Frankenstrat Template
Posted : admin On 09.10.2019I know this has been done before several times over. But I thought I would share my process with everyone. I do it a little different, so maybe someone could learn something new from my process any way, I'll start.I've collected all of my parts. All new stuff.
I have made some of this my own, meaning I didn't necessarily try to mimic Ed's original in every detail, but I did most.For example, I got the body and neck from Warmoth. Body is made from Alder instead of Ash/Swamp Ash. I like Alder better. The neck is Birdseye maple. Awesome figure.I wanted mine to look like what it would had known how to paint. I wanted the same design, only to look more factory finished. I meant to list some of these parts earlier, but forgot when I couldn't get them to post correctly.
Frankenstrat Tape Template
FRANKENSTRAT VINYL TEMPLATES TO BUILD A EDDIE VANHALEN GUITAR - $30.00. These are the decals used when building a Eddie VanHalen FRANKENSTRAT GUITAR. FREE SHIPPING.These are the vinyl decals TO BUILD YOUR OWN EDDIE FRANKENSTRAT GUITARI can explain what steps to do and what color to use and how I do them.
I don't know whey they aren't showing up. Never had a problem before.Here is my 1971 quarter. I bought a new uncirculated quarter when I couldn't find one. I feel I got all the holes and the 'dent' in the side in the correct places.Here's my pickguard.
Has a 500k volume pot in it now, but am thinking about trying out a 1 megaohm pot to really run things wide open.And as far as parts go, the only thing else I should mention is my neckplate. I found a guy online that does custom engraving. So I got an EVH neckplate made. Notice the serial number, 001. Yes, I have the first made!
This is where the body is left off. I'll let it sit for a few days to cure up a bit before I mask off for the black.On to the neck. Originally I was going to do it without a decal, like what Ed's originally looked like. Then after I found the neckplate, I decided to do a EVH series Charvel. That is why there is no skunk stripe on the back.
Ed's original didn't have one, but the charvel does. What can you do. Worked out better for me because Warmoth doesn't have an option to do custom back profiles with skunk stripes.
So I have a birdseye maple neck, highly figured, with the Wizard back contour. I love the way it feels.I photoshoped myself a few logos. Basically traced them so I could get some hi res files. You'll see Charvel and EVH Art Series on the front. And on the back you'll find a Custom Shop logo and Ed's signature. I felt these looked pretty cool and haven't seen anyone use these on theirs yet.Also I have done some oiled necks in the past and love them. But I wanted to experiment here a little bit.
Frankenstrat Template
At guitar reranch, they had a satin laquer that they claimed felt like raw wood. I'll be damned if they weren't right. This stuff is the shit!! I put on about 6 coats on the neck and around 10 or 11 on the headstock to seal in the decals.
Then I sanded it down starting at 600 grit paper working up to 1500 grit. 600, 800, 1000, 1200, 1500.
You cannot tell this has a finish on it at all. Feels so natural and it is protected. Also, you cannot find any traces of the edge of any of my decals. I'm so pleased with it.
Oh yeah, got the water slide decal paper at a online model shop called micro markFront:Back. Just personal preference. I didn't want any of the black 'ghost' stripes to show under the red.
Evh Frankenstrat Template
This way I can control where the black goes. I thought about it for a while and I know the original has them, but I think had Edward known what he was doing instead of just randomizing what he did, it might have come out this way. It just looks nicer to me. Plus it's more of a challenge to do a cleaner version than a relic because you need to control the paint environment more.
Just personal taste. I saw one recently over at one of the other sites that was done this way too. Looked pretty good. Well, here is a minor update. We've been getting so much rain, it's hard to build up much steam. I've added a little bit of black stripes.
Also finished up the neck and added some hardware. Schaller M-6 tuners and I'm using an original floyd rose, attached is the R-2 nut and string retainer. The only thing I haven't put on the back of the headstock yet is the allen wrench holder for the floyd.Front with some black:Back with some black:Front of headstock w/ hardwareback of headstock w/ hardware. UPDATE:Well, we've had 21 straight days of rain in OKC. Not condusive for my project.
I have been able to get several layers of clear coat in early in the morning while the humidity is low. The last one, I thought the humidity was low, it wasn't. It gave that layer a nice look of blush. Basically the moisture got in and 'fogged' it up.
No worry though, I got enough coats on that all I need to do is sand it out with 400, 600 and 800 grit. It the stripes get smooth enough meaning no hard lines felt, I'll finish it out, otherwise I'll add a few more clear coats in a few days, rain permitting of course. Almost done and rounding the last corner.I let the body sit for about a week before I was able to begin the wet sanding.
I really need some good old sunshine. You can't be natural light for this kind of work. Without it, you will miss most of what you are doing.The purpose of wet sanding after shooting the clear is:1. You will take out all of the orange peel that the clear coat has left.2.
To smooth out the feel of the lines. Once you do this step, you will feel ZERO lines.After allowing the body to dry at least three days (with nitrocellulose lacquer, the longer the better and the weather made me wait longer) final sanding and polishing can be done. The sanding will be done with successively finer grades of paper. The grades required are #400, #600, #800, #1000, #1200, #1500 and #2000.Use a small flat block when sanding to prevent your fingers from causing furrows in the finish.
I used a nine volt battery. It worked perfect. Sanding first with the #400 grade, sand until all the shiny spots are gone. When done correctly, the finish should be uniform and matte. It looks like you are ruining the paint, but far from it. You will see some scratching in the clear. That is what the other grades are for.
As you move up to the next grade check the finish in a good light. The finish is becoming more reflective and the sanding scratches are becoming fainter. At the #1200 level the finish is getting much smoother, lines are becoming really faint to the touch. If you find you have missed a spot, sand backwards until the grade is reached that will blend the spot and then move back to the grade level where you were in successive grades.Much caution must be used when sanding to avoid sand throughs.
Really easy to do. The 400 grit paper requires the most work to level everything. For all other grades, let the paper do the work.
Be especially cautious when sanding at the edges of the body. The finish may be thinner there and you can't use the block to sand, you'll have to do it by hand. That makes a sand through more likely.After the final grade of sanding is completed, the final polishing can begin.I will use 3M Finesse It II for this part. The entire body now is a uniform Matte finish. Smooth as a babies ass. I wish you all could see and feel this as it is so smooth and lines are completely smooth. Also, most of the clear has been removed at this point, so the body will still be very resonant.Here are a couple pics, the photos don't do it justice.topside.