The Classic Player Jazzmaster Special

by Nate Barnes. Originally posted in the Fenderforum.

Update: A few weeks later, Nate has revised his opinion on the buzz-stop, so here’s the updated version

Hey everyone- bear with me, this is going to be a long post, but I hope it will be worth your while reading it ;)

I wanted to give everyone an update and share my experience in trying to solve my AVRI 62 Jazzmaster buzz problem. Keep in mind this is just my experience and opinion for my particular style of playing, so it might not work for everyone. I play pretty aggressively and mostly play Classic/ Alternative Rock, so I’m not in the Surf vein that many JM owners are.

After getting the guitar shipped from Fender, it arrived with a pretty nasty buzzing issue. I then had it set up by a pro luthier, and had him install a buzzstop, which at the time solved all buzzing issues and gave the guitar more sustain and an overall more “normal guitar” feel, which I liked at the time.
After about a week and a half, the buzz returned. Thanks to the help of people in this forum, I found some temporary solutions for the problem. The buzz was coming from the small individual string height adjustment screws on either side of each string saddle coming loose and rattling. This was simultaneously lowering the action as well. I followed the advice I received here, and used loctite on each of the screws and got them to a good height where there was no buzzing.

Throughout this process, I found that there really was no set position where the screws would stop rattling. I would sometimes have to tighten a screw to eliminate the buzz, but some screws actually required loosening to eliminate it, and this was also adjusting the action of each string in the mean time. This was a tedious and stressful process as I also had to finish all adjustments before the loctite bound to the threads. After finishing the procedure, my guitar played great and buzz free for a couple of days before the buzzing returned. Perhaps it was from my hard style of playing, but either way the loctite did not end up being enough to stop the screws from loosening.

After reading some more responses from this forum, I decided I needed to make some changes and ordered some Mustang style bridge saddles for $25 from Allparts.com. This was half as expensive as buying the whole bridge, and after having installed it, I can vouch that they fit perfectly and the stock bridge piece is identical to the one you would get with the Allparts bridge if you ordered the whole thing (some have said that the allparts saddles are a bit narrower than genuine Fender parts, but I had no problems with the allparts models). The saddles also allow the guitar to play properly because they are both designed for a 7.25″ radius.

Changing the saddles was a very easy process- this was my first time doing any sort of work or modification to a guitar, and it went without a hitch. I didn’t even have to change the strings (they were still pretty new)- once you loosen the strings almost all the way, you can scoot them to either side of the bridge and pull it right out, making it very easy to work on (capo the 1st fret so you don’t have to stick the string tips back in the tuner holes when you retension). So long as you have had your guitar recently set up, or know how to set it up yourself beforehand, there shouldn’t be any issues performing this procedure.
After installing the saddles, all I had to do was put the bridge back in and re-tighten the strings. I then had to raise the action a tiny bit using the allen wrench holes on each of the two bridge posts (I had some of the original JM saddles set a bit higher than where the Mustang ones lie), and set the intonation of each string (which was also surprisingly easy), and Voila! No buzz whatsoever and the guitar felt great. I also haven’t noticed any difference in tone from only having one saddle over the pickup vs. the multiple saddles to choose from that the stock JM threaded rod ones offer.

After having my guitar set up like this for a month and a half, I decided to try it out without the buzzstop after reading some posts about the difference in sound at the offsetguitars.com forum. I had only tried the mustang saddles with the buzzstop on and wanted to see if I liked the feel of the guitar without it, and whether or not removing it brought back any of the buzz problems I had experienced before.

After removing it, I found several differences in sound and feel, some good, and some bad. The first thing I noticed was the difference in tone. Without the buzzstop, the strings were able to reverberate much more behind the bridge, adding a cool very subtle reverby effect to the sound of the guitar, both unplugged and through an amp (which many people believe contributes to the classic JM sound). The other things I noticed were that the strings were easier to bend and the tremolo system was much smoother.

I had also experienced a rarely occurring buzz with the buzzstop on due to the strings making contact with the intonation screws behind the bridge, which disappeared once I removed it. With just the Mustang saddles on and no buzzstop, I didn’t experience any of the intense rattling I had gotten from the original JM saddle’s individual height adjustment screws, and almost all buzzing was still tamed. Another plus was that the bridge sat more upright in it’s housing after removing the buzzstop (the bridge had been angled forward toward the pickups from the added tension behind caused by the buzzstop). I also was able to set up the trem-lock feature, which was previously inaccessible with the buzzstop over it. This is a great feature if you gig a lot with your JM and tend to break strings regularly.

The changes I didn’t like were that the low E string would pop out if I tried hard enough, and sometimes big bends around the 12th fret on the high E string would be choked off immediately by the string sliding a bit out of it’s saddle. Not having the buzzstop also created a buzz in the bridge housing, which I later cured by wrapping the bridge posts in a couple layers of gaff tape (electrical tape would also work).

Overall, I think some people playing heavier music will enjoy the feel with the buzzstop, it does give the guitar more sustain and makes it feel more like a normal guitar with a steeper string angle over the bridge. However, I ultimately decided that the benefit of the added reverby sound without the buzzstop, the slinkier feel of the strings and tremolo system, and access to the trem-lock all outweighed the annoyance of the string jumping and choking issues, and decided to keep the buzzstop off. The jumps and chokes occur very rarely, and mostly when you are playing overly hard and aggressive.

If you are looking to eliminate buzz and want to have a more reliable, consistent bridge, the Mustang saddle modification worked great for me. I also tour a lot, and having a low maintenance bridge that doesn’t buzz or loosen is going to make my life a lot easier. Whether or not you decide to use a buzz stop is a matter of personal preference, and it may solve some additional buzz problems for really aggressive players. Hopefully my experiences of the differences of the two will help you decide what’s best for you, but the best way may be to try both ways out.

Thanks again to everyone here for helping me out and answering my questions- hopefully this in turn can help someone else out!

This is an article about the recovery of a 1966 Jaguar, that originally appeared as a post in on the offsetguitars.com forum. It was written by “sookwinder”, who also took the pictures, and who also gave his kind permission for me to use them here.

When I first viewed Doug’s “rebuild of a 63 Jaguar” web site a year or so back, I knew I wanted to do something similar. So about 6 or 7 months back, during one of Doug’s sojourns, he located a 66 Jaguar that needed some TLC and contacted me to see if I was interested.

I was interested and a week or so later, Doug was able to pull apart the Jaguar and send me the neck/electronics/guard/bridge etc. In turn he sent the body to Lays in Ohio for a refin. As you can see by the photos the original sunburst was worst for wear with one of the previous owner(s) using a black marker pen to “colour in” the worn black of the burst.

I chose for the refin a vintage Olympic white, but a version of the Oly White that I had seen on a ’66 Jazzmaster which had almost a primrose hue to it. Lays did a great job stripping back the body, managing to keep the neck pocket markings. They shot a nitro finish which included a tinted nitro finish at the end with some “dummy” guard/plates/trem in place to give a shadow effect (similar to that described in Doug’s “63 jaguar” expose).

The colour of the Olympic White that the body ended up with was not exactly the same as the example I had provided, but it is still great, being a very warm/yellow version of Oly White (actually now after looking at the colour in bright sunlight it does appear closer to what I had originally requested… strange the way it “changes colour/warmth” depending upon the light source – far more than other colours).

I requested a slight amount of “checking” to done to the finish, but in the end the degree of checking was minimal.

From the time of shipping the body to Lays, to Doug getting it back was somewhere around seven months. So if you intend to use Lays for any refinishing, do not expect it to occur quickly. The finish did appeared to need a final “buffing”, as pointed out by Doug and although I did toy with the idea of just leaving the finish in the “not so shiny” condition, in the end some elbow grease and the finish is all buffed up (so to speak).

While the body was being refin’d I worked on the other issues. These were the bridge being rusted solid, gunge and grime everywhere, a nut that needed to be replaced, PUP switches not working, upper rhythm control circuit disengaged, a second generation F tuner which had replaced a stuffed first gen F tuner (the enlarged hole in the head stock needed to be dowelled and re-drilled).

Besides the re-dowelling of the headstock, which my father did so superbly that you cannot see the repair at all and it is a shame that the F tuner actually covers up the woodwork, over the past 6 months I have been slowly cleaning / repairing /sourcing the parts which were needed to address all of the issues.

During the process, I discovered that I think that there were in fact two types of first generation F tuners. Both are identical in the sense have the same thin shaft that goes through the headstock (as opposed to the 2nd generation F tuners that are sealed and have a thicker shaft) and are not truly sealed.

I bought of ebay a set of 1966 1st generation F tuners and a second set which were late 1968 1st generation F tuners (both sets had been fitted to teles). Because the 68 set looked cleaner I automatically grabbed one of them and attempted to fit it into to location for the B-string tuner. The screw holes would not line up, because the whole housing had to be rotated ever so slightly to allow it to fit flush with the head stock. I tried all of the remaining five 68 tuners and they all did not fit correctly.

I then grabbed a tuner from the set of 1966 first gen tuners and all six fitted correctly. At this stage I did not understand why there appeared to a difference between the two sets of first gen F tuners. I then removed two first generation F tuners from my almost mint 1966 jaguar and they both fitted easily with all the screw holes lining up.

On closer inspection there were other variations between the 1966 and the 1968 sets of first generation F tuners. The shaft that the actual key part of the tuner (the bit you turn) was both thicker and longer on one set that the other. There are variation is the dimensions of the actual key knob between the two sets. There also appeared to be a slight variation in the parallelogram shape of the stamped outer housing between the two sets, which would account for the observation that a tuner from the 68 set would not fit parallel with the set from 66.

So if you are sourcing replacement first gen F tuners, beware that they may not fit exactly.

Anyone attempting to restore a vintage Jaguar should read/memorise Doug’s brilliant expose as well as the wiring diagram from the Jaguar. These two documents were invaluable as I started to fit together the electronics into the Jaguar last evening.

Once I started, even though I had initially thought that I would only install the lower controls, I ended up fitting all of the electronics, trem unit, bridge, pups, and guard.

One thing that did surprise me was that the guard had shrunk over the 6 months it had been off the body, which sort of surprised me as I thought only the earlier nitro guards shrunk (any one have any ideas on this- huh?) An hour of careful filing of the bridge leg holes and the PUP selector plate hole (and a few beers while watching Veronica Mars on TV Wink) and the guard fitted snugly.

The bridge unit cleaned up beyond all expectation and using the methodology explained by Doug, the PUPs also cleaned up well.

This jaguar only has four glazier points, as opposed to the six points shown in the wiring diagram: One in the lower control, one in the PUP selector route and two in the upper control routing. Maybe a CBS cost reduction?

Next the neck will be attached and a new bone nut fitted (by the guitar tech I use).

[later]

Ok everyone, the neck was fitted and the Jaguar was sent to my luthier who refretted the neck, fitted a new fender bone nut, adjusted the truss rod slightly and did a truly superb overall set up. The Jaguar plays like a dream, with no frets “fretting out” when bending strings, which occasionally happens on my other 66 jaguar.

An interesting observation is that the sound of the PUPs in this 66 differ somewhat to the other one I have, with these having almost a strat like qwak about them, but still retaining the Jaguar colour. With the neck cleaned up and the new frets fitted it is now my choice of guitar when I slouch back on the couch, with the TV remote and a cold one not too far away.

I have found it somewhat difficult to take photos of the vintage olympic white finish. If the light is too bright, it turns the finish almost snow white, so a more subdued lighting was required. Enjoy, as I have restoring this offset orphan.

Forgot to add… much appreciation for the help, advice and occasional spare part that Doug has given over the past 10 months. Thanks mate.

(One more thing…. the carpet shown in one of the photos ain’t my carpet, it’s at my brother’s place… just incase anyone wanted to make any comments)

by Greg Gagliano – Copyright 1996, 20th Century Guitar Magazine

Much has been written about the inception of the Fender Jazzmaster with its notable changes up to 1966. However, it is necessary to summarize these features to give some perspective to the Jazzmaster of the late 1960′s. The earliest Jazzmasters (prototypes) had small, Stratocaster-like headstocks and fretted maple necks. The headstock shape quickly changed to the familiar large style and remained unaltered from 1958 through 1967. Other well known modifications included the change from anodized to nitrate pickguard (late 1959), nitrate to plastic pickguard (early 1965), spaghetti logo to transition logo (mid-late 1964), Strat style knobs to “amp” style knobs (circa 1964-65), Kluson tuners to Fender tuners (late 1965), slab rosewood board to veneer board (1962), unbound fingerboard with clay dot markers to pearloid dots (late 1964), bound board with pearloid dots (late 1965) and bound board with pearloid block markers (mid 1966).

However, the Jazzmaster continued its metamorphosis in 1968. Starting with the body, construction went from 2-piece to 3-piece alder (and occasionally 4-piece), although 3-piece bodies can be found as far back as late 1966. Polyester lacquer was used in place of nitrocellulose giving the Jazzmaster a slick appearance. This finish, which looks and feels excellent, should not be confused with the thick, plastic-like finishes found on mid to late 1970s Fenders. The color of the tortoise pickguard changed from red with white chunks and some black swirls to a brown-red that contained more black swirls and fewer white chunks. The neck profile of the 1968-69 Jazzmasters remained unchanged from the bound/block marker necks introduced in 1966. However, Fender did offer a maple cap fretboard with black binding and block markers during this time (see Gruhn and Carter, p131).

Examining the headstock reveals a host of changes. As on most Fenders, the gold transition logo was changed to the black CBS logo by late 1967/early 1968. The swoopy Jazzmaster moniker with motion lines changed to a larger bold block letter style around this time also. Sometime in mid-1967, the headstock was modified from the traditional large shape to the shape used on post-1965 Stratocasters. These changes are clearly illustrated in the photographs. Note that the 1962 model headstock is nearly straight as you follow the outline from the just below the rounded top portion to the “point”. By comparison, the headstock on the 1968 model is curved in this area. The 1969 headstock is a bit more trim with a less pronounced or protruding “point”. The difference is subtle and was confirmed by measuring and comparing headstock dimensions on the two guitars. This trimmer headstock has also been observed on Jazzmasters as far back as late 1967 indicating that the slight difference in shape may have been due to variation in production.

In addition, a somewhat surprising feature is also found on these two particular Jazzmasters. Both the 1968 and 1969 models have factory installed pearl button Fender/Grover tuners. These tuners were standard on the Fender Wildwood Coronado series, LTD and Montego guitars. Normally, 1968-69 Jazzmasters were equipped with the standard Fender “F”-tuners with diagonal-cut backs. There is no mention of the Grover tuners being a factory option in the 1968-69 Fender catalog. It is plausible that Fender installed them on a custom basis, regardless of whether or not it was an “official” option. However, the fact that these tuners could be special ordered on the Jazzmaster was not widely known by the public at the time. If it was widely known, there certainly would be more Jazzmasters around today with factory installed Grovers since they are far superior to the standard “F”-tuners. These are the only two Jazzmasters with Grover tuners known to exist by the author, however that does not imply that other examples are not extant. One wonders if these tuners were optional on the Jaguar and/or Stratocaster, as well.

The post-1967 Jazzmasters are fine instruments and offer a viable and affordable alternative to earlier models. Unfortunately, Fender guitars and basses, including the Jazzmaster, began to suffer from quality control and materials problems beginning in late 1966. It is still far easier to find a “good” Fender instrument from the 1966-69 period compared to mid to late 1970s Fenders. Perhaps it is the inconsistent quality (or the polyester lacquer!) that steers collectors away from the 1968-69 Jazzmaster. Maybe it’s just that there aren’t many on the market because there weren’t many Jazzmasters produced in 1968 and 1969 in the first place.

Special thanks to Mr. Dennis Kimball for providing me with photos and information for his 1968 Jazzmaster. Dennis and I spent quite a bit of time on the phone comparing notes and this article would not have been possible without his time and support.

About the author: Mr. Gagliano, a research biologist and part-time bassist, is an avid fan of early CBS era Fenders, G&Ls and Guilds.

Visit GGJaguar’s Homepage

This feature is about the Jaguar’s and Jazzmaster’s tremolo system, one of the smoothest and tuning-stable systems out there. It is not designed for “dive-bombs”, but within normal range it’s ace. Plus it has the unique “trem-loc” feature – a feature that many people just don’t know about. I came across several guitar repair/maintenance guys who just didn’t know what this feature is about. Time to change that. :-)

First let’s have a look “under the hood”:

Now, on to the function of these metal-thingies…

I intend to setup the tremolo as described by Fender, so that the lock feature will work. This feature works like a mechanical memory of the tuned state of the guitar. If a string breaks, normally the missing pull of that string forces tremolo systems out of tune, usually the whole tuning goes sharp. That is because the balance between the tremolo’s spring and the pull of the strings has shifted – the spring is now stronger in comparison to the pull and forces the strings to go sharp.

Fender designed the Jag and JM tremolo so that with a simple slide of a knob the “right” tuning is restored – the tremolo works downward only when the lock is engaged.

Here are the components important for the setup:

All we need is a tuner, a philips screwdriver and some patience. Turning the adjustment screw will alter the tuning, so several rounds of turning and retuning are necessary.

First, setup all other factors of the guitar (intonation, action, neck curve) before setting up the tremolo (see the setup tips and the troubleshoot-list if unsure).

Then tune the guitar to pitch. With the screwdriver, turn the adjustment screw so that you just cannot engage the tremlock (by sliding the tremlock button towards the tremolo, away from the bridge). With a minimal push on the tremarm downward, sliding in the lock should be possible.

Too tight…

… you cannot engage the lock, neither in pitch tuning nor with a broken string.

Too loose…

… sliding in and out has no effect on the tuning, but if a string would break, the system will go sharp, even with the lock engaged.

Perfect:

Perfect, because the system remains the same position with the lock on or off:

Now, tune the guitar, and fine-adjust the tremolo setting so that you can slide the knob in and out without theoretically altering the guitar’s tuning. It may take some times of turning and tuning, I recommend a quarter-turn each time. The desired state is that with the lock engaged, the tuning is minimal flat (if you have a “in pitch” position, which is theoretical the desired, you may get some buzz when the lock is engaged. so a mini bit of “push” from the spring on the lock is ok).

If a string breaks, the system will go sharp…

…because the spring and the strings are out of balance.

Now, simply push the tremolo arm down, and engage the lock – you’ll return the system to the tuned state immediately, because the tremlock forces the system back in the right position:

And there we are. If you play occasionally with a altered tuning (dropped d-tuning for example) you will love this feature. At least so do I. :-)

Note: Some vintage systems seem to have very strong springs, so that the “balanced” position will not be possible even with the tension loosened as far as possible. This happens usually with string sets lighter than .11s (.10s on the JM).

Contrary to that, some Japanese models seem to have springs that are too light to handle stronger strings. (.11s and up).

Tom Arnold, August 2002 (updated January 2004)

[Update June 2007:] German “Gitarre & Bass” magazine has kindly asked if I would translate and submit this article for their July issue, which features a large article about the Fender Jazzmaster. I did so, and now it’s printed. Hooray. :-)