Q: What parts are included with a Res-O-Glas Body?
Res-O-Glas Guitar Bodies include the two part fiberglass body, white stripe binding and center maple block, foam, strap buttons and screws. To complete the Res-O-Glas Guitar you will need to purchase several items including a neck, tailpiece, bridge, picups and all electronics and string. We have three itemized build examples on our Website at this time to help outline what is needed to complete a guitar. Two examples are the Res-O Bodies section and one in the Res-O Theory section of our Website. Please review these areas prior to making a purchase for an outline of what parts are required to complete several different types of guitars.
Q: What tools will I need to complete a Res-O-Glas Guitar?
A drill with multiple size drill bits and various size screwdrivers is all you need for a basic guitar build. A Dremel tool is also helpful, but not necessary. Various grits of sandpaper can ensure a snug fit on your guitar neck, but may not be necessary. No painting is required for these guitar bodies. The wood blocks are not set in our guitar bodies when they are shipped, all kits require that you purchase epoxy to set this piece. Approximately 1 to 2 onces of epoxy is needed. We do not set the wood blocks in the guitar, so that multiple guitar designs are possible. The set location of the wood blocks could limit design options if they were set when shipped.
Q: What necks will fit Res-O-Glas Guitar Bodies?
It depends on which guitar body you purchase. If you purchase a WL guitar body,
the neck cavity has been widened to fit 2-3/16” four bolt neck configurations with a squared heel. Examples of guitar necks that would fit this body are the Fender Telecaster or various Les Paul knock-offs that use a bolt on neck in place of the standard set-neck configuration (An Epiphone Les Paul Junior is also a bolt-on neck and would fit this pocket size). Strat necks would not fit because of their rounded heel. A WL Guitar body would not accept a vintage Valco made trapezoid shape heel neck. See the Res-O Theory Section for more examples and information on selecting a neck for a WL Guitar body.
If you have a non-trapezoid shaped vintage neck that is narrower than 2 3/16" wide, you can modify it so that it will fit in a R style guitar body. The vintage Silvertone neck below measures only 2" at the heel. The photos show how it can be modified just by using 80 grit sandpaper on a sanding block. Total modification took approximately 15 minutes. The final result can be seen on the Res-O Theory section of our Website. Instructions included with R style bodies on how this modification can be completed.
The Silvertone neck above on the far left measures 2 inches wide and had a screw pattern that does not match the vintage Res-O-Glas 3-in-line pattern of the vintage Valco Guitars. The holes were filed and the neck was adapted to fit the R Style body. Instruction on how to adapt a neck in this fashion are included with all R style bodies.
Q: What pickups and bridges will fit on the Res-O-Glas Guitar Body?
Since there is no routing to house the pickups, all pickups are surface mounted on top of the guitar. This is the same type of configuration that was employed on the vintage Res-O-Glas Guitars. In order to clear the pickup heights, you will need to use a floating bridge that extends at least 0.90" inches high. Adapting a standard floating bridge to these specs is very easy to do.
A traditional floating bridge with tune-o-matic is on the left. Most of these bridges are designed for archtop guitars and will need to be sanded in order to have a flat bottom for the Res-O-Glas Guitar. A highly modified bridge is on the right. A reproduction of the original rosewood Valco bridge is also available via Lawman Guitars. A link to that store is in the Links section of our site.
The photo above right shows how high a neck sits on a Res-O-Glas Guitar. This allows for soapbar style pickups that look similiar to the one in the middle and have a height clearance of 5/8" to be mounted directly on top of the guitar without any modification. Our pickup rings are available in .480" (neck position) and .675 (bridge position) thicknesses. They accept a wide variety of pickups and have the height needed for this type of guitar setup.
Pickups are screwed directly into our pickup rings via the outermost pole pieces (located below the two E strings when mounted). Our rings accept two common size pole piece spreads 2.015" and 1.925". The opening of the ring measures 1.525" by 2.885". Pickups that have tabs used in conjunction with the spring height adjustment mechanism will need to be removed. This can be done by bending the metal until it breaks. Once this adaptation is made it cannot be reversed.
The above four pickups would fit our universal pickup rings. They have outer pole spreads of either 2.015" or 1.925". They are examples from DiMarzio, Seymour Duncan, Epiphone/Gibson, unknown (with nickel cover). The Epiphone example in the lower left corner would have to have the tabs removed to fit into the pickup ring. Be sure to check all pole spacings on your pickups before you begin your guitar build.
Q: Where can I buy a Res-O-Glas Guitar Body or Parts?
Res-O-Glas bodies and parts are available only via GuitarKitsUSA. We sell direct online via our secure eBay store at: http://stores.ebay.com/GuitarKitsUSA
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