Need quick lessons in how to be sneaky, calling all experts! - Page 2

firebirds · 06-09-2008, 08:45 AM

Amp is now sitting in our closet hidden under some blankets. Not a bad deal. MSRP new is $480, best price locally is $380. My e-bay price $77.55. Got an extra bonus since it came with a foot switch to change channels

firebirds · 06-12-2008, 08:55 AM

After having saved so much on the amp, I'm spending that extra $$ working with the craftsman on a design for a custom guitar strap.

firebirds · 07-06-2008, 02:15 PM

AAARRRGGGHHH ! ! !

What a terrible couple of weeks. June 23rd my littlest one fell down in the street, must have tripped over a shadow, got her left hand doubled up underneath her (yup, she is left handed) and broke her wrist. The good news is that it is was a minor break, no where near the growth plate and is expected to make a 100% recovery. She had what is called a compression fracture of her ulna and an actual break in her radius. Fortunately with her being only 5 and the bones still being relatively soft things could have been much worse.

Mrs. Firebirds and I celebrated our 20th anniversary on the 25th at an authentic Mecixan place we have been wanting to go to for years. Not sure how it happened but she snagged nearly all the shrimp from our house special combination fajitas. Hey if gotta get trumped can't think of anybody else I'd rather lose to.

July 1st get a call from a frantic Mrs. Firebirds saying that the neighbors just called from the water park and our son, who they invited to come along, some how banged his bottom jaw and may have bitten thru his bottom lip. Don't think I even locked computer and was out the door on the way home. Get there and the top teeth just barely broke the skin on the outside but the bottom teeth, still new enough to have the serrated edge, did a job on the inside. Lots of blood but all in all nothing to freak about and didn't go thru. The boy was more afraid of going to the Dr. to get it looked at than the trauma of same was worth. As of today, nothing but a thing.

Thursday comes, leave early from work to get ready for the party we always host on the 4th. Get ready to add the guitar contribution from my Mom and my contribution from the paycheck to my money jar and realize something. UH OH, we are going to be getting a bill from the hosiptal ER, from x-ray and from the orthapedic specialist for our littlest Firebird. Maybe I better hang on to my contribution this pay check.

Later that night I cut my finger real good doing the "tater planks" for the party. Again lots of blood but serious pressure and keeping it above my heart saved another trip to ER. Some how the guitar player lightly burned her thumb lighting off fireworks while I was manning the grill getting 20 lbs of ribs and the "tater planks" done.

So here I sit cussing trying to type. Every time I try to use the cut finger to hit a key I hit 3 and spend more time going back to correct than if I were to hunt and peck. Littlest Firebird is doing just fine, check up on the 15th to probably remove the cast and put on a splint. Son is healing up fine and gets pretty upset because potato chips still sting just a little bit. My guitar hero is pretty pissed off because she can't play her guitar because the blister has popped and is very tender but healing nicely. And lastly I'm hoping that I don't have to settle for a MIM Strat instead of an American Standard.

tarcone · 07-06-2008, 04:26 PM

Go th the store where you want to buy the guitar. Tell the sales person whats up (buying a gift, etc.). Do this before the 6 month check up for the seagull.
Tell the sales guy to ask your daughter all sorts of questions, real technical and professional, almost as if the salesperson were quizzing her on her knowledge of strats and testing her to see if she deserves one. You are standing right there and suck in all the info. You get the salespersons card, say you just made a $3000 sale (not in front of your daughter). Everyone is happy and your daughter is clueless.

Good luck.

firebirds · 07-19-2008, 12:11 PM

Wow, tons of stuff have happened since my last true update, my last post was more of a vent than anything else. Ok, finally nailed down what she would consider to be her ulitimate guitar. A Fender Stratocaster Vintage '57 Hot Rod. Still candy apple red, white pick guard and maple fret board. They have the same thing in the American Standard series and in the Standard series (made in Mexico). The main differences in the series is the quality of the hardware and electronics. During our visits to guitar shops I've learned that she has played all 3 so she definately knows what she wants and why. Our neighbors graciously allowed me to store the amp at their house so there is no longer the chance for her to accidently discover it's existance.

We took her Seagull in to get it checked out as I said and our plan worked perfectly. The Kris listened to what she had to say and suggested that while he was working on her Seagull she should go have some fun with the electrics. He grabbed a repeating pattern strap off the wall and without hesitation a $3,000 Strat. Set her up, making double sure the strap was adjusted exactly to her liking, plugged her in and gave a quick demo of the amps features and let her go.

While he was working on her guitar I was taking special notice of the min/max of her strap shoulder break points. When Kris was ready he took her Seagull to her to check out his work. As it turns out Kris is getting a custom guitar strap made for his nephew's coming birthday (major wink wink here) and asked my daughter how tall she was. Surprisingly his nephew is the same height and Kris asked if she would mind if he could take a couple measurements for reference.

She loved the new action of her guitar and then spent some time talking/asking some music questions she was having some trouble with. When that was done she picked up the Strat and played for another 30 minutes or so. When all was said and done we got the exact measurements for her custom strap, confirmed her prefered neck profile and gave her close to an hour of playing time.

I've been working with the strap maker and we've finalized the design. The measurements I got during the Seagull trip were vital in what we are doing. The name she goes by is a shortened version of her given name. I've take those letters and turned them into a musical font. They will appear on the front of the strap. The min/max shoulder break points are important to ensure the proper placement of the letters. We want to make sure that during her normal playing action the letters are pretty much centered. We are going with a 3" wide, padded fixed length style. It will be an antiqued ox blood red with the letters in antiqued white. The letters will be quilted so that they are raised up above the body of the strap. This is different from everything else I've seen on straps. Usually they are either filagreed (spelling?) or carved into the leather. The craftsman gave me kudos for my unique design and said it was going to be real fun to make. I was very pleasantly surprised with the quoted price because I got a major discount because I did all the artwork, which he usually charges exta.

Karlifornia · 07-19-2008, 03:50 PM

Cringer's post near the beginning was hilarious....

Buccaneer · 07-19-2008, 05:08 PM

Unfortunately, there's too much time between now and Christmas.

firebirds · 08-27-2008, 07:47 PM

This could only happen to me, and of all the times it could happen why did it have to happen now. Since my last post I got the custom strap nailed down and at a good price. But I have broken my arm (cha-ching), thru some series of strange events, that can only happen to high school students, the guitar player got thrown off the hood of a car in the school parking lot - no serious bodily damage but still another vist to the ER (cha-ching) and last week I wouind up having to have out-patient surgery to fix my arm ( a plate and 4 screws later - cha ching). I'm beginning to think that I may have just cha-chinged myself into having to settle for the MIM

firebirds · 12-31-2008, 01:03 PM

Thought I better finish up this story for those who provided valuable input which is/was greatly appreciated and other who showed interest. Long story short, all injuries healed nicely and we were able to get on top of the medical bills. Couldn't get the Vintage '57 Hot Rod but we were able to get an American Standard Candy-Cola Maple Strat. We are pushing the custom strap to her birthday in February. Anyway, Christmas morning finds the guitar player dragging herself down stairs, led by her younger siblings, around the corner into the living room where the Christmas tree is set up. She makes the corner and stops dead in her tracks. After a couple of seconds staring at her present she utters "Now that is bitchin'". She bends over with her hands on her knees and looks at it for a few more seconds, lookings as if she is afraid to touch it. Then she gently runs runs her fingers across the strings and says "Cool, it's even in tune". At which time she promptly sits down, plugs herself in and just starts playing. I had hoped that the boss would be down stairs and have her new camcorder in hand to catch the moment but that didn't work out. Still I have those 10 seconds or so etched into my memory. She has shown it off to all of her friends who have stopped by and can't wait to tell her instructors at school. It came as a total surprise so when all is said and done I was able to pull it off almost perfectly.

Thanks again to all those who provided input and those who followed along. Hope your Christmas was as enjoyable as mine and wish the very best for everyone in the new year.

DanGarion · 12-31-2008, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by firebirds

Thought I better finish up this story for those who provided valuable input which is/was greatly appreciated and other who showed interest. Long story short, all injuries healed nicely and we were able to get on top of the medical bills. Couldn't get the Vintage '57 Hot Rod but we were able to get an American Standard Candy-Cola Maple Strat. We are pushing the custom strap to her birthday in February. Anyway, Christmas morning finds the guitar player dragging herself down stairs, led by her younger siblings, around the corner into the living room where the Christmas tree is set up. She makes the corner and stops dead in her tracks. After a couple of seconds staring at her present she utters "Now that is bitchin'". She bends over with her hands on her knees and looks at it for a few more seconds, lookings as if she is afraid to touch it. Then she gently runs runs her fingers across the strings and says "Cool, it's even in tune". At which time she promptly sits down, plugs herself in and just starts playing. I had hoped that the boss would be down stairs and have her new camcorder in hand to catch the moment but that didn't work out. Still I have those 10 seconds or so etched into my memory. She has shown it off to all of her friends who have stopped by and can't wait to tell her instructors at school. It came as a total surprise so when all is said and done I was able to pull it off almost perfectly.

Thanks again to all those who provided input and those who followed along. Hope your Christmas was as enjoyable as mine and wish the very best for everyone in the new year.

Wow that's awesome! Great outcome to one of the best threads of the year IMO.

07-19-2008, 03:50 PM	#56
Karlifornia Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: San Jose, CA	Cringer's post near the beginning was hilarious.... __________________ Look into the mind of a crazy man (NSFW) http://www.whitepowerupdate.wordpress.com

06-12-2008, 08:55 AM	#52
firebirds n00b Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Noblesville, IN	After having saved so much on the amp, I'm spending that extra $$ working with the craftsman on a design for a custom guitar strap.

07-06-2008, 02:15 PM	#53
firebirds n00b Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Noblesville, IN	AAARRRGGGHHH ! ! ! What a terrible couple of weeks. June 23rd my littlest one fell down in the street, must have tripped over a shadow, got her left hand doubled up underneath her (yup, she is left handed) and broke her wrist. The good news is that it is was a minor break, no where near the growth plate and is expected to make a 100% recovery. She had what is called a compression fracture of her ulna and an actual break in her radius. Fortunately with her being only 5 and the bones still being relatively soft things could have been much worse. Mrs. Firebirds and I celebrated our 20th anniversary on the 25th at an authentic Mecixan place we have been wanting to go to for years. Not sure how it happened but she snagged nearly all the shrimp from our house special combination fajitas. Hey if gotta get trumped can't think of anybody else I'd rather lose to. July 1st get a call from a frantic Mrs. Firebirds saying that the neighbors just called from the water park and our son, who they invited to come along, some how banged his bottom jaw and may have bitten thru his bottom lip. Don't think I even locked computer and was out the door on the way home. Get there and the top teeth just barely broke the skin on the outside but the bottom teeth, still new enough to have the serrated edge, did a job on the inside. Lots of blood but all in all nothing to freak about and didn't go thru. The boy was more afraid of going to the Dr. to get it looked at than the trauma of same was worth. As of today, nothing but a thing. Thursday comes, leave early from work to get ready for the party we always host on the 4th. Get ready to add the guitar contribution from my Mom and my contribution from the paycheck to my money jar and realize something. UH OH, we are going to be getting a bill from the hosiptal ER, from x-ray and from the orthapedic specialist for our littlest Firebird. Maybe I better hang on to my contribution this pay check. Later that night I cut my finger real good doing the "tater planks" for the party. Again lots of blood but serious pressure and keeping it above my heart saved another trip to ER. Some how the guitar player lightly burned her thumb lighting off fireworks while I was manning the grill getting 20 lbs of ribs and the "tater planks" done. So here I sit cussing trying to type. Every time I try to use the cut finger to hit a key I hit 3 and spend more time going back to correct than if I were to hunt and peck. Littlest Firebird is doing just fine, check up on the 15th to probably remove the cast and put on a splint. Son is healing up fine and gets pretty upset because potato chips still sting just a little bit. My guitar hero is pretty pissed off because she can't play her guitar because the blister has popped and is very tender but healing nicely. And lastly I'm hoping that I don't have to settle for a MIM Strat instead of an American Standard.

07-06-2008, 04:26 PM	#54
tarcone Coordinator Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Pacific	Go th the store where you want to buy the guitar. Tell the sales person whats up (buying a gift, etc.). Do this before the 6 month check up for the seagull. Tell the sales guy to ask your daughter all sorts of questions, real technical and professional, almost as if the salesperson were quizzing her on her knowledge of strats and testing her to see if she deserves one. You are standing right there and suck in all the info. You get the salespersons card, say you just made a $3000 sale (not in front of your daughter). Everyone is happy and your daughter is clueless. Good luck.

07-19-2008, 12:11 PM	#55
firebirds n00b Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Noblesville, IN	Wow, tons of stuff have happened since my last true update, my last post was more of a vent than anything else. Ok, finally nailed down what she would consider to be her ulitimate guitar. A Fender Stratocaster Vintage '57 Hot Rod. Still candy apple red, white pick guard and maple fret board. They have the same thing in the American Standard series and in the Standard series (made in Mexico). The main differences in the series is the quality of the hardware and electronics. During our visits to guitar shops I've learned that she has played all 3 so she definately knows what she wants and why. Our neighbors graciously allowed me to store the amp at their house so there is no longer the chance for her to accidently discover it's existance. We took her Seagull in to get it checked out as I said and our plan worked perfectly. The Kris listened to what she had to say and suggested that while he was working on her Seagull she should go have some fun with the electrics. He grabbed a repeating pattern strap off the wall and without hesitation a $3,000 Strat. Set her up, making double sure the strap was adjusted exactly to her liking, plugged her in and gave a quick demo of the amps features and let her go. While he was working on her guitar I was taking special notice of the min/max of her strap shoulder break points. When Kris was ready he took her Seagull to her to check out his work. As it turns out Kris is getting a custom guitar strap made for his nephew's coming birthday (major wink wink here) and asked my daughter how tall she was. Surprisingly his nephew is the same height and Kris asked if she would mind if he could take a couple measurements for reference. She loved the new action of her guitar and then spent some time talking/asking some music questions she was having some trouble with. When that was done she picked up the Strat and played for another 30 minutes or so. When all was said and done we got the exact measurements for her custom strap, confirmed her prefered neck profile and gave her close to an hour of playing time. I've been working with the strap maker and we've finalized the design. The measurements I got during the Seagull trip were vital in what we are doing. The name she goes by is a shortened version of her given name. I've take those letters and turned them into a musical font. They will appear on the front of the strap. The min/max shoulder break points are important to ensure the proper placement of the letters. We want to make sure that during her normal playing action the letters are pretty much centered. We are going with a 3" wide, padded fixed length style. It will be an antiqued ox blood red with the letters in antiqued white. The letters will be quilted so that they are raised up above the body of the strap. This is different from everything else I've seen on straps. Usually they are either filagreed (spelling?) or carved into the leather. The craftsman gave me kudos for my unique design and said it was going to be real fun to make. I was very pleasantly surprised with the quoted price because I got a major discount because I did all the artwork, which he usually charges exta.

07-19-2008, 05:08 PM	#57
Buccaneer Head Coach Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Colorado	Unfortunately, there's too much time between now and Christmas.

08-27-2008, 07:47 PM	#58
firebirds n00b Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Noblesville, IN	This could only happen to me, and of all the times it could happen why did it have to happen now. Since my last post I got the custom strap nailed down and at a good price. But I have broken my arm (cha-ching), thru some series of strange events, that can only happen to high school students, the guitar player got thrown off the hood of a car in the school parking lot - no serious bodily damage but still another vist to the ER (cha-ching) and last week I wouind up having to have out-patient surgery to fix my arm ( a plate and 4 screws later - cha ching). I'm beginning to think that I may have just cha-chinged myself into having to settle for the MIM

12-31-2008, 01:03 PM	#59
firebirds n00b Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Noblesville, IN	Thought I better finish up this story for those who provided valuable input which is/was greatly appreciated and other who showed interest. Long story short, all injuries healed nicely and we were able to get on top of the medical bills. Couldn't get the Vintage '57 Hot Rod but we were able to get an American Standard Candy-Cola Maple Strat. We are pushing the custom strap to her birthday in February. Anyway, Christmas morning finds the guitar player dragging herself down stairs, led by her younger siblings, around the corner into the living room where the Christmas tree is set up. She makes the corner and stops dead in her tracks. After a couple of seconds staring at her present she utters "Now that is bitchin'". She bends over with her hands on her knees and looks at it for a few more seconds, lookings as if she is afraid to touch it. Then she gently runs runs her fingers across the strings and says "Cool, it's even in tune". At which time she promptly sits down, plugs herself in and just starts playing. I had hoped that the boss would be down stairs and have her new camcorder in hand to catch the moment but that didn't work out. Still I have those 10 seconds or so etched into my memory. She has shown it off to all of her friends who have stopped by and can't wait to tell her instructors at school. It came as a total surprise so when all is said and done I was able to pull it off almost perfectly. Thanks again to all those who provided input and those who followed along. Hope your Christmas was as enjoyable as mine and wish the very best for everyone in the new year.

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