A good mod platform…

I love my Jazzmaster… now it’s modded. New Railhammer humcutter pickups, new pots, new capacitor, new switch, new string tree, new saddle (Staytrem), new tremolo (Japanese fender), new collet (Staytrem), new tuners (fender locking), new nut (bone), a 1 degree shim (stew mac), and a fret level.

Out of the box the saddle is terrible! The thread screws are too long so the ends either buzz on the strings or the strings buzz on the saddle tray. When it’s not buzzing it’s dropping down. Within a week of buying this jazzmaster I threw a Staytrem bridge on and have been happy ever since. Except I needed a shim to get the action right. Then the nut broke and I needed a replacement. While the Luther was fitting a new nut, I got him to run a fret dress as the frets were very uneaven. The pickups were fine, but the Railhammers changed up the tone significantly! The pots were a disaster from the factory: a 250k tone pot with a 1uF cap just makes everything dark! The stock tremolo is terrible. The lock button is essential for floating the unit right: slide lock in, tighten screw to ‘lock’, tune, unscrew until tapping up on the tremolo arm starts to tap, then release the slide. That gives perfect tuning stability. Yet the stock version lacks a lock so proper floating is impossible. The arm is also too long. Fender moved the tremolo unit forward (I don’t know why) but shipped with a standard length arm which puts your picking hand at the fretboard! When I replaced my arm with a Staytrem arm and collet unit (needed because the standard collet clangs and wobbles) I ordered the arm 1cm shorter to put my hand in the ‘correct’ position. Finally, the poly finish feels ‘resistant’ to my skin compared with my partscaster with a nitro neck and stained body (which feels PERFECT). This is a mute point because American Fenders have a similar feeling, but it’s worth mentioning.

While I adore my guitar now, I feel the effort wasn’t worth the cost. I wish I had just built this guitar from parts or saved up and bought a more expensive model. The next guitar I owned I built from a reject body and parts. It is better and £600 cheaper! Nevertheless, modding this jazzmaster was simple and I learnt a lot about guitar building in the process.

The end result is a guitar I adore and I will pass onto my children in decades to come. But the design decisions in the factory are, to me, unforgivable.

From Gear Setup

Positive

Comfortable shape to hold/sit with, stock pickups aren't bad but I plan to upgrade them. Unsure if it is an issue with my specific guitar or if its a known issue, but when touching the tone knob there is a crackling sound, its most likely an issue with mine though

Best playing guitar I've ever owned

This guitar drives like a "Cadillac" and sounds like a "Chevelle SS", which can be a good thing if you play Heavy Rock/Grunge type music. Absolutely love this guitar. I've owned 10 other Fender guitars ranging from Jaguar's, Telecaster's, Mustang's and a Jagstang and this one is my favorite by far.

Great Guitar!

My number one! Changed the bridge for a mastery! The bridge was the only thing I didn't like! Everything else is awesome. The pickups sound nice and loud as well as clear and articulate. The body is extremely comfortable and plays extremely well!

The Only Flaw

The problem I have read about all Jazzmasters is the "buzz" that occurs when you hit the strings with a certain intensity, and even though this one has less buzz compared to other Jazzmasters, it still exists, and it's only slightly annoying. Apart from this, the guitar is a wonder, regardless of the MIM.