Thunder Road
Vintage T-Style DIY Guitar Kit
£395.00
Merry Christmas you filthy animal
Well, quite a lot, actually.
- A two-piece, T-style American Alder body matched to hold the neck firmly.
- 22-fret Canadian Flame Maple neck and 9.5″ radius fingerboard with dressed frets, pre-tensioned truss rod, inlaid dots, pre-cut 42mm ox bone nut and embossed Bolt logo.
- Custom-made, hand-wound, vintage style Alnico 5 pickups with pushback cloth wiring and fibre bobbins. 7.5k neck and 8k (approx) bridge.
- Control plate with genuine CTS pots (250k) and three-way switch.
- Chamfered ‘cigarette tin’ style bridge with compensated, solid brass saddles.
- Kluson style, six-inline machine heads.
- 3-ply, custom-shaped, plastic pickguard in your chosen colour.
- Reliable, vintage-style 1/4″ jack socket and plate.
- Vintage-style string tree/retainer.
- Hard-wearing, vintage-style strap buttons.
- Engraved chrome neck plate.
- All the screws, bushings and ferrules you need to build your guitar.
- Your choice of water-based, all-natural dye and topcoat together with tung-based oil.
- A set of Ernie Ball Regular Slinky nickel wound strings.
- Audio-grade, 4% silver, lead-free, rosin-cored solder.
- 240, 320, 600 and 800-grit wet-and-dry sanding pads.
- Two sets of disposable vinyl gloves.
- A large foam sheet to protect your guitar as you build it.
- 1.5mm Allen Key for saddle adjustment.
- 4mm Allen Key for the truss rod.
- Enrolment on our online Thunder Road Complete Build course.
Phew.
Nothing more than some patience and a few common household tools:
- An electric drill with 1.5mm, 2.5mm and 3mm wood drill bits.
- A screwdriver.
- Some old cloth (your old t-shirt will be fine).
- A hammer.
- A soldering iron (we’ve supplied the solder).
- A ruler or straight edge.
- A pair of wire cutters (for when you string it up).
We’re assuming that most people already own these things, but if you don’t, you can pick them up cheaply at any shop that sells tools.
HOW IT WORKS
Aren’t you the least bit curious? Let us show you the ultimate guitar-building experience in action.
HOW IT WORKS
Aren’t you the least bit curious? Let us show you the ultimate guitar-building experience in action.
PRE-SET UP PERFECTION
Our in-house luthier, Martin, does all of the fretwork, sets the bridge and cuts the nut before it leaves our studio. If, for whatever reason, you’re struggling; all you need to do is let him know.
PRE-SET UP PERFECTION
Our in-house luthier, Martin, does all of the fretwork, sets the bridge and cuts the nut before it leaves our studio. If, for whatever reason, you’re struggling; all you need to do is let him know.
Quality components
All of our ‘Thunder Road’ T-Style kit bodies are made from specially selected, two-piece American Alder for a crisp and resonant tone. The ‘Modern C’ profile neck and 22-fret, 9.5″ radius fingerboard is made from eye-catching, striped Canadian Flame Maple.
Our unique headstock design does not attempt to emulate any other guitar with its hooked cutaway and engraved logo, but it does feel familiar in scale and form.
Our modern take on the classics sees a vintage-style ‘cigarette tin’ bridge chamfered for supreme playability with iconic solid brass saddles that have been compensated so there’s no compromise between tone and intonation.
These, together with our sturdy vintage kluson style machine heads and pre-cut ox-bone nut, keep you perfectly in tune all the way up and down the fretboard.
From the Alnico 5 magnets to the fibre flatback bobbins and vintage pushback cloth wiring, our pickups are creamy smooth in the neck position and (thanks in part to the solid brass backplate) hot enough to melt some faces on the bridge.
Want the best of both or even a mixture of the two? The CTS switch and pots allow for a responsive, balanced sound profile that’s perfect for studio or live performances.
Specially formulated right here in Lancashire by wood-finishing wizards Littlefairs, our completely unique range of natural water-based dyes echo the iconic colours of rock-and-roll history and are easily applied (no, seriously).
These are complemented by (all-natural) water-based top coats and tung-based oils designed to be self-levelling and non-toxic. No need for face masks or even open windows!
