Is Building Your Own Guitar Worth It?

Product reviewed

A $200 AUD tele-style guitar build kit (Telly/Telecaster-style) that includes a pop body, rosewood neck, and two humbuckers (uncommon for a typical Tele). The kit is aimed at people who want to learn how a guitar comes together without needing advanced soldering skills.

Main features highlighted

Kit contents / assembly approach

• Electronics are pre-soldered: you mainly plug components together rather than soldering (helpful since the reviewer doesn’t know how to solder).
• Includes strings.
• Comes with a manual for guidance.

Recommended protection / finishing

• The manual recommends using an aerosol finish on the body for protection.
• The reviewer:
  • Cleans the body first with a weak solution of water + dishwashing soap.
  • Notes the body surface is dusty and rough, requiring sanding before finishing.

Hardware / electronics included

Includes:

• Tuning pegs
• String trees
• Bridge
• Pick guard
• Volume knob
• Pickup selector
• Input jack (needs installation)

The pickup wiring includes a grounding cable to reduce unwanted noise.

User experience (what it was like to build)

Unboxing

• “Unboxing the parts is all good,” but the parts were dusty, requiring cleaning.

Finishing / paint experience

• The first spray attempt was poor.
• The reviewer sanded out mistakes and reapplied finish multiple times (sides/front/back), with noticeable improvement after a careful second/third round.
• The body became darker after finishing compared to the headstock.

Hardware fitment issues

• String tree setup
  • Initially installed incorrectly.
  • Needed to notice the string tree should not be flush with the neck.
  • A washer piece was missing/needed.
• Pick guard fitment
  • Felt “impossible” to fit.
  • Resolved by sanding the area that touches the neck until it fit.

Electronics challenge

• Found a loose black grounding cable.
• Proper routing reduced noise, though voices were still heard, implying noise wasn’t fully eliminated.

Setup and finalization

Fret finishing

• After bending strings made frets feel rough (“sandpaper”), the reviewer used fine steel wool to polish/smooth the frets.
• Downside: steel wool left many tiny metal shards, which they still worked through during completion.

Final setup steps

• Re-adjusted bridge height and set intonation.
• Declared the guitar “done” after these steps.

Pros mentioned

• Rewarding learning experience: taught how assembly and setup work.
• Beginner-friendly electronics: pre-solded electronics reduce the need for soldering.
• Includes strings and a manual.
• Tinker-friendly: if you like adjusting strings, truss rod, and bridge height, you’ll likely assemble it smoothly.
• Achieved good results after setup (a functional, set-up guitar).

Cons / problems mentioned

• Finishing isn’t plug-and-play: first aerosol finish attempt was poor; required multiple sanding/spraying passes.
• Mechanical fit issues:
  • String tree needed a washer / wasn’t supposed to sit flush.
  • Pick guard required sanding to fit.
• Noise / grounding troubleshooting: required routing the grounding cable to reduce unwanted noise.
• Fret roughness: required steel wool polishing, leaving tiny metal shards behind.
• Minor sound issue remained: voices still audible after the grounding fix.

Comparisons made

• Telecaster standard vs this kit: having two humbuckers is described as uncommon for a Telecaster/Tele style.
• Used their own existing guitar (similar string tree setup) to diagnose what was wrong.

Overall verdict / recommendation

Yes—building your own kit guitar is worth it (in the reviewer’s case).

It’s recommended particularly for people who like tinkering with setup tasks (strings, truss rod, bridge height, intonation). Despite troubleshooting with fitting/finishing, the reviewer found the process highly rewarding and successfully completed the build.

Unique points mentioned (complete list)

1. Reviewer has long guitar experience but didn’t understand wood-and-wires conversion.
2. Chose a $200 AUD Tele-style kit to learn.
3. Kit: pop body + rosewood neck + two humbuckers (uncommon Tele style).
4. Electronics are pre-solded; mostly plug together, no soldering required.
5. Kit includes strings.
6. Parts were dusty on arrival; needed cleaning.
7. Manual recommends aerosol finish for protection.
8. Body cleaning guidance: weak water + dishwashing soap.
9. Body surface felt rough; needed sanding before finishing.
10. First finish attempt was poor; required multiple sanding and resprays.
11. Sanding and finishing improved appearance; body became darker than headstock.
12. Tuning pegs installation was mostly straightforward with screws/washer.
13. String tree mistake: shouldn’t be flush; missing washer piece identified via an existing guitar.
14. Body attachment: used massive screws into pilot holes + back plate.
15. Bridge pickup + pick guard assembly seemed easy but pick guard fit was off.
16. Resolved pick guard by sanding the neck-touching portion.
17. Electronics: found loose grounding cable; proper grounding reduced noise.
18. Bridge removed and cable routed correctly; bridge reinstalled.
19. Installed volume knob and pickup selector, then screwed in input jack.
20. Strap holders and hardware installed; initial strings added.
21. After a few bends, strings/frets felt like sandpaper.
22. Used tape + fine steel wool to polish frets.
23. Steel wool left tiny metal shards.
24. Performed final bridge height adjustment and intonation setup.
25. Concludes build was very rewarding and worth it.
26. Recommends kit for people who can/like doing guitar setup tweaks (strings, truss rod, bridge height).

Speakers / perspectives

• Single main speaker (reviewer): primary guidance through the entire build (finishing, hardware fitting, grounding troubleshooting, fret polishing, final recommendation).
• No other distinct speakers are referenced in the subtitles.