In this blog post, we will be discussing modifying and upgrading guitars. I spoke to popular, guitar focused Irish YouTuber KDH regarding this subject - we discussed the subject at length and today I will be sharing our collective thoughts on the subject.
The idea for this blog post came to me recently, and the same day KDH had uploaded a video in which he modified a Gibson Flying V he had purchased from Japan earlier in the year - the perfect opportunity to work on this together. The video in question can be seen below:
Modification, Upgrade or Repair
There are a few categories to consider when making changes to your guitar. A modification would be when you are changing a component for stylistic or personal preferences, an upgrade would be when you are installing a component that is of a higher quality or functions better, the latter of which can simply mean swapping a component for a new version. A repair, however, is more unlikely given the modular aspect of our chosen instrument.
Repair
Unless you are in the business of fixing and modifying guitars, it is unlikely you will have all of the necessary equipment to actually repair components of your guitar, let alone highly skilled repairs like headstock breaks or refinishing.
KDH’s Flying V is from the early 1990s, so it is understandable that some of the components were wearing out, especially given the rough life it had lived up to this point. My Gibson Les Paul is twenty years old, both of our guitars shared the same fault with part of the bridge where it had started to dip in the middle, sometimes referred to as ‘bridge collapse’, meaning that playability was affected.
“ - you can fix it with a vice and a clamp to try and bend the metal. I don’t have a vice - the money I would spend on a new bridge would just be spent on a vice”
There is also no guarantee that a repair would work, or it would significantly extend the life of the part in question. I would imagine that it would mean it is weaker as a result of both failing and being bent back into shape.
I should point out that repairs needing a highly-specialized skill set should only be undertaken by a professional, you are likely to make it worse otherwise.
Modification
As I mentioned above, a modification is something you would do for personal preferences or for stylistic reasons. One great example of this is guitar pickups. Whilst they are not the biggest contributing factor to your guitar tone, they do have a role to play and there can be discernible differences between them.
A few years ago, I replaced the bridge pickup on my Fender Stratocaster with an ML60 single coil from Suhr - the reasoning was that the stock pickup was too tinny and ‘ice picky’ to my ears.
“It’s nice to have something that I like to hear, but the guitar still worked”
The above quote mirrors my own feelings. I did not have to change the pickup, but I wanted to. It would be possible to dial out the undesired frequencies with the EQ settings on my amp or pedals, but then I may have to make those adjustments again with another guitar; I do not want to make changes to my settings each time I change guitar at a show.
When modifying the bridge pickup in his guitar, KDH had this to say:
“I really wanted to play the guitar, and when I did I was just using the neck pickup”
Another modification I did to my Fender Stratocaster, and something that I have since found out Fender does not fit to all of their guitars, is wiring the bridge pickup into the tone control - see the picture below! Again, my guitar functioned normally without it.
In this picture, you will see a red X. This shows the simple modification described above - just one short wire and it took me less than five minutes to finish (including removal of the strings etc). I chose to do this modification to give me a higher level of functionality, but it would not have been a deal breaker if I left it as it was - it was the speed that I knew I could accomplish this that spurred me on.
Internally, some guitars are shielded with a variety of products, this can be a special paint, tape or foil type product. This can alleviate interference in your guitar signal, or prevent it from happening at all. This was another modification KDH performed on his Flying V, opting for a copper based insulation that was quick and easy to install.
“the guitar lived 27 or 28 years without shielding, it could’ve probably done another 28 years without it”
Again, this was a modification based on preference and not necessity.
Upgrade
Common upgrades for guitars include various pieces of hardware such as the bridge (very cheap versions can be made with softer metals), tuners and electronic components not directly related to the sound (no not necessarily pickups unless they are malfunctioning).
Upgrading the tuners was an upgrade KDH made to his guitar and, although the original Gibson ones undoubtedly performed well in the past, their time was up.
“ - the original ones were not holding tune. If you even touched them, the string would drop a noticeable amount in pitch”
This can of course be an issue with binding in the nut of the guitar, but any competent guitarist would immediately be able to tell if that was the issue. This was a case of the internal gears becoming less accurate, and so they were replaced and also upgraded to a self-trimming product from D’Addario.
Taking Your Guitar to a Professional
“It’s very important for guitar players to be able to do just the basics”
There is an inherent joy you get from identifying and fixing a problem with your guitar by yourself, and also knowing when there is an issue and what options you have. I will not talk about setting up a guitar here, that will be for another blog post, but the big question is when you should leave the task to someone that knows what they are doing.
Simple soldering techniques are not hard to learn, and even just minimal skill would help you re-solder a joint or fit a new pickup. Polishing the frets is also very easy to do!
However, a bigger job, like refretting the neck will require some specialist skills. It may even be the case, depending on what kind of guitar you have, that a replacement neck would be a cheaper and easier endeavor.
“ - it was the same, if not cheaper, that getting the neck refretted”
Equipment
KDH and I came up with a list of basic equipment that would allow you to perform rudimentary tasks. I would suggest you try and build your tools up over your guitar playing career than just going out and purchasing everything at once. It is best to deal with each issue as they occur, at least in my opinion.
A good soldering iron (one that you can control the temperature on),
Wire for soldering (this can be found in large quantities and quite cheaply),
Low-tack tape and 0000 grade steel wool (for fret polishing if you don’t have stainless steel frets),
Allan keys and screwdrivers (appropriate to your guitars needs),
String action gauge,
String winder.
A lot of this equipment would be used for setting your guitar up, not really making modifications. It is all useful gear to have you can read more in my blog post about guitar accessories here.
Final Thoughts
One important point that I would like to stress again, is that you should only attempt any of these things if you feel comfortable doing so. That does not mean simply charging in with a hard head and thinking that you are invincible - do some research and come to a proper conclusion.
“If I could do it myself, then I would save a bit of money, but [re-fretting a neck is] a bit… scary”
When in doubt, take it to a professional!
Always go into the world of modifying guitars with an open mind, ready to learn and make your own decisions based on your findings rather than being told what is good and what isn’t. If you make some wise choices, modifying or upgrading a guitar guitar, by yourself or with the help of a luthier, can be a rewarding experience and may yield better results than buying a new instrument.
I would like to thank KDH for having a chat with me about this, and picking his brains over the choices he made and why. I am sure that either of us could continue to write about this subject for much longer than this blog post - hopefully there is something to make you think here.
KDH’s YouTube channel and Instagram can be found at the links below. I would suggest you check out his content! As an added bonus, we continued to chat about other subjects, more will be revealed soon!
Alex