Chupacabra build

My beautiful and talented :wife: just picked me up a single-pickup Cabronita body...I think some call the single pickup one a Chupacabra.

Now, I'm gonna source the parts as inexpensively as I can for decent quality, but of course I'll be putting in a TV Jones...

The coolest thing is that she's gonna be painting up an original design on there. I don't have pics but will post 'em when we finally get underway. It'll be a few months before the weather's right for the body to be finished...

Anyway, a couple questions:

• If using the standard Vol. / Tone setup, what values of pots should I get?
• What model of TV Jones Filter/Power/Tron pickup should I get? I'd like a very clear, biting tone that has much more girth than a single coil, and some good power too...
• What if I want to set the tone knob up so that it's totally out of the circuit if it's all-up? Or should I get a tone knob with a pushbutton switch to remove it from the circuit?

Anyway, I'll be buying the parts bit by bit. Stay tuned for the build. Hope to be all done by the time July 4 kicks off the summer gigging season.

Johnny, if you want clear, biting SC tones with tons of girth...consider a P90 with 300K pots. Plug it into a blackface or AC and grin from ear to ear!

A P90 Tele is what I describe as "musically rude." My experience with P90s in Strats and Teles is that they sound great without requiring excess volume to cut. They record well too.

Hey, got together with Mike and played, he's doing OK. We should get together some night at The Landing.

Chuck

Yes we should...it's been too long since I've seen you guys!

As for the p90... This one is routed for the filtertron. I'm gonna do that first and if it comes out good I will be doing more, I think...

If you end up being able to use a 250K tone pot, you can get a Fender "no-load" or "Delta Tone" pot. The no-load pot goes open-circuit at the "10" position. It has a detent between the 9 and 10 positions so you can tell when you've clicked over to the no-load position.

The no-load pot is designed for a strat style pickguard, so I don't know if the threaded mounting bushing will be long enough for your application.

Alternately, you can make your own no-load pot by scraping away a small portion of the resistive element inside the pot at the appropriate end of travel (where the wiper would be when the knob is in the "10" position). Functionally identical to the Fender pot, except without the detent.

Cheers

Thanks, CDW. I can tell you that when you started talking about wiper I got that look in my eyes that I get when my wife starts talking about Vera Bradley handbags. I'm not terribly savvy when it comes to them 'lectronics. :D

However, our good friend Chuckocaster sold me his Catalinbread pedal, and being a kind sort, has thrown in a pot or two that he says will work well for the Chupacabra build. Once I get the parts in place, I've found an online resource site that will help me wire the thing up as simply as possible. Plus, the TV Jones pickups come with instructions, I believe. And with no switching to confuse me (with one and only one pickup) I think I'll be OK - hell, I might even learn something in my middle age!

I sent you 500k pots. So I think if you use those with a .02 or .01 cap you'll have plenty of sparkle! If it were me, I'd wire this beast up like a P bass or LP Jr.

Thanks Chucko, I'll look up those diagrams when I go to wire 'em. I'm looking for sparkle AND snarl with a heavy punch. Kind of like being attacked by a chupacabra. :D

Or maybe I should call this a javelina...those little wild, vicious pigs. Who knows? Only the Shadow knows...

Cool project! I love projects like these! Can't wait to see it come together!

Call up TV Jones and talk to them, they are very nice and helpful. I think whatever Filtertron they make that's wound a touch hotter than original is what I'd go with. Too hot and you end up with a guitar that's mid heavy, and you don't want that! Especially with what you already have spec'd out.

But call them up and ask them.

Any updates buddy?

Yes, I have an update. My beautiful and talented :wife: decided that my services were not necessary within that whole marriage paradigm anymore, so the past four weeks or so have been a whirlwind of packing and moving.

Augh! I thought things were going well. I guess as a guy I must be pretty clueless. So, no nice ornate paint job for the guitar.

But...the Chupacabra build is still alive, but will be set back a bit, I think. I am toying with the idea of alternative finishes...a blueburst, for instance, or just a whitewashed non-finish, or a TV yellow.

Or maybe I'll just psychedelicize it myself with a paintbrush and oils. Only the Shadow knows.

P.S. for those of you who know me on facebook, I'm keeping this on the DL for now - just because I don't necessarily believe that facebook is the best forum for my family and friends to find out.

Oh, and I'll land on my feet. It'll be bumpy but I found a great new place...with a great view of Irondequoit Bay...a perfect place for quiet reflections and songwriting...not to mention healing.

Bummer Rickenjangle :( sorry to hear that.

Dang dude, I'm sorry!

Thanks guys. It happens.

I'm probably going to enjoy the peace and quiet a bit, and am in the process of setting up my new living space to suit my own needs...no more compromises (except with $$ which most of us have to contend with).

But the beauty of the bachelor life is that you can sit on ugly, non-matching furniture and as long as it's comfortable, you can be happy. Nobody expects a bachelor to match his living room furniture to his curtains. :D

I'm here for ya and you know where I live.

Sorry to hear that, RJ. Same thing happened to me a little over a year ago. At first I was broken hearted, and after a few months, I realized that I was much happier on my own. And now, I can let my dogs sit on the sofa with me. All best to you, man.

Willie, I have an amp by my couch and a guitar sitting there ready to play.

I love my (ex) wife, but I always felt like I had to be quiet. :D

When I get around to it I'll post a few pics of the view from my sunroom. It's overlooking my large deck, which overlooks Irondquoit bay. On a clear day, you can see forever.

Ouch! Sorry to hear that. They're seems to be a lot of that going around!

A friend of mine just went through it and rented himself a little cottage right on the bay. It's been theraputic for him.

Don, that's kind of the way I went - 2 bedroom bungalow (one for me, one for my 15 year old son) with a nice sized living area and a full, dry (though unfinished) basement. Lots of storage and space for guitars, amps, books, records, cd's, dvd's, and a big deck for entertaining and grilling. It's a small house-sized mancave.

There might be females coming there from time to time but none will be staying. :D

Sorry to hear the news RJ. All the best for the future.

Must remember to put up the living room curtains.

LOL Fret Rattle. What would I be doing in the LR that I would want to hide??

(by the way, the previous tenant left all the window treatments).

Only room in the house that's not curtained is the sun-room, and that's the way I like it.

I'm taking a good looooooooooooong break from the ladies anyways, but if I got 'on the job' in the future I'd have to stay outta the sunroom.

I've been dating a lot of women my vintage through an online dating forum.
A smorgasbord for a 64 year old fart like me.
Took me a few whiles to get the photo and profile together but the water is not too deep or too cold........I don't have a sunroom, I just stay outta the living room.