My 5410 Rat Rod project

Hi, I mentioned my plans for this in my introduction post, but I thought this would be a better place to document the evolution of my Rat Rod.

I bought this back in October as a 40th birthday present to myself. I had wanted a Gretsch for many years but just couldn’t justify the cost of a ‘real’ one and although the earlier electromatics looked good there was usually something that just didn’t do it for me. The current crop seem to have fixed a lot of those points though, with full hollow bodies and filtertrons in the ‘proper’ size.



So here’s where we are now - the first thing I did with my Rat Rod was to swap out the pots for CTS, the originals were surprisingly full size but the taper was all or nothing. I used linear taper, 1Meg on the master and 500k on all others, I used a vintage Phillips orange drop on the tone and a treble bleed on the master, while I was in there I used braided shield/waxed cotton for the runs between pots, switch and output and swapped the output jack for a switchcraft. I kept the OEM switch as it seemed good quality and the tip wouldn’t fit on a USA switchcraft.

I’m waiting for a set of TV Jones classics to arrive, not that there’s anything wrong with the blacktops, they sound great but I think the AlNiCo TVs will get me closer to that classic Gretsch sound. With that done the electrics side of things will be sorted.

Styling wise, I am going with the Rat Rod theme and running with it, the ‘283’ (that’s my ounce of perfection) decal is a vintage waterslide and I have some Moon Equipment decals on the way too, all waterslide with no vinyl being used. The Mooneyes will complement my upright bass which has proudly worn a set for well over a decade.

I have ordered a brass serpentune from Tru-Arc, it’s a special order as I use a wound third so will take a few more weeks but I have enough to get on with in the meantime, I’m also considering a brass nut. The tuners seem fine, and suit the look of the guitar better than sealed tuners, but if I can score a cheap B6 then I might switch that out, but the B60 seems fine for now.

I know that after spending on mods I could have probably picked up a used MIJ but then I would probably have wanted to make some of these changes anyway,

 

So these arrived today....




Update to follow once they’re installed

 

They came from Stewmac, around £100 each plus shipping. They came via fedex and I have t had any customs invoice as yet so hopefully I’ve escaped the VAT man but even if duty is added they should come out cheaper than usual UK prices.

 

Not fully installed as yet, but in place. I will say that the screws and springs supplied with the pickups were way too long and don’t allow for quite enough height without getting too tight for comfort so I have reused the stock ones. I wired in the bridge but I think a solder joint on the jack is off so I will reflow that tomorrow and report back with my thoughts on the tone.

 

So fitting the pickups took a little longer than I had hoped for, tracking down a dodgy ground at the switch (the joy of braided cable and grounding several runs to one tab) led to me retiring the runs from pot to switch and switch to master, while I was at it I cable tied the runs do that the loom would be a bit more stable. No pics of the guts because it’s not that interesting, and I don’t like having my phone out while soldering because I’m messy, it’s expensive and solder is hot.

tone wise - the TV Jones classics totally win over the blacktops. With the blacktops I found the bridge could be a little shrill on its own for cleans and ran a little too hot for my liking, the middle was great and the neck a little dark, but still a good tone.

The classics are usable in all positions, with the bridge being a little quieter than the neck until the heights are balanced (bridge needed to be higher and neck lower than I expected). The bridge is smooth and sparkly, the neck warm and clear and the middle position is the best of both worlds, perfect for rockabilly and three distinct, and usable tones. The real striking feature of these is the definition and clarity though, string separation is well improved and the tone is well balanced.

Rating the mods so far - the rewiring and new pots is only worthwhile if you use the volume and tone controls and want a smoother taper, otherwise what’s in there is cheap but serviceable, and there’s no real difference to the tone if you keep everything dimed. If you wanted the usability of better pots you could get away with just a pot swap and stick with the standard wiring but I’m a sucker for the waxed cotton push back insulation.

The pickups, as you have probably guessed, are a big improvement, both in tone and (IMHO) looks if you prefer the more traditional aesthetic of the chrome covered ‘trons.

The confirmed mods yet to come are the truarc bridge in brass and a brass nut, I anticipate that these should make a big difference to the tone, moreso the bridge than the nut which should help with tuning stability when properly cut for my 11s with wound G.

Possible further mods could include new tuners - the stock ones look great and hold tuning ok but could be a little finer geared as they can tend to jump a little when you’re just a couple of cents out, again a possible change to a Bigsby B6 or B6c if one comes along at the right price, nothing wrong with the B60, I’d lust like a few mote arm options without having to drill out brackets.

anyway, long post with no pics but some will follow later

 

The CTS need the hole expanding to 3/8” (around 9.5mm) from the metric 8mm hole, linear vs audio is personal choice but I find linear gives a smoother roll, although it’s down to your individual ears. The treble bleed could be put on all but received wisdom (TV Jones and others) says it’s only needed on the master.

If you do swap go for split shaft or you will need new knobs as again the CTS are imperial (1/4” or 6.3mm) and the stock pots are metric 6mm.

 

So here’s a couple of pics with the TV Jones’ in. Clean it sounds great but kick in the fuzz (Fredric effects super unpleasant companion) and it’s instant Poison Ivy, controllable musical feedback and dirty fuzzy goodness.