Re-Painting New Guitar!

[Strat_Copy]

I'm looking at a Squire Cyclone (mainly because i like mustangs) but i hate the colours Squire offer, black and a horrible blue metallic, i'm wondering just how hard it would be to take it apart (this is the bit i'm interested in, would involve any soldering? because nuts and bolts i can deal with lol) and repaint it (the painting bit i can do :D) ?

I'm thinking a nice Cobain colour, like a light blue or red :D

[ez-one]

taking a guitar apart is just nuts and bolts on most guitars, its not that hard, and could be a fun project to work on.

[Strat_Copy]

Thanks, i figured the same thing and after doing a little more reading i realise i don't have to do the painting- i could take it to a car garage after i strip off all the crappy acyrlic for re-painting.

Does anyone know whether there will be any soldering involved because A i can't and B i don't really want to! ?

Why didn't Squire just make them in better colours, they would have sold thousands more.... :(

[ez-one]

Squires are lower end guitars and the way you keep price down is by not making very many options, limited color choice and things like that save money, also certian paint colors and finishes cost more. They might run black for a month, then switch over to Red for a month. Usally all the pick ups are the same and come from the same manufacture, that way thet order in quanity (at a discount) , inventory control is easy ect...
I do not beleive that any soldering will be necessary, all of your electronics will be mounted to the pickguard and the jack will have a nut that holds it to the body, when that is removed the rest of the jack slides out back though the main area where the pick guard was.

[disobedience]

If it's like most fender style guitars there will be a minimum of soldering. The output jack wires are soldered to the jack and "generally" run through a small hole in the body...mark which one goes where (and/or take a picture) before removing them. There is also a ground wire that runs through the back of the body and is soldered to the claw for the vibrato bar.
None of these are hard to unsolder or put back together...just make sure you get good rosin core solder and a decent soldering iron (around 30 watts).

[EVH5150]

i recently took apart my first guitar cause i was thinking about painting it and buying new parts for it and make an EVH white and black guitar. of course, im going to put my money towards new gear for my new guitar, but i think it will be fun to put it together over the years as a project. good luck with your paint job!

[Strat_Copy]

Thanks for all the words of wisdom guys, i have to wait till next pay day to get the ball rolling though (21st of next month!).. hopefully i can rent or borrow a soldering iron, but i will definatley post up some pictures to show you how it progresses and eventually turns out :D

[Crash]

The next guitar I get will be one of those build it yourself strat kits on ebay. I'm thinking of doing a black metallic base with a pearl green on top of that then a couple of coats of clear. I've seen the House of Color do that with a red candy on a chopper that looked killer.

Hey Stat-copy, soldering irons are cheap you can get one at Radio Shack for about 6 bucks and solder for about 5 bucks. Practice on some scrap wire first and remember heat transfers real quick through wire so be careful not to melt the plastic covering or over heat your pots or switches. A roach clip works well as a heat sink, which is among one of it's many uses.:D

[Strat_Copy]

The next guitar I get will be one of those build it yourself strat kits on ebay. I'm thinking of doing a black metallic base with a pearl green on top of that then a couple of coats of clear. I've seen the House of Color do that with a red candy on a chopper that looked killer.

Hey Stat-copy, soldering irons are cheap you can get one at Radio Shack for about 6 bucks and solder for about 5 bucks. Practice on some scrap wire first and remember heat transfers real quick through wire so be careful not to melt the plastic covering or over heat your pots or switches. A roach clip works well as a heat sink, which is among one of it's many uses.:D

Thanks, and funny you should say about the soldering irons, i've just bought a 30 Watt one with some solder for about £9 (inc delivery), like you say i thought i'd get some practice in.

I thought about doing something like the pearlescent idea your talking about... but it seems a bit too difficult atm, and i think a classic mustang colour would suit a cyclone better, i'd get some really good pickups for that strat too so you can make an amazing guitar that plays as good as it looks- maybe some fender decals too.

If this my project goes well, who knows, i could start making some money out of it lol.

[markerdown]

Go to Wal-Mart and buy a cheap soldering iron and some solder. You can get it as a kit. Get some cheap wire and practice tinning the wires. It's not rocket science at this level. If you take apart a strat, you will need to de-solder the input jack (2 wires) and the ground on the claw. It's easy... even a caveman can do it ... ;)

Read up on the www on how to solder and practice a little. It not welding, it’s just getting the solder fluid to join the wire. It's really easy to do. For painting a guitar body, check out www.Reranch.com. Read all the info. They also sell everything you'll need. Plus, they also have a forum. Ask a lot of questions. Lots of guitar folks there and will offer advice to help you out with your project

I built a few frankenstrats when I couldn't find exactly what I wanted. I have one in work as I type this. One word of caution... building can be just as addictive as playing!! Building a strat is like workin' on a Chevy. Good ol' Leo made it so you can just bolt one together. Lots of interchangeable parts, (for the most part) and parts are easy to get. That's how Clapton built "Blackie". He bought 5 used strats, gave 1 to Keef, (I think) one to George Harrison and combined the other three to make one.

If you get into changing out pups, you'll need to know basic soldering, but it's easy.............................................m arkerdown