eliya wrote:The only issue with that is that if the guitar you buy is finished in a solid color, there's a chance the wood underneath is ugly - either it's made with more than two pieces, or it has some filler, or knots, etc. So you you might want to buy a guitar that has a sunburst finish, because that guarantees that the wood looks good.Yep. Also, I've tried several DIY stripping solutions on a cheap poly finished paintjob before and they didn't take. There's no way that stuff is coming off without some hardcore sanding or scraping, and then there's real risk of damaging or burning the wood.What's funny is the guitar body I finished in nitro can be scraped or dinged by a heavy sneeze. Good for relic'ing I guess

2 quick things:-that listing says mahogany, when that's clearly an alder body.-lucky for you, the Costello Jazzmasters are alder bodies with a dark stain applied. Mahogany is more difficult to stain. (in my opinion swamp ash is the best wood for staining)If what you want is a new body wouldn't it make more sense just to get that? Blank Warmoth bodies can be had for about $150 USD. Reverb has become pretty good for parts hunting:https://reverb.com/marketplace?query=ja ... r%20bodiesThere will probably be some things you're gonna want to let a tech or luthier do, like install the bridge posts, also a setup since you might be mixing parts (the neck pocket depths might vary between guitar brands). Fender/Squier and Warmoth are generally compatible (unless specifically noted, which they're pretty good about) but not always a guarantee with some knockoff brands so be careful.

..not to mention the Warmoth site is great for killing a few hours of trying/seeing different combinations of things. Also a good way to learn about details you might not have noticed before:www.warmoth.com

Kits are nice you can also build from parts one thing I would suggest is getting the neck from Canadian neck suppliers some of the replacement necks are built to fender spec and have the correct headstock and neck radius. Luthiers I know believe that maple grown in colder mountain climates make more stable necks due to wood cell structure. This is a traditional idea, if it is Fender licisened you can without guilt add a sticker. Fender uses these same Canadian sourced necks on production Japan and Master guitars, according again to my luthier friends.

Dudley wrote:Thanks everybody. The real limiting factor in the UK is the paucity of the used gear market. eBay and reverb get very very few used jazzmasters for a decent price, so it s pretty much buy a new Squier and strip it, or hang on on the (slim) off-chance of a bargain. The Warmoth /partsmaster route would cost probably nearly twice that, once you include shipping and duty.Yes- I was going to say that all those responses are very 'american-centric' as we have access to a lot of cheap things you do not. If you like the feel, etc of your guitar, it might be worthwhile to attempt to refinish it, or pick up an identical one to mess with (since squiers are readily available there). I'll be coming over around xmas and can bring stuff, if that helps any.Stripping a modern poly finish is a pain- there are a couple ways to make is do-able, depending on what tools/space you have access to. The squiers are likely to use 3 or 4 pieces, and may have some knots with unstainable filler. There are ways around this.Those Bulldog kits from Australia actually have a pretty good reputation amongst the builder/finisher forums I'm on- essentially good wood, expect to replace some hardware/pickups and do some fretwork-might be pricey if you are less familiar w/ doing that sort of work yourself. They might sell you a body- worth an email to find out.

If your budget is 1000 quid or cheaper just go with a quality parts manufacturer like Warmoth. You'll have complete control over what you get and the quality of goods will ensure that you dont have to deal with any of the hard shit (frets, neck pockets, etc). Looking right now at their in-stock options you can get unfinished JM neck and body for ~$325 USD.

Thanks everybody. The real limiting factor in the UK is the paucity of the used gear market. eBay and reverb get very very few used jazzmasters for a decent price, so it s pretty much buy a new Squier and strip it, or hang on on the (slim) off-chance of a bargain. The Warmoth /partsmaster route would cost probably nearly twice that, once you include shipping and duty.

Has anyone done this? If there's already a thread for it, I couldn't find it. I've got a Squier VM Jazzmaster, which I really like and for reasons I don't fully understand, I really want something similar in a dark walnut-y finish. Like the Costello signature, but ideally 1000 or so cheaper.My plan was to find a 2nd hand one, strip it, stain it etc, but it's hard to find one at a decent price in the UK, so I was wondering about something like this.Anyone had postive/negative experiences? Anything to look our for or avoid?What attracts me about this is a) cut headstock, which is quite rare in the kits I've seen, and b) not having to suit up and deal with stripping a cheap modern guitar (which I'm happy to attempt, but seems like it's a pretty frustrating endeavour).I'd be expecting to upgrade p/ups and bridge, which I had to do on my Squier. I'd either enlarge the existing rout or try some foils or mini-hums in the existing rout.Also there's the shipping from Aus, and I'm guessing, customs to be paid. Australia seems to be a leader in guitar kits, what with Pitbull Guitars and all (though Pitbulls have blank headstocks, which would involve me having to find a friendly or cheap wood shop.)Talk me out of it!

eliya wrote: It's a fool's errand to source good parts to build a guitar that on paper should be good, but in reality won't feel right. And no, it's not a matter of setup.I agree. This isn't going to help our friend in the UK for the reasons he has already articulated, but I've had success buying/selling used components until shit sticks. It takes a while. The screaming deals section on the warmoth website comes around once in a while. The musikraft ebay page also has nice stuff. Musikraft has excellent product. I prefer them to warmoth.

In the past year I've had 3 kit built guitars come into my shop for work. I don't know who made them but two of them were absolutely horrible. Total bottom of the barrel wood and parts. Just cheap junk. One was definitely better but I didn't think to ask where it came from. I'll echo what others have said and say get Warmoth (or similar) parts. You can put together a really nice parts guitar without breaking the bank.