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Well, that's enough about me; here's some interesting guitars...

Update: I've been working on a new guitar recently as part of my fiftieth anniversary project. The story and the pics are on the 50th anniversary site.

James Bisset: Fiftieth Anniversary Strat.

This is a Dan Armstrong sliding pickup model, for which I sold a 1966 Fender Strat. Of course, it was a CBS 1996 Fender Strat not a pre-CBS ( it was made in October 1966 and Leo Fender sold out in June of that year) which knocked about 9,820 UKP off the price. Must make sense to someone! The only weakness in this guitar is the bridge, made of aluminium originally. The soft metal means the bridge has tilted forward, causing string buzz on top of the saddle. If anyone knows of any fixes for this, or a replacement source, please email me.
Otherwise, a very versatile guitar, one of the first Gibson/Strat crossovers, and only slightly modified by my skillful hand - spot the sophisticated mottling effect on the finish?
Apparently this is a 1960's Vox Tornado. Drastically modified by me and orginally bought in Zimbabwe, with a big hole cut out of the top to fit a vibrato arm! This one has lots of personality, and a solid block of oak stuck in the middle. The oak was of course a sophisticated attempt to get that 'English' rock sound, by modifying the guitar using traditional electric lute building techniques. Strangely, it never did sound much like a lute. At one point it had a DiMarzio P90 replacement pick up on it, but all it did was scream at people to leave the room, which I don't think is very English.
And here is Hank. Originally a pink and white Japanese strat, approved by Hank Marvin, but not for long! The neck is stamped HM, which makes me wonder if the same neck design was used for the heavy metal variations. I mean, that Hank Marvin could rock guys! This is one of those guitars that just falls perfectly into place as soon as you pick it up. I can't begin to explain the pick-up and wiring configuration, except to say that none of it is as the original. If I switch on all the pickups at once, the magnetic power is such that the strings all cling to the pickups. The sound of the player wrestling to get the strings free makes for superb industrial-techno samples.
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