Roland Ready Strat Query

Started by Zummooz-fgn, March 04, 2011, 05:54:38 AM

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Zummooz-fgn

Hi, I've got a chance on picking up a 2010 fully loaded roland ready strat body.... for nice $$$  ;D ;D ;D

Just need to know something about the correct neck to get 1st up.
Now on the specs of this guitar it says it's got ......21frets
                                                   neck radius......9.5''
Ok....Is that what I have to get & use ?
I know it's 25.5'' scale length etc etc

But can I toss a neck on it with 22 frets & with a different neck radius...like 10''-16'' compound radius ?
Or is this gunna stuff up the GK2 ......Or not even work correctly.  ???
Don't know as yet if GK2 is adjustable....suppose it is !

Can always toss & replace the other pick-ups.

Just checking my options 1st, many thanks......Cheers  ;)
Q... What kind of advice can you give me ?   Tommy Emmanuel's reply ....

You move your hand Up and Down that long bit and the music comes out of that Big Black Box behind you !!

matbard-fgn

You could put on it whichever neck you like.

For correct vintage specs, the Strat of the golden years had a 7.5" radius neck with 21 frets.
-

--> Matteo Barducci

Johnnyurq-fgn

Pretty much what Matbard says with one small caveat.

Most of the RR Strats are essentially a Mexican standard Strat with it routed for the GK2 and electronics (very few US ones out there, especially in the UK) and some after market necks will not fit the neck pocket very well.

I found this out from experience and had issues with a Fender licensed Mighty Mite 22 fret neck which I had to mod a bit to fit the pocket well (it had the wee overhang bit), but the guitar would never intonate correctly again (might have been my crap skills though) after fitting so the original Mex neck went back on.

Will be having a go again one of these days with a nice Warmoth all Maple neck.

So as long as you make sure that the neck you choose fits a Mex neck pocket then it is all good.

It will not affect the GK2 pickup at all as it is adjustable and then any difference in radius can be tweaked by setting the string sensitivities on your VG or GR unit.

I was toying with replacing the GK2 pickup and innards with the GK3 internal kit to see if the updated pickup and electronics make any difference.

Zummooz-fgn

Thanks so much guys.

Well I bought it anyway  ;D  I just couldn't resist this  ;)  collect it early next week. Yes it is a mex one.

Also I have a, all Maple (Warmoth) V neck here for my V project which is a standard Strat 22 fret 25.5" size neck.
Shall test this in the RR neck pocket for correct size.

If I go another 'War' Neck can toss on the Sperzel Tuners......good !
Now to look for some other pick-ups  ;)

So my project for 2011 has now turned into 2 projects.....Oh well thats life.

Thanks for all ya help....Cheers  ;D
Q... What kind of advice can you give me ?   Tommy Emmanuel's reply ....

You move your hand Up and Down that long bit and the music comes out of that Big Black Box behind you !!

MCK-fgn

#4
Sorry for being late to the party! Congrats on your new guitar! I think the RR Strats, especially used ones are offering great value if you consider the cost of a GK internal kit. You won't be disappointed. I think its a little heavy but hey... You can't beat the price.


To use your Warmoth V neck to see if the pocket is standard is a great idea. Worst case I think Warmoth can supply you a pre-drilled neck which you can drill as needed but I think you might end up ok. I found the paint-job on my Mex RR Strat to be too thick around the pocket area thus making it a real tight fit. If you observe similar issues just chisel it away! I know you're not the shy type!


GK-2 installed in the RR Strat does not have the curve adjuster screw that the GK-3 has. Nevertheless, I did change the curve on my neck and did not observe a major issue. You can always tweak things on the VG99 end using individual string sensitivity adjusters.

You can do anything you like with the pickups of course. In my case I installed a Seymour Duncan HotRails single coil sized humbucker at the bridge and then a Sustainiac at the neck. Anything you want to do you can do it!

Good luck!
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Johnnyurq-fgn

Quote from:  Zummooz on March 04, 2011, 05:39:35 PM
Thanks so much guys.

Well I bought it anyway  ;D  I just couldn't resist this  ;)  collect it early next week. Yes it is a mex one.

Also I have a, all Maple (Warmoth) V neck here for my V project which is a standard Strat 22 fret 25.5" size neck.
Shall test this in the RR neck pocket for correct size.

If I go another 'War' Neck can toss on the Sperzel Tuners......good !
Now to look for some other pick-ups  ;)

So my project for 2011 has now turned into 2 projects.....Oh well thats life.

Thanks for all ya help....Cheers  ;D

As for pickups to replace the stock ones I went for the Chevalier 67's from this guy.

http://www.chevalierpickups.com/

I was going to go with the Fender Abigail Ybarra CS 69's until I heard the tones available from these. They nail that late 60's sound really well and are hand wound and can be custom wound.

If the 60's sound isn't for you he does others from various eras and of course he will custom wind them to your spec and tone required.

They used to be called Copperhead Pickups and some may remember these but he had to change the name due to confusion with other goods.

The locking Sperzels are excellent and I have some on 2 of my guitars.


Zummooz-fgn

Well here she is.....another project for 2011.....Fully Loaded Fender Mex Roland Ready Strat Body, dated 5th november 2010

Forgot to mention that it's 'Brand New' & 'un-used. (Been tested thou & all works fine)  ;D
Still got the plastic covering on all covers & is clean as. No scratches or dings anywhere to be seen, absolutely in MINT condition.

Gee & the Neck's gunna cost more $$$ than the loaded body  ;)

Only a very small cosmetic problem, under each strap button is a white felt protector.....good one it's a black guitar !
Easily fixed with some black ones.

This is a photo of how I received it, before any mods done......I know you all know what they look like.
But will show some pic's later after adding a neck & modifications / changes etc.

Oh by the way, my Warmoth V strat size Neck, FITS just like a glove on this Mex (only used as a test run) for neck size.
(Still working on the V, just the finishing on the body)  :P

Noticed in same as this one....
http://www.fender.com/products/search.php?partno=0144660306
Has one string tee on headstock !

Q 1......Do I need the one string tee on, if I'm using Sperzel Loc Tuners ?
Thought I read somewhere that you don't need these T strings when using these Tuners.

Haven't looked inside yet....But !
Q 2.......Is the guts for the GK2 much the same as a GK3 kit ?.......This may-be option one, R&R GK2.

Downloaded the wiring diagram. Suppose the GK2 works the same way as GK3 !

Ok.....I just checked the screw holes on the pick-ups of the GK2 against a GK3 mountable.
GK3's is slightly larger distance between the holes about 2mm wider. But could just drill GK's pickup holes more oval shaped.
That's if a GK-3 Kit's pickup is the same size as the GK-3 (mountable)   

Thanks & cheers   ;D

Now to find my new..... 'Chainsaw-Dremel-Attachment-Bit'  ;) 

Q... What kind of advice can you give me ?   Tommy Emmanuel's reply ....

You move your hand Up and Down that long bit and the music comes out of that Big Black Box behind you !!

MCK-fgn

Sounds like a great deal! Well done. Wonder what the story of that guitar was! Not very often you see a brand new RR Strat without a neck being sold off... Perhaps it got damaged in transport and they decided to sell it off at loss to clear inventory. Good to hear about the neck fit too! You're a lucky man.


Regarding your questions... Sperzels come in two flavors. One flavor where all tuner post heights are the same and another flavor where they are staggered in pairs... The idea being the tallest go to Low E, A, then the mid size goes to D & G and finally the shortest ones go to B & High E. When you put those shorter tuner posts in there usually you don't need the string tree. Another option is of course to put in a locking trem. The nut-lock then does away with all need for string tree.


#2 - Visually they look very similar. I did not try to cross one with the other but would imagine they would work. The only external difference between the GK-2 & GK-3 seems to be the curve adjuster on the newer GK-3 units.


My question is why bother and spend more money? Just slap on the best neck you care to get for this guy and put Sperzels on it and enjoy life. The GK2 will serve you well. No need to worry about changing over to a GK3 if you ask me.


All the best
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Johnnyurq-fgn

Pretty much as MCK says.

Staggered Sperzels don't require the string trees the normal ones do to keep the correct break angle for the strings.

As I had my RR Strat's guts open I did look around to see if it was any different to the GK3 internal kit and it does visually look the same with respect to the parts and electronics board.

Re sizes of the GK3 int pickup it is shown in the Roland documentation as 95.1 mm between the screw holes. As I am not near my RR Strat at present I cannot tell you if this is the same as the stock GK2 one.

Zummooz-fgn

Thanks Guys...The size of GK2 pickup holes is 94mm apart.....could still make it fit if ever wanted to.

The Sperzels....yep my V has 3x3 & are all the same height but the neck is tilted, so don't need any T's on that.
One's I was looking at for the Strat are 6-in-line 'staggered' ......so on that (you've answered) ....thanks  :)

Quote from:  MCK on March 08, 2011, 05:51:52 AM
My question is why bother and spend more money? Just slap on the best neck you care to get for this guy and put Sperzels on it and enjoy life. The GK2 will serve you well. No need to worry about changing over to a GK3 if you ask me.
Yep...I'm better off spending any other $$$ on better pick-ups, rather than a GK3 kit.
Just thought that would be an up-grade as such from the GK2...
Gee if there similar guts inside, pity roland don't, sell just the GK3 pick-up as some kind of up-grade kit for a GK2.
Probably just me dreaming before actually thinking clearly !

I should have said, 'main priority' is a Neck   ;)  & then more than likely the pickups.
I'll wait till I toss a neck on & give a proper test run, before jumping in & deciding what to do with any other bits.
Oh well...just something else to keep me off the streets !!

Thanks to all, for your input.....Cheers  ;D
Q... What kind of advice can you give me ?   Tommy Emmanuel's reply ....

You move your hand Up and Down that long bit and the music comes out of that Big Black Box behind you !!

Elantric-fgn

#10
Quotepity roland don't, sell just the GK3 pick-up as some kind of up-grade kit for a GK2.


Actually they do sell the GK-3 pickup alone. Last I checked it was $89

Call Roland Service Parts Tel number to place an order

Customer Support

To order parts or product literature, or for repair issues, please contact Customer Support at 323-890-3700. Customer Support is open Monday through Friday, 7:30am to 5:00pm Pacific Standard Time.


But i see zero advantage if you are using this on a Strat or Roland Ready Strat.

Just stick with the factory pickup.
. . . the future ain't what it used to be . . .

Zummooz-fgn

Quote from:  Elantric on March 09, 2011, 01:40:33 PM
Actually they do sell the GK-3 pickup alone. Last I checked it was $89

Just stick with the factory pickup.
Oh thanks, thats good to know.....if ever needed.

But.....will stay as is with the GK2 (factory)
Then can get a good comparison between the GK2 & DF & GK3 (mountable) using the VG etc.

Will change other pick-ups thou

Thanks Cheers  ;D


   
Q... What kind of advice can you give me ?   Tommy Emmanuel's reply ....

You move your hand Up and Down that long bit and the music comes out of that Big Black Box behind you !!

Zummooz-fgn

Well that was way to easy !  ;D

OK here is my RR Strat, all up & running just perfect. All I've done is toss the Neck on, installed Tuners, Strings & adjusted Trem claw.....Thats it !
Everthing is working, tested with VG all good. Even the pick-ups seem (noiseless) all OK.

Shall attach with other bits & pieces later on.......After I break some strings......Time to play now.  ;D

Neck Specs.....
Stratocaster®, Warmoth Pro Maple, Maple Fretboard, 1 5/8" Nut Width, Standard Thin Neck, 6150 Stainless Steel Size Frets.
Satin Chrome Sperzel Lok Tuners , 22 frets, 10-16" Compound Radius,
Abalone Face Dots Inlay's, GraphTech Black TUSQ XL, Black Gloss, 25-1/2" Scale

Here's some pic's....Cheers









             
Q... What kind of advice can you give me ?   Tommy Emmanuel's reply ....

You move your hand Up and Down that long bit and the music comes out of that Big Black Box behind you !!

Johnnyurq-fgn

Good job Zummooz it looks rather nice.

Damn now you have given me ideas for my RR Strat, GAS it never stops.

Zummooz-fgn

Thanks Johnnyurq....being all black on the back of neck & headstock, just looks sooooo much better appearance wise. 
Must say this is a lot better than I thought it was gunna be, with VG etc......This is surely a keeper for me !  ;D
She's even got a new hardcase to sleep in.

Now why didn't I buy one of these ages ago  ::)
Q... What kind of advice can you give me ?   Tommy Emmanuel's reply ....

You move your hand Up and Down that long bit and the music comes out of that Big Black Box behind you !!

MCK-fgn

That neck is amazing in its looks. Great find. How does it play?
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Caig DeOxit - Buy now before you need it !!!
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=31707.0

Zummooz-fgn

Thanks MCK it was just a 'showcase' warmoth neck & yes it's got a great figure in the maple !
In their showcase, is...what you see, is what you get  ;)

Plays smooth as, more than happy with it & I do like the 10" ---16" neck radius with the 6150 SS Frets, just feels nice all the way down the fret board.
..... all I did was adjust the 'butt end' Allan key nut in the neck (have to)...to straighten before attaching to body.
(just like ya said....just toss the bloody thing on )
Out of all the heaps of tools I have....nothing fitted....couldn't believe it, something else I had to buy !

Have gone back to it since 1st setup & made slight adjustments to the bridge / tremolo (1/8" off body) & all spot-on now.
Original pickups are pretty weak in volume / power, but leaving as is for now, as it's a quick one to setup with VG etc.
These are one cool guitar, very simple & easy  ;)

Cheers  ;D
(later found this same tool-set in my pushbike repair kit)  :P
Q... What kind of advice can you give me ?   Tommy Emmanuel's reply ....

You move your hand Up and Down that long bit and the music comes out of that Big Black Box behind you !!