Anyone built/modded a Jag using a USACG Shagwire body?

[amv]

Warmoth lost me with their Jaguar bodies; the shape is visibly altered from the Fender design, standard pickguards won't fit, and the pickguards they sell are only routed for Strat pickups.

Meanwhile, the "Shagwire" body from USACG seems to be a drop-in replacement. Has anyone either built a guitar from their parts or replaced their existing Jag body with one of these? Pics would be awesome, but even just hearing your experiences would be helpful.

Thanks!

[Hyphen Nation]

I haven't tried one of theirs. I did get an MJT Jazzmaster body super cheap that was really nice. All vintage parts worked great, and I have heard nothing but good things about Guitarmill. In fact, I've been thinking about picking up one of theirs. I am sure some of the real forum vets here can weigh in.

[DaveC]

I've used both Guitarmill and mjt, albeit for jm bodies. Both produce an excellent product, but I'd only go with mjt now. Cheaper, quicker and much, much better communication.

[irobot]

I'm thinking of MJT for my next project. I'm curious, did you get it finished? If so did it come out like you expected?

Neil

[Average]

A friend of mine built a USACG shagwire. All Fender parts fit. He said that they only modification he had to do was to the pickguard bridge holes. I think he had to file e holes a bit to get a perfect fit.

https://flic.kr/p/xCF87D

[arkivel]

Man I wish there was a shootout or competition to decide this once and for all! The question about who makes the most vintage accurate bodies and necks never seems to get answered.

I keep hearing that Guitarmill makes the most accurate Jaguar bodies now. They do seem to have the tremolo cavity squared off unlike most other aftermarket suppliers. I wonder how accurate USACG shagwire bodies are. Their Jazzmaster looks slightly off with the horn or something. Is the Jag similar?

[Shadoweclipse13]

Man I wish there was a shootout or competition to decide this once and for all! The question about who makes the most vintage accurate bodies and necks never seems to get answered.

I keep hearing that Guitarmill makes the most accurate Jaguar bodies now. They do seem to have the tremolo cavity squared off unlike most other aftermarket suppliers. I wonder how accurate USACG shagwire bodies are. Their Jazzmaster looks slightly off with the horn or something. Is the Jag similar?

I feel the same way, but after hearing SO many rave reviews about how accurate and amazing Danocaster's guitars are, I'd go with who he uses (he just said who he uses recently too)...

[kdanie]

From what I've seen NOBODY has actually defined "vintage" specs.

ken

[arkivel]

IMO what most people mean when they say "vintage specs" are parts that look like vintage Fender. Of course there was some variation on the originals because they were hand made, but they did not vary so much that one could tell they were not made by Fender just by looking at them. Fender USA seems to make necks and bodies that most people would agree look vintage correct now. The other parts manufacturers all seem to vary quite a bit based on the model etc. Most of the aftermarket parts are a little off.

On a body the most important "spec" would be the general shape of the body followed by the control routes. Things like contours would vary a little but generally fall into a range for each year. USACG Jag bodies look a little off but maybe its just me. Guitarmill is probably the closest to vintage. They also have the proper vibrato route and Danocaster uses them so it's probably the winner.

On a neck, "vintage specs" would include things like the general shape of the headstock, the way it transitions to the heel or headstock on the rear, and the thickness of the fretboard. As far as I know Musikraft is the only company that makes a neck that satisfies all those conditions. USACG might come close if you can reshape the headstock, but I think the angle of the tuners might be off and their truss rods aren't placed the same as vintage. Guitarmill necks unfortunately have those thick fretboards which is no-go for me.

[Singlebladepickup]

Wanted to revive this thread to see if anyone else might have experience with a "shagwire" body.

[JVG]

Yep, I've got a lefty one. I don't have pics handy at this very moment, but can confirm that all fender hardware fit pretty much perfectly. I paired it with a Musikraft neck, and it sounds beautiful.

As always with USACG, production time is highly unpredictable. Sometimes they take 3 weeks, other times 3 months.

Cheers!
JP

[Singlebladepickup]

Cool. If you have anything to compare it to, is it thicker or less rounded on the edges than fender? I'm trying to figure if it's close enough as a replacement for my avri