Jooky Custom: Getting a bit more OCD

Well, I mentioned The OCD One, which is my 'tester' of a first Jooky Custom Guitar, but didn't really explain what is happening in any detail. Which has a certain irony, I guess.

Anyway, the idea is simple - I've worked with a really nice chap called Geoff and agreed a spec for the guitar, which is basically a Strat shaped, large headstocked, HSS pickuped thing of beauty. It is going to have a quite amazing emo-goth finish, which is cool even by Jooky standards, with a contrasting scratchplate design. I won't explain the finish further yet, but it will really be a moment of jaw dropping intensity. If you check the comments on this site, Geoff is very nicely explaining how it goes from his perspective. (Which I might regret in the long run - la la la). But the OCD One:

Wiring wise, the humbucker is going to be something spesh, coil tapped and generally cool and then there are a couple of single coils in there in the middle and at the neck for all those traditional sounds.  As far as the humbie goes, we're going for a good old-fashioned Filtron look, in the shape of a GFS Hot Liverpool Retroton. Again these are something a bit different, giving a flavour of the old Gretsch twang, but they have still got the balls of a good PAF. I like these a lot as you don't get the mushiness which you find on a lot of hummers when you try to clean them up. I've never coil tapped one before, so that is something new for all of us.

The two single coils are going to be Kent Armstrong Hot Lipstick beauties, which will give it a good range of sounds methinks. I like these because they give you that Dano sound, but then have a lot more too. Easy to get the standard Strattiness, but then can get almost Jazzmaster like with a bit of tone fumbling.

The neck is a one piece maple jobbie, with a (surprise, surprise) maple fretboard, which should be nice and bright and it is a lovely large '70s Fender headstock at the top. It's got a lovely 'pattern' to the grain, but nothing in your mush and PRS-wallpaper-like.

To fill the holes in the end I've just grabbed some Schaller tuners, which should mean that the tuning will be as solid as a rock and for the bridge it will be a nice piece of Wilkinson Steel which will give a good dose of sustain, and generally everything is going to be nice and solid. I just can't wait to play it.

To make things even more interesting, it is going to be 'supplied' - I am sooo very businessman-like - with a second scratchplate, set-up with a standard three single coil combo - Fender pickups in there. This will mean that it should easy enough to swap things around if the need ever arises. The design will be different on this, and all in all, I think that is a nice touch. Might even be a little cigar box amp to match, if I get my act together, and I already owe somebody else one too. (Note to me: Make some amps you muppet.)

As with a couple of our guitars before, I'm planning to finish the err, finish, with a thin coat of nitro, over a poly lacquer basecoat. I know a few people will throw their hands up at such a concoction, but especially with this guitar, I think it will age beautifully that way. I do the same with a lot of the necks anyway, despite the usual abuse and oil I inflict on them...


So things are looking good, and I think the first Jooky Custom is really going to look like a custom guitar...

All in all then, I'm looking forward to this and have spent the last week or so scurrying around and gathering the parts, and I'm rather keen to get back to doing some guitars. Pronto like, missus.

OCD, is definitely the new cool.