http://guitars.nathanfowler.com guitar repairs, mods, and restoration Tue, 18 Aug 2009 20:36:08 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en That's a really good question that a lot of guitarists ask, and maybe more should. Any guitarist that has played a really well setup instrument knows just how big of a difference it makes. One big misconception is to think that a setup doesn't affect the sound of the instrument, so ... http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2009/08/how-important-is-a-setup/ Progress is underway with Casey's Stratocaster. He chose a set of Eric Johnson model Strat pickups and got a new pick guard and back plate. Here are a few photos: The photo above shows the back side of the original set of Fender Gold Lace Sensors, as well as some cool ... http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2009/04/eric-johnson-pickup-install/ I may be getting into a new strat custom project soon. Some fretboard scalloping and custom wiring could be expected (sweet). Stay Tuned! http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2009/04/new-strat-custom-mod-project/ After 3 months reworking nathanfowler.com there is finally a new home for my guitarblog. I haven't had much time to document any instrument projects since the start of the year, but now that the webpage is back up I'm really excited to pick back up with notes and photos of ... http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2009/03/guitarblog-back-online/ This Tele belongs to Christian Driver. He brought it to me describing static like noise that made it no fun to play his guitar. This is a very common problem for guitars using single coil pickups, especially telecasters, so the shielding is by far the most requested modification I do. ... http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2008/12/shielding-a-telecaster/ Trevor Startt, a great guy I got to know a bit better this weekend, left me with his Taylor acoustic for a setup and some TLC. I did a thorough clean of the fretboard and re-dressed the frets. And lowered the bridge saddle very slightly. http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2008/11/taylor/ This is a great plugin. Very light-weight, fast, and couldn't be easier to install if you are a firefox user. I go back and forth between firefox and Safari, but the plugins and flexibilty in firefox are really a big plus. Cick here to download -   code.google.com/p/firefox-mac-pdf http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2008/11/firefox-pdf-viewer-plugin/ Grover tuners are in! And today I mounted the ABR bridge and wired a ground to the tailpiece. The neck pitch needed some tweaking to set at a good angle for the new bridge, but that's in great shape now. The nut and frets are next on the list. I'm ... http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2008/11/blue-guitar-light-is-showing-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel/ Today I sanded and polished the blue guitar. I'm planning to change out the bridge for a Gibson ABR style this weekend. I'm holding off on refretting the guitar for now. http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2008/11/polishing-out-the-blue-guitar/ [gallery] http://guitars.nathanfowler.com/2008/11/falcon-project/