Guitar Mod Question

[upsetminded]

Hi All,

Someone gave me a Washburn Maverick.  I have no idea what series and wouldn't know where to look, but it looks like a strat style.  Anyway the guitar looks in great shape, the neck is really small and plays fast.  The guy must've put some money in to it as it looks like he added Grover Tuners and an EMG humbucker to it.  I just need to get the wiring done as nothing is wired and I think the switch it no good.

My question is what could I add to this guitar to make it great?  Keeping in mind I think it is a pretty cheap/inexpensive guitar to begin with.  And further is it even worth putting money into it?

[hewhoiscalledj]

Not a shabby gift my friend. I play Epiphone guitars and have had awesome results by upgrading all the electronics including the pickups and wiring harness and capacitors. After all that, it seemed like I had taken a blanket off my guitar as the sound was louder, crisper and just better overall... I got my upgrade kit from RS Guitarworks: http://www.rsguitarworks.net/cms2/index.php

Is it worth doing? Well my kit cost about $75 or so (all prewired) but it was the best $75 I have spent and I love my guitars even more. Who needs a Gibson when you can buy several Epis at the same price!

Assuming the guitar plays and sounds good, there's no need to go crazy with it but if you have the itch there's a world of upgrades avaiable. You can have fun with a Fernandes Sustainer pickup (EMG makes a similar one) or maybe just get skull caps for your tone/vol knobs. Have fun...

[upsetminded]

I'm so glad you posted.  You are just the man I want to talk to.

I have an epi les paul 100 as well.  I love the guitar, but heard that with a few upgrades it can be a real beauty.  Do you know what tuners will fit right in without any extra work?  I guess the upgrade kit you got would really improve my les paul.  I've never done work myself and usually pay to get it done.  Am I getting way over my head if I install the kit myself?  I've never soldered or anything like that.

Thanks for the great tips.

[hewhoiscalledj]

Not sure about Les Paul 100s... but I'm pretty sure any tuner that says it's compatible with Epi Les Pauls will do the trick. Just make sure it mentions Epiphone and not Gibson; although there may not even be a difference (there was a diff. for the pickup selectors.)

I've never actually worked on my guitar's electronics either as I'm a knucklehead when it comes to wires and soldering. I'd suggest having a pro do it if you can cough up the dough. Then again, it would be a great learning experience so long as it isnt your favorite guitar.

[StevieM]

Nice pressie!
any chance you can post a pic or two?
It's too not too much of a problem to do the wiring, if you can solder then you can do it. There's LOADS about it on the net, from basic standard configurations to all sorts of customising.
Why not have a go, after all, if it goes wrong then you take it to a pro .
One thing to watch for when soldering, that's make sure you attach a heat sink to whichever bit you're working on ( pot/switch etc). Sounds complicated, but all you need to do is attach a small crocodile clip ( or similar) to somewhere on it, and if there's an extra couple inches or so of wire attached to the clip so much the better. This helps to stop the heat building up and frying whatever you're working on.
Maybe have a bit of a practise on something that doesn't matter first?

I'm going to be re-wiring one I made soon, I can always take pics and post them.
Oh yeh, another thing that may be a good idea, if it's not already done. Get hold of some adhesive copper foil ( E bay's a good place, or a guitar bits shop), and line all the cavities where there's any electrics, including the backs of cover plates.
This helps to stop any electrical interference from outside.
If you decide to do it yourself, let me know and I'll see if I can help, if you want.

[StevieM]

Forgot to say this on the last post. Does it matter 'if it's worth it' or not? To my way of thinking, if it's comfortable, nice to play and you like it, what does it matter if you do stuff to it that some people might say isn't worth the trouble on that! It's not like it's a real cheap budget piece of kit that's only going to last a month and never feel or sound right anyway. Tell em to stuff it, if you like it that's enough reason

[hewhoiscalledj]

so long as you arent trying to "increase the value" for resale and you like what you get, i cant see why not.

just be sure you dont ruin a collectors piece but that doesnt seem to be the case here. nothing better than a "junk" guitar turned frankenstein axe. just shop around for the best deals as perhaps going used may be the way to go with many possible upgrades, including pickups and hardware.

[StevieM]

Yep, there are a few that shouldn't be touched at all.
Just by simply changing capicitors on the tone pots can make a big difference.

[BossMicroBRew]

I have an old strat copy and I progressively became displeased with its sound over the years. I made some minor changes and it made an easily-realized overall sound and intonation improvement. Sustain, you ask? Ka-ching also. Guitar was much easier to tune, and held its tuning longer. All of this without electronic upgrades...though that would have helped too.

I didn't look into your guitar so I don't know if all of these apply.
This is all I did:
1.) added a Tusq Nut
2.) added GraphTech String Saver Saddles
3.) 3 new tremolo springs and tightened the inside components just a smidgen
4.) added Roller String Retainers (http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Hardware,_parts/Electric_guitar:_String_trees_retainers/Roller_String_Retainers_for_Guitar.html)

These are pretty easy upgrades that will help you out without busting out the soldering iron. Good luck!

BMB

[Kody]

Hey Steve M, I'd love for you to post some pictures of your next wiring project!  I have an old Jackson (my first guitar) torn apart...

The thing is: I have a 5-way switch that I need to wire-up to 2 humbuckers and 1 single coil....I bought new capacitators and a tone pot....It's in pieces, man...I'd really love to get her going again.  I've looked at wiring schemes on the internet, but they're harder to understand than the Old Testement in Latin....I don't have any wiring yet either....I should probably go to StewMac.