4