Warmoth..........

[Progdude]

Anyone ever play or own a Warmoth guitar?

Im am seriously concidering building a Strat copy.

I would buy an American Fender but I am really not impressed with Fenders work as of late. I do own a Fender USA YJM Strat and it is for sure the best Strat Ive ever played, but it is from the Fender Custom Shop.

So here is what I am thinking of getting..........

Basswood body (or Alder)
Birdseye Maple Neck and Fretboard
22 Dunlop 6000 frets
tungoiled neck
Schaller Locking Tuners with the pearl toppers
Dimarzio YJM in the neck and a Dimarzio Fast Track 2 in the bridge and a Dimarzio YJM in the middle.
1 Volume
1 three way LP style toggle
No tone control
3 ply pickguard in pearloid
guitar finished in classic white
16" radius
Wizard style neck

That seems to me like the perfect Strat! But Ive never played anything by Warmoth and would really like some input from anyone who has used Warmoth guitars.

[quik]

I have one. The quality is absolutely top notch. I would go with Warmoth again without hesitation.

[buddroyce]

Why not buy a used YJM strat??? It'd probably be cheaper, you just need to do some work on it but it's still a good way to start it off really. Warmoth does some nice stuff.. even Carvin gets necks and bodies premade by Warmoth.

The only thing stopping me from getting Warmoth stuff is the $$$

[gu1tar]

Yep, got one and a half Warmoths.

Initially I bought a cheap MIM strat as a toy (having other serious guitars) from GC intending to replace the (21 fret - groan) neck with a Warmoth neck to check them out. It is a maple neck with maple fingerboard and abolone inlays and stainless frets. The neck is great. The Warmoth compound radius is awesome too by the way.

Then I took the plunge and did a whole guitar from Warmoth. Like quik said, their quality is top notch. I've played high end strats like the Clapton, Malmsteen etc. and Warmoth is way better quality to me and you can choose some cool woods too. I got an Alder body which I like better than Basswood personally for a little harsher bite in tone. The neck is birdseye maple and the fingerboard is ziricote with a matching ziricote headstock - I had never even heard of ziricote but there was already a premade neck in their showcase that looked cool and had the features I wanted at a discount so I grabbed it. And the neck is s-w-e-e-t.

Definitely go for the contoured heel too.

I did no tone control as well, dual humbuckers - SD TB-4 & SH-2, sperzels, copper shielding (get it), Wilkinson trem, and got mine rear routed (no pickguard) and finished it myself in PPG automotive clearcoat. It's the best strat I've played.

[Progdude]

any pics?

[ScottB]

Here's a body shot of my Warmoth:

http://www.fenderforum.com/userphoto...o.php?id=26611

She's the one on the far left in my current group shot:

[Progdude]

Nice! How does it play compaired to the JEM and the red Fender?

[ScottB]

The Jem neck is no comparison to the Jimmie Vaughan Strat. The JV has a soft V back and the Jem is a lot thinner. I love them both and adjust easily from one guitar to the other.

The neck on the Warmoth is about the same thickness as current production American Standard Strats. Sort of the same thickness as a JS Ibanez. The Warmoth was put together in 1992. It's currently the oldest guitar I have in the stable for now. The electronics and Floyd Rose hardware were removed from a 1984 Kramer that is now in pieces. I recently replaced the original "wood screw" trem posts with a set of posts and bushings removed from a RG1550 body I have lying around.

[Progdude]

playability wise whats better........ Warmoth V.S. JV And Warmoth V.S. JEM?

[JESTER700]

I only have a couple Warmoth necks, and they're not standard profiles; they're from 1992 Yamaha Pacificas. Having said that, I LOVE the Warmoth compound radius fretboard. It is awesome.

[Racerx2k]

Your Warmoth looks somewhat like my Strat copy. H-S-S, natural finish. Wish I had the Floyd, though, and my fretboard's maple.

[David McCarroll]

FYI W&D sell finished bodies "on special" for about $150 - 2 piece Alder with "minor factory blemishes" - if you are trying to keep the budget under control. Also, if you want absolute top quality "vintage style" parts, have a look at Callaham parts (http://www.callahamguitars.com)- they are VERY good, and not really any more than any other supplier.

Cheers

David

[quik]

Here's my Warmoth. 1-piece Swamp Ash body in Cherry Sunburst w/carved Figured Maple top, contoured heel, unfinished Palisander Rosewood neck with side adjuster, Wizard backshape, 1-11/16" nut width, Ebony compound radius fretboard with 6105 frets and Abalone inlays, recessed black OFR, 1 direct-mounted EMG 81, 1 volume, 1/2" output jack, Schaller strap-locks & tuners:

[Baerman]

I have a Warmoth neck and I love the quality. If your a compentent builder then by all means give it a try. Me, I suck at it and had to have a local luthier do it for me. Costs ya though. If you like the Custom Shop Stats try out a G&L. In my opinion their better than the stats for a lot less money. The guy that works on all my guitars told me that he's had a Custom Shop Stat come in to his shop for a set up and found that the frets were poorly put on. He told the guy to return it to Fender to fix the problem. When you pay 2 grand for a guitar it should come mistake free. Check out the Legacys or the F-500. I got my Legacy with locking tuners,tinted neck,and aged plastic for less than 600 bucks used but in great shape. And like the helpful people here at Jemsite,G&L users have a wonderful user site in guitarsbyleo.com.

[Mikael Jurman]

Quick: that's a very nice guitar!
Did you put it together youself and if so, did you have to do any adjustments wood wise or just whip out a screwdriver and go nuts?

Mikael