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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Gear »

Permalink Stratuar or Jacaster?

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I don’t want to offend anyone and I promise no precious guitar will be hurt in any way.

The fact is I need another guitar like I need a hole in the head. So, when I told my son I got fed up with the pick ups in my Strat and really wanted something like a Jaguar kind of sound, he suggested I should get a pick guard blank and fit some Jag pick ups in the Strat. And the longer I think about it the more I like the idea.

I’m not sure if I would keep the rhythm circuit or if I need to cut some new holes in the body. But that’s what this forum is for right? Does anyone have some thoughts on this? And has anyone here done this before?

Jag pickups aren't too different. The Jag sounds the way it does because of the bridge break angle, the bridge construction, length of string behind the bridge, and scale length.

I would recommend getting a body with a Jag/Jazzmaster vibrato route and out a Jag/Jazz bridge on it. That is how you are going to get closest to a Jag.

Also, instead of Jag pickups try 50s Strat pickups they sound really different from 60s Strat pickups. Jag pickups have more of a 50s Strat sound.

Dave Wronski actually owns the beast of which you are speaking. It's a Strat body with a Jag neck. Jaguar type bridge and tailpiece. Jaguar pickups.

I have a picture of it at home on my iPad. Perhaps a forum member has a pic they can upload?

Edit: I believe it's sometimes referred to as the 'Slackercaster'.

-Cheers, Clark-

-Less Paul, more Reverb-

Last edited: Oct 03, 2017 12:47:29

Reverbenator wrote:

Dave Wronski actually owns the beast of which you are speaking. It's a Strat body with a Jag neck. Jaguar type bridge and tailpiece. Jaguar pickups.

I have a picture of it at home on my iPad. Perhaps a forum member has a pic they can upload?

Edit: I believe it's sometimes referred to as the 'Slackercaster'.

I was not referring to that guitar.

I was thinking of something like Dave’s guitar, but with the neck a little longer. I’m not good enough to notice a lot of difference in long or short scale anyway. And because I had it custom painted I don’t want to do something drastic like changing the tremolo. So I figured if I keep the wiring close to the original Jag I would get a long way in the right direction. That would mean some extra routing under the pick guard, but that’s hidden, so not a problem.

I get what you're saying, but, as Jake touched on earlier, alot of the Jags tone comes from the shorter scale (less tension = diffsrent harmonic overtones) and the different sound coming from the Jaguars bridge/tailpiece.

But for the sake of experimentation, go for it.

-Cheers, Clark-

-Less Paul, more Reverb-

Back in the 90s, I had a Jaguar with bad pickups. My friend took them out and replaced them with some Strat pickups that I had. When all was said and done, it still sounded exactly like a Jaguar, and nothing like a Strat.

-Cheers, Clark-

-Less Paul, more Reverb-

Frank. I had almost the same idea with my Chapman Strat. I'm not entirely happy with the sound but that might be down to other factors with this particular guitar. I found the Jaguar's pickups to be similar to the Strat regarding screw-in fitment and slightly different in size and shape. The Jaguar pups are taller and including metal cages they are slightly wider. My advice would be to search google images for a Jag pickup diagram with measurements then check your guitar body pickup routings. They were a very tight fit in my guitar, it might not be the case with your guitar.

image

Ok, I get it. I guess I have to find me some better strat pick ups. You know, it's just the fact that I always pick up the Jazzmaster whenever I have a few minutes off. If I can get the Strat back on the same level I don't have to leave it gathering dust. So I need a bunch of pickups as reponsive, warm and dynamic as jazzmaster pick ups. This is going to get complicated...

If you're looking for something a little less bright sounding, you could go with a set of Strat pickups with Alnico 2 magnets, as they are a bit warmer sounding than Alnico 5.

-Cheers, Clark-

-Less Paul, more Reverb-

Love the word "Jacaster".

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Crumble, that is pretty cool looking! I love ebony freboards.

Ferenc, you ever experiment with your Strats?

Also, Jagcaster. Jacaster is something I read as Jake-caster.

I read it as: Jack-ass-ter.

JakeDobner wrote:

Ferenc, you ever experiment with your Strats?

I've had many (many!) different pickup, trem and tuner configurations over the years. I'm reasonably happy now, and haven't changed in 6 years or so. I think that's the joy of bolt on guitars– swapping stuff around just for kicks.

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I'll hear that, especially a Fender. They took two pieces of wood and bolted them together. The thing with Fenders is there isn't a lot of engineering beyond that when it comes to that neck pocket. It's a pretty crude setup when compared to what other companies were doing. But they really nailed it. You could never mistake a Fender with another company, you really do need a Fender. You need a Fender and another company's guitar. Every piece on their guitars is unique.

Wow, Crumble, that’s the kind of guitar I was thinking of. The thing is, I never use the middle pick up anyway, so a Jag set up would be fine.

Clark, it’s not the lack of warmth, it’s more the lack of bite and volume. I have been an enthousiastic advocate of the GFS pick ups, and they where a definite improvement in 2 of my guitars. But over time the strat pick ups seem to have lost their power. I thought maybe the magnets have lost their magnetism over time, because I can’t think of any other reason for this to happen.

JakeDobner wrote:

Crumble, that is pretty cool looking! I love ebony freboards.

It's a close species to ebony with some added back dye and coated with clear poly. Unfortunately it has a hairline crack running under several frets, it is stable to play though. Ebony has a tenancy to crack when dry (so I've read on the internet).

Gilette wrote:

Wow, Crumble, that’s the kind of guitar I was thinking of. The thing is, I never use the middle pick up anyway, so a Jag set up would be fine.

My thoughts as well. Don't let me put you off, the Chapman no matter what pickups are installed doesn't sound like a Fender - end of story. The Jaguar pickups are working fine, strong and yet mild, open and clear. It's my guitar that lacks a bit of good old Fender character.

I'd like to correct my last comment. I eventually used a newer Jazzmaster wiring diagram without the rhythm switching. I couldn't get the tone pot working but I never use tone anyway. What made the difference was the 500k pot, it now sounds much closer to a Jag. My mistake there was a thread about this way back when I should have searched it out.

Last edited: Jan 16, 2021 14:54:51

Thanks for this update! There’s a lot of talk about swapping pots and I’m just beginning to understand. How I long for the day when I can experiment myself. This is helpful!

Daniel Deathtide

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Last edited: Feb 02, 2024 15:16:39

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