NGD 1966 Fender Mustang

bbill335

Well, after a day of hardly putting it down, I feel I did the right thing.



The neck is really chunky, and the fretboard is wide compared to what I normally go for. It sustains like crazy, even unplugged.
The switches are a tad temperamental, I need to get more switch cleaner in there.


A lot of old mustangs I've seen in pictures have string trees way down to the headstock, no spacer. Or at least, not a spacer like this. The high E likes to jump out of its nut slot sometimes, which is a problem. I was thinking a steeper break angle over the nut would keep it in place better. Is that a good idea? I need to find a shorter screw (3/8" I think) for the tree so I can screw it down more.

It's fucking dumb but I feel like I'm Harry Potter when he picks out his wand. This guitar just sounds like me.

GavRichList

Congrats, very nice indeed. 

Voxman

Congrats on finding a guitar that sounds such a good fit for you. I had a similar problem last month with my A string slipping off the nut on my 69 Strat.  The nut was worn down but a new nut solved the problem. 

JookyChap

That is too cool. I'm really chuffed you went for it and that it turned out so well

Bridgehouse

Brilliant! Really pleased you got it - it's a corker.

You could try a higher gauge of string (like 11's of you're not using them already) to increase tension to stop jumping around. Otherwise you could try a lower spacer to increase the break angle after the nut. The Mustang trem does give a low tension due to the break angle as well..

The switchcraft switches do tend to fall apart after a while - and they are probably loose/corroded which will make them intermittent. A good tech will swap them out for next to nothing as they are as cheap as chips. 

bbill335

Bridgehouse said:

Brilliant! Really pleased you got it - it's a corker.

You could try a higher gauge of string (like 11's of you're not using them already) to increase tension to stop jumping around. Otherwise you could try a lower spacer to increase the break angle after the nut. The Mustang trem does give a low tension due to the break angle as well..

The switchcraft switches do tend to fall apart after a while - and they are probably loose/corroded which will make them intermittent. A good tech will swap them out for next to nothing as they are as cheap as chips. 

I've actually gone down a gauge on this one (11-48 instead of my usual 11-54) and I think some switch cleaner should fix up the old switches. Pots work perfectly and I love the big chunky knobs (the MIJ Mustangs have smaller knobs).

Thanks for the kind words!

Sassafras

Nice.
You've even got the period correct curly lead.
I admire that sort of devotion to detail.

bbill335

Sassafras said:

Nice.
You've even got the period correct curly lead.
I admire that sort of devotion to detail.

I inherited that lead from my grandad. It's Fender branded so I think it must've come with his mid/late 70s P bass. It's a hefty cable!

richardhomer

Lovely colour....

DulcetJones

That's a beauty, they are great guitars.  I had a white 68' for a number of years, my bandmates actually called me out when I showed up at rehearsal with a Les Paul one day.  They liked the sound of the Mustang more.

Gassage

Well jealous.

did you get it off Martin?

bbill335

Gassage said:

Well jealous.

did you get it off Martin?

Yep! 

Bellycaster

Very WowWorthy Indeed.

Loobs

Nice! Nice Traynor too.

bbill335

Loobs said:

Nice! Nice Traynor too.

The Mustang + Traynor is a great surfy combination. The reverb sounds like an outboard tank, drippy, splashy and extreme.

blueskunk

Very cool indeed. Well done

ICBM

If you're determined and you want to keep the original parts, it's possible to dismantle the switches and clean the contacts more thoroughly than you can with squirt-in cleaner.

The string tree does need lowering, that's the correct spacer for a G/D string one - the E/B one should be half that height. You know to check the screw length! If necessary and you can't find a screw with the right head to look correct, you could cut it down with a pair of wirecutters and re-shape the tip with a file or emery board. Yes, I am a geek and these things matter to me .

bbill335

ICBM said:

If you're determined and you want to keep the original parts, it's possible to dismantle the switches and clean the contacts more thoroughly than you can with squirt-in cleaner.

The string tree does need lowering, that's the correct spacer for a G/D string one - the E/B one should be half that height. You know to check the screw length! If necessary and you can't find a screw with the right head to look correct, you could cut it down with a pair of wirecutters and re-shape the tip with a file or emery board. Yes, I am a geek and these things matter to me .

It is, I think, the stock spacer for the tree and Mustangs didn't ship with a tree for G/D until much later, iirc. I'll go into the shop and see if I can get a shorter screw and spacer in the week. I need to ask them to take the nut slot for the G down just a teeny bit, that E major chord is sounding a bit janky with a sharp major 3rd!

ICBM

It's certainly possible it was made like that, yes! It is too tall though, the right spacer is the one about half that height.

bbill335

@ICBM ;It's weird because so many of the old Fender necks I've seen have no spacer, just the tree screwed all the way down, like this:


If I did that to mine, would it stop the high E from escaping the nut slot?

ICBM

bbill335 said:

@ICBM ;It's weird because so many of the old Fender necks I've seen have no spacer, just the tree screwed all the way down, like this:

If I did that to mine, would it stop the high E from escaping the nut slot?

Probably. Yes, most are like that - although I tend to find it's too much the other way and can cause the top strings to bind in the nut. You could try a temporary test by re-fitting the one you have with the spacer above the string tree - it will look odd but should let you know whether that will fix the string jumping problem without needing a new nut.