Valley Arts Standard Pro

Hello readers,

Despite its look,this is a genuine Valley Arts guitar,its one of those crazy thing you do when you're young.especially to a guitar that you know nothing about.In the 80's through 90's Valley Arts were unheard off here,but thankfully now with the internet many are aware about the brand past glory.Its becoming sought after too.

This was a due refret work.The neck was hard to take out despite its being a bolt on so I had to fret it as it is.I don't know what the owner did to it.I thought about using the Dunlop #6000 but I come to dislike the pre cut 2 inch length because of high wastage when radius(ing) it.When I put it in the fret bender,the first part(1/4) always gets bent(crooked) then the rest gets curve to the right radius.Bent is a waste,curve is useful.I'll stop buying short pre cut Dunlop until somebody bring in their 2 foot length bunch.I'm sticking with Stewmac 2 foot fretwires  for now..

These EMG's has been in many battle

The bridge is Kahler and its as good as the other one.Bear in mind each of those intonation screws is left hand inch threads.

The dent spots were resolve with rosewood dust and superglue.

The bench cover off to the laundry so do forgive the table ugly nature.Hehe 

The nut locking screws were replaced with 9/64 allen.The threads is exact.

I'll be busy in the coming weeks,more refrets and another academic attempt on a maple fingerboard,so see you when I see you


Goodbye
yustech

theguitaraddict dan CA Gear - rujukan saya dan kenapa.

Terima kasih saya pada Tuan Subversion atas kiriman pick Jim Dunlop.Selamat diterima semalam.Terasa seperti sudah graduan Uni Blogger bila menerima kiriman dari blogger lain.Hehe


Salam pembaca,

Saya masih ingat pada 2008,bila pentas blog ini diperkenalkan oleh rakan sekerja.Apalah yang tahu selain hanya menggunakan sawang secara pasif.Disebabkan kurang tahu teknologi maklumat(IT) untuk menyertai dalam Sawang Dunia Luas(World Wide Web),saya hanya melihat sawang sebagai sumber mencari maklumat untuk kerja dan sebagainya.Pakai,bayar dan cabut!Atas desakan dari rakan,dia menolong membangun mula blog saya.Nama pun dia yang pilih.Katanya "Encik.Yus ada banyak pekara yang boleh dikongsi".Isshh...banyak lagi yang lebih hebat diluar tu,siapalah ingin baca cerita kasar saya.Apa yang mahu ditulis?bagaimana olahannya?Kalau macam bangang bukan kah membazir ruang pelayan(server) Google aje.

Bila dimenungkan sendirian,saya nampak kebaikannya.Saya boleh jadikan ia rujukan peribadi saya,tiada perlu buku catit(risiko hilang) dan boleh diakses dimana2 Cyber Cafe bila terlupa atau perlu.Ya,ini mudah,ini murah,ini memang munasabah dan ini berkait bila ingatan kabur nanti.Saya setuju.Peringkat awal agak susah(masih lagi kini) hendak faham pentas blog ini terutama bila lihat pengekodan.Mujur dibantu rakan sekerja.Jarak umur kami jauh,jadi situasinya seperti cucu mengajar atok guna komputer.Terasa tua saya sebelum waktunya atau dengan ayat lain "terjun dulu,pelampung dicampak kemudian"Hehe.

Bila baru berblogging,tidak dapat dielak saya juga melawat blog2 sekitar yang berkait dengan minat saya.Antara blog berbahasa inggeris yang saya kerap lawati ialah CA Gear dan theguitaraddict.Siapa mereka dan apa perbuatan mereka.CA Gear mirip blog saya yang mana kami berdua mencatat jurnal membaiki untuk penambah pengalaman amali,rujukan semula atau dikongsi pada pelawat.Disudut yang lain saya melihat kami berdua sebagai jurubaiki yang masih baru sambil berani cuba mencabar kemampuan sendiri yang sedia ada.theguitaraddict pula sumber maklumat terkini muzik industri,alat bertali,dipijak kotak,penguat,jenama baru dan aksesori yang diminati beliau.

Tapi saya melihat lebih dalam di kedua-dua blog ini.Apa yang menarik tentang kedua-dua blog ini khususnya ialah penggunaan bahasa inggerisnya yang kukuh.Penyampaiannya padat disertakan dengan tatabahasa yang keras(solid).Mudah difahami dan boleh dirasai isinya.saya akui mempelajari perkataan baru diganding ayat sesuai dengannya.Memang akan saya curi guna dikemudian waktu nanti.Hehe.



Sedang belajar tatabahasa
yustech

Charvel Model 3B

This was a cheap acquisition by a client of mine but oddly I was as excited about it as much as he was.I think because its old and lately I've come to appreciate old innovation and quality.Looking at old catalog scans made me realized I'd miss a lot of yesteryear gear glory.I would've work after school if I'd known about them.Don't mind being a child labor for any one of those Yamaha's,Ibanez's,Jackson's,Charvel's etc.. Unfortunately the 80's through 90's were my schooling days and I was more interested at chasing girls studies than reading about guitars.










But look on the bright side,at least I'm now on the receiving end when those old stuff broke down.Come to think about it,this is even better.I don't have to buy them but get to fix them,understood the technology and play them all.Way better than looking at catalog scans.











This Charvel had a two big issues.The electronics looked mess up and twisted neck.I've no worries about the electronics but were more so about the latter.I had attempted twisted neck refret in the past which resulted the neck being bowed permanently after.The truss rod had stuck tight un adjustable.It was a free work offered by me to gain knowledge on this symptom.That owner was okay about it.He's thankful that I'd gave a try.This Charvel gave quiet a good scare for me to work on.But I gave the obvious two liner wisdom to my client "No Guarantee!"

The thing about twisted neck is when sanding a fingerboard that has high spots at cross opposite ends.You have to shave the high spots before doing the leveling.This Charvel has it high on the treble at the nut and the other on the end at the bass side(see pictures after repairs).There was another thing,the serial was stamped on the after the last fret on the fingerboard.I can't guarantee its safety especially when there's much more serious issues to face now.I tried tapping it it seem to be very much in the way of reading the fingerboard.So its gone!

















There's some more,the dot inlay at the third fret came off while the fingerboard nearing the straightness sanding.Polymer clay and the oven was used to make a new one.It did look odd compared to the rest being pearl.I'd say it'll do.










The frets were installed,the neck were adjustable and the bass plays well good.The electronics needs a little reworking to sound as it was suppose to.This is one twisted neck refret that I managed to fix. Syukur Alhamdulillah!

                                                                                                               







Doable and got away
yustech  



                                              

Ibanez JS24P nut alert!

Hello readers,

I wanted to post this tech tip yesterday but I thought 2 tech tips in one day seems to many.Unexpectedly I've written to many Ibanez post the past several days,but this can't wait cause there maybe others out there facing the same unexpected problem.So here goes.

 This JS24P was bought a week or two before it was sent in.For the past 7 month I've been playing my Jackson with the trem arm off.I think I've come full circle in my technique(not that many) and probably bored with it anyway.But this JS with the Edge was inviting to be abuse (musically of course.Hehe).I'm expecting joyful satch boogie goodness from this Premium!

As soon as I dived and pull it,the tuning was out terribly.It was much worst than Fender vintage tremolo.Very unexpected particularly from a Premium!

A check at the nut showed the pair of nut screw mount protruding more than it should.Now I don't know whether the QC person at the factory even plays the trem arm before letting this/them pass.From how I look at it its impossible for the clamps to lock down the strings.Tightening it with full force will ruin those threads in the holes.I don't have to tell you that you have to buy a new lock nut set after.Very unexpected particularly from a Premium!

Desperate time,desperate measures,I don't have a lathe but couple with a coarse file and drill driver,its a good enough steady hands lathe for me to shave the top a bit for the screw to not be in the way anymore.Very unexpected particularly from a Premium!

So check your Ibanez JS24P too before/after buying one before you too will say "Very unexpected particularly from a Premium!"

I am not a qualified reviewer but I'm giving Hoshino Gakki one star for this fiasco at where it shouldn't be. Maybe they profiled the neck too thin maybe they'd used the wrong screws.?Wait..how much is this guitar again?


Expecting the QC isn't me/buyer/dealer
yustech

Godin Multiac SA Nylon

This is one repair that's isn't really a repair.The owner claim the electronics ceased/went silent after a while.Firstly I never had any experience with RMC electronics before,secondly I don't think they sell parts directly.Maybe you can do so through a Godin dealer.?Thirdly..the guitar worked fine in my possession.

But I did found the string output being inconsistent.The Low E loud,the A's soft,the D's loud,the G's soft,the B's loud and the high E is soft.Before I get my scope on the bench,a schematic search commence while doing a pcb visual check.There were no schematic found online so I proceed with the latter.


The piezos are discrete unlike the conventional one piece unit use by many makers.The most I saw before this was two piece piezo's from Takamine and another brand I couldn't remember..maybe Lakewood I think.


Each of the piezo element are soldered individually on the pcb.From the looks of it someone had a go at it.It looks intact but to be sure I unsolder it and re solder it,also a bit surrounding the op amp just in case.I doubt the alternate loud soft symptom be caused by the op amp.














Because the piezo's are individually made,I suspect it didn't sit proper and vertical enough.Its just my hunch and since I never had any experience with any/all RMC products,its quiet intimidating but I decided to give it a shot.Is it just the piezo or is there anything more under there.The piezos came out fairly easy but there were also some sort of brass shim.Is there anything under that bras shim?sure enough while taking the shim out very very carefully,it broke at the end.Well you'll learn new things on first attempt and that's part of learning the trade.I tell all my client that all the time.That's how I fix thing.If its a new thing for me,I need them to trust my call or methods.So far,so good.Most of my client are quiet supportive about my practical endeavour weak know how in some areas plus my shit work gets posted on line as guide to others.





Coming back to my shit work.I put the shim back in(with the broken piece) and it work without a flaw.All output from the strings are loud and crystal clear.What did do? Was it because of the broken shim that it work great? I don't think so.I think the piezos needed resitting for adequate string pressure on it.










I found the nice battery connector to be loose so I direct wired a wired type.The default battery connector serves as battery holder and its pretty secured.The control plate was missing so I was assign to make one with clear acrylic.That's that then.Oh yes..one more...If you like looking at pcb's or curious about RMC's pcb's,enjoy the below pictures.

Hunch and touch cost money
yustech




 

Thanks a lot bro,my pickup fell inside!

Hello readers,

In this tech tips I'll be writing about a botched mod that many of us do/done/did to our guitars.Its about the pickups.It may came with the guitar but with the wrong screws attached to it(almost always),a pickup(s) may have been bought second hand as it is without the correct screws(always the case).

For humbucker its less of a problem mainly due to the bracket is made using ferrous materials(brass,soft metals. etc.).For missing screws (3-48 thread) cases I would most likely and depending on the holes size resort to either M2,M2.5 or what I feel would fit right and tight.I know its very wrong but living in a Metric standard country its near to impossible to get those American thread sizes screws.So far there's never any complaint file against me(well none that I'm aware of,I bet there's many in Facebook.hehe).

The single coil is a different story,the base plate are mostly made of a paper/fiber like material.The mounting holes are larger for coarse threads
or enlarge to fit the below as last hope.














I've seen this a lot and shame to confess,I too am guilty at doing it in the past but as you aged,you mind changes.You need to rectify it like it should be.It also help when the client thinking about buying another used pickup(without the screws) later.











The pickup in this post has adjustment issue.One hole seem larger than the other making the new 6-32's screw fail to grab it.I thought about putting a hex nut there but I'm sure it'll move.Looking at the bunch of blackened nail polisher I have laying around,I thought I use its inner plastic.The semi round looked fitting with a bit of trimming and superglue.What would the next tech think about my diy fix?not so bad I hope. Hehe



Adjustable but non negotiable
yustech