Matt Rayner

Cracked like that after just 9 years and hardly any use? Anything around the neck joint?

I live in dread, Craig. At our hacklab we've got all the big limb-chopper-offer machines, which I'm dead scared of and why I got those handtools! The one I really can't live without is the milling machine in the metalshop.

Bloody hell! Not seen that before! Tony - sorry - Anthony Wilson sipping shampers in the bath. Hmm. Yep. Suppose they had to make a clean break from JD, but I've never been too keen on New Order. And the Hacienda sucked too!

Indeed. Check the saw.. The next guitar build may well be a Castratocaster

Finally got meself one of those paddle-sized Japanese saws for slicing boards down the middle. And I finally also sprung for a No.5 plane to do that all important levelling and jointing. I thought you might like a look. It's made in Germany by

Remember about 40 years ago, we would say - Yahh.., I just read Naked Lunch. Burroughs was the original Beat, forget Kerouac. The truth is much funnier in our old age.

This place is brilliant and in a great old part of Helsinki, Kallio. Guys sit outside having a break just about all year round. Kotiharju Sauna

Took me years before I learned to stop doing small talk in Finland. You ask someone here how they are, and you'd better be prepared for an answer. Best ones I've had - and these were at work - were: "Oh. Hi Matt. Yes. Well, I think my wife is seeing another guy." " Yeah. Hi. Hmm. yeah. I think my daughter has started drinking." If, they do it and they've known you for over 25 years, then it's at the end of a conversation. - Hey Matt - Hey Tomi. (Silence..) Tomi, can we move our meeting on Thursday to 2 o'clock? - Yeah, sure. (Silence) You got a hot date or something?

Tim, do that C and F with your thumb and occasionally hammer on and off (hammer off?!) your 2nd finger on both chords. How many songs do you recognise ? 😵‍💫

My mother was a classically-trained pianist, and could sight read. My friends were astounded that she could play Zep's Rain Song. She could even knock out a decent boogie-woogie if she had the dots, but improvise? Not a note! Knowing theory never hindered Frank Zappa's creativity though.

Bloody hell that's great! And what a super guitar sound you have. Congrats mate. Edit: What's that AKG mic? Can't find it on Google.

Watching cricket?

Correct! I realised that last night. Thanks. 👍

Actually, I think I've figured it out. That width of the steps wasn't accurate. Sorry. I drew a 7.25" arc. I measured across the middle of all the saddles which was 52mm. Yeps. String spacing. I drew a line 52mm that touched the arc at 0mm and 52mm. I measured how much higher the arc was at 26mm and it was 3mm. And there's your interesting fact of the day.

Holy ****! They're going to play on the Silja Line ferry between Stockholm and Helsinki! That's usually reserved for troubadour acts playing endless Clapton hits on acoustic guitar. 10cc are from my hometown of Stockport UK. They ran the legendary Strawberry Studios which I went past every day on the bus to school. One morning the bus never made it as the whole area was packed with teenage Bay City Rollers fans who were rumoured to be recording there. Apparently they never did, but we got the day off school. Loads of famous UK acts recorded there. Strawberry Stockport

12-STRING GRETSCH!

Dear colleagues I have a Wilkinson-type roller bridge that I wish to fix on my Telecaster guitar which has a Bigsby whammy bar.. The bridge was designed for a guitar with a 12" radius neck. However. my Telecaster has a 7.25" radius neck. As you can see in the front elevation pic, the string saddles sit on their own steps in order to match the 12" radius. Obviously, the two middle steps are the same height - as are 1 and 6, and 2 and 4. The steps are 10mm wide (10 - 10- 20- 10 -10) So. I have access to a milling machine. How much higher should the middle steps be than 1 and 6? I guess the height of 2 and 4 is in the middle. See. I ain't so thick. Anyway. You win the internet for a week if you can figure it out. Many thanks -M

Hmm. I'll mull it over. Which reminds me. For you non-Brits, I'd like to present Mark and Lard. They were 2 legendary daytime radio presenters on BBC Radio 1 in the 90's. They did this regular spot where Lardy would bring his rare records in and play them on the show. This is from their last ever broadcast and is, well, quite a rare recording. Lard's copy of Mull of Kintyre

Shane, my son's mate has a Mexican Martin. It has a cutaway, which I don't like, but man! That guitar sounds and plays great. Even the electrics are good.

Tim, I've had Gibs.., umm, guitars in my hands costing thousands that were practically impossible to play and completely impossible to tune due to the nut being higher than my doorstep. True! Setting up a guitar ain't too hard. It's a balancing act between your truss rod, the nut then the bridge. It's pretty simple to do once you've had it explained. Having said that, the bridge is easy on an electric (up or down), but not so much on an acoustic (down and...aargh! Too far down!) - so take it to someone who can do it. And, at the same time, ask them to fit a proper bone nut and bridge. You can get blanks of AliExpress for peanuts. It's also worth asking them to check if your frets are level. One or two invariably need a tap if they're a bit high.

If your friend's guitar plays more easily then you need to get a setup. You'll be amazed how much difference a properly cut nut and bridge can make to your playing and also the intonation. Shouldn't cost much. There are literally hundreds of YT vids showing how to do it. Back to the barred chords. On an acoustic? Occasionally a Bm. Otherwise use your thumb! Start with that C chord, using 4 fingers (string - fret - finger:) 2-1-1 , 4-2-2 , 5-3-4 , 6-3-3 Alright! Play that for a bit. Now, keep your 1st finger where it is, and move the other 3 - in that exact same shape - to the 3 strings directly below where they now are. And stick your thumb on the first fret of the low e-string. Ta-da! An F. You can use that shape all up the neck and you'll never need a bar chord again. Just like Jimi Hendrix 😉

I'm pretty sure Mike, and also the mighty Mr XEL.Ohh, will have plenty to do if Bandlab gets its pricing right on Sonar. $200.

Sorry to go off topic for the OP, but, if I may.. John, how are you and other colleagues campaigning for a paid for licence for CbB? I would be 100% in. Do you have any links, please?

Thanks Tom 👍

Hi A new rebuild project. I have the following drives available: 1TB Western Digital NVMe M.2 Gen4 (new) 500GB Samsung Sata SSD ( bought 2 years ago) I have to dual boot this machine as a DAW and as an office machine. Which drive should I partition for the 2 operating systems, with the other drive being used for samples and audio? Thanks and BR -Matt