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I wouldn't spend too much time changing the headstock, although what you propose sounds perfectly reasonable. That's probably how I'd do it if it was me. But for a cheap kit like this I'd rather just buy the String-Butler to get the strings to pull straight over the nut. Speaking of the nut, I'd expect the nut to be plastic and poorly slotted, so I'd recommend spending the $10 for a bone nut or better yet, $20 for a Tusq XL.

As for the rest of the kit - if it's anything like other cheap Chinese kits, the tuners will be hot garbage and should be replaced before you even put the thing together. Don't even bother installing them. Same might go for the pots, switches and pickups, but you might get lucky on those. The problem with the cheap components is that they're usually bought in bulk and QC is crappy at best, so a lot of lemons can make their way into kits. Pickups are not going to be high quality either, but they might be worth testing before tossing them. You can get decent ones from China - but not usually.

Oh, and of course, check the neck for fret sprout, especially if it's shipping from China. Temperature changes can shrink the neck wood, so the fret ends could slice your hand open. I also wouldn't be surprised if you needed to level the frets on this neck. AFAIK most kits require fretwork to be playable. That's certainly been my experience with the cheap necks I've handled.

I'd also be careful when sanding, because the top will be a super thin veneer and you can easily sand right through it if you're not careful. Basically, just go straight for a 320 grit and do it by hand just to get things smooth enough for a finish. Orbital rotary sander would be too aggressive for the veneer.

Good luck! And please post pictures of your progress!

I actually plan on getting a stereo looping pedal like the Ditto x4 and have each signal running in their own channels and then out to separate amps. The x4 is essentially 2 separate loopers in one (both stereo). I plan on getting this curly cable with these heavy duty plugs(just because they look cool as shit). Then I'll need something like this.

This may seems OVERLY complicated, but I feel like once I have been having an itch to tinker lately and build something fun and strange. I just went through and recapped my tube amp. First time I have ever tried something like that and it was super satisfying. If I can't figure it out the guitar wiring, I could always take it to someone.

Yeah basically! And a heat gun. I'll explain that later. Essentially you're making a custom pickguard out of 1/8" plywood and wrapping it in 3M Carbon Fiber Vinyl to get the look without the cost.

Step 1: Make a paper/cardstock template for the pickguard that is custom fit to your guitar build. Mine is an explorer style obviously, so I started with an Epiphone explorer template from the internet, and modified it until I had the shape I wanted.

Step 2: Pick up sheets of 1/8" birch plywood from a craft store/store of your choosing. You can get 1ftx2ft sheets for only $5 each at a store like Hobby Lobby (where I got mine). For a pickguard, you'll most likely only need one sheet. I got two sheets and was able to make two pickguards using only 1/2 of the first sheet. (Only using about 1.50$ worth of wood per pickguard)

Step 3: Trace the template onto your plywood as best you can. Then cut the shape out with either a jigsaw or a scroll saw (Probably easier if you have one, this is what I used). Sand it to make sure your edges are smooth. I used 220 and 320 grit sandpapers to smooth the edges to really get the "Factory made" look.

Step 4: Now for the carbon fiber part. Order a roll of 3M DI-NOC Carbon Fiber Vinyl from Amazon. I got a 2 square foot roll for only 13 dollars. I got the high gloss and I really like the look. Can't vouch for the other colors. Here's a link:https://www.amazon.com/3M-CA-1170-GLOSS-BLACK-CARBON/dp/B006FP2CRS/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1539580186&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=3m+carbon+fiber+vinyl+ca1170+1ftx2ft&dpPl=1&dpID=5160Ue5zBEL&ref=plSrch

Place your plywood pickguard on the back of the vinyl (not the textured carbon fiber side, the back side). IMPORTANT: Make sure the side of the pickguard that you want to be covered in the vinyl at the end is face down on the material. If you mess this up and cut your pattern with the wrong side down, the pattern will be backwards (did this for my first pickguard on accident)

Trace the shape onto the vinyl but make sure you leave about a half inch on all sides to allow yourself to fully wrap the pickguard. Cut the shape out of the vinyl with scissors.

Step 5: Pull off the sticker part on the back of the vinyl shape you cut out, and stick your plywood guard in the center so that there is the half inch of extra material on all sides. Then use the heat gun to wrap the vinyl around all sides of the pickguard and an old credit card as a squeegee to get out air bubbles. There are plenty of youtube videos to help you out with this part and it takes a little bit of practice, but the material is very pliable once you apply the heat. The heatgun is a must but they're not too expensive. I have a $20 one by Wagner.

And there you have it! The vinyl is tough enough not to scratch unless you really try and dig it with your pick, you can drag your pick over it with no scratches. People wrap their cars in the stuff so its meant to be pretty tough.

So the total cost is ~$20 (rounded up) for all the materials, but its enough material to easily make 3 pickguards depending on the style!

Wrote this all on mobile so I hope it makes sense, I'm going to bed now but if you have questions feel free to ask! I'll answer them as soon as I can.

> I don't mind any generic decent bridge. As long as it fits.

You'll have to do some measuring to be sure, but this looks like it would do the trick: a good budget-friendly replacement with nice reviews for $20.

You can measure the dimensions with the one you have here.

I hope this helps!

I bought this book years ago:

https://www.amazon.com/Guitar-Presents-Yourself-Projects-Guitarists/dp/087930359X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1498195596&sr=8-1&keywords=electronic+projects+for+the+guitarist

It's a great way to have a whole bunch of projects at your fingertips. You can create all the projects on breadboards (rather than having to print out your own PCBs).

So it sounds like this one would not work? If not can anyone recommend something close that would fit?
https://www.amazon.com/Seymour-Duncan-SH-4-Humbucker-Pickup/dp/B0002EKNQ0/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_3?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1518290958&sr=1-3-fkmr0&keywords=SH4+JB+chrome

That looks like the elvis costello jazzmaster? The new reissue fender did was alder with a "walnut" finish and nitrocellulose lacquer. That guitar in the picture looks like it has a much more satin finish though, so you'd have to do some sanding to get it looking more flat instead of shiny. Either way alder with a dark stain will get you most of the way.

I've tried to do walnut stain on light wood before and it's had mixed results, often brings out too much of the grain (especially on pine) so be sure to test the stain on the interior of the pickup cavity before you do the whole thing.

I recently got a pick guard from this amazon seller for my HH strat. Tons of colors to choose from and they're all about $10 each. It's from Asia, though, so shipping took a few weeks. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076K2CNWY/ref=twister_B0783955M7?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

No. You can't.

Get one of these. Or one of the small metal pocket rulers that has both inches and mm on it. A 6" or 8" will do 'ya, and you can find them at most hardware stores.