Too many Cool Features to be a Success | Taylor Solidbody Teardown & Setup
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- Опубліковано 25 чер 2024
- #guitarrestoration #guitar #guitarbuilder #luthier #guitarra
Just how good is the Taylor Solidbody Guitar?
Welcome to Crimson Guitars ua-cam.com/users/CrimsonC... and Ben's home workshop. In this video Ben is taking a closer look at the controversial (?) Taylor Solidbody guitar. He's going to carefully take it apart, see what makes it tick and then put it back together, maybe a little better.
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Chapters:
0:00 Introduction & this guitar could be yours!
0:55 Introducing the Taylor Solidbody
2:59 A closer look at this guitar
3:36 Cardboard box - comment below
3:58 Unique neck joint
6:30 Removing the neck to investigate the joint & pocket
8:36 Looking at the pickups and pickup surrounds
10:05 Moving on to the Bridge
14:37 Taking the Bridge apart?
16:14 The Incredible journey of a humble grub screw
16:55 A closer look at the Saddle
18:52 A closer look at the electronics
20:47 How was this guitar routed & finished?
21:48 The neck and Fret work
23:23 A quick & dirty Fret Level, Crown & Polish
26:51 Getting a good shine with a Buffing wheel
27:44 Finishing off with some Fretboard Restorative
28:54 Reattaching the neck, Strings & things
30:07 Ben’s final thoughts & how she sounds
34:40 Conclusion
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Stay tuned and stay awesome!
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Ben, I had the pleasure of working on this model last year. An absolute gem! The bridge is a piece of beauty with truly innovative design. The big problem was the switch which had given up….an not available any more either. There is a Schaller super switch which needs to be modded before installation which gives very similar pickup configurations…..that is, after I’d worked out what each pickup wire was. I remember the bridge and neck were mirror images of each other.
I have a similar problem on my les paul recording which has an 11 way "decade" switch - Gibson discontinued.
In the case of the Taylor you can get the same function by using push pull pots to separate the coils and using a more standard rotary switch - electronics component spares companies like RS offer build your own rotary switch kits for a low price where you can get a shaft with replaceable switch wafers.
Working out the wires is quite simple, first identify with a multi meter which wires form a pair based on the static resistance , and then with an old fashioned analogue moving needle meter (e.g. an AVO) you can tap the coil pole piece with something iron or steel, like a nail, to identify which coils relate to which to which pairs of wires - then mark them. Then by performing the same with each pair by identifying the phasing by seeing which way the meter moves when the pole piece is tapped with the nail - this may require reversing the meter leads to get a positive blip - then you know which wire is is which.
Like I say, it was last year and I’ve already done the repair for my client. He wanted the guitar to function as it was, as using two push/pull is hardly usable in a live situation. Many thanks for the input.
@@mbontekoe3358 Thanks for the info buddy. Given me directions for my next project :)
@@mbontekoe3358 Farnell Electronics have different size Rotary switches. It may be worth having a look in their catalogue.
@@fongy200 I know them well but I have not actually lived in UK since 1985 here in Europe we have Conrad among others but I have done much work on my guitars I also use the "freeway switch" that is quite useful
Watching you take that guitar apart and describe what you were seeing was amazing. I really appreciate how you are able to tell the story in a clear way and how respectful you are of other people's work even when you wouldn't have done it that way. Decent.
I love it! It's great when manufacturers try something different, even if it's a bit quirky. That contouring and binding with the inlayed top is absolutely stunning, and that bridge is beautiful! The pickup rings are a nice touch as well. It's an excellent inspiration for my own future builds.
The only reason that this guitar was not accepted by the players could be that we fellow guitarists are looking for the stuff of the past. Most of us do not appreciate innovations, which could make our live easier. Instead we accept Les Pauls going out of tune regularly due to the high headstock angle, we love guitars without any comfortable arm rest, we even might replace locking tuners by old fashioned ones to be vintage correct, we accept necks to be removed from the body in order to get the truss rod adjusted, we hate active electronics and humbuckers inside a guitar, which was originally made to have humming and buzzing single coils. Bass players and acoustic players do appreciate innovations much more.
I've owned a Taylor Solid body custom with the Taylor designed mini humbuckers since 2011.
I too was skeptical when I saw it in the store. However, playing it I fell in love with the neck.
For background I've played guitar for 49 years, and ran a successful repair business for 14 years until my hearing failed me and I had to shut down around the time that Covid hit the scene.
On the plus side, the bridge is incredibly stable and has required very little adjustment in the entire time I've owned it.
Taylor's mini humbuckers are very nice sounding and have a wonderful clean tone, but they can get quite gnarly (in a nice way) when overdriven.
The 5 way switch is a nice surprise and I find I kind of live in position 4 much of the time.
The fuse on the switch board is an added bit of protection.
The tone control contains treble blead circuitry which is also a nice feature
The only real minus in my experience was the choice of switch material with proprietary design. Mine is an early production model and the conductor inside the switch appears to be aluminium rather than gold and after a few years the switch failed completely. Taylor had discontinued the switch so no replacement was available, however they were kind enough to send me a wiring diagram for the mini pickups so that I was able to recreate their wiring using a Stewmac "P-model" mega switch
The Taylor solid body is a lot more than the sum of it's parts.
The neck is definitely a love it or hate it design, though I personally enjoy it.
I have a broad stable of guitars for different occasions and musical styles, each has their own voice which is part of the joy of playing in my opinion.
Thanks for your candid review of this unique guitar!
love this content works pretty well to see different guitars come together. thanks Ben.
A very comprehensive and fascinating breakdown. Please continue to bring this form of content as it is a unique idea and thought process. Well Done. Thank You.
Ben,thank you for doing this and future deconstructions of other builders instruments. Fascinating and highly entertaining!
Please keep these videos going - it's really fascinating to see different builds and ideas. To pick at the different styles and to show that some of what we assume to be correct and the best thing may not be! Makes me think about the aspects of a BASS even more...
Not sure if I caught it, and I could look it up, but what is the guitar value?
Great video! Can’t wait to see more of this series!
That’s the best explanation that I’ve ever seen on UA-cam, of the part where you explained how to crown at 24:30. Thank you sir!
Great work. Keep these kinds of videos coming. Love all of your videos because of the insight you bring. I'm a novice guitar player but I appreciate what it takes to be a Luthier. Cheers
Good job Ben!
Hell yeah, keep these kind of videos coming!!!
Yes, looking forward too seeing you dissect more guitars.
Love this new format!. Your perspective on others product is enlightening with both positive with respectfull criticism without being abrasive. The fact that a guitar can be a looker but not a player is interesting and visa versa. For me I nice pare of blue jeans and a T shirt is better then a suit n tie! Thanks
Thanks Mike, I will certainly keep up with these videos, I'm having too much fun falling in love with guitars all over again!
this series rocks! thanks Ben
Very interesting video. I thoroughly enjoyed watching. Thank you.
Thank you! Very interesting, innovative design! Everybody has to learn sometime. GREAT video - more of these!
I'm excited to get your take on the guitars of other manufacturers from a builder's perspective. Love the idea for a series.
I like this new direction.
Great idea for a video series ! You do great work.
Fascinating. My guess at the neck arrangement with the hollowed centre is the thought is that the shim acts a bit like a gasket so the bolt pulls the edges down in firm contact. On the other hand, if it was machined 'flat' then high and low spots could be anywhere. In particular, with a single bolt the centre might conceivably 'dome' making it a bit looser round the edges? Could that have been the concept in general, e.g. with the bridge - better to have really firm contact round the edges than bolt on bits that rely on 'perfectly flat' mating surfaces? Perhaps even coming from an acoustic perspective, used to clamped glued joints where there is potentially a certain amount of swelling, space filling and contraction at the glue cures leaving a solid joint?
This was a great video! Very interesting!
Like this format Ben, but I enjoy watching all your videos. Keep up the great work.
Really enjoyed the video! I'd love to see you do something similar with the Ovation UKII. I think that design might be even more unusual than this Taylor. Thanks for all you contribute to the online luthier community.
Excellent show! I don't blame you for leaving that bridge together. You know when to stop.
What a great idea, count me in.
Love your new home shop Ben. I'm very jealous! Thanks for all the cool videos
Thanks for watching! Glad you like them!
this was a really good video. I like seeing your feedback on guitar designs.
even as a beginner player, I learn so much about the components of electric guitars and the different ways in which they're constructed. I love these vids. Thanks!
This is awesome content, more please
I think this is has the potential to be a really really cool series of video s from you Ben. Anyone who has watched you know you are a master among masters. And I think you taking some of these guitars, and even improving some of there short falls, from your perspective would be really cool.
Dude i love the quest of knowledge you've started for the guitar. I subscribed. Knowone else talks about getting into the knitty gritty of what brings a guitars essence to life!
That bridge design is exactly what iv been trying to imagine. The tonepros on my carvin dc400 is recessed into the body...i was imagining a hipshot like bridge that could be treated/installed the same way. Where the entire bridge could move up/down. In my experience this makes worlds of difference.
I played one of these through a fender, hot rod deluxe clean channel back of the day, and it was wonderful playing and sounding. Such a beautiful guitar to play
I love my Taylor SB1 Standard. It's a pleasure to play and it sounds great.
SO interesting. I own one, just like this. A terrific analysis; thank you.
really enjoyed an expert insight to mass produced guitars
7:30 A threaded insert too! Love those. Wish more people used them.
Very cool video. I love the concept of exploring other builders' work! Hope to see more of this. A possible wish list would be : a PRS private stock, a Kiesel, of course an LP, but i would be very interested into exploring the much controversed SG as well, a Parker fly, a G&L, a Vigier, a Godin...
I recently won one of these Taylor Solid Body guitars. It too has the "NOT FOR SALE" branded into the back of the headstock. Mine is the double cutaway Classic model that is a solid color with a pickguard. Mine has a single humbucker and the same bridge as yours in the video. I have done as much research as I can on these guitars, so it was nice to stumble across your video and to see it disassembled! Thank you!
Fascinating guitar. A truly innovative design under the traditional styled surface.
I love a happy ending for a little grub screw.
Found it's way back home. The little screw that could!
I like that it's simple looking from afar, not a lot of flashy stuff all over the place, not a lot of irritating flashy paint details and color mixes. In short I like how it looks. whether or not I like it I would have to have it in my hands
What a journey. I like it.
That guitar is absolutely gorgeous!
Excellent content as usual. Off to shop your tools, thanks.
Love the one bolt neck system. The bridge is a bit “curates egg” - good in parts. Sounds a little muted unplugged I thought. Thanks for the breakdown, very interesting.
I have one and I love it. I don't bring it to too many gigs, because it isn't as versatile as my Mod Shop Strat, but it is beautiful. Don't know if anyone has mentioned it, but the "not for sale" stamp refers to guitars that were made specifically for fundraising events. I got mine an an auction at my son's high school in the San Diego area.
Loving this content. Keep it up!
Thank you, I will! I'm falling in love with guitars all over again!
Definitely more like this please. Particularly looking forward to the 60s Ibanez, would love to see your take on some of the Teiscos & Guyatones of that era.
I love this guitar. I would play one in a shop down in San Diego when I lived there and was very tempted to buy it.
Love the cools head tatts my brother.
I love this. More please Sir .
Great video Ben...it's really good to have well informed views about different aspects of guitar/hardware design. Having just built an SG style guitar I'm still not sure about my decision to have a wide 'acoustic' size neck - maybe I'll grow into it, or I'll reduce it at some stage. Mine is a set neck, but I sometimes wonder why manufacturers don't offer different necks for the same body - apart from cost!
The way they routed a hollow to the neck around the screw gives a more solid contact. If the neck is flat only the area near to the bolts will make a contact. That’s because the bolts will bend the wood. Even with four bolt designs a small hollow around each bolt would improve the contact. The bridge has much more contact area that Tune-O-Matic which is sopported only by two skinni screws.
I thoroughly enjoyed watch you working on the Electric Taylor, I had trouble sleeping so came across you channel on UA-cam, I have added you to my list, I'm an old Beginner aged 64 it was Zal Cleminson from the late great Sensation Alex Harvey Band who said Glen if you plug it in you'll never look back, wise words from a Rock Legend ,👍🏼🎸🎸🍀🍀🍀🍀
I found one of these about 3 months back. It has Taylor's mini-humbuckers and sounds great. I have played Taylor acoustics and a T5 for many years, perhaps that's why i have no issues with the neck profile. The weak point is the Schaller switch, very prone to failure and no longer available. Loved your approach to this video and agree with most of the points you raise about the guitar. Each to their own but I will definitely be keeping mine - albeit with some switch cleaner to hand!!!!
I love it. I’d buy it from in an instant but Im in Canada. Thanks for the bid.
Tried one of these. felt like you described the neck, an acoustic. Yes it is well done for what it is.
Hey, just an observation of a random youtube passerby. I don't normally watch this kind of content but you kept me 100% engaged the whole time. Your personality is inviting and not abrasive. Same goes to your video production, nothing was superfluous and this resulted in the video feeling more like a conversation than a presentation. Subscribed.
man i want one of these so bad, i think it is just such a versatile guitar
I’ve got a Taylor T3B, similar, from 2013. It has a thinner feeling neck. It is superb.
I used to play one of these for years as my main guitar. They’re great! The bridge pickup in this guitar is not stock - it’s a Taylor pickup but it’s what they call an HG pickup (high gain). The neck pickup and the stock bridge pickup are HD pickups - lower gain more like a PAF. I have a neon green HSS Taylor Solidbody that I won from Taylor in 2009 with a trem.
Also the production version of this guitar didn’t have binding on the neck or headstock. After some digging it turns out the guitars marked “not for sale” were promo guitars from Taylor.
@@mikelinden214 might explain why it’s made from mdf or whatever?
Thanks Ben ! the knobs looks interesting as well, rubber around is not a bad idea I think
Interesting range of tones.
What an interesting design
I think those are beautiful
Watching Ben smell the guitar made me laugh because I have a cedar classical guitar and when it warms up you can smell it while you play. One of the things I really enjoy about that guitar.
Very interesting-more please 👍
More to come!
The name of the Book Is how not to build a guitar!
But do it the correct way!
Keep it up Mr. Ben
What a setup nightmare !
Didn’t really like anything about the guitar. But I’m glad I stayed for the fretboard. Looks amazing after you polished it!
The cardboard wading they use in Doors stops feedback, i've seen it done. The guy who makes Guitars from Ikea furniture used some and said it worked brilliantly for filling up those hollow spaces, much like the Tyre or Radiator weld your refering to.
Elise Trouw uses one regularly and you can see why. It is a multi uses tool that can be invaluable for an eclectic musician
I would buy that book!
Just found and bought one of these yesterday - also a 2007 Not For Sale model. Switched out the pickups for SD Jupiters and it sounds fantastic. Regarding body resonance, the body really vibrates when I play open chords, and not in the rattley way.
Many thanks for creating this video, and explaining all the parts, especially the amazing bridge. I also appreciate guitar makers when they try "something different". Sometimes we guitar players need to not be so conservative and admit that guitar design didn't end in 1954.
Saw an article that said after they discontinued the range in 2011 Taylor gave remaining factory stock to charities and music schools stamp not for sale.
That bridge 🤤
I own one with a gorgeous walnut top and mine also says behind the headstock "Not for Sale". A beautiful guitar
That neck pocket is really smart.
By hollowing out the middle, it increases the pressure on the outside edges and makes it a “tighter” join.
It also reduces the risk of the neck sitting not level, it’s how they make furniture bases sit flat and not rock.
Just have to make sure the neck itself is strong enough to not sink down in the middle and make a concave in the fretboard
LOL! Funny you mentioned the sale. I just ordered the wipe on lacquer, and finish oils last night. The sale was a nice bonus.
I have to say, that is a beautiful guitar. And yeah, I get the MDF being weird. I'm rebuilding a Gremlin right now.
The single-bolt neck is a nice piece of engineering, and I like the way they inset the top and binding into the body. (letting the side wrap up a bi bit)
Great video. I'm sure others have shared this, but Taylor made two versions of its 'solid body' guitar. The Standard, (which I think this is) had a chambered mahogany body and a quilted maple top. And the Classic which had solid swamp ash body.
Very interesting video! Thank you for doing this. Did you do the raffle already? Or is there a chance to still get in?
Keep this kind of content going! I'm loving it and there is so much to learn
I very much enjoyed watching this ☺️ even though it was interrupted by a I live stream I couldn't miss😅 That's is a very unusual guitar it sounded great even though it was made of Fibreboard but what a neck bolt. I love different interesting guitars I wanna see more please....pretty please 🙏
I always use a single bolt, although I do angle the end of the neck so that it fits into a corresponding angle in the body. The idea being, when the strings are pulled tight the neck is locked into the body. Seems to work really well and has the advantage of being able to remove the neck very easily. Great video, cheers Dave
Hi. What's the technical description of the 'ferrule' or 'bushing'? ie what do you use? ~8-10mm I've searched extensively & got nowhere. Cheers.
@@RobSmathome hi, to be honest I don’t know either. Try Bonehead guitars I know he uses ferrules quite often. Cheers Dave
@@RobSmathome no wait, ferrules are used for string thru the body bridges and would probably use an 8mm diameter hole. Bushings would be used as washers on the screws fixing the neck to the body and would probably be around 10mm diameter. Not sure if this helps. Cheers Dave
@@DaveDickens I'll give these a shot : Stainless Steel Countersunk Washer M8 (25mm O/D) they come in colours too!! 😁 before i found these i was toying with the idea of using thick wide flat washers and capping a countersink to hide it all... the first-mentioned are much simpler...
I remember being very impressed playing this at guitar center years ago the finishing is noticably high quality compared to most things I had played at that point aside from evh and Ibanez guitars.
Would love a series or some videos on the innovations of different brands or how different countries shaped guitar/bass building. For example I would love to hear about Japan's contributions and change from making primarily copies to making innovative, unique instruments. Ibanez is definitely worth a mention and played a part but I want to hear more about companies that get missed or had specific innovations such as Tune Japan, which helped popularize smaller bodied basses with complex pre-amp circuits. The stuff Tune was doing in the mid 80s with electronics was cutting edge (2 independent pre-amps in the same bass, hidden trimmer pots, gain for each pickup or string, multiple parametric mid eq's etc) and is still very difficult to find builders that will take electronics to the same extreme as Tune.
The Roland g808 and gr300 synth attachment i think is one of the coolest guitars in history. so many tone options with that onboard synth
Nicle video, thanks. I have a solidbody classic model. No fancy top, but a real swamp ash solid body. The bridge makes direct contact with the body. Worth mentioning is when you roll down the bass it gives a nice kind of cocked wah sound. The neck is indeed very different from a gibson or fender neck. Question of taste probally. I love the the neck and it works for me. The classic came with great sounding mini humbuckers. Sounds different from what I hear in this video. Great versatile guitar and my go to guitar!
I normally don't enter these manner of competitions, but in this case I absolutely have - and what a beautiful prize for some lucky person. Good luck everyone :)
Thank you for your support, and good luck to you!
I had a black standard with a pearloid pickguard. Very cool looking. Really liked it and I'm not really sure why I sold it. The bridge was funky for sure.
Just seen the video and yes, a fuse for safety is a good idea. I use it in all my guitars
I tried one about 12 years ago, and while it was spectacular there was something I couldn't get over with the neck. You hear a lot of acoustic builders using the tagline "the acoustic for electric players", I feel this is an "electric for acoustic players".
Had the same thought.
You’re going to laugh but I really like the way you masked off the fretboard prior to buffing. Folding tape over to make it more narrow…. Also using a bit of tape to keep the metal shield in place.
Interesting choices with the selector switch and how the coils are combined. I have a traditional Strat with the ability to put neck and bridge pups in series and it’s a cool, useful sound. In parallel you get a Tele-like sound.
2007 was the year i graduated highschool and 10/ 23 is my birthday. What a trip.
Nice comb-over tattoo.
I am fond of guitars and basses, and have several who have followed me for many years now 35-40. It is a very nice and special guitar you have on the table, not many of that kind. But what draws my eyes away from the guitar is the fine tool collection you have built up, and I reckon we don't even see half of it, the rest are tucked away in cupboards and drawers. I love tools, where we live now I don't have a separate room for the guitars and tools, and use the bedroom a bit, you can imagine what the wife says about that, even though I don't sand wood in here. Then she would have thrown both me and my things out. But it bothers me a lot that I have to have my tools and machines stowed away in boxes in the attic. Now I'm looking for a large camper, because I have two large parking spaces below the house, and I'm thinking of parking the camper in the innermost space. And furnish it for a small workshop, it does not need to be registered and then it will be cheaper too 😃
I found this guitar to be "Neck Heavy." The reason Taylor is "ballsy" about routing after finishing is their equipment. It is hugely expensive and hugely accurate and reliable. I rebuilt some of the "milling angle heads" a number of years ago. They are a small Japanese company that builds them like a tank and has class 7 bearings in them. That keeps the tolerances of the heads to 0.0001-0.0002". Damn great for woodworking.
You missed the trick with the tone pot. The first 2/3rds acts like a normal pot but after that it provides an overdrive function that seems to boost the mids -giving even more options.
Mine is a Solidbody 'Classic' in natural ash (two well matched dense planks) with a brown speckled pickguard and a maple neck. Although it was the cheapest of the range, it's got an honest feel and tone and I'm now glad that I didn't go for one of the 'fancy' ones. It also has Taylor's own mini pickups.
Please keep doing these videos, there is so much for us all to learn. An example of a Japanese-made guitar could be interesting -what makes them so good and sought after?
I really like the case.