Suggestions for Jazzmaster body

Len Amaral · From: Rehoboth,MA 02769

My Jazzmaster project is progressing nicely. I had Musikraft make me a new neck and i5 is wonderful. So many options, 1/4 sawn maple neck, 6105 frets, tusk nut, slab rosewood fretboard, 12 inch radius, C shaped neck, etc.

I had the pickups rewound, all new pots and wiring. New roller bridge with Fender locking tuners. Everything feels and sound very nice.

I wanted to get all the above completed before I purchased a new body. Musicraft only has swamp ash. I wanted more of an exotic wood. I know Warmouth has nice bodies but wondered if anyone knows of any other body manufacturers that works with woods other than swamp ask and basswood?

Jerry Overstreet · From: Louisville Ky

Len, I know nothing of this source. Have had no dealings with them. It's just one I ran across online some time back while looking for something else.

California company with some other wood choices. clickhere

I know stewmac.com has some pine and mahogany bodies, but they're all teleÂ® and stratÂ® I think in shaped bodies, but they do sell blanks too.

Len Amaral · From: Rehoboth,MA 02769

Thanks Jerry,

Nice website and lots to ponder. I did locate a source that has semi-hollow Jazzmaster bodies with an F hole. Trying to get some info as they are not finished and require a lot of sanding. Interesting....

David Mason · From: Cambridge, MD, USA

Ack! NOT Stew-Mac, those are sourced from a place like... furniture? (the remnants of Boogie Bodies, who went cheep and overseas long ago. And not GuitarFetish/Xaviere, ditto. You do get what you pay for in this field and regardless of how carefully the designs are spec'd-out to the Asian factories, there will be people fussing with your bod who don't play guitar.

Besides Warmoth, I have gotten some very nice wood from USACustom:
http://www.usacustomguitars.com/bodies/guitar/
USA Custom started as a few Warmoth employees who noticed Warmoth getting BIG and made a conscious decision to BE small, like if you call them you can likely talk to the guy who will be cutting the body. Tommy is the president and fully approachable, and I particularly like that you can get necks from USA Custom with YOUR exact sizing and contour, they're done by hand. Warmoth, there are some variant specs, but it's still a CNC neck. It's been years since I've used either, but I had great success with those two.

I DO know that a couple of things I got from Warmoth in the early 21st century are not optionable anymore, EXCEPT - you can always ASK nice, they're sitting there with nice wood and all the tools imaginable. Stuff happens... the "bigness" is largely due to the OEM work they do for other people, it's... umm... surprising how many "luthiers" buy things (without turtles etc) from these two and screw together the exact same quality wood you can. For $1500 or $3000 more in some cases.

There are also a number of totally independant guys out there, some of whom do fine, fine work. In general, the more betterer YOU have your design specified, the more betterer they can make it. Both Warmoth & USACustom are pretty much staffed by guitarists (meaning gorgeous fretwork etc.), and they do appreciate creative madness. The unofficial Warmoth forum is kinda ground zero if you have to preliminary sniffing about to do. There are people that swear by Allparts wood, they do have lots of options but they ARE getting most work done for them in factories they don't own. While I'm quite anti-cork-sniffery, I DO like the idea of one board being mine BEFORE the cutting even starts. Knowing full well I would fail every single blindfold test in the world. Leo Fender's design specs for that now-$45,000 1953 Telecaster were ~ "make it as cheap as I can." ~

Nic Neufeld · From: Kansas City, Missouri

I have built multiple guitars from Warmoth and one from USACG. That was...holy cow...15 years ago for the USACG, but it was a great guitar, mahogany double f-hole Tele with a figured redwood top.

I have a swamp ash Jazzmaster from Warmoth that was my first guitar build...I was in college, around 2000, 2001. Fralin P-90s in it with a maple/maple reverse CBS neck. Absolutely lovely guitar, only thing I'd change about it now is just do a hard-tail.

I got close to ordering a Jazzmaster bass body in "roasted swamp ash" this year for a fretless project, but that got derailed when I decided to change course and get a Stringmaster! (I chose well I think)

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