Jump to content
Why become a member? ×

Rob Williams custom build guitar

leftybassman392

By leftybassman392,
in Guitars

 Share

Recommended Posts

leftybassman392 Grand Master

leftybassman392

Posted
Posted (edited)

I wasn't sure whether to post this here (especially as there's a new sister website on the way for guitar), but here goes...

After taking my old Eggle Berlin to Rob in deepest Wales to get some repair work done we got talking guitars, and lo and behold I've wound up ordering a custom build from him. I've asked him to do a build diary as he goes, which I'll post in the Guitar forum when it starts. For now though, here are the specs (some minor details have to be worked out, but most of it is in place):-

[b]Custom build - Set Neck Tele (Left Handed):[/b]

[u][b]Body[/b][/u]:
Brazilian Mahogany contoured for waist and forearm
Flame Maple drop top
Faint tobacco burst kept tight to the edges
Masked binding
Tobacco burst sides and rear to mask neck joint

[u][b]Neck[/b][/u]:

[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Maple 25 1/2” scale set neck with angled headstock[/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Maple fingerboard with walnut inlay dot[/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]22 frets, low / wide profile (dunlop 6130)[/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]43mm width at nut[/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]12” fingerboard radius[/font][/font][/size][/left]
[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Depth of neck front to back (20.5mm[/font][/font][/size][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue])[/font][/font][/size]
[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Graphite nut[/font][/font][/size]

[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][u][b]Electrics[/b][/u]:[/font][/font][/size]

[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Rear routed controls[/font][/font][/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Bridge humbucker and 2 x single coils (in-house design)[/font][/font][/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Master volume, push pull for series / parallel on bridge humbucker[/font][/font][/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Master tone, push pull for coil tap on bridge humbucker[/font][/font][/font][/font][/size][/left]
[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]5 way selector[/font][/font][/font][/font][/size]
[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Layout - standard[/font][/font][/font][/font][/size]
[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Side mounted jack socket screw-fixed Telecaster type[/font][/font][/font][/font][/size]

[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][u][b]Hardware[/b][/u]:[/font][/font][/font][/font][/size]

[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]All hardware in gold electro plate.[/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Gotoh 510 series locking tuners[/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Wilkinson vs100 trem[/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/size][/left]
[left][size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Gold control knobs[/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/size][/left]
[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Large gold strap studs[/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/font][/size]


[size=4][font=HelveticaNeue][font=HelveticaNeue]Think that covers it. Expected build time is approx. 4 months, so with luck I should have it just in time for Christmas! Price is going to be £2800 - which is quite a lot (but pretty good value for what I'm getting I reckon), but it's almost certainly the last guitar I'll ever buy, and courtesy of a recent PPI windfall from HFC Bank plc I can now afford it. Can't wait![/font][/font][/size]

Edited by leftybassman392
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Ancient Mariner Collaborator

Ancient Mariner

Posted
Posted

[quote name='lettsguitars' timestamp='1344440038' post='1764549']
“Rob Williams is one of the few electric guitar makers in this country who can create a product that genuinely competes with the top US makers.”
That made me laugh. British craftsmanship is second to none!
[/quote]

Very likely at the top end they are all indistinguishable for build quality, so it then comes down to a question of taste and preference. If you prefer a design from Backlund or a Soloway Swan then he won't be in the picture, but if you want whatever he does best then he'll be the man to go to.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 1 month later...
Big_Stu Proficient

Big_Stu

Posted
Posted

[quote name='leftybassman392' timestamp='1344439657' post='1764540'][b]Custom build - Set Neck Tele (Left Handed)[/b][/quote]

Sounds fantastic! Can't fault any of your choices; good use of the pots too to keep the two pots style. I really do like a Tele with a maple neck, sounds like the neck will be a two-piece?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
charic Veteran

charic

Posted
Posted

[quote name='lettsguitars' timestamp='1344440038' post='1764549']
“Rob Williams is one of the few electric guitar makers in this country who can create a product that genuinely competes with the top US makers.”
That made me laugh. British craftsmanship is second to none!
[/quote]

I would disagree with that. In that you can't judge craftmanship by country, end of story

Link to comment
Share on other sites
lettsguitars Community Regular

lettsguitars

Posted
Posted

[quote name='charic' timestamp='1349267422' post='1823983']
I would disagree with that. In that you can't judge craftmanship by country, end of story
[/quote]Well yes. Exactly my point really. The statement on the website implies that the best craftsmen all live in the u.s which is total bollocks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
leftybassman392 Grand Master

leftybassman392

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Blimey - a bit of activity here all of a sudden. To respond to the various posts:-

Billy apple: strictly speaking it's actually a hybrid, taken from my favourite bits of my favourite guitars. I've loved the Tele body shape since I was a kid; the electrics are based on a superStrat layout but organised so as to be able to get the maximum tonal breadth with a minimum of clutter; the neck will be very close to that of a Gibson 335 (whose necks I've always preferred to anything Fender ever made). The set neck idea is part of the Gibson thing (and is something Rob does particularly well). A drop top is a 2-layer construction - the base wood is invariably Mahogany, with a thinner piece of (usually figured) wood (in my case flamed Maple) 'dropped' on the top - hence the name (I think that's right but if anyone knows better I'm happy to be corrected); It's the way Les Pauls and most PRS guitar bodies are made.

Angel: I've asked Rob for some pics already but I think he feels that since since it's quite early in the process (i.e. bits of wood) he doesn't really see the need to take pix at this stage. I'll nag him about it,and post them as soon as I get them. He's a bit old-school though so we'll see.

Wooks: yep, really looking forward to seeing it develop. I have an Eggle Berlin from his time as production manager there, and have played a couple of instruments at his workshop in Wales. The pictures I've seen in reviews really don't do them justice!

Stu: thanks for the comments. TBH I'm not completely sure about the details of the neck construction. I know he does several versions - I'll check with him and get back to you. The general theme of the instrument is elegant simplicity if that helps. I need to call him soon to finalise a few details so I'll make a point of asking.

Others: I'd endorse the comments about quality of craftsmanship being international. (To be fair, I think the point was raised by a reviewer in one of the magazine articles - Rob himself certainly doesn't see it that way.)

I will keep folks up to date as and when I get updates (and if the sister guitar website appears in the meantime I'll copy it all over there).

Link to comment
Share on other sites
leftybassman392 Grand Master

leftybassman392

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Bit of an update:

Stu: just to let you know the neck is a single slab of Rock Maple with a second piece for the fretboard. I don't know if that's what you meant by a 2-piece?

Angel: I'm afraid you'll have to wait until it's finished - he's doing a set of pix as he goes but is putting them on a DVD rather than emailing them. I'll have a DVD full of 'em in a couple of months though... :ph34r:

Link to comment
Share on other sites
jazzyvee Mentor

jazzyvee

Posted
Posted (edited)

I have one of Rob's custom strat type guitars, in fact it was one reviewed in a UK Guitar Magazine. I bought it off a fellow guitarist friend who had it custom made by Rob as an endorsee.
It looks fantastic However I've never got to grips with the sound of it. On paper it should be a fantastic guitar but it has some seymour duncan pickups in it which are too hot for my liking and makes the sound gritty at the volumes I normally play at and I found it difficult to get a warm mellow tone from it. The wood recipe is mahogany body with quilted maple top, neck is mahogany with a rosewood fretboard.
With that recipe i would have expected a warmer sound. Rob did offer to wind some pickups for me with less agressive attack and a cleaner mellower tone but I've not been playing much guitar for a while so not taken him up on the offer. I'd be interested in what your in house pickups are like with a view to getting some done for my guitar. I did have a chat with one of his other endorsee's about it as I was planning to sell it and Rob contacted me to offer some advice.

In actual fact I did take it back to Rob to get it refinished and the wiring checked and re-done as it was doing odd things and very noisy.

jazzyvee

Edited by jazzyvee
Link to comment
Share on other sites
leftybassman392 Grand Master

leftybassman392

Posted
  • Author
Posted

It's an interesting thing you say about the Seymour Duncans. I have a pair of them in the Eggle and it definitely has a certain 'sound'.. As it happens I rather like it, but you wouldn't really call it a classic sound. Each to their own I guess. It certainly did the job in the RockBlues covers band I played during the '90's through my Marshall ministack!

The pickups are a bit of an unknown, but surely that's part of the fun?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
jazzyvee Mentor

jazzyvee

Posted
Posted

I've played them with a blues band a few years back and for that type of sound it is fine. But my playing has been more around reggae rnb,funk and jazz so a cleaner sound suits my needs better and I tend to prefer a pedal to get dirty.

Jazzyvee

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 1 month later...
leftybassman392 Grand Master

leftybassman392

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Bit of an update: I got a call from Rob a couple of days ago on a small technical matter, and he let slip that there's a good chance the guitar will be ready around the end of November - a good 2 weeks ahead of schedule. :party:

He's also sent a couple of shots from the early stages of the build, but they're thumbnail-sized and hence not much good for showing you how it's going. (I did say he's kind of old school...).On the bright side, there's going to be a DVD of the build when I take delivery.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
jazzyvee Mentor

jazzyvee

Posted
Posted

Rob has a cool workshop down there in Wales. I'm sure you will have a good time there.
I'm looking forward to the pictures.

I'm still toying with the idea of selling mine but not until I find something I want to replace it with. Les Paul or maybe a PRS.


Jazzyvee

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Ancient Mariner Collaborator

Ancient Mariner

Posted
Posted

[quote name='jazzyvee' timestamp='1349376576' post='1825547']
It looks fantastic However I've never got to grips with the sound of it. On paper it should be a fantastic guitar but it has some seymour duncan pickups in it which are too hot for my liking and makes the sound gritty at the volumes I normally play at and I found it difficult to get a warm mellow tone from it.
[/quote]

That tends to be the Seymour Duncan tone I'm afraid - I've never got on with any Duncan pickups in any guitar, though some love them. If you like the feel of the guitar and the way it sounds unplugged then a pickup change would be worthwhile, otherwise better to move it on.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
jazzyvee Mentor

jazzyvee

Posted
Posted

The guitar feels great, but because of the sound of it due to pickups I haven't really bonded with it at all. I tried some old dimarzio's I had laying around from way back and they were still a bit hot in the bridge position. Earlier this year I got some Fender gold lace pickups with a dually gold in the bridge position because I had a strat with them in a few years back and they sounded great and I was familiar with that sound.
However whilst they do sound much better than the original duncans they don't have the clear sparkle in the tone that a strat has. I wonder if the mahogany has something to do with that as well. It's all mahogany body and neck with a figured maple top and rosewood fretboard.

I'll have to do some more reading up on pickups. Gibson Les Paul's have mahogany bodies and sound great, maybe some humbuckers in a single coil size may be an option. Any views?

Jazzyvee
Jazzyvee

Link to comment
Share on other sites
leftybassman392 Grand Master

leftybassman392

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

Okay ffolks, here we go. I'll put up a few of the best shots here and provide a linky to the full set (47 in all I think)



">http://


">http://

">http://

">http://

">http://:

">http://

">http://

">http://




There you go. Comments/observations/questions more than welcome. Just don't ask about the sound for a few days until I've had a chance to explore the palette a bit, ok?


Edit: forgot to post the link to the full set:


[url="http://s1109.beta.photobucket.com/user/muso392/library/Custom%20Telecaster"]http://s1109.beta.photobucket.com/user/muso392/library/Custom%20Telecaster[/url]

Edited by leftybassman392
Link to comment
Share on other sites
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...