BUILDING A SAGA LP-STYLE

From Vlad Chramosta

A  SAGA LP Saga


Hello everyone,

I have never thought I’ll be writing this, but since so many of you have built your Saga, and shared your experiences, I tried my luck. Thanks to all of you it was not so difficult. So, mine is LP and I hope this might help some other FIRST TIME builder. Suggestion: What ever your final paint or other finishing of the wood is going to be, you should realize that the kit surface has a coat of sealant, which is great thing, but it does not mean you can shoot the paint on it as it is. Well you can really, it only means you will waste some paint unnecessarily and will have to work harder. That’s what I did.

I watched this guy on YOUTUBE using Tung oil and I liked the idea. He went over the sealer very briefly and lightly with steel wool and started to apply the oil. On screen it looked quite good and I have done the same. Well, it works, but I strongly suggest to treat that sealant as if it was almost a final coat, Sand it with some fine sand paper, like 400 grit, you will see more imperfections on the wood, fix them, sand it again. Don’t sand through the sealant though, after that, finish it your way, using finer sand paper after each coat.

Use 600, 800, then 1000 which should give you nice smooth surface. If for some reason you decide to go with Tung oil, like me, be patient. It is a slow process. 24 hrs drying time between coats and at least 6 coats. Mine is NOT perfect but I and all my friends still like it. As for the rest of the kit, I found it good enough to build a nice guitar. Everything needed was there, instructions are ALMOST clear too. I have nine very decent guitars so I think I have something to compare it with.

Some people were complaining about tuning machines and most of them replaced them. I did not and I found them decent enough and have no problem with tuning. I thought I might have a problem with wiring. I did not. One of the pickups was dented, but not too badly.

The only thing I did have problem with were SCREWS, They are all there, but I was never too sure which to use for what.

OK, so everything worked, it was time to plug in. NO SOUND! WHAT? Stupid me, all four controllers were turned down to Zero. My heart started to work again and the sound? The neck pickup has very decent nice, deep “Voice”, I love it. So, the pickups are good for my taste.

The neck was ALMOST perfect, it took about a half turn on the truss rod to get rid of a back bow, of course I used my favorite strings, but who knows, I wish someone tried the ones that came with the kit, they might be good too. (Keeping them in my “Emergency kit.”)

FIFTH FRET buzzing. What do you expect for $150.00? Back to the internet to learn how to fix that, and EVERYTHING is just fine. Nice experience, learned more about guitars, and who knows, this one might become my favorite. By the way, NO PROBLEM WITH THE NUT. It might be just my luck.
 

Vlad Chramosta
Sparwood, BC, Canada

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