I think the Exotica is a stunning guitar - on my list but with Super-Strat pickup config - possibly with a Floyd Rose - it was going to be my next workshop build with Mark until the 335 rumours.........
Measure once........ Measure again......... Sod it - make tea!
Off the back of the workshop course (4 years ago now ? ) I have been trying to be quietly productive and after checking out the Exotica on the Bailey site, I decided I had to try a neck through. I also never tried a floyd rose before so I decided to take two bites at once.
I'm going to add pictures as soon as I work out how .. the "attach files" button isn't present here or on any other browser I try .. any ideas anyone?
Cheers!
Ben
Hello there Ben,
I'd still like to see your pictures if you are able to upload them.
I was hoping to try an Exotica build for my 2021 visit to the Bailey workshop until the 335 rumours started - would have done a SSH Super Strat pickup config, poss EMGs......
Otherwise I will have to try one here at home ?
Measure once........ Measure again......... Sod it - make tea!
@russ Looks like I can attach pictures now, nice one Mark!
This is it - it's a nod to the Peavey Wolfgang EVH but neck-through instead of bolt-on.
Spec-wise it's a cherry-maple-cherry laminate with a wenge fretboard, ambrosia maple cap and something unknown for the sides but which looks nice when oiled
I always wanted to have a Floyd rose guitar; now I have one I don't think I want another but fun all the same and gave me something different to build!
The inlay on the 12th and 24th frets are inlaid aluminium tubing filled with dust and epoxy.
It turned out a bit thin and I think the thickness between the bridge pickup and trem cavity is just over 2.5 mm; I had to do some creative pickup wiring too - through the trem cavity and then into the control cavity but hey it works and who looks inside the trem cavity anyway ... ?
I made the neck raised above the body so I could place a cap on:
made a template for the cap:
and then made the cap:
I ended up having to recess the trem slightly - the plan was to engineer a roughly 2 degree angle into the top but due to the thinness I had to rethink it. There is nearly no neck angle, hence the need to recess:
I sawed and bookmatched a little bit of leftover from the cap to make a headstock veneer:
And then decided to go for an oil finish (mainly because I couldn't hang around waiting for lacquer to dry, then sand, then polish etc etc. I've had a good result previously from wet-sanding danish oil in, uo to about 1200 grit, this is it going on:
Thanks guys, was fun to build 🙂 I'm still not sure if I'll ever get to like a Floyd rose but mine is definitely better than some I've picked up and played in shops (totally unbiased of course ? )
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