High end Partscaster - disappointment likely?

jim_cross · November 2020

I feel like I need a really good Strat in my life, however I'm struggling to find the right guitar (modern C neck, rosewood board, vintage style bridge) so I'm considering going down the Partscaster route. Is this likely to end in disappointment? I'm thinking something along the lines of:
- SC Relics body
- USA standard neck
- Radioshop Chris Buck pickups
- Mark Foley bridge

I'd be happy to mod an existing guitar, but struggle to find a starting point that has a really nice neck and the vintage style bridge...

skunkwerx · November 2020

Have you played the Fender American professionals at all?

I know that has a Deep C neck, I quite like it on my tele but I’m not massively familiar with strats.

uksaint7 · November 2020

I hope not! I have a body currently with SC Relics for finishing with which I'm going to pair with a solid rosewood American Professional neck that feels fantastic. I have high hopes for this one.

WeegieBoy · November 2020

American Special Strat? I think there was a rosewood board version.

Seziertisch · November 2020

Spend a bit more on the neck.

@Danielsguitars has made some very impressive looking (and if reports are to be believed sounding) ones for members here.

There is a school of thought that the neck plays a more important role than the body in terms of the sound of the instrument,

drpbier · November 2020

Proceed with caution. I did the same thing and ended up with a heavy lump that hurt my hand to play for more than 15 minutes. It had excellent hardware. About the best thing was the SC refin by the way. Absolutely lovely checked Sonic Blue.

longjaw · November 2020

I've a few Tele and Strat partscasters - make sure you get a neck that's comfortable for you, otherwise you won't enjoy playing the guitar.

richardhomer · November 2020

Never really ‘got’ the partscaster thing.

Surely the new and used market is swamped with Strat shaped objects? There must be a guitar that would fit any player’s exact requirements out there already - and which carries none of the ‘will it be any good?’ risk inherent in an instrument that you can’t play until it’s finished.

munckee · November 2020

I liked my partscaster enjoyed the process as much as the finished guitar.

I think as said above the neck is the most important. It would be as easy to find a guitar you like and have refinished as per your minds eye guitar.

longjaw · November 2020

richardhomer said:

Never really ‘got’ the partscaster thing.

Surely the new and used market is swamped with Strat shaped objects? There must be a guitar that would fit any player’s exact requirements out there already - and which carries none of the ‘will it be any good’ risk inherent in an instrument that you can’t play until it’s finished.

Not for lefties - stuff like Fender Esquires, Strats in custom colours and Thinline 2s are usually only available Custom Shop.

stickyfiddle · November 2020

I have a few that I've done with Musikraft and MJT bits. A big part of it is choosing parts that should work together and then setting the thing up really well, but you can get great results. I agree the neck is essential to get right, because they're expensive so you might as well ensure you're getting exactly what you want spec-wise.

Personally I like the US Standard necks, so wouldn't suggest that needs "upgrading", other than that I personally prefer a nitro finish if possible.

Danielsguitars · November 2020

I made this guitar for Mike, he's a pro musician and strat guy through and through, you can go back and follow his journey too
As long as it's put together well it'll perform well imo, the neck is the most important bit for me

I should point out I'm not building one off necks anymore, they take me way too long so only full builds now, I string every neck up and tweak it whilst strung up, this takes time but the results speak for themselves imo

ThePrettyDamned · November 2020

Partscasters are great, but they're great because you get to put it together yourself.

If you are buying bits, then paying someone else to put them together, you could probably save money by just buying a guitar and upgrading a couple of bits.

stickyfiddle · November 2020

ThePrettyDamned said:

Partscasters are great, but they're great because you get to put it together yourself.

If you are buying bits, then paying someone else to put them together, you could probably save money by just buying a guitar and upgrading a couple of bits.

I agree with this. The fettling to get everything perfect is half the pleasure of it.

And of course getting exactly the spec you want, though you obviously need to know what spec you want to make that a positive.

ThePrettyDamned · November 2020

stickyfiddle said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

Partscasters are great, but they're great because you get to put it together yourself.

If you are buying bits, then paying someone else to put them together, you could probably save money by just buying a guitar and upgrading a couple of bits.

I agree with this. The fettling to get everything perfect is half the pleasure of it.

And of course getting exactly the spec you want, though you obviously need to know what spec you want to make that a positive.

And the spec you think you want might turn out to be a lot less good than your brain imagined - this is how GAS works.

A £150 squier strat sounds as much like a strat as a £5,000 custom shop strat. One just feels a bit better and has more refinements. Tonally, a pickup upgrade would get you 99 percent of the way to the same sound in most playing scenarios.

Not saying the more expensive one isn't worth it, that's a very personal decision... But it's worth thinking about fettling a second hang guitar if you just want a good guitar.

boogieman · November 2020

My partscaster is the nicest playing and sounding Strat I’ve ever owned, and I’ve had many over the years including a Fender custom shop model. I think it owes me about £700 all in, and that includes a repaint and a pro set-up. It’s not always about the name on the headstock or how much it costs, it’s the feel and sound of it.

I’d echo some of the comments about having a pro look at it after the build, to do some tweaks to get it as good as it can be. Unless you’re very competent with set ups and fretwork I guess, but usually it will feel and play much better.

stonevibe · November 2020

Fender mass produces, even the Custom Shop stuff is assembly line for the bulk of the guitar, then just sprayed and assembled by a team. So a partscaster should be fine if you get the parts you want.

stickyfiddle · November 2020

@ThePrettyDamned Agreed, and that's how I got to where I am with my own Strat. Started with a Squier and tweaked and modded until I had something I was really happy with. In the end it's probably about 1k in parts bought over several years, but all incremental changes intended for specific improvements rather than buying all at once and hoping for the best.

That said, I have a JM and a P-bass that were scratch-built from parts and both worked fantastically from day 1.

mudslide73 · November 2020

I've done a few. I think you have to view the build as a journey and it might not be perfect for you straight away. I've found it hard to admit to myself when something's not working eg. "this is a boutique item so it must be something/everything else". There's a period after it's finished where I view it as the component list before it takes on its own identity. If you like messing with guitars they're great.

jaymenon · November 2020

boogieman said:

My partscaster is the nicest playing and sounding Strat I’ve ever owned, and I’ve had many over the years including a Fender custom shop model. I think it owes me about £700 all in, and that includes a repaint and a pro set-up. It’s not always about the name on the headstock or how much it costs, it’s the feel and sound of it.

I’d echo some of the comments about having a pro look at it after the build, to do some tweaks to get it as good as it can be. Unless you’re very competent with set ups and fretwork I guess, but usually it will feel and play much better.

What he said. All my 'Fender' type guitars are partscasters.

Because:
I like noiseless pickups
SS frets
Flatter radii
Very lightweight
Contoured heels

Til now I could pretty much not get that in stock configuration.

The new Fender Ultra Range ticks a number of those boxes though - tempted...

axisus · November 2020

I love partscasters, but you never get your money back on them

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High end Partscaster - disappointment likely?

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