Want to do a SRV copy but can't decide which one!

[Bassman96]

I have had a bug up my arse for a while now to do a copy of one of SRV's guitars. I am having a little trouble deciding on which one to do. I can decide if I want to do the obvious and recreate #1 or do one of the lesser seen and copied guitars.

Attached are pics of #1, Lenny, Scotch, Yellow and Red those are kinda where I am at on my choices (left out Charley, a hardtail conversion is a bit over my skill set right now).

So which would you like to see done? Help me out I'm stuck

 

[woolbrig]

I like the red with the reverse headstock.

 

[stratphobic]

I like the red with the reverse headstock.

that one stuck out to me

 

[100strats]

I went with his #1, and if you do the same the only advise I have for your recreation is to pick a time period, pay attention to details, study many pictures and stick with it, #1 went through many many changes throughout the years.

 

[boytcam]

The red one is cool...not something overdone....i also like the idea of a flame top bound strat like his with his name on the fretboard....

 

[Bassman96]

The red one is cool...not something overdone....i also like the idea of a flame top bound strat like his with his name on the fretboard....

LOL there is no way I am going to tackle building his Hamilton ... that would end badly.

I did some more digging for more photo's of Red and found a better one. The pic in the OP is a mini in a plaque and doesn't really show it very good. I also found a better pic of Yellow. That one is interesting as it only has a neck pickup 1 tone 1 volume installed.

Here is some info on each guitar and the new pics.

From this page http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/the_history_of/stevie_ray_vaughan_part_2_his_guitars.html

"The Butter, Or Yellow Stratocaster

There has been some debating going on about whether Stevie called this guitar Yellow Or Butter, or whether it even had a name. Some fans have called it Yellow to distinguish the Stratocaster, since it’s yellow.

Yellow is a certified 1959 Stratocaster that was given to Stevie Ray by the lead guitarist of Vanilla Fudge. Yellow was restored by Charley Wirz since it was presented in poor condition. The previous owner had hollowed out the body to accept four humbucker pickups. Wirz removed these and made a new pickguard in which he placed a single Fender pickup just below the neck. Stevie Ray bears his initials where the two pickups would normally be placed.

This hollow body gave Yellow’s tone for songs such as “Honey Beeâ€￾ and “Tell Meâ€￾. Unfortunately Yellow was stolen in 1985, however it is now recovered and on display now at the Las Vegas Hard Rock Café."

"The Red Stratocaster

Red was one of the lesser known Stratocasters that Stevie Ray possessed. Red was a 1964 Stratocaster with a rosewood neck. This red color was later offered by Fender as a custom color option. Later, Rene Martinez installed a left-handed 1964 rosewood neck on Red sometime during the mid 80's. Not much change was undergone on the Red Stratocaster, however, Stevie did add heavier gauge strings and "SRV" initials to the guitar. Stevie liked to use Red for "Love Struck Baby" and "Pride And Joy". He also used sometimes used Red instead of Number One for "Rude Mood". Stevie liked to play it rather clean, sometimes with an Echoplex and the Vibratone unit."

And from http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/wiki/index.php/Portal:Guitarists/SRV

"Red is a 1962 Fender Stratocaster which Stevie acquired in late 1983 from Charley's Guitar Shop in Dallas, Texas. The guitar originally had a sunburst finish, but repainted fiesta red as a custom color."

 

[boytcam]

Go for the yellow but rout it out like the real one

 

[Bassman96]

I think I'm actually leaning towards Yellow.. here is a vid of it in action.. LOVE the tone out of this thing!

http://youtu.be/EYosYUB4QHQ

 

[devnulljp]

Dare to be different and do Charley with the Danelectro lipstick tube pickups and the hula girl on the back.

 

[Bassman96]

We just had a couple Charley builds done here. I had considered adding it to the list of possibilities but, the body i have to work with is not a hardtail and I'm not up for a hardtail conversion yet.

 

[D34dBaWx]

That red one is soooooo tasty looking

 

[boytcam]

What about a red body routed out. With a black pg, and one white neck pup. Throw a reverse headstock 70s neck and an srv sticker plus a lenny decal at the bridge......maybe gold hardware or something? Idk

 

[mkgearhead]

What about a red body routed out. With a black pg, and one white neck pup. Throw a reverse headstock 70s neck and an srv sticker plus a lenny decal at the bridge......maybe gold hardware or something? Idk

Whoa...... Decaf is your friend.......

 

[Bassman96]

Whoa...... Decaf is your friend.......

I think I just LOL'd myself

 

[boytcam]

Lolol....well, it IS original

 

[telegal55]

i like the red one .but the yellow one is real cool to. no matter witch one you do iam sure it will be awesome.

 

[mkgearhead]

Lolol....well, it IS original

You kinda reminded me of this guy for a second there.

 

[Bassman96]

Thanks for letting me use you guys as a bouncing board to help me finally make a decision

I narrowed the choices down to a close race between "Red" and "Yellow" and I think I have landed on "Yellow"

Red is a sweet guitar and would also be a fairly easy build but the unique and rarity of Yellow makes it more appealing of a project to me.

Now I need to do some research on this guitar which will probably be the hardest part of the project considering how little is actually known about the guitar but again... thats all part of the fun.

On a side note... as I was reading up on his collection it occurred to me that most if not all of them are Partscasters of some sort. He seemed to play what sounded and felt good verses what was on the label. I have a feeling he would have probably "Gigged with a Squier" if he had run across one he felt a connection to *shrug

 

[stratkat]

I like them all.

Check out the above picture of "Red" though...anybody else notice something goofy about the fret markers above the 12th fret?

100strats, like your #1 A LOT!!!!

 

[Bassman96]

I like them all.

Check out the above picture of "Red" though...anybody else notice something goofy about the fret markers above the 12th fret?

Not sure if I'm seeing what you are seeing


I just found an interview transcript with Stevie and he talks about Yellow..

“My yellow ‘64 is very strange,†is how Stevie describes another of his beloved Strats. “It was owned by the lead guitar player for Vanilla Fudge, who trashed it by putting four humbuckers in it. Charley Wirz [of Charley’s Guitar Shop in Dallas] gave it to me a couple of years ago, and I had him fix it up and put one stock treble Fender pickup in it. The body rings like a bell because it’s practically hollow — the middle was cut out for the humbuckers — and the only pan that’s solid is the edge.†Vaughan used his “bell like†Strat to record “Tell Me,†from Texas Flood.

So when he says "stock treble Fender pickup" and "the only pan that’s solid is the edge" Do you think he is saying it has a bridge pickup in the neck and that the rout is actually a bit bigger than the standard bathtub rout?