Project: RG-IDOL

ibanez otaku · #1 06-24-2003, 01:26 PM

You know, my favorite threads in the tech section are those that follow an Ibanez project from conception to completion over time. I love reading them! So I've decided to follow my own little project in this thread.

Concept: I'm a Japanophile, a j-pop nut, whatever you want to call it. I saw these fabric wallscrolls that have photos of Japanese idols on them and thought, 'I bet you could lay that beneath a finish like on the floral Jems.' Been obsessed with the idea ever since.

Materials: Figuring I'd just have to learn to do it myself, I bought an RG565 body, simply because it's got the most space for graphics (having only one hum and a single coil) plus I can easily load a number of standard Iby bits into it like a lo-pro and an RG neck.
This sat around for months until Jim Rodgers popped up and offered free fabric refinishes on this very site (bless him!) Yay! I could get the work done, free, and not screw it up doing it myself (I am not gifted that way.)

Here's the story so far.

The RG565 body, bought stripped.
RG565 pic

The wallscroll I bought in Chinatown to apply to the body.
Wallscroll pic

My concept, sent to Jim, made using digi photos of the fabric and the Kisakae system.
RG-IDOL concept pic

Wallscroll bonded to the body and trimmed over at Jim's, before the clearcoating.
In progress pic

And that's the way it stands at the moment. I just bought a complete RG550 to rob all the hardware, neck and much of the electronics for this project, though I'll upgrade the pups. It's got a lo-pro Edge but the old style heel joint, which is what I need, so it's perfect. Went for a blue one too, so the headstock kinda matches the project body.

Will update as I put it together.

gkelm · #2 06-24-2003, 02:56 PM

At first I thought this was going to be either a "Billy Idol" or "American Idol" model...certainly unique!

Greg

the.godfather · #3 06-24-2003, 03:05 PM

I love it - that will be kick ass when you finish it.

What exact pickups were you thinking of?

Grindell · #4 06-24-2003, 04:48 PM

Interested in selling the 550 body that your robbing the parts from?

ibanez otaku · #5 06-24-2003, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the.godfather

I love it - that will be kick ass when you finish it.

What exact pickups were you thinking of?

I can't be doing with a regular single coil in the neck, obviously, so that'll be a minihumbucker deal. BrianH assures me the SD Hot Stack has the exact tone I'm looking for, so that's my top candidate, though it's a bummer they don't come in wacky DiMarzio colors.

For the bridge I've been thinking Tone Zone, but I just had a good blast on my MusicMan recently with a Fred in the bridge and I love the tight rhythm sound it gives, so one of those two.

Suggestions?

ibanez otaku · #6 06-24-2003, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grindell

Interested in selling the 550 body that your robbing the parts from?

Well I'm facing the classic spare parts dilemma: do I sell the 550 body off ('Teal Blue' by the way, quite nice) or use it to start another project?

I knew this would happen!

Grindell · #7 06-24-2003, 05:19 PM

Just let me know if you're going to sell it. I'm about ready to start inlaying my first vine fingerboard, and I could use a body, too.

Hey, I guess I'm in the same situation!

Timanator · #8 06-24-2003, 08:49 PM

Very nice...

J-pop is funny.... But oh well, each their own.

Tempting for me to start a fabric project.

Scott 74 · #9 06-25-2003, 12:45 AM

What no Ayumi Hamasaki, or Misa

I wonder if they have a print here with a bunch of J-Pop idols all together that'd be cool!

ibanez otaku · #10 06-25-2003, 02:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scott 74

What no Ayumi Hamasaki, or Misa

I wonder if they have a print here with a bunch of J-Pop idols all together that'd be cool!

My original idea was to have a load of them together (Morning Musume being the easiest choice) but maybe next time. The choice in Chinatown was very limited - most of the scrolls were either anime or male Cantopop idols! For J-idols they had only several different Kyoko Fukada (who I'm fond of anyway) Ayumi Hamasaki (sorry, got a couple of her DVDs, think she's ugly!) and one or two Noriko Sakai. If I'd been given complete choice I'd probably have gone for Ami Suzuki, just because she has such a bubbly, smiley face and great eyes, but Kyoko here is a good place to start.

Thought:

A scroll with a team of Race Queens on it might be easier to find than several J-poppers - that'd be really cool.

Something tells me I'm going to build RG-IDOL2, RG-IDOL3...

nuno · #11 06-25-2003, 07:25 AM

that is awesome, Gray!
go on and let us know!

Scott 74 · #12 06-25-2003, 10:36 PM

*LOL* Ayumi's voice makes me laugh, but I think she's cute. What kind of DVD player do you have? I've wanted to pick one of her DVD's, but I don't have a Japanese DVD player. Anyway I know one place I can check thats sells fabric prints. I wouldn't mind having one of the race queens. Not sure when I'll head that way again, but it's in the same building I bought my RG1521 so should be soon. Plz keep reminding me cause I got alot going on now. Thx

Drew · #13 06-26-2003, 05:06 PM

she's cute...

Thankfully I've been spared the music. It'll be a badass gutiar when you're done, though.

-D

ibanez otaku · #14 06-27-2003, 08:23 PM

Little update: the 550 arrived today (the one I'm going to butcher for parts for this project) so here are a couple quick and nasty webcam shots.

Clean lo-pro and all those electronics for me to steal!

This is one reason why I went for this 550: blue head to (sort of) match the background in the photo on the RG-IDOL body.

I am very surprised, for a 12-year-old guitar, how clean the neck is. It's totally yellow, no tobacco sweat stains. Can't say the same for my 777DY!

Not bad for $215 eh? With the hardcase, wrenches and two free packs of strings! I am a bargain hunter.

Pretty clean, doesn't even have the joint crack. The bugger is, and I knew this would happen, it plays really well, absolutely my kind of set-up, I'm flying all over it. But I absolutely must take it to bits.

I must.

ibanez otaku · #15 06-27-2003, 08:28 PM

Scott: I used to write for DVD Review, and I watch a lot of foreign cinema, so I've got a 'chipped' DVD player that handles all regions. Brought this one with me from Britain. Besides all the Japanese and Hong Kong movies, how else could I watch all those Yngwie DVDs I keep spending my money on?

Drew: You don't have to listen to Kyoko, she's also an actress and model. Off the top of my head I recall that she's in the original version of The Ring, for example. She also has an idol DVD out (Scott will tell you about those) where she just, um, walks about it different outfits.

I've heard.

From someone.

Not me.