Custom James Trussart
James Trussart (www.jamestrussart.com) is a World renowned guitar maker; He has been building custom instruments for many years, many stars and anonymous guitar players like (lucky) me. This was back in 1999. I had a chance to meet James when he was still building instruments in Issy-les-Moulineaux, France. Jean-Louis -a mutual friend- introduced us; Not surprisingly, I quickly asked James to build me a custom guitar;I love James' work; So unique!
The guitar I ordered is a customized STEELCASTER (Rust O Matic); the shape and light weight of a Telecaster, a body made of sheet metal, "salt-acid-printed" with gator skin, and a rusted, vintage look. I asked James for a Fishman piezzo pickup to complete the two "Antiquity" Seymour Duncan magnetic pickups. The result is fabulous! a wide panel of sounds, from dark to mellow to crunchy bite and crisp.
Pictures from 1999
Modifications!
Since I had the guitar, I made several small modifications:
I created a small notch in the face plate of the guitar to gain access to the truss rod, and be able to adjust it easily. A modification that proved pretty much useless. The guitar neck, made of koa, proved extremely stable and never moved.
The original tuners had their plastic heads breaking apart, so I had the tuners replaced for Schaller locking tuners. The Schaller locking tuners have been installed by Patrice Blanc, a fine luthier living in Grenoble at the time.
I also installed (as for all my other guitars) a set of Schaller strap locks; the best way to avoid your axe falling during a gig.
The last modification I made was to cut through the metal body an opening for installing a battery box; The guitar being equipped with a Fishman piezzo pickup and preamp/mixer, a battery is needed. This avoids having to unscrew the pots plate to access the battery when it needs to be changed.
This is such a fine instrument!
I enjoy playing my Steelcaster and I take her with me to pretty much all the gigs I play.
She's sturdy, has great vintage look, naturally and thanks to more than 10 years of good use, and a superb sound.
Really my preferred guitar, by far.
If you have the opportunity to get your hands on a James Trussart guitar, do not hesitate, give her a go!
February 2017: Some Maintenance....
For the 3rd time, I have to change the mag volume pot. Since the last time I changed the pot, I have bought three Dean B. Zelinsky guitars, and the latest one is also a telecaster-style body. Dean has changed the orientation of the guitar control plate, setting the volume pot where it should be, just below the hand position when we play. As a result the mag pickup selector is at the "end" of the body, close to the output.
In the picture right you can see how Dan Peters (demoing a Delaterra guitar) is adjusting the volume knob while playing, which is not possible when the control plate is oriented the way Fender set it originally.
Back to James Trussart's excellent work.
In the picture on the right is the control plate assembled by James in 1999.
I had to change the Fishman piezzo "sensors" for GraphTech ones as I couldn't find Fishman replacement parts anymore, but I kept the preamp which is really precise and quiet!
I've decided to change the orientation of my Trussart's control plate while changing the mag volume pot;
Here goes!
Unplug, remove the control plate and start inverting everything...
I ordered a new 250K volume pot with a DTDP switch, but the shaft diameter is much smaller than the previous one.
I created (using a 3D printer) an adapter so the new pot will fit and be centered.
And after re-soldering things as they should be, here's the result; The volume pot is close to the pickups and playing position, while the pickup selector is opposite to where it was before, close to the output jack.
I just have to keep practicing to get to Dan Peter's playing level.... What? I can dream, no? :-)
Note: I described here what I did. The author cannot be held responsible of any wrongdoing would you try to bring similar modifications to your guitar.