Converting a standard tele to a Nashville

manticus · 08-24-2010, 10:51 PM

Has anyone done this? Any thoughts on the idea? How strat-like are the 2 & 4 positions? Is it the best of both worlds? Which pickups would you use?

Andy

Papa Joe · 08-24-2010, 11:07 PM

I'm in the process of building one right now..But I'm not using the standard Tele pups..I'm doing a Chopper in the bridge, a Fast Track in the mid,and a CC in the neck..I'm not quite sure yet about the switching but I want to keep the CC isolated from the other two..Don't think I'll use a 5 way,probable three mini toggles.A master vol, 1 tone for both DiMarzios and a tone for the CC..The tone pots will be push/pull for coil splitting the DiMarzios.
I'm expecting a very versitile guitar..We'll see..

66musicmaster · 08-30-2010, 11:21 AM

That's a good question. Thought about doing that with my boy's BSB affinity. He likes strats and teles and that would give him both w/o having to buy a new guitar. I can't remember the routing right off though. I think GFS has the pgs that are routed for the nashville tele.

Right now, we're thinking of Tex specials for his tele. Would probably go similar if we did the Nashville conv. 5 way switch.

I'd beinterested in how the 2 & 4 positions sound also.

Randy

ghostwolf · 08-30-2010, 12:08 PM

is the pickup rout already there for the middle pickup? if so, you might consider using strat pickups in lieu of the tele pups. a strat pup in the neck position of a tele really sounds killer, and the middle one couldn't sound bad, either.

asquier · 08-30-2010, 06:23 PM

I'm pretty sure he'd need to rout the hole for the middle pickup. He'd also need to do some routing in the neck to fit a Strat pickup in there.

I know he was either going to do this or trade the Tele for a Strat.

Andy, what happened with this project?

manticus · 08-30-2010, 07:58 PM

I'm still tossing around ideas. I've got the Tele standard and a 90-something Korean Strat. I'm really loving the way the strat plays, but it needs some work. If I could find someone to trade me a Korean strat (maple board) or current equivalent (relatively close) for my Tele, I'd be a pretty happy man.

On the other hand, I enjoy playing the Tele, too. I just wish it was a maple board. I'm thinking the Nashville setup with the maple would do me just fine. I'd keep the three way switch and put in a mini switch to turn on the middle pickup. I like the sound of the Tele neck-bridge combo too much to lose it.

So, any takers? Other ideas?

-Andy

manticus · 08-31-2010, 09:50 AM

I should also mention that I would like to accomplish this with as little out of pocket cost as possible, lol. My wife already thinks I'm nuts with the modding thing.

-Andy

AllroyPA · 08-31-2010, 10:36 AM

Dont you have strats already? Just put a humbucker in the neck like a Dimarzio DP-156 w/ a humbucker slotted pickguard.

manticus · 08-31-2010, 11:13 AM

I have one strat, but it belonged to my brother-in-law who passed away earlier this year and I'm not allowed to modify it. I'd rather not go with a bucker, they just don't sound the same as a single when they're split.

Andy

bluesking55 · 08-31-2010, 11:52 AM

If u are using traditional pickups [not-noiseless] neck and bridge have to be wound same polarity and middle reverse wound or u wont get the silent 2/4 quack.
Few years back Lindy Fralin wound me a set [shop is 10 min from here] and wired 'em up.
It made a terrible noise, he had forgot to wind the bridge pickup same as neck.
I love 'em, a nashville but for me to figure out wiring of the pickup is hard.
Ive got a Strat with tom anderson pickups and they are noiseless and middle is reverse wound, give a nice quack

Bullitt · 08-31-2010, 01:22 PM

Might be cheaper to buy a used MIM Nashville than to build.

rompo420 · 08-31-2010, 01:57 PM

You will have to rout it out, but I just purchased a NAshville Special PG from GFS and it came yesterday. it is awesome to have the strat PUPS in.

asquier · 09-01-2010, 02:37 PM

I was going to mention the "additive noise" but bluesking beat me to it. With a mini toggle and a regular 3-way, you'd also have no way to use the middle pickup by itself (if you ever wanted to).

You could use a noiseless middle Strat pickup, then a couple push-pull pots. One to turn on the middle PU and one to turn off the other 2. Being a stacked humbucker you wouldn't have the noise. You could even mount it under the pickguard (because it'd probably be louder than the SCs) and have a stealth Nashville. That would be cool because Nashville Teles look stupid.

Quote:

Originally Posted by manticus

My wife already thinks I'm nuts.

She has a point. You know what a Psychiatrist is, right? Someone to whom you pay lots of money to tell you things your wife tells you for free.

Papa Joe · 09-01-2010, 07:03 PM

I've wired 3 pup guitars this way several times with very satifactory results..:3 way switch wired like a Tele:
1st pos.Bridge,
Mid.pos.Bridgr and Neck,
3rd.Neck:
then put the mid pup on a pushpull switch..
That'll give you all your Tele sounds and kick the mid in for Strat sound..

Papa Joe · 09-01-2010, 07:12 PM

My current project... I'm undecided at this time just what the wiring and switching configuration is going to be, but I do have a few ideas that I'm kickin' aroud.It will be unlike anything I've ever seen before,for sure..

Teleblooz · 09-01-2010, 09:55 PM

I was planning to do a Nashville-style Tele as my next build, but plans changed. I ended up going the other direction - putting a Tele neck pup into an HSS Strat.