Watch the Strummer Series On Demand here: theguitaristas.vhx.tv/products/extras-on-demand Rent or Buy all 8 Episodes (4 hours of Content!) from just $5 one off payment which helps keep The Guitaristas independent and free of sponsorship and shills. This TH-cam channel is fully independent of sponsorship, supported/gifted products, affiliate programmes... it's all the thrills without the shills! 🎸But this content costs real time and a lot of money to make so my own way of raising a few extra $$ to fund the channel is via the subscription TV Channel. I am very very grateful to my growing army of loyal supporters there who help fund this content, make it possible, and keep it real. You know who you are. 🙏
I think Joe would have liked your nut slot “method” very much and I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t have cared if you put the string tree in the middle of the decal. Shows the human touch. Sounds great cranked up too. I’m a beginner modder and you’re an inspiration. 🤛
Coming from a cover band level vocalist who "discovered" guitar in my 40's trying to write...I am blown away by your integrity, there are a few out there, but I really enjoy how you take us on a journey focused on gear most any can afford for the most part, what to expect, and how to make them better. With a dash of the high end to keep it interesting, Well done sir! Love your tones, your playing, and the humility you deliver it with, Thank you, I will be more supportive as I can! Cheers from Texas!
I can tell you this for 100% sure - there is no way Joe Strummer would have spent the money on the big name master built version! No! He would have loved your version and thrashed the shit out of it giving 100% on one of his many amazing live performances. Your version should be in production! F*** Fender! Your guitar is exactly the spirit of Strummer.
@BCbn I'm always amazed at people getting upset at Fender for the guitars that they produce as it doesn't really make any sense. Fender is just trying to build guitars that hit a range of prices to satisfy an extremely wide audience of buyers, and yes, make a profit. Originally, back in the day Leo made guitars for professional musicians not beginners and not wealthy blues doctors lawyers or rich collectors. The price of a Tele or Strat in the 1950s would be the equilvilent of roughly around $2500 today. Does $2500 get you that same quality of guitar that you would have gotten back in the 1950s??? Well... no. Wood was old growth and the metal on most things was serious quality unless it was a toy that was made in Japan. The Fender factory was a building with no air-conditioning, no ventilation except for some big fans, and no safety equipment with people breathing sawdust and nitrocellulose paint fumes on a daily basis. Today's Custom Shop guitars strive to "try" to be what was coming out of the Fender factory in the 1950s but even at double or so the (cost adjusted) price it's still tough to replicate as many things are different in 2023 then they were seventy years ago. As to the $15,000 Tele it is simply an extreme attempt at replicating one particular example of a Fender that was made in the 1950s or 1960's and owned by a famous musician... these are aimed at collectors (be they players or not) who have a lot of disposable income to drop on such a thing. So if you are going to be angry at Fender you should really be angry at collectors with lots of money, people with little money who won't pay much at all for a guitar, people who insist on decent working conditions and reasonable pay, and people for hundreds of years who didn't maintain our forests properly so we could continue to have lots of high quality wood at low prices. Ultimately, reality tends to be a rather complicated thing but many prefer a simple answer even if it isn't really the correct one.
@@BC-bn2ig@BC-bn2ig Sorry you thought my post was patronizing which was not my intent. I find the details about guitars as well as their value (and what people think about that) to be very interesting and that these things can make for good discussion. As to me not understanding the punk ethic I think I do but even about that I'd say it's often more complicated than the super simple "nothing matters" kind of ideal that gets thrown about. Not saying the Strummer would have been happy about a $15,000 signature guitar (doubt he would have) but back in the day he wanted a Fender probably because he knew it was a decent tool that was going to get the job done. He certainly could have bought some off brand cheaper instrument but he actually talks in an interview about wanting that Tele (the guitar that ended up being his black painted one) and how he couldn't afford the 120 pounds it cost at the time. 120 pounds was about $240 U.S. dollars (in 1975) which would be over $1000 today. So while he didn't buy the most expensive guitar he certainly didn't buy the cheapest either. Used guitars from Fender and Gibson were seriously undervalued in the '70s and '80s but obviously desirable to players who for the most part didn't have much money and Strummer actually married a woman who wanted citizenship for 100 pounds to buy that guitar. I think this stuff is all very cool historical detail... not trying to talk down to anybody just offering my thoughts on the subject.
Jeez, the sound is incredible. Absolutely nails the Clash sound.. even your touch of delay had the Mick Jones vibe 100%… great guitar. Very well done!!
Hi Colin, Really enjoyed that. Obviously saw the original - both with Joe on stage and the release of that ridiculously priced signature. Joe would’ve totally baulked at the Fender Custom shop price tag; the complete antithesis of everything that he was about. He’d never have sanctioned anything so exclusive, unless a HUGE chunk of the money went to charity !! I’m sure it’s a great guitar, but Joe was so far away from the fetishisation of any instrument. Look at the way ‘Ignore Alien Orders’ was treated over the years ! Having said that he was a stickler for intonation which meant ‘IAO’ had individual saddle fitted early days - with part of a Grolsch red washer stopping them slipping on the bridge plate. Full Grolsch washers were also used as straplocks. I’ve seen and photographed the original of this one at the launch of ‘Sound System’ a few years ago where I did official photos of the Berwick Street exhibition. I’d been inspired to do my own copy of ‘IOA’ when it was first released back in 2007. I was lucky and got one of the first 1500, which came with the stencil set [most of those stencils were actually for a different guitar - his black/maple Tele given to him by CBS] which he didn’t like. From this starting point I proceeded to further ‘relic’ an already reliced £799.00 MIM guitar - the first one done in Mexico, I believe. This was absolutely stomach-churning when I started, but as it progressed and using all the reference photos I could find online, creating my own stickers [not as easy as you’d think 16 years ago !] things came together. The basic guitar and its sound were excellent I have to say, with great pickups and neck. Didn’t change the tuners to the ‘F’ tuners Joe put on his, because I couldn’t find any suitably reliced ones and original 1978s were VERY pricey. When I was done even Mick Jones got to play it when I was working for him and complimented me on my tribute model. It’s been played on stage in a Clash tribute band [not me !] and turned quite a few heads. Have to say Joe’s sound live was pretty scratchy and rough at times and this is often heard on numerous bootlegs from Clash days. The tribute bands always sound too polished to me and lose all the feel. Mostly saw him with ‘IOA’ straight into a Musicman 2 x 12, but he was a very good, tight rhythm player, left handed, playing a right handed guitar. I think in the studio he’d sometimes play an unplugged guitar whilst doing vocals, although that could be one of those apocryphal Clash stories… Anyway, back to the original subject. I stand by what I initially said , basically that Joe would be horrified at the price of that Custom Shop Esquire. Difficult to know if they got it 100% correct, because I’m never likely to play either !! Maybe that’ll be a project for me in retirement…. Finally, Fender have reissued ‘IOA’ and still not got it right ! This one looks terribly ‘cheap’ and plasticy to me and especially bad value now that the price has nearly doubled. Can’t stand the computerised ‘wear’ on the pickguard. Should do like I did and spray paint the guard with grey primer and then matt black then create your own. That’s the whole point of punk - DO IT YOURSELF !! Be creative !!! That’d be Joe’s mantra still. Leave the £14k custom shop guitars for doctors, lawyers and bankers to live out their own fantasies !! 😉
Cheers man, some great intel here and 🙌 you’ve been up close with the original IAO guitar! Did you see I have the latest £1500 reissue? I stand by it doesn’t look too faked but could probably do with some real wear and tear and beer stains to bed it in 😆 I also have a homemade version which you’ll see in a couple of films here somewhere. Thanks for sharing and supporting it’s appreciated! 😎👍👍
I've been wanting to build a partscaster it seems like it would be a fun time. You did a great job on your first build and the best thing is you can change whatever you want and not feel guilty about tearing up a expensive guitar. Another great video. Cheers
Very good job for a first build. The nut slot boo-boo can be made to vanish pretty easily with rosewood dust and glue if you care. For me it would be worth it to replace the neck with one that matches the original look better, but that's a personal choice. You definitely captured the spirit of the original though. Thanks for the video.
Sounds great, Colin! Awesome job on the build for your first go. Learning seems to be a journey we're all on, and your journey on this build was good fun. Cheers.
Nice! Now I dont normally do relic guitars or signature guitars but your approach to this one was spot on Colin. You did a great job on it mate! It looks the part that it is trying to be and man it sounds great! Love to hear this up against the $15K one :) Great playing, you really brought the soul out of that guitar for us to hear, loved it. Everyone should build a bitsa at some point, we learn so much from it. Great vid!
Nice few bars of Complete Control, Colin. 'I don't judge you, why do you judge me?' - my favourite song by the Clash. As a TV subscriber, watched the original series, and agree that a change of neck would greatly improve the guitar - the original was a false economy. But we are all on a journey - my first time with a soldering iron was traumatic; now I'm like a surgeon. Not because I'm a natural, I just practiced - and messed up - a lot. Haven't yet tackled a blank nut install, but I will. Probably mess up a few times before I get that right, but how much do a few blanks cost? Worth it to gain the knowledge. Invaluable as ever; always love the enthusiasm and the honesty. All the best.
I think you are right about the caps.... I would try a .022 on the tone knob and a .015 (or .010) on the 'dark' position, which will be a lot more 'half cocked' sounding and useful.
Damn! Your London Calling sounded so good! Great build. I do the same and make affordable copies of my favorite guitars. It is a blast building them and they sound good!
The only reason I'm not subscribed to the TV channel is because I don't do online payments. But when that day comes, rest assured, your TV channel will be the very first thing I'll subscribe to! For now, I'll grab myself a hot choccy milk and enjoy the wise old man reviewing his very own build (which I wanted to see on the TV channel in the first place). Rock on Colin and keep on spitting wisdom to players both old & young like myself
I don't mind thin frets, really. I think they give you a bit more wood character in the tone. You just don't have much leeway if you eventually need to fret level. Parts-casters are cool.
You did an excellent job building the Joe Strummer esquire. I have just bought a Squire by Fender ( Esquire) with a humbucker on the bridge only. Limited edition for $149USD. I own seven telecasters in different configurations. This cheap squire telecaster sounds absolutely fantastic! It came perfectly setup and I can’t find any flaws. Like your neck, the frets are pretty skinny. However, it plays and sounds great, so I’m not complaining. I am so impressed with your amateur build! Wow!
Dear Colette you are always very,very funny and friendly to watch mate😂! Please,please keep your videos coming😅😊kindest Regards Mick.l wouldn't miss them, for the World mate !❤
You're so humble sir. You're playing is great! I have an affection for SG's myself but love a good Tele! Always enjoy watching your videos Colin! Keep it up!🤘
Great project, Colin! Having only recently built a partscaster Tele for the first time, it’s not an easy task - you soon learn the tolerances are less than 0.5mm when you’re drilling holes for the hardware! Still, it’s very satisfying when you put together a guitar with parts you’ve chosen, whether it’s a tribute model or something more unique. The thing is, it does seem addictive and the quest for perfect components may be never-ending! 😂
Great to see you enthused and inspired by assembling your own 'partscaster' Tele, looks like you had fun. So much so, I feel inspired myself to consider a cheap T-type build - well done, and great content, once again.
Great job Colin you really looked like you were in joying playing the clash ,just a thought, how about getting a bassist and drummer and showing your TH-cam fans what you can really do, I have a feeling you’re pretty good,do love you videos
I genuinely nearly spat my whiskey out when you said the price of that Fender version! 😂 As a life-long Clash fan, since I was 14 in 1977, who saw them live in London eleven times back then, I would love to do a build like yours. Maybe I will! 😊
Great vid! It's great assembling your own guitar. It was my Covid hobby. I built a strat (vintage white, rosewood board) and a tele (double bound custom 60's style). Still have the strat, traded the tele at a pawn shop for a Fender Duo Sonic :). Building 2 guitars cured the itch for me. Especially fiddling with installing the nut as you described is a pain is the ass 🤣. Love your videos, keep m coming!
This reminds me of my father with motor bikes and how he built or rebuilt his old Norton Commando 850 and after a few bits and pieces later it was perfect and am sure this will be the same.
That’s cool man. Well done. I pretty much assemble all my own stuff now VRs buying whole guitars. That I would just gut anyway…. Just want to pass this along man, the nut is probably one of the most complex things on an electric guitar, many vital things to get correct, a fender neck has the radius of the fretboard on the bottom of the nut slot, so….just put sand paper on top of the fretboard and sand In the correct radius. I work very slowly making a new nut, and usually use a wooly mammoth ivory blank so I really don’t want to mess it up. And it takes a bunch of tools that are not cheep, jewelers saw, nut files, a lot of sandpaper, of different grits, and I use both feeler gages and a micrometer to set string hight , that part is a make or break moment, one file stroke away from thrashing the whole nut. But I enjoy the whole process. My #1 guitar is a partscaster, using a fender neck. An 60s American original neck, the body was made by a company called guitar mill , here in the USA. The odd thing is it took about a year for that guitar to really open up, no idea why, it’s an absolute beast now. The other thing I want to pass along , is I believe other than pickups, the neck sets the guitars tamber, and tone will more times than not, follow the neck. I spend a large part of the budget on the neck. That has really worked well for me, and took the whole partscaster idea to a new level. Always modify the cheep part, to fit.
Thanks for video! Very cool! Ive got a couple warmoth parts casters that were fun and turned out good. Every T style guitar, except for my 74 tele deluxe, has brass saddles.
Great upload Colin, a brilliant first build. It's been great watching your confidence grow with regard to fettling and fuckin' about. I love those coarse knurled volume & control knobs. Gotta go, time to dig out the first 3 Clash LP's, yeah even Give 'Em Enough Rope!
The operation was a success and the patient is very much alive. Looks cool, sounds great and a proper Joe tribute. Seems almost everyone here agrees. Sounded just like Joe on "London Calling" from the first strum. Leave it as-is, enjoy, and be a little deservingly proud of your work. Nothing to feel guilty about. This guitar has soul and personality. Can it be improved if you want to nit-pick about it? Of course. Why bother though? Cheers from Dallas!
I've recently refretted the neck on my guitar for the first time. Used the Fender pre-radiused "medium jumbo" frets and frankly just eyballing it, they seem about as "skinny" as these here. Some 2.6 mm width at the fretboard. (I was frankly kinda surprised how slim they were, despite being medium jumbo, seemed thinner than the original medium jumbos the guitar had before.) Also, linear pot would likely give you even worse roll-off, this sounds about right for an audio taper judging from how the tone changes as you turn. Linear will very likely change the tone very little between say 10 and 3 and then very quickly between 3 and 0. And as you also seem to not be happy about how dark the tone gets near 0, like you said, you might be better off changing the cap value instead. Maybe replace them with .22 microF or possibly even less. That will give you somewhat brighter tone as you roll off the tone and as such might give you a better tone control over the entire range of the pot. Alternatively, if you really want to experiment with the pot taper, you might want to try different versions of audio taper. They differ between I believe 10%, 20% and 30% taper (I believe 30% is so called "vintage taper" whereas 10% is the most common I believe), where 50% taper would be equal to linear. So those would obviously change how the tone responds across the knob travel, the higher tapers are closer to how linear would respond. Though the information about the actual taper percentage is kinda hard to come by, unfortunately. There are also rarely available the so-called "inverse logarithmic/audio taper" pots, which would behave like the opposite of linear, essentially, so a relatively fast drop of tone between 10 and say 7, and then very gradual for the rest of the turn.
Looks and sounds great! I’ve been trying to rationalize getting a Tele lately and your videos are really helping. I used the neck pickup often on the ‘61 which I foolishly sold, so maybe not this one…still, putting together a body, neck and favorite bits is a good idea.
I like the guitar and love the sound of it. I've put a proper ashtray bridge and white 5-hole guard on my Arctic White Standard Tele. An Esquire guard is easy to get but the body would need to be repainted because Arctic White isn't even close to the Strummer refrigerator white haha. I'm tempted to just bury the neck pickup under the guard as a stealth pickup. I've heard a P-90 works well like that. Necks are friggin' expensive but I'd love a soft V neck with a dark rosewood board. I really enjoyed the 'balls to the walls' playing this episode, Colin. Cheers!
The guitar you build will do more than enough visually and playability. I am sure anyone that has bought that at $15k has money flowing like wine. I don't see $15k worth in that at all. I got an American Special for £799 a few years back and I am sure that blows that out of the water as is the best sounding Tele I have heard in a while.
Nice job Colin! I shouldve done a series like this when i built my Frusciante strat - that ive now sprayed black lol. Also, i wanna say as the year ends your playing has just got better and better this year, nice one!
Ah thanks mate that's really appreciated 😊🙏 I can feel it a bit so my new years resolution is to spend a lot less time buying them and more time learning to play them! 😁👍
It sounds great and its a lot of fun. Try an .022uf for the tone control cap, leave .047uf or .033uf on the dark switch position. .015uf on the tone control will get you closer to cocked wah rolled all the way off and actually give you more usable tones across the sweep of the audio taper. Maybe a 500K volume pot also, with that Quarter Pounder. Some radical madman might even suggest 1M (its a pretty darned hot pickup.)
I have two bodies/ necks and the parts. Think I want a find rosewood neck for the double bound body. And then some time. One set is all relic high end parts and Fender Custom Shop pickups. The other is a MIM Player Plus with a damaged body I picked up cheaper than just buying the neck. Both bodies are finished in relic nitro.
I do enjoy your video content. I’m trying to get my kids to go along with trimming the $200+ streaming services we have, but with four of them they are all watching something different. If they just watched THIS my streaming budget would be under control and I could spend more on guitars!
Very Cool, Thankyou. Nice Work, Awesome Build of a Stunning looking and Sounding Guitar. I have been interested in the Squier Sonic Series Esquire in "Pete Honore Purple" but have been a bit put off by it having a Single Humbucker instead of a Single Coil Pickup. I think I'll keep looking for a "Budget" Single Coil Esquire, as I think a Build would be beyond me. Off to Watch The Full Build now. All The Best. Cheers
Good job Colin. Not bad for your first DYI. Now your ready for the next step. (StewMac) makes many good quality guitar kits. I have seen several build videos by folks building them. If I had space, time, experience, and just a little money, I'd like to build their ES335. When you order you choose the hardware you want too. Base price is just under $400.00. You already know how to install the goodies. Maybe give one a try. ;-)
great job mate on a sweet "pile of excellence"! 15 grand??? is that all?? imagine 50 grand for a murphy lab greeny hahaha!! and i "made" one for less than 200USD! i have a sawtooth "tele" that i turned into an esqiure type model...i deleted the neck pup and popped in a "vintera" style pup on the bridge...blocked the neck pup hole with a vanilla folder bit... mine is more basic....no selector swotch...yet kept the tone control...added blonde witch hat knobs... o ya that monoprice os20 project turned out saweeet!!! and yess...youd approve greatly!!
You are really digging that guitar. I am too. It sounds great and your playing was inspired. That guitar certainly has character, visually and audibly. I was surprised that a single pickup could be that versatile. I think you put the head stock decal in the correct spot and Joe's was wrong.. 😎 Update: I just subbed to your tv channel. You're definitely worth a dollar a week. Plus, I wouldn't know which day is Friday if it weren't for you.. 🤠
It sounds just as good as the $15k custom! I’m sure Joe would appreciate your diy Esquire and how it is sidelines the capitalist system. Yeah I agree. Very cool.
Came out well Col!! When the pickup read 15.? I thought it'd push the front of the amp too much... wrong!! Is the Quarter Pounder what Joe used in his Tele? Only asking, cos the Musicman amps have a mob of clean headroom... Anyway it looks and sounds great!! Oh, l read another comment in the thread saying they'd join ur TV channel, but don't use online banking..lm the same mate..sorry !
Watch the Strummer Series On Demand here: theguitaristas.vhx.tv/products/extras-on-demand
Rent or Buy all 8 Episodes (4 hours of Content!) from just $5 one off payment which helps keep The Guitaristas independent and free of sponsorship and shills.
This TH-cam channel is fully independent of sponsorship, supported/gifted products, affiliate programmes... it's all the thrills without the shills! 🎸But this content costs real time and a lot of money to make so my own way of raising a few extra $$ to fund the channel is via the subscription TV Channel. I am very very grateful to my growing army of loyal supporters there who help fund this content, make it possible, and keep it real. You know who you are. 🙏
I think Joe would have liked your nut slot “method” very much and I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t have cared if you put the string tree in the middle of the decal. Shows the human touch. Sounds great cranked up too. I’m a beginner modder and you’re an inspiration. 🤛
Coming from a cover band level vocalist who "discovered" guitar in my 40's trying to write...I am blown away by your integrity, there are a few out there, but I really enjoy how you take us on a journey focused on gear most any can afford for the most part, what to expect, and how to make them better. With a dash of the high end to keep it interesting, Well done sir! Love your tones, your playing, and the humility you deliver it with, Thank you, I will be more supportive as I can! Cheers from Texas!
Right on.. from another Texan.. 🤠
Thanks man that's really appreciated! 😊🙏
I can tell you this for 100% sure - there is no way Joe Strummer would have spent the money on the big name master built version! No! He would have loved your version and thrashed the shit out of it giving 100% on one of his many amazing live performances. Your version should be in production! F*** Fender! Your guitar is exactly the spirit of Strummer.
@BCbn I'm always amazed at people getting upset at Fender for the guitars that they produce as it doesn't really make any sense. Fender is just trying to build guitars that hit a range of prices to satisfy an extremely wide audience of buyers, and yes, make a profit. Originally, back in the day Leo made guitars for professional musicians not beginners and not wealthy blues doctors lawyers or rich collectors. The price of a Tele or Strat in the 1950s would be the equilvilent of roughly around $2500 today. Does $2500 get you that same quality of guitar that you would have gotten back in the 1950s??? Well... no. Wood was old growth and the metal on most things was serious quality unless it was a toy that was made in Japan. The Fender factory was a building with no air-conditioning, no ventilation except for some big fans, and no safety equipment with people breathing sawdust and nitrocellulose paint fumes on a daily basis. Today's Custom Shop guitars strive to "try" to be what was coming out of the Fender factory in the 1950s but even at double or so the (cost adjusted) price it's still tough to replicate as many things are different in 2023 then they were seventy years ago. As to the $15,000 Tele it is simply an extreme attempt at replicating one particular example of a Fender that was made in the 1950s or 1960's and owned by a famous musician... these are aimed at collectors (be they players or not) who have a lot of disposable income to drop on such a thing. So if you are going to be angry at Fender you should really be angry at collectors with lots of money, people with little money who won't pay much at all for a guitar, people who insist on decent working conditions and reasonable pay, and people for hundreds of years who didn't maintain our forests properly so we could continue to have lots of high quality wood at low prices. Ultimately, reality tends to be a rather complicated thing but many prefer a simple answer even if it isn't really the correct one.
@@7171jay I don’t think you understand punk mate. Your comment is also really patronising.
@@BC-bn2ig@BC-bn2ig Sorry you thought my post was patronizing which was not my intent. I find the details about guitars as well as their value (and what people think about that) to be very interesting and that these things can make for good discussion. As to me not understanding the punk ethic I think I do but even about that I'd say it's often more complicated than the super simple "nothing matters" kind of ideal that gets thrown about. Not saying the Strummer would have been happy about a $15,000 signature guitar (doubt he would have) but back in the day he wanted a Fender probably because he knew it was a decent tool that was going to get the job done. He certainly could have bought some off brand cheaper instrument but he actually talks in an interview about wanting that Tele (the guitar that ended up being his black painted one) and how he couldn't afford the 120 pounds it cost at the time. 120 pounds was about $240 U.S. dollars (in 1975) which would be over $1000 today. So while he didn't buy the most expensive guitar he certainly didn't buy the cheapest either. Used guitars from Fender and Gibson were seriously undervalued in the '70s and '80s but obviously desirable to players who for the most part didn't have much money and Strummer actually married a woman who wanted citizenship for 100 pounds to buy that guitar. I think this stuff is all very cool historical detail... not trying to talk down to anybody just offering my thoughts on the subject.
Jeez, the sound is incredible. Absolutely nails the Clash sound.. even your touch of delay had the Mick Jones vibe 100%… great guitar. Very well done!!
Hi Colin, Really enjoyed that. Obviously saw the original - both with Joe on stage and the release of that ridiculously priced signature. Joe would’ve totally baulked at the Fender Custom shop price tag; the complete antithesis of everything that he was about. He’d never have sanctioned anything so exclusive, unless a HUGE chunk of the money went to charity !! I’m sure it’s a great guitar, but Joe was so far away from the fetishisation of any instrument.
Look at the way ‘Ignore Alien Orders’ was treated over the years ! Having said that he was a stickler for intonation which meant ‘IAO’ had individual saddle fitted early days - with part of a Grolsch red washer stopping them slipping on the bridge plate. Full Grolsch washers were also used as straplocks. I’ve seen and photographed the original of this one at the launch of ‘Sound System’ a few years ago where I did official photos of the Berwick Street exhibition.
I’d been inspired to do my own copy of ‘IOA’ when it was first released back in 2007. I was lucky and got one of the first 1500, which came with the stencil set [most of those stencils were actually for a different guitar - his black/maple Tele given to him by CBS] which he didn’t like. From this starting point I proceeded to further ‘relic’ an already reliced £799.00 MIM guitar - the first one done in Mexico, I believe. This was absolutely stomach-churning when I started, but as it progressed and using all the reference photos I could find online, creating my own stickers [not as easy as you’d think 16 years ago !] things came together. The basic guitar and its sound were excellent I have to say, with great pickups and neck. Didn’t change the tuners to the ‘F’ tuners Joe put on his, because I couldn’t find any suitably reliced ones and original 1978s were VERY pricey. When I was done even Mick Jones got to play it when I was working for him and complimented me on my tribute model. It’s been played on stage in a Clash tribute band [not me !] and turned quite a few heads.
Have to say Joe’s sound live was pretty scratchy and rough at times and this is often heard on numerous bootlegs from Clash days. The tribute bands always sound too polished to me and lose all the feel. Mostly saw him with ‘IOA’ straight into a Musicman 2 x 12, but he was a very good, tight rhythm player, left handed, playing a right handed guitar. I think in the studio he’d sometimes play an unplugged guitar whilst doing vocals, although that could be one of those apocryphal Clash stories…
Anyway, back to the original subject. I stand by what I initially said , basically that Joe would be horrified at the price of that Custom Shop Esquire. Difficult to know if they got it 100% correct, because I’m never likely to play either !! Maybe that’ll be a project for me in retirement….
Finally, Fender have reissued ‘IOA’ and still not got it right ! This one looks terribly ‘cheap’ and plasticy to me and especially bad value now that the price has nearly doubled. Can’t stand the computerised ‘wear’ on the pickguard. Should do like I did and spray paint the guard with grey primer and then matt black then create your own. That’s the whole point of punk - DO IT YOURSELF !! Be creative !!! That’d be Joe’s mantra still. Leave the £14k custom shop guitars for doctors, lawyers and bankers to live out their own fantasies !! 😉
Cheers man, some great intel here and 🙌 you’ve been up close with the original IAO guitar! Did you see I have the latest £1500 reissue? I stand by it doesn’t look too faked but could probably do with some real wear and tear and beer stains to bed it in 😆 I also have a homemade version which you’ll see in a couple of films here somewhere. Thanks for sharing and supporting it’s appreciated! 😎👍👍
Wow… awesome looking strummer copy. 👌
Good stuff! Love how it came out. Always appreciate the content.
The Joe Strummer axe sounds and looks terrific, well done on doing such a great job on your first ever guitar build !! 👍🎸😆
This is why I love this channel, Colin ! Very well done, chap !!!
I've been wanting to build a partscaster it seems like it would be a fun time. You did a great job on your first build and the best thing is you can change whatever you want and not feel guilty about tearing up a expensive guitar. Another great video. Cheers
She sounds fantastic and you have done Joe proud.
Great work, Colin.
Very good job for a first build. The nut slot boo-boo can be made to vanish pretty easily with rosewood dust and glue if you care. For me it would be worth it to replace the neck with one that matches the original look better, but that's a personal choice. You definitely captured the spirit of the original though. Thanks for the video.
Sounds great, Colin! Awesome job on the build for your first go. Learning seems to be a journey we're all on, and your journey on this build was good fun. Cheers.
That thing turned out really nice. You should be proud Colin especially for your first build.
Nice! Now I dont normally do relic guitars or signature guitars but your approach to this one was spot on Colin. You did a great job on it mate! It looks the part that it is trying to be and man it sounds great! Love to hear this up against the $15K one :) Great playing, you really brought the soul out of that guitar for us to hear, loved it. Everyone should build a bitsa at some point, we learn so much from it. Great vid!
Cheers mate!
Great guitar, sir…. Your work is so much fun to watch and this one is definitely a Masterpiece!
My favorite channel, great playing, relaxing…GAS is going to kick in. Cheers !!!
Nice few bars of Complete Control, Colin. 'I don't judge you, why do you judge me?' - my favourite song by the Clash. As a TV subscriber, watched the original series, and agree that a change of neck would greatly improve the guitar - the original was a false economy. But we are all on a journey - my first time with a soldering iron was traumatic; now I'm like a surgeon. Not because I'm a natural, I just practiced - and messed up - a lot. Haven't yet tackled a blank nut install, but I will. Probably mess up a few times before I get that right, but how much do a few blanks cost? Worth it to gain the knowledge. Invaluable as ever; always love the enthusiasm and the honesty. All the best.
I think you are right about the caps.... I would try a .022 on the tone knob and a .015 (or .010) on the 'dark' position, which will be a lot more 'half cocked' sounding and useful.
Damn! Your London Calling sounded so good! Great build. I do the same and make affordable copies of my favorite guitars. It is a blast building them and they sound good!
The only reason I'm not subscribed to the TV channel is because I don't do online payments. But when that day comes, rest assured, your TV channel will be the very first thing I'll subscribe to! For now, I'll grab myself a hot choccy milk and enjoy the wise old man reviewing his very own build (which I wanted to see on the TV channel in the first place). Rock on Colin and keep on spitting wisdom to players both old & young like myself
Cheers man... that you are watching here on TH-cam is also appreciated! 🙏
Don’t worry am the same and this will be the one I give too when that day comes.
Colin isn't old- he's younger than me. Only those older than me are old 😂
@@thehonestguitarist6543 Sorry buddy, I couldn't find better words for it to describe it. I meant nothing by it. I should've phrased it better, cheers
@@fisterroboto1044 I am quite old though... 🤣👍
I don't mind thin frets, really. I think they give you a bit more wood character in the tone. You just don't have much leeway if you eventually need to fret level. Parts-casters are cool.
I love 'em. All the masters played on them. Easier for me to get at.
Me encanta tu espacio. Me encanta tu honestidad. gracias
😊🙏
Looks and sounds absolutely bang on Colin, nice work mate! Anymore in the pipeline? Great video as always and have a great weekend.🤘♥️
You did an excellent job building the Joe Strummer esquire. I have just bought a Squire by Fender ( Esquire) with a humbucker on the bridge only. Limited edition for $149USD. I own seven telecasters in different configurations. This cheap squire telecaster sounds absolutely fantastic! It came perfectly setup and I can’t find any flaws. Like your neck, the frets are pretty skinny. However, it plays and sounds great, so I’m not complaining. I am so impressed with your amateur build! Wow!
Dear Colette you are always very,very funny and friendly to watch mate😂! Please,please keep your videos coming😅😊kindest Regards Mick.l wouldn't miss them, for the World mate
!❤
You're so humble sir. You're playing is great! I have an affection for SG's myself but love a good Tele! Always enjoy watching your videos Colin! Keep it up!🤘
The Sound is great 👌
Great project, Colin! Having only recently built a partscaster Tele for the first time, it’s not an easy task - you soon learn the tolerances are less than 0.5mm when you’re drilling holes for the hardware! Still, it’s very satisfying when you put together a guitar with parts you’ve chosen, whether it’s a tribute model or something more unique. The thing is, it does seem addictive and the quest for perfect components may be never-ending! 😂
Great to see you enthused and inspired by assembling your own 'partscaster' Tele, looks like you had fun. So much so, I feel inspired myself to consider a cheap T-type build - well done, and great content, once again.
NIce job with the build, you'd not ever know it was not store bought !!! Great job, nice work on that one - Jim
Col to lower a radiused nut. Tape sandpaper on the fingerboard so it follows the radius and then sand bottom of the nut.
That’s sounds absolutely fricken awesome Colin! Well done mate!
Well done Colin. I actually like the dark sound with a bit of OD. As you say though: "Neckedst" time....
Thanks for another enjoyable instalment.
Great job Colin you really looked like you were in joying playing the clash ,just a thought, how about getting a bassist and drummer and showing your TH-cam fans what you can really do, I have a feeling you’re pretty good,do love you videos
Yes I’d like to find a really good local rhythm section with shared tastes to get a band going again… 🤔👍
I really enjoyed the Joe Strummer guitar build series. The guitar turned out great.
Sounds bloody good to me. Great job Colin
I genuinely nearly spat my whiskey out when you said the price of that Fender version! 😂
As a life-long Clash fan, since I was 14 in 1977, who saw them live in London eleven times back then, I would love to do a build like yours. Maybe I will! 😊
Great build Colin, Joe would be proud.
Loved the "holiday" Esquire. I even have it tattooed on my calf
Great stuff Colin. Another fascinating video. Thanks.
Colin, best channel on skrewtoob, Buddy!
Doesn’t matter the subject, you keep ‘em all fun.
I Look fwd to Friday mornings.
Cheers 🍻
Cheers mate! 😁🙏
Bravissimo! What a cool guitar and the lead break happening thru the first main playthru is soaring! Sounds great !!!!
😁🙏
Nice Job! Looks like you were in complete control throughout! 😎
Great vid! It's great assembling your own guitar. It was my Covid hobby. I built a strat (vintage white, rosewood board) and a tele (double bound custom 60's style). Still have the strat, traded the tele at a pawn shop for a Fender Duo Sonic :). Building 2 guitars cured the itch for me. Especially fiddling with installing the nut as you described is a pain is the ass 🤣. Love your videos, keep m coming!
This reminds me of my father with motor bikes and how he built or rebuilt his old Norton Commando 850 and after a few bits and pieces later it was perfect and am sure this will be the same.
Another banger video and Esquire! It looks COOL and sounds 'punchy'. I do believe you have inspired me to have a go at my own 'custom' build. 👍❤️🎵🎶🎵🎶🎵
Excellent Job Colin sounds fantastic !!!
BRAVO...!!!
Great build Colin😉👍
😎✌👍❤🖖
Love Brother
Really enjoyed this one mate!! The Clash and SLF were my favourite bands in my teenage years 😎😎😎
Colin
Spot on Buddy! Now you can head towards a SG, like i suggested before! Love it ❤👍
I really enjoy your shows! Thanks!🤘
That’s cool man.
Well done.
I pretty much assemble all my own stuff now VRs buying whole guitars. That I would just gut anyway….
Just want to pass this along man, the nut is probably one of the most complex things on an electric guitar, many vital things to get correct, a fender neck has the radius of the fretboard on the bottom of the nut slot, so….just put sand paper on top of the fretboard and sand In the correct radius. I work very slowly making a new nut, and usually use a wooly mammoth ivory blank so I really don’t want to mess it up. And it takes a bunch of tools that are not cheep, jewelers saw, nut files, a lot of sandpaper, of different grits, and I use both feeler gages and a micrometer to set string hight , that part is a make or break moment, one file stroke away from thrashing the whole nut. But I enjoy the whole process.
My #1 guitar is a partscaster, using a fender neck.
An 60s American original neck, the body was made by a company called guitar mill , here in the USA.
The odd thing is it took about a year for that guitar to really open up, no idea why, it’s an absolute beast now.
The other thing I want to pass along , is I believe other than pickups, the neck sets the guitars tamber, and tone will more times than not, follow the neck.
I spend a large part of the budget on the neck.
That has really worked well for me, and took the whole partscaster idea to a new level.
Always modify the cheep part, to fit.
Fair play that sounds great and looks the part
Your rhythm playing to the clash was great too , nailed it 👍
Love it . Thanks agian Colin well done , well done.
Guitar sounds sick . looks super cool . Always interesting content on this channel . Great stuff
What a great looking guitar. You did an awesome job!
Hey man !! Nice work !! The Esquire sounds great !!
$15,000 for Joe's replica????Mr Mellor would not be pleased in the least.😢
Kudos to Colin for building his own. It's got a priceless sound. Cheers!
Great job boss.......I loved Joe Strummer Tele with the not sticker
Great job done. It gives us all hope
Have you measured the fret wire? They did use much thinner wire back in the late 50s and early 60s.
Thanks for video! Very cool! Ive got a couple warmoth parts casters that were fun and turned out good. Every T style guitar, except for my 74 tele deluxe, has brass saddles.
I think it turned out great!
Great upload Colin, a brilliant first build. It's been great watching your confidence grow with regard to fettling and fuckin' about. I love those coarse knurled volume & control knobs. Gotta go, time to dig out the first 3 Clash LP's, yeah even Give 'Em Enough Rope!
Guitar looks great, I think any joe fan would agree d i y will get us closer to a joe vibe . Great job and video .
The operation was a success and the patient is very much alive. Looks cool, sounds great and a proper Joe tribute. Seems almost everyone here agrees. Sounded just like Joe on "London Calling" from the first strum. Leave it as-is, enjoy, and be a little deservingly proud of your work. Nothing to feel guilty about. This guitar has soul and personality. Can it be improved if you want to nit-pick about it? Of course. Why bother though? Cheers from Dallas!
Cheers Mark!
Soul and personality. Exactly what went through my mind.. 🤠
Will get with You when finance is better next year Colin. Keep up the good work. Aloha Brah! Mele Kalikimaka to you and your family.
Really nice work Colin!!!!!!
I've recently refretted the neck on my guitar for the first time. Used the Fender pre-radiused "medium jumbo" frets and frankly just eyballing it, they seem about as "skinny" as these here. Some 2.6 mm width at the fretboard. (I was frankly kinda surprised how slim they were, despite being medium jumbo, seemed thinner than the original medium jumbos the guitar had before.)
Also, linear pot would likely give you even worse roll-off, this sounds about right for an audio taper judging from how the tone changes as you turn. Linear will very likely change the tone very little between say 10 and 3 and then very quickly between 3 and 0. And as you also seem to not be happy about how dark the tone gets near 0, like you said, you might be better off changing the cap value instead. Maybe replace them with .22 microF or possibly even less. That will give you somewhat brighter tone as you roll off the tone and as such might give you a better tone control over the entire range of the pot.
Alternatively, if you really want to experiment with the pot taper, you might want to try different versions of audio taper. They differ between I believe 10%, 20% and 30% taper (I believe 30% is so called "vintage taper" whereas 10% is the most common I believe), where 50% taper would be equal to linear. So those would obviously change how the tone responds across the knob travel, the higher tapers are closer to how linear would respond. Though the information about the actual taper percentage is kinda hard to come by, unfortunately. There are also rarely available the so-called "inverse logarithmic/audio taper" pots, which would behave like the opposite of linear, essentially, so a relatively fast drop of tone between 10 and say 7, and then very gradual for the rest of the turn.
Looks and sounds great! I’ve been trying to rationalize getting a Tele lately and your videos are really helping. I used the neck pickup often on the ‘61 which I foolishly sold, so maybe not this one…still, putting together a body, neck and favorite bits is a good idea.
Looks and sounds great, mate.
I’m having apple pie and coffee during this episode. Again Merry Christmas 🎄.
Nice work on the tasty snack and beverage! 😆👍
I like the guitar and love the sound of it. I've put a proper ashtray bridge and white 5-hole guard on my Arctic White Standard Tele. An Esquire guard is easy to get but the body would need to be repainted because Arctic White isn't even close to the Strummer refrigerator white haha. I'm tempted to just bury the neck pickup under the guard as a stealth pickup.
I've heard a P-90 works well like that.
Necks are friggin' expensive but I'd love a soft V neck with a dark rosewood board.
I really enjoyed the 'balls to the walls' playing this episode, Colin.
Cheers!
The guitar you build will do more than enough visually and playability. I am sure anyone that has bought that at $15k has money flowing like wine. I don't see $15k worth in that at all. I got an American Special for £799 a few years back and I am sure that blows that out of the water as is the best sounding Tele I have heard in a while.
Nice job Colin! I shouldve done a series like this when i built my Frusciante strat - that ive now sprayed black lol.
Also, i wanna say as the year ends your playing has just got better and better this year, nice one!
Ah thanks mate that's really appreciated 😊🙏 I can feel it a bit so my new years resolution is to spend a lot less time buying them and more time learning to play them! 😁👍
Now I wanna watch the entire build... so I've subbed to your tv channel :)
Cheers man!
Well done Col, top fettling 👍🏻
Cool video and guitar! The soft Vnecks are some of my favourites and great on Teles.
Great idea enjoyed watching 😊
It sounds great and its a lot of fun.
Try an .022uf for the tone control cap, leave .047uf or .033uf on the dark switch position. .015uf on the tone control will get you closer to cocked wah rolled all the way off and actually give you more usable tones across the sweep of the audio taper.
Maybe a 500K volume pot also, with that Quarter Pounder. Some radical madman might even suggest 1M (its a pretty darned hot pickup.)
Looks and sounds good to me.
I have two bodies/ necks and the parts. Think I want a find rosewood neck for the double bound body. And then some time. One set is all relic high end parts and Fender Custom Shop pickups. The other is a MIM Player Plus with a damaged body I picked up cheaper than just buying the neck. Both bodies are finished in relic nitro.
I do enjoy your video content. I’m trying to get my kids to go along with trimming the $200+ streaming services we have, but with four of them they are all watching something different. If they just watched THIS my streaming budget would be under control and I could spend more on guitars!
I think you'll be up against it converting them but good luck! 🤣👍
Good afternoon, guitar is great. Nice job. Try a 332
on the front position. It will add some treble to the position.
332 value capacitor, .003
Well done on that build.
the guitar sounds great
Very Cool, Thankyou. Nice Work, Awesome Build of a Stunning looking and Sounding Guitar. I have been interested in the Squier Sonic Series Esquire in "Pete Honore Purple" but have been a bit put off by it having a Single Humbucker instead of a Single Coil Pickup. I think I'll keep looking for a "Budget" Single Coil Esquire, as I think a Build would be beyond me. Off to Watch The Full Build now. All The Best. Cheers
Good job Colin. Not bad for your first DYI. Now your ready for the next step.
(StewMac) makes many good quality guitar kits. I have seen several build videos by folks building them. If I had space, time, experience, and just a little money, I'd like to build their ES335. When you order you choose the hardware you want too. Base price is just under $400.00. You already know how to install the goodies. Maybe give one a try. ;-)
great job mate on a sweet "pile of excellence"!
15 grand??? is that all?? imagine 50 grand for a murphy lab greeny hahaha!! and i "made" one for less than 200USD!
i have a sawtooth "tele" that i turned into an esqiure type model...i deleted the neck pup and popped in a "vintera" style pup on the bridge...blocked the neck pup hole with a vanilla folder bit...
mine is more basic....no selector swotch...yet kept the tone control...added blonde witch hat knobs...
o ya that monoprice os20 project turned out saweeet!!! and yess...youd approve greatly!!
You are really digging that guitar. I am too. It sounds great and your playing was inspired. That guitar certainly has character, visually and audibly. I was surprised that a single pickup could be that versatile. I think you put the head stock decal in the correct spot and Joe's was wrong.. 😎
Update: I just subbed to your tv channel. You're definitely worth a dollar a week. Plus, I wouldn't know which day is Friday if it weren't for you.. 🤠
Cheers man that's appreciated! 😁🙏
Another great video, would you ever do a review of a player series Jazzmaster? Would love to hear your take on them👏🏻
"Necks time" you may spend more on the neck 😂. Great video as always. Joe would love it
Sounds great, that’s brilliant my good man just a couple of things to correct and you will have a great guitar without the £12000 odd price.
Nice Project....
👏👏👏
very interesting video, good job. Greetings Pavel CZ.👍
I would love to see a dream tele build
It sounds just as good as the $15k custom! I’m sure Joe would appreciate your diy Esquire and how it is sidelines the capitalist system. Yeah I agree. Very cool.
Came out well Col!! When the pickup read 15.? I thought it'd push the front of the amp too much... wrong!!
Is the Quarter Pounder what Joe used in his Tele?
Only asking, cos the Musicman amps have a mob of clean headroom...
Anyway it looks and sounds great!!
Oh, l read another comment in the thread saying they'd join ur TV channel, but don't use online banking..lm the same mate..sorry !