Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Hey there everyone. This is my first post, but I've been a big fan of this forum for quite some time, and thought I'd create a new thread showing everyone my current project in case anyone else is interested, plus any helpful thoughts/suggestions from you folks along the way are always appreciated.
About a year or so ago, I acquired a '91 USA Peavey Predator on Craigslist for $50. The guy I bought it from said he bought it for his son after his son begged him to buy it. His son then proceeded to play it for about 2 months, gave up on guitar, and it's been in the closet ever since; it even had the original strings still on the guitar
Any way, since getting the guitar, I've really enjoyed it, but like many other Predator owners, there were some things that I've never been very pleased with; namely the cheap tuners, crappy tremelo, and plastic nut. Plus, I've never been a big fan of the color/paint on the guitar (mine came Red with a white pickguard). The paint and urethane on the body and neck feels really thick and plastic-y (if that's even a word), and I've always been more of a fan of being able to see the wood grain on guitars.
Also, I'm not sure if all Predators are this way, but the high e string on mine has always felt like it was too close to the edge of the fret board. Many times when I've gone to do a quick bend on the high e string during a riff, I've accidentally rolled it off the edge of the board, which drives me crazy; especially considering the low E string has plenty of space from the edge of the fret board. To me, it's almost like the bridge was drilled in the wrong spot, and wasn't drilled to give the strings equal spacing on the edges of the neck.
I seriously considered spending the money to buy/build a custom Strat from Warmoth, but unfortunately that is not in my budget at this time, plus I love the feel of this guitar overall (especially the neck), and figured that if I could spend a fraction of the money it would cost to buy a Warmoth guitar on parts to improve my Predator, why not give it a shot? After all, if it plays great, feels great, and sounds great, who cares what name is on the head stock, or how much the guitar is technically worth? Not me personally.
So, here was the list I came up with for upgrades/improvements that I wanted in a guitar:
-Locking Tuners
-Tusq Nut
-Satin neck
-New medium jumbo frets
-Improve upper fret access
-Better tremelo (and fix string alignment on neck)
-New pickups
-New finish
-End up with a great playing guitar for as cheap as possible
So, with that list in mind, I set out to totally modify my Predator. I'm sure some people will think I'm crazy, saying I'm spending more than the guitar is worth, but guitar modifying is quite a hobby for me, and ultimately if I can end up with a guitar that feels and plays great, I think it's worth it.
Components purchased:
-Locking Tuners- Staggered 6 Inline- Chrome from Dragonfire Guitars (pretty sure these are the same as the one's sold by Guitar Fetish) http://www.dragonfireguitars.com/produc ... cts_id=453
-Black Tusq XL Nut
-New fretwire from StewMac (same size as Dunlop 6150)
-Dimarzio Injector Bridge & Neck pickups (every where I read gives these pickups amazing reviews saying they're possibly the most versatile Strat pickup out there, so I decided to give them a try)
-Wilkinson WV6SB Tremelo Bridge
-Vintage Tortoise pickguard from Dragonfire Guitars
Here are pictures of my current progress: Original Color with neck removed
Frets removed, and fretboard leveled with 12" radius block. I was VERY happy to find that these frets were not glued in, so removing them was quite easy, and left no chips to the fret slots.
Here you can see that I've sanded almost all the paint away, and you can see the maple cap on the poplar body.
Here I've doweled the original bridge holes. For the record, the Wilkinson WV6SB does fit as a replacement drop in, but since I didn't like how the original bridge was placed, I couldn't get the Wilkinson to place the strings where I liked them on the neck and still line up with the original holes.
Old tremelo. . . new tremelo. Quite a difference
Bridge has been doweled and re-drilled, and sanded maple cap down to all poplar body (this took awhile!)
Maple cap sanded off back of body
Contoured neck heel, similar to the heel on the Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster. I'll have to fill-in the original neck hole and re-drill a new hole for the 4th neck screw later on.
After I finished sanding the body and sanding the rest of the urethane off the back of the neck (urethane was already removed from the fretboard during the leveling), as well as slightly knocking it back on the headstock, I coated them both by hand using Arm-R-Seal (Semi-Gloss version). I wiped 7 coats on the body, and 5 coats on the neck, then I buffed the neck out with 800 grit sandpaper on the fretboard, and 1500 grit on the back of the neck. I think most people recommend only spraying maple necks, with the reason that it's difficult to get a uniform coat on the fretboard when attempting to coat it by hand, but I can't afford a spray system, and I didn't want to have to wait 1-2 months for Nitro to cure (or spend the additional money on it). Over all, I'm happy with the way the neck came out; it has a very natural feel, but still has the protection of the Arm-R-Seal Urethane varnish.
Ok, that's it for now, but more to come very soon. Thanks for looking!
About a year or so ago, I acquired a '91 USA Peavey Predator on Craigslist for $50. The guy I bought it from said he bought it for his son after his son begged him to buy it. His son then proceeded to play it for about 2 months, gave up on guitar, and it's been in the closet ever since; it even had the original strings still on the guitar
Any way, since getting the guitar, I've really enjoyed it, but like many other Predator owners, there were some things that I've never been very pleased with; namely the cheap tuners, crappy tremelo, and plastic nut. Plus, I've never been a big fan of the color/paint on the guitar (mine came Red with a white pickguard). The paint and urethane on the body and neck feels really thick and plastic-y (if that's even a word), and I've always been more of a fan of being able to see the wood grain on guitars.
Also, I'm not sure if all Predators are this way, but the high e string on mine has always felt like it was too close to the edge of the fret board. Many times when I've gone to do a quick bend on the high e string during a riff, I've accidentally rolled it off the edge of the board, which drives me crazy; especially considering the low E string has plenty of space from the edge of the fret board. To me, it's almost like the bridge was drilled in the wrong spot, and wasn't drilled to give the strings equal spacing on the edges of the neck.
I seriously considered spending the money to buy/build a custom Strat from Warmoth, but unfortunately that is not in my budget at this time, plus I love the feel of this guitar overall (especially the neck), and figured that if I could spend a fraction of the money it would cost to buy a Warmoth guitar on parts to improve my Predator, why not give it a shot? After all, if it plays great, feels great, and sounds great, who cares what name is on the head stock, or how much the guitar is technically worth? Not me personally.
So, here was the list I came up with for upgrades/improvements that I wanted in a guitar:
-Locking Tuners
-Tusq Nut
-Satin neck
-New medium jumbo frets
-Improve upper fret access
-Better tremelo (and fix string alignment on neck)
-New pickups
-New finish
-End up with a great playing guitar for as cheap as possible
So, with that list in mind, I set out to totally modify my Predator. I'm sure some people will think I'm crazy, saying I'm spending more than the guitar is worth, but guitar modifying is quite a hobby for me, and ultimately if I can end up with a guitar that feels and plays great, I think it's worth it.
Components purchased:
-Locking Tuners- Staggered 6 Inline- Chrome from Dragonfire Guitars (pretty sure these are the same as the one's sold by Guitar Fetish) http://www.dragonfireguitars.com/produc ... cts_id=453
-Black Tusq XL Nut
-New fretwire from StewMac (same size as Dunlop 6150)
-Dimarzio Injector Bridge & Neck pickups (every where I read gives these pickups amazing reviews saying they're possibly the most versatile Strat pickup out there, so I decided to give them a try)
-Wilkinson WV6SB Tremelo Bridge
-Vintage Tortoise pickguard from Dragonfire Guitars
Here are pictures of my current progress: Original Color with neck removed
Frets removed, and fretboard leveled with 12" radius block. I was VERY happy to find that these frets were not glued in, so removing them was quite easy, and left no chips to the fret slots.
Here you can see that I've sanded almost all the paint away, and you can see the maple cap on the poplar body.
Here I've doweled the original bridge holes. For the record, the Wilkinson WV6SB does fit as a replacement drop in, but since I didn't like how the original bridge was placed, I couldn't get the Wilkinson to place the strings where I liked them on the neck and still line up with the original holes.
Old tremelo. . . new tremelo. Quite a difference
Bridge has been doweled and re-drilled, and sanded maple cap down to all poplar body (this took awhile!)
Maple cap sanded off back of body
Contoured neck heel, similar to the heel on the Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster. I'll have to fill-in the original neck hole and re-drill a new hole for the 4th neck screw later on.
After I finished sanding the body and sanding the rest of the urethane off the back of the neck (urethane was already removed from the fretboard during the leveling), as well as slightly knocking it back on the headstock, I coated them both by hand using Arm-R-Seal (Semi-Gloss version). I wiped 7 coats on the body, and 5 coats on the neck, then I buffed the neck out with 800 grit sandpaper on the fretboard, and 1500 grit on the back of the neck. I think most people recommend only spraying maple necks, with the reason that it's difficult to get a uniform coat on the fretboard when attempting to coat it by hand, but I can't afford a spray system, and I didn't want to have to wait 1-2 months for Nitro to cure (or spend the additional money on it). Over all, I'm happy with the way the neck came out; it has a very natural feel, but still has the protection of the Arm-R-Seal Urethane varnish.
Ok, that's it for now, but more to come very soon. Thanks for looking!
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
I was skeptical on the refinish... But that is beautiful! Congrats!
Oh yeah, welcome!
Oh yeah, welcome!
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Thanks! I wasn't sure what to expect underneath the paint and maple cap, but it turned out to be a nice surprise. Unfortunately, I did find a small chip in the wood on the back of the guitar that was filled and painted over, but is now visible. I managed to sand over the area fairly well, so there's not any loose wood that will catch/tear on something, but it is there.
Here's another close-up shot of the area
Other than that small area, so far so good.
After letting the Arm-R-Seal cure for a week while I was out of town, my plan was to try and wet sand the urethane, and then buff it out with some polishing compound. Starting on the back of the guitar, I first attempted to lightly dry sand the back of the guitar with 600 grit sand paper, then figured I'd move onto the wet 800 - 1500 sandpaper routine. That quickly proved to be a mistake; after barely making a few passing strokes with the dry 600 grit, I noticed that I was already starting to cut through the finish
Luckily I caught this early before any noticeable damaged, and decided to abandon that idea. Instead I lightly buffed the whole body with 0000 steel wool, and then applied a coat of Johnson's Paste Wax to the body. Let the wax dry for 15 minutes, then buff it out with a dry cloth. The results are a very nice smooth and satin feel, but still has some nice shine to the finish. Granted, if you get close enough you can see some witness lines in the Arm-R-Seal that I was hoping to eliminate, but the risk of trying to wet sand the whole body to get these out just wasn't worth it to me.
Here's a shot of the body after the wax has been applied, with the new components in place (currently just a test fit, nothing actually hooked up yet):
Here's another shot from a different angle:
Next comes the new fret job, which I'm currently waiting on the notched straight edge I ordered to come in before I start on the frets (should be arriving by Tuesday). I've wanted to order a notched straight edge from Stew Mac for quite some time, but just couldn't justify shelling out the $80+ for one (since my budget is limited, and I don't get paid to fix guitars), so for awhile I've used a home made one I fabricated from a cheap metal straight edge from Walmart (used a Dremel to notch out the slots for the frets). It's been ok, but it's kind of flimsy, and I don't have a way of testing out how accurate it is.
Then the other day I'm browsing around on eBay, and I came across this notched straight edge for only $23.98 with shipping!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/260985028017?ss ... 1497.l2648
It appears to be nice quality, and says it's accurate down to +/- .001", so I decided to go for it! I'll let everyone know how it works out once I get it.
Here's another close-up shot of the area
Other than that small area, so far so good.
After letting the Arm-R-Seal cure for a week while I was out of town, my plan was to try and wet sand the urethane, and then buff it out with some polishing compound. Starting on the back of the guitar, I first attempted to lightly dry sand the back of the guitar with 600 grit sand paper, then figured I'd move onto the wet 800 - 1500 sandpaper routine. That quickly proved to be a mistake; after barely making a few passing strokes with the dry 600 grit, I noticed that I was already starting to cut through the finish
Luckily I caught this early before any noticeable damaged, and decided to abandon that idea. Instead I lightly buffed the whole body with 0000 steel wool, and then applied a coat of Johnson's Paste Wax to the body. Let the wax dry for 15 minutes, then buff it out with a dry cloth. The results are a very nice smooth and satin feel, but still has some nice shine to the finish. Granted, if you get close enough you can see some witness lines in the Arm-R-Seal that I was hoping to eliminate, but the risk of trying to wet sand the whole body to get these out just wasn't worth it to me.
Here's a shot of the body after the wax has been applied, with the new components in place (currently just a test fit, nothing actually hooked up yet):
Here's another shot from a different angle:
Next comes the new fret job, which I'm currently waiting on the notched straight edge I ordered to come in before I start on the frets (should be arriving by Tuesday). I've wanted to order a notched straight edge from Stew Mac for quite some time, but just couldn't justify shelling out the $80+ for one (since my budget is limited, and I don't get paid to fix guitars), so for awhile I've used a home made one I fabricated from a cheap metal straight edge from Walmart (used a Dremel to notch out the slots for the frets). It's been ok, but it's kind of flimsy, and I don't have a way of testing out how accurate it is.
Then the other day I'm browsing around on eBay, and I came across this notched straight edge for only $23.98 with shipping!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/260985028017?ss ... 1497.l2648
It appears to be nice quality, and says it's accurate down to +/- .001", so I decided to go for it! I'll let everyone know how it works out once I get it.
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
I had not seen well but....you remove the maple top cap
Love the bright reflections of poplar wood grains, start to take a great final look. yeah!
Love the bright reflections of poplar wood grains, start to take a great final look. yeah!
89' Peavey Falcon Classic "white"
92' Peavey Predator "trans-red wine"
07' Peavey HP Special FT "Black"
??' Peavey HP Signature EXP "Black Quilted"
92' Peavey Predator "trans-red wine"
07' Peavey HP Special FT "Black"
??' Peavey HP Signature EXP "Black Quilted"
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Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Gorgeous !
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Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
That looks awesome!
Great Job!
Great Job!
Darren
ITOC: 08-00190
Peavey stuff I have: Masterpiece 50, Custom Shop 212, Stereo Chorus 212, T-60, T-40, Signature Select, Odyssey II Prototype, Generation Custom EXP, Firenza P90-ACM, VB-2, Stomp Boxes, Radial Pro 1000, lots of mics, etc...
ITOC: 08-00190
Peavey stuff I have: Masterpiece 50, Custom Shop 212, Stereo Chorus 212, T-60, T-40, Signature Select, Odyssey II Prototype, Generation Custom EXP, Firenza P90-ACM, VB-2, Stomp Boxes, Radial Pro 1000, lots of mics, etc...
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
I just became the proud owner of a late 90's Peavey "partscaster". It is a lovely shade of off-white. The bright white has nicely yellowed with age. The thing I am wanting is to replace the plain-Jane white pickguard with a brown tortoise shell. Did the pickguard you bought pretty much match or was there customization involved? The standard, off-the-shelf Strat replacements are not as "pointy" as the Peavey. I have even considered buying a blank and making my own using the one I have now as a template. But if I can buy a reasonably priced tortoise shell I would rather have one pre-made. (Less chance of me screwing it up.)
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
I haven't actually connected the pickguard to the guitar yet, so I'm not sure.when I placed it on the guitar just for a quick look, it appeared that the holes were going to be off slighty, so I went ahead and filled the holes with toothpicks and wood glue so that it wouldn't be an issue later when I finish assembling everything. That may have been premature and unnecessary, bu it's easy enough, so no big deal.DFWCDS wrote:I just became the proud owner of a late 90's Peavey "partscaster". It is a lovely shade of off-white. The bright white has nicely yellowed with age. The thing I am wanting is to replace the plain-Jane white pickguard with a brown tortoise shell. Did the pickguard you bought pretty much match or was there customization involved? The standard, off-the-shelf Strat replacements are not as "pointy" as the Peavey. I have even considered buying a blank and making my own using the one I have now as a template. But if I can buy a reasonably priced tortoise shell I would rather have one pre-made. (Less chance of me screwing it up.)
This particular pickguard is from Dragon parts guitar, but previously I had a black pickguard I ordered from guitar fetish, and it fit the holes just fine. It may have required me drilling an additional hole, but I can't remember.
You can also order custom pickguards from Warmoth.com, but those are a little more expensive ($25 I think).
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Well, the rest of my supplies came in, so I figured it was time for an update. Just as a disclaimer, I'm by no means an expert when it comes to guitar repair work, and am still learning a lot as I go. As previously mentioned, my budget is usually fairly tight, so I'm always looking for "cost effective" alternatives when it comes to guitar work (as are many of us), because going out and buying every tool in the Stew McDonald arsenal is just not an option for me.
Since much of what I've learned has been picked up from various forums seeing how others did these same things (and often picking up new tricks and ideas along the way), I figured I should share and give back, and hopefully help someone else out in the process.
$5 Fret Caul
So I decided that I wanted to attempt to press my frets in instead of hammering them. I've only done one other re-fret job before this guitar (which was hammering the frets), and that was a headache I was hoping to avoid. Unfortunately, a fret press caul is a bit pricey, so here's what I came up with: What I did was buy the brass fret caul insert from Stew Mac for $5, and then built the housing for the insert. All it is is a wooden block with a groove cut in the bottom with a table saw to hold the insert. Then on the top, I cut another groove with a biscuit jointer (so the bottom would be rounded), and took the bolt from a small c-clamp and cut the adjustment arm and cup off of the bolt. What that left me with was a small bolt with a hole through the bottom, which allowed me to put a screw through it and fasten it to my wooden block. After that, I chucked it up in the trusty old drill press, viola! It may be ugly, but it did the job, and worked perfectly!
Here's a picture from another angle: Cheap fret bender
I attempted to make a traditional fret bender from stuff I had laying around in the shop, but for some reason I couldn't get it to bend the wire to a tight enough radius, and I didn't have any ball bearings or rollers, so I couldn't get the fret wire to roll or crank through evenly. I know I could have gone out and spend the $20 to buy the right supplies, but I won't have to re-fret another guitar in the near future, so it seemed to silly to spend the money for one fret job.
After getting frustrated with my first approach not working, I came across another idea, and here's what I came up with. This may be the ugliest fret bender you've ever seen, but it was very easy, and worked perfectly: So basically, I stripped an old hard drive, and the spindle that holds the disks had a groove in it that was the perfect size for fret wire! Then I just drilled two holes, put a couple of nylon bushings over that screws that could rotate freely on the screw but weren't too loose, and spun the metal wheel on the hard drive by hand to pull the wire through.
Here's a picture of the results: Inexpensive bench vise
In case you're like me and needed a decent but inexpensive bench vise to hold the guitar or neck while working, here's one I have found that has done great, and is only $29.99: It's called the Stanley MaxSteel 83-069 Multi-Angle Vise (got it on Amazon), and the angle of the vise rotates on a ball that you can lock down and tighten at just about any angle, which worked great for spinning the neck out over my work bench when beveling and rounding frets. It comes with some plastic inserts on the faces of the clamp, but I modified mine to have wooden inserts instead, then I super glued some thin rubber material to the wood so that it would hold the guitar tighter, but not mare the wood of the guitar.
Here's the bench vise from another angle: Alright, the frets have been leveled, next up is crowning the frets, installing the new tremelo and Graphtech nut, giving the guitar a proper setup. I gotta say, I'm getting pretty excited and anxious to hear how she plays!
Since much of what I've learned has been picked up from various forums seeing how others did these same things (and often picking up new tricks and ideas along the way), I figured I should share and give back, and hopefully help someone else out in the process.
$5 Fret Caul
So I decided that I wanted to attempt to press my frets in instead of hammering them. I've only done one other re-fret job before this guitar (which was hammering the frets), and that was a headache I was hoping to avoid. Unfortunately, a fret press caul is a bit pricey, so here's what I came up with: What I did was buy the brass fret caul insert from Stew Mac for $5, and then built the housing for the insert. All it is is a wooden block with a groove cut in the bottom with a table saw to hold the insert. Then on the top, I cut another groove with a biscuit jointer (so the bottom would be rounded), and took the bolt from a small c-clamp and cut the adjustment arm and cup off of the bolt. What that left me with was a small bolt with a hole through the bottom, which allowed me to put a screw through it and fasten it to my wooden block. After that, I chucked it up in the trusty old drill press, viola! It may be ugly, but it did the job, and worked perfectly!
Here's a picture from another angle: Cheap fret bender
I attempted to make a traditional fret bender from stuff I had laying around in the shop, but for some reason I couldn't get it to bend the wire to a tight enough radius, and I didn't have any ball bearings or rollers, so I couldn't get the fret wire to roll or crank through evenly. I know I could have gone out and spend the $20 to buy the right supplies, but I won't have to re-fret another guitar in the near future, so it seemed to silly to spend the money for one fret job.
After getting frustrated with my first approach not working, I came across another idea, and here's what I came up with. This may be the ugliest fret bender you've ever seen, but it was very easy, and worked perfectly: So basically, I stripped an old hard drive, and the spindle that holds the disks had a groove in it that was the perfect size for fret wire! Then I just drilled two holes, put a couple of nylon bushings over that screws that could rotate freely on the screw but weren't too loose, and spun the metal wheel on the hard drive by hand to pull the wire through.
Here's a picture of the results: Inexpensive bench vise
In case you're like me and needed a decent but inexpensive bench vise to hold the guitar or neck while working, here's one I have found that has done great, and is only $29.99: It's called the Stanley MaxSteel 83-069 Multi-Angle Vise (got it on Amazon), and the angle of the vise rotates on a ball that you can lock down and tighten at just about any angle, which worked great for spinning the neck out over my work bench when beveling and rounding frets. It comes with some plastic inserts on the faces of the clamp, but I modified mine to have wooden inserts instead, then I super glued some thin rubber material to the wood so that it would hold the guitar tighter, but not mare the wood of the guitar.
Here's the bench vise from another angle: Alright, the frets have been leveled, next up is crowning the frets, installing the new tremelo and Graphtech nut, giving the guitar a proper setup. I gotta say, I'm getting pretty excited and anxious to hear how she plays!
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Oh, one more thing. Since I attached the neck back to the body, I figured I share a couple of shots of how the contoured heel turned out. Unfortunately, the previous hole that I had to fill when I contoured the neck heel is quite noticeable if you look at it (partially due to my impatient decision to use wood filler in the hole instead of doweling it properly), but it's very smooth and feels great, and ultimately that's all I cared about; after all, it's my guitar, right?
Here's a shot from another angle:
I was going to buy a contoured neck plate on ebay, but I discovered when measuring that Peavey did not use the standard screw hole dimensions on their neck plate, so I had to use the existing neck plate from my guitar (which was black). I traced the outline of my curve on the existing neck plate, cut out the design with my dremel, smoothed the ends with a file, and then spray painted it black again.
I also discovered that the Wilkinson tremelo sticked out the back of the guitar ever so slightly after I had sanded off them front and back maple cap (which would not let my tremelo cover lay flat on the guitar), so I cut out a channel from the tremelo block on my tremelo block using the dremel again, and painted it black as well.
Here's a shot from another angle:
I was going to buy a contoured neck plate on ebay, but I discovered when measuring that Peavey did not use the standard screw hole dimensions on their neck plate, so I had to use the existing neck plate from my guitar (which was black). I traced the outline of my curve on the existing neck plate, cut out the design with my dremel, smoothed the ends with a file, and then spray painted it black again.
I also discovered that the Wilkinson tremelo sticked out the back of the guitar ever so slightly after I had sanded off them front and back maple cap (which would not let my tremelo cover lay flat on the guitar), so I cut out a channel from the tremelo block on my tremelo block using the dremel again, and painted it black as well.
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Love the look so far I am new to this forum but I am now in the middle of a similar project. I have 94 peavey predator (my first guitar). I hadn't played it years as my daily player is my father 86 tele. Well I was looking at new guitar and kept going to a stratocaster then I remembered this old gem was in the closet. I pulled it out blew off the dust and man I hated the color. So the project began. I have sanded it down and I am currently working on the tung finish still. My patience unlike the tung oil is wearing thin though. I am four coats in and now it's time to wait...wait...add more tung...wait...wait and so on for a few more coats.
My question for you is the tremolo. I didn't even think about the one I ordered not fitting. I know it is a 4 hole trem and the new one is six but I assumed the original holes would line up and I would be drilling two new holes...from what you are saying that is not the case. Can you show a few pics of what you did to get the new trem to fit? Also here is a link to a few pics. I really like the way it is turning out so far. The darker body against the lighter cap. However the back cap a much nicer looking grain on the wood. Check it out I would love some feedback. Keep in mind though I have tons of tung left to add. First one is old red and then one of the front and back with 4 coats of tung.
Also ignore the red in the cabinet I am going to line that part with copper.
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... fcd10d.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... 385af6.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... b3e15f.jpg
Couldn't figure out how to post pics with the iPad so here are the photobucket links.
Skism
My question for you is the tremolo. I didn't even think about the one I ordered not fitting. I know it is a 4 hole trem and the new one is six but I assumed the original holes would line up and I would be drilling two new holes...from what you are saying that is not the case. Can you show a few pics of what you did to get the new trem to fit? Also here is a link to a few pics. I really like the way it is turning out so far. The darker body against the lighter cap. However the back cap a much nicer looking grain on the wood. Check it out I would love some feedback. Keep in mind though I have tons of tung left to add. First one is old red and then one of the front and back with 4 coats of tung.
Also ignore the red in the cabinet I am going to line that part with copper.
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... fcd10d.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... 385af6.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... b3e15f.jpg
Couldn't figure out how to post pics with the iPad so here are the photobucket links.
Skism
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Hi, sorry for not getting back to your question sooner. What tremelo did you purchase for your guitar?My question for you is the tremolo. I didn't even think about the one I ordered not fitting. I know it is a 4 hole trem and the new one is six but I assumed the original holes would line up and I would be drilling two new holes...from what you are saying that is not the case. Can you show a few pics of what you did to get the new trem to fit?
Sorry if my post about the replacement tremelo wasn't clear, but the Wilkinson WV6SB bridge does fit. The reason I decided to dowel the guitar and re-drill for the bridge is because when using the existing screw holes for the bridge, the strings were not spaced evenly on the neck, but instead had more room between the low E and the edge of the neck than the high e and the edge of the neck (which caused me to roll the high e string off the edge of the neck far too easily when doing string bends).
If you're happy with how the strings are laid out on the neck once you get your new bridge, then you shouldn't have any issues. If you ordered one of the Wilkinson 5+1 bridges (like the WV6SB), just use the existing hole on the bass side of the bridge as your starting point, and then line up your other screw holes to make the bridge fit.
Your project is looking good too. How many coats of Tung oil are you hoping to apply in total? I've never worked with pure Tung Oil (just the Formbsy's Tung Oil varnish), but I've heard that it can take a long time to cure (actually pure Tung oil never fully cures I believe). If you're getting impatient (or want something a little more durable), have you considered using Tru-Oil? My understanding is you can apply Tru-Oil over the top of Tung Oil, though I'd recommended searching around on the internet to verify that first in case I'm mistaken. I've never heard or read about anyone using Tru-Oil that didn't like it; the only reason I didn't is because I already had some Arm-R-Seal on hand, and I've worked with that before I know that I liked it as well.
I actually finished my Predator a couple of weeks ago, but forgot to post my final results
I'm definitely loving this guitar, and it plays SO MUCH better now. All the components turned out great as well. I currently have the tremelo floating (a full step on the G string if I pull up), and thanks to the new bridge, Graphtech nut and locking tuners, I can honestly yank on the whammy bar like crazy all day long, and it never goes out of tune. Also not having a string tree helps as well (since the tuners are staggered).
The new pickups sound awesome too, and I really like the jumbo frets.
Here's a few pictures of the final results. Sorry for the crappy cell phone pictures and terrible lighting; one day I'll try to get around to taking some pictures in the day light with a real camera.
Here's one that shows my string layout on the neck now (after re-drilling the bridge):
Here's a shot of the new guitar beside my trusty amp:
Let me know if you have any other questions; I'd be happy to help in any way I can!
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Wow yours turned out great. Looks fantastic. This is my first total rebuild. So it has been a work in progress.
Thanks for the reply. I found a bridge online from hd custom. I wanted all gold acces. I thought it would look good with the wood finish. I ended up with 4 coats of tung oil and then coated with bees wax twice and buffed it out. I have to find a better camera mine died so these are from my phone.
It is not quite done yet. I am waiting on a new set of pickgaurd screws and string and the old jack to come. But here it is put together s of now. I tested the pick ups and thank god I wired them right. I used the original pick ups, shielded the body, and changed the pots and capacitor.
Only a few parts left to change and it will be ready to fully test out.
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... fe0db8.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... 9ff734.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... 84440b.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... b6cd8f.jpg
I like the black and gold Hopefully I am not the only one.
Thanks for the reply. I found a bridge online from hd custom. I wanted all gold acces. I thought it would look good with the wood finish. I ended up with 4 coats of tung oil and then coated with bees wax twice and buffed it out. I have to find a better camera mine died so these are from my phone.
It is not quite done yet. I am waiting on a new set of pickgaurd screws and string and the old jack to come. But here it is put together s of now. I tested the pick ups and thank god I wired them right. I used the original pick ups, shielded the body, and changed the pots and capacitor.
Only a few parts left to change and it will be ready to fully test out.
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... fe0db8.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... 9ff734.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... 84440b.jpg
http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac35 ... b6cd8f.jpg
I like the black and gold Hopefully I am not the only one.
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Many thanks for the writeup, and congratulations on the awesome results!
The one detail which I did not see, or may have missed, is the GraphTech part number for the suitable Tusq nut or blank.
After a bit of a battle, I have removed a brittle and worn nut (probably original) from a 92 Predator, finding the slot to be quite narrow (3.3mm I think), possibly curved, and without any keys or "mortises". Not quite sure which Tusq to go with. Any and all advice would be most appreciated.
The one detail which I did not see, or may have missed, is the GraphTech part number for the suitable Tusq nut or blank.
After a bit of a battle, I have removed a brittle and worn nut (probably original) from a 92 Predator, finding the slot to be quite narrow (3.3mm I think), possibly curved, and without any keys or "mortises". Not quite sure which Tusq to go with. Any and all advice would be most appreciated.
Re: Peavey Predator USA total makeover project
Very nice work on the guitar. I noticed you flattened the radius to 12". I read online that the Predators come with a 12" radius. Did that generation not? Or was it compound?