70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster - DONE! (04/11/21-Page 4)

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70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster - DONE! (04/11/21-Page 4)

Post by ohm-men » Sat Feb 13, 2021 11:37 pm

There is something I wanted to do for a long time, to create someting like this...
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But with inexpensive parts, on a budget... Doable? I don't know, but I will give it a try. :wacko:
I'm stuck in this weird loop of going to work and stay home due to you know what...
So I decided to have some fun, beat the winter blues, not get dazed and confused over Netflix overload, etc....

Disclaimer This is by no means meanth to be unethical nor will this guitarbuild be a counterfeit attempt, but there are a lot of cheap guitar parts comming from overseas, sold via Amazon, AliExpress, etc... and I want to see and try these and hopefuly, while at it, try and make somthing cool out of it...
I will try to be a unbiased about these as I can.
So, since a few months I'm collecting parts as I'm curious if these are any good and if you actually make this to work.
I've been fooling arround with DIY guitar builds for a while now, so I'm not too scared. Although I expect to run in some trouble...
But I have some tools, a little expirience and a lot of patience. So let's see where this venture gets.

First up, the body;
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The "Muslady" Jazzmaster body... Basswood, curious about that. Comes arround $50,-

Next we have this; bit of an odd gem. Too yellow? Huh...22 frets....what's going on with that extra block inlay???? :wtf:
BIG headstock maple neck with black "Blocks&Binding" "the horror" to some, I think it kind of looks kind of cool....
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But, beggars can't be choosers...comes at arround $ 66,-

Again, I'm just curious to see if I can do something with these parts and make something playable out of it.

I already have this, the infamous trem unit, although this one came with a Jm bridge instead of a height adjustable Mustang style bridge....
So we'll see about that...
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complete arround $ 25,- ish.
I replaced the spring with a MIJ trem spring I found in my parts bin, but the rest of the unit will do.

And a pickguard. I bought the most inexpensive 3 ply black I could find...
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$ 7,40... incl. free shipping.
I want this Jm to have a black guard, I already have a Jazzmaster with a tort guard and I'm aiming late 70's, so probably with black knobs as well (as I have some in my parts bin) Yup... no extra's on this one... Although.... (see below.... :wtf: )

And the last thing is defenitly not budget at all, but a pair of pick ups that I really like.
Peter Leonard's - The Pickup Wizzard - Jazzmaster Hybrid set.
Classic Jazzmaster neck pick up and a Jazzmaster P-90 style bridge. OOP if I recall correctly.
These are fantastic pickups. Wanted to flip 'm first, but I just can't...
A shame to put in such abomination??? We will see...
First some of the parts need to arrive at my doorstep as the China slowboat, Covid nr.19 and Customs might interfear....
Last edited by ohm-men on Sun Apr 11, 2021 7:14 am, edited 8 times in total.

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by 61fury » Mon Feb 15, 2021 2:41 pm

I've got a Muslady Jazz body project going on too. Body seems decent enough, I used thin CA glue on all screw holes. I also got a white blocked and bound Chinese neck for another guitar, that was about 70 or so. That was decent enough too, though I did a fret level and some minor fret end smoothing. Your neck looks like a yellowjacket, I like.

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by Unicorn Warrior » Mon Feb 15, 2021 5:42 pm

I’m excited to see the end. Subscribed

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by Norrin Radd » Mon Feb 15, 2021 8:14 pm

This is really cool looking. Be interesting to see the finished product. FWIW, I’ve done a Strat build with a cheap Chinese neck with block inlays. It was surprisingly good (after I did my work on it - had to shorten the heel - it was throwing off the scale length). Those who have played it love that neck for some reason. ::)

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by ohm-men » Mon Feb 15, 2021 9:43 pm

61fury wrote:
Mon Feb 15, 2021 2:41 pm
I've got a Muslady Jazz body project going on too. Body seems decent enough, I used thin CA glue on all screw holes. I also got a white blocked and bound Chinese neck for another guitar, that was about 70 or so. That was decent enough too, though I did a fret level and some minor fret end smoothing. Your neck looks like a yellowjacket, I like.
:) Thanks! Nice to hear the Muslady body is decent. I recently aquired a CAR Squier Deluxe body which is also Basswood and I really like how it sounds and feels. Love the lighter weight. So I'm a kind of hoping the Muslady will be simelar. Used to have an old 80's Basswood tele body. I used wooden cocktail sticks to glue in all the screw holes as they got quiet worn.
I think that "the yellowjacket" vibe does it for me on the neck. Looks a bit tacky/cheesy.
Can you tell something about the radius and neck thickness? I'm kind of hoping it's a bit of a fuller neck.
Unicorn Warrior wrote:
Mon Feb 15, 2021 5:42 pm
I’m excited to see the end. Subscribed
You won't get dissapointed ;) I hope to recreate that 70's sunburst finisch as well. Clicking and saving pics of the actual 70's Burst Jm's to study the burst finish carefully. I "think" I can pull it off. If it doesn't work, I might do a yellowed Oly white finish. But I have to to try a 3 TSB first.
As I was born in the 70's, I just have to build this. ;D
I hope not to rush it as I plan to make this a player and not a wall hanger.
Norrin Radd wrote:
Mon Feb 15, 2021 8:14 pm
This is really cool looking. Be interesting to see the finished product. FWIW, I’ve done a Strat build with a cheap Chinese neck with block inlays. It was surprisingly good (after I did my work on it - had to shorten the heel - it was throwing off the scale length). Those who have played it love that neck for some reason. ::)
Thanks for the info! looking again at the pics of the neck, the heel might be too long. Depending on how the fit it is, I might alter the neck pocket of the body or take a smidge of the heel.
Last edited by ohm-men on Tue Feb 16, 2021 12:23 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by mackerelmint » Mon Feb 15, 2021 11:15 pm

Awright! This will be a good one to watch take shape.
This is an excellent rectangle

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by ohm-men » Tue Feb 16, 2021 12:18 am

I received word from Belgian Customs that they will release the body...
The store I bought it from had it destined for the Netherlands. Apperently this means that I'm importing this body from China, to the Netherlands to Belgium.... :wacko: Ofcourse this means an extra fee >:(
Oh, well... so be it.

Anyway, I'll be happy to get the body anyway.
And I'm not too scared of trying to replicate a 70's 3 Tone Sunburst finish.
I did this guitar a few years ago. 25.5" scale Firebird AKA the "Trashbird" as the body is made from old machine transport crates that were destined for the dumpster. Plywood galore :D (There used to be a thread on this build here, but when Imageshack became greedy, all pics disapeared and are lost forever....)
Neck came from a cheapo strat. I Keep this one arround for low tuning stuff

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So I'm hoping to do this again. But I will add some dark/Ruby? red to the mix in order to create that somewhat deeper red I spotted on the pics of 70's Jazzmasters.

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by Norrin Radd » Tue Feb 16, 2021 3:59 am

ohm-men wrote:
Mon Feb 15, 2021 9:43 pm
Norrin Radd wrote:
Mon Feb 15, 2021 8:14 pm
This is really cool looking. Be interesting to see the finished product. FWIW, I’ve done a Strat build with a cheap Chinese neck with block inlays. It was surprisingly good (after I did my work on it - had to shorten the heel - it was throwing off the scale length). Those who have played it love that neck for some reason. ::)
Thanks for the info! looking again at the pics of the neck, the heel might be too long. Depending on how the fit it is, I might alter the neck pocket of the body or take a smidge of the heel.
If you go that route, I highly recommend shortening the heel. If you alter the neck pocket you are marrying that particular neck to that particular body forever. If you decide later to replace the neck, you’ll be grateful you left the original neck pocket alone!

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by Fiddy » Tue Feb 16, 2021 6:15 am

The heel should be fine, it will sit higher than the pickguard. So should not be a problem.

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster

Post by s_mcsleazy » Tue Feb 16, 2021 6:22 am

ive been planning a similar build for a while.
offset guitars resident bass player.
'Are you trying to seduce me Mrs Robinson? Or do you just want me to solder a couple of resistors into your Muff?'

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster - Update 02/20

Post by ohm-men » Sat Feb 20, 2021 4:13 am

Update!
Body and neck arrived. And I'm very pleased with what I received.
First up, The body.
Despite a shipping error from the seller and the fact I had to pay an extra custom's fee, I'm happy with this body.

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It's really well made. 5 piece basswood, no tearing and all routes match the drawings I have. It's pretty spot on.
Body thickness is correct. Contours as right, etc. Neck pocket is somewhat oversized (just as I was hoping for)
Actually the figuring of the wood is not bad at all. I can see this under a 3 tone Sunburst finish :)
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There is no sealer of finish on this body, which I was hoping for. It's very well sanded. I will most likely use a vintage correct contour router bit as I find the current roundover of the body too small. Looks more modren Tele to me.
But overall, I'm very pleased with this. It's a good weight body. Not feather light, but not heavy either. Wood feels quiet seasoned. it has this somewhat sour smell I associate with Basswood. But grainwise, it not that different from Alder. I never understud why people think of Basswood as a low(er) grade guitar wood. Imho it's got good qualities. Perhaps a softer wood then most hardwoods and less nice grain then Alder or Ash.

Anyway, next up... The neck;

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Looks exactly as expected. Yellowjacket, buzzing all around your head...like it might sting you... I'm actually quiet happy with how it looks.
It's a full "D" shaped neck with broad shoulders, a bit thicker then your average Jazzmaster neck. Headstock is funny though... Looks like a Big headstock fender, but scroll is actually a bit smaller. Frets are jumbo, no surprise there. Looks 9.5" radius at first sight. Migth be a bit more, but I doubt it's 12". Fretwork is nicely done, sharp fret ends, but not bad. Nothing a good polish couldn't take care of.
Neck is straight. Tuner holes are 10mm and even with conversion bushings, Kluson style tuners do not line up. Close, but the spacing is a tad to wide to have them sit like they should.
Nut is plastic, again no surprise there. but the binding is pretty decent. Inlays are ok. Here you can see they don't quiet master the art. But it's not a showstopper imho. Actually the neck has a nice feel it and I think that I will try to match the yellow of the 3 TSB to the neck tint, which already has the right 70's tint.
Again, overall I'm pleased with this neck. And shipping was extremly fast. Under 10 days!

Then... Ofcourse... Do the above items match????
Do I need to completly mod any on them???

Well.... Nope....

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Everything lines up perfectly. Neck fits the body quiet nice. The white pickguard I had, matched perfectly and followed the bodies contour lines as expected. Trem was a drop in. Even the feared "too long" neck heel wasn't a problem. Perfect. After measuring the scale lenght, I think it's a tad longer then 25.5" (but just marginal) taking the string lengt in the equasion, it will intonate perfectly without any modification. So this is good.
I think that the 3 TSB when matching the neck's yellow tint and the black pickguard with blend quiet nice!
Pickguard in the last pic is a H/H squier Affinity Jazzmaster that I modded. I will not use it as I got a black 3 ply pickguard on the way for this one.
I also found some black Tusq Jazzmaster string saddles I will most likely use on this build. Although I have to remind myself to ground the electronics thru the tremolo cavety on the trem plate as these saddles do zip for grounding....

In all, the 50 Buck body and the 67 Buck neck panned out quiet well.
I'm really happy that everything looks and feels the part. So I hope this project will go in the right direction...

Anyway, after a week of really cold weather and snow, we now have a beautiful spring weekend with sunshine and nice temperatures....
needless to say, the itch is there to get this project going...

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster - Update 02/20

Post by Amon 7.L » Sat Feb 20, 2021 7:53 am

As a lover of 70's burst, you've got my full attention.
It's gonna be a cool project to follow.

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster - Update 02/20

Post by geoman » Sat Feb 20, 2021 9:05 pm

I have used the same body and found it to be very nicely made and it went together and made an excellent Chinamaster for me. Heck I even sprayed the duplicolor over the bare wood with little sanding between coats and it turned out Great!! Good luck, and keep the pictures coming!!

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster - Update 02/20

Post by Veitchy » Sun Feb 21, 2021 4:41 pm

I dig this. I love how hilariously yellow the neck tint is.

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Re: 70's style Jazzmaster on a budget - AKA the Chinamaster - Update 02/20

Post by CROSS_guitars » Sun Feb 21, 2021 6:21 pm

Paint the body Graffiti yellow. It will make the neck tint look more subtle. ha :D

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