I have had the pleasure to play this guitar live and it does not disappoint. As a life long Queen fan and Red Special enthusiast I can say it is one of if not the best home build I have ever played! Luke is not only a talented film maker, photographer and guitar builder, he can play too! Well done mate! Great job all around
Thank you, brother Jono! It was great to have you over for the week... and awesome to have you co-host the event. Having the UK Meetup Man in attendance made the whole thing legit! Glad we got to hang as long as we did.
I'm a Queen fan from the Philippines, and because I'm inspired by you, I would also like to build the Lady in Red using only scratch and our local wood, without any power tools. Thanks for the inspiration!
It's mind-blowing! So much love to detail (the roller bridge video parts I surely like most). I just wonder whether such a perfectly created instrument would ever be played. Proudly owning one of the latest BMG Super, I am actually only taking it off the Hiscox case every now and then, wearing white butler's cloves, and worship. Scared to scratch it ...
@@Lukeyourself It's exactly the reply I was afraid to receive. Bad boy I am, not playing my fancy guitars, nanny spanking my butt. Seems I am looking at all this more from a geeky point of view - and honestly, I am not good on playing guitar at all. Only having all this stuff around, amongst it three BMGs (Super/"Frank"Design/Special), an original VOX AC30BM, the newest Deacy clone, Digitech BM pedal etc etc. For me it's hard to imagine how you would use this wonderful creation, build by you over a considerably very long time, and then torture it with a Sixpence to the worst. At least you did NOT in your PT13 Demo video, I also would only carefully pluck strings as you did :)
a fantastic inspiration and excellent background music! i don't know where my other comment went off to, but i still stand by it! im planning on doing my own build soon, but it's more in line with your modded jags than this
Lovely build, I bet Brian would have loved the tools you have to build his old lady. Did you get close up specs from the Red Special book or from an official build? How does yours sound?
Hi, this is amazing btw, i want to build my own brian may guitar, or shall i go for the red special for 600 pounds, i also have no idea to wire, but my dad knows how to build it since he works around the materials, like wood. its way cheaper + you dont have to buy everything at once, you can save up.
I got my pickups secondhand from a friend, but there are options available. If you search eBay for Burns Tri-sonics, they will come up. You don't NEED the coin, unless you're going for accuracy. Tho, it can help stabilize the volume/tone plate.
Sounds and looks amazing. The best replica ever done. Like a Guyton or better. Incredible. Amazing skills Lukeyourself! How many hours per day did you work in this replica? Cheers from Chile!
I couldn't even guess how many hours. It was very very off and on. Lots of trial and error. It took nearly 2 years to complete, tho. Thanks your comment!
@@Matiasss1980 Sorry, they were a hassle to make! But there is someone on the RS Facebook forum working on making sets available. Tim Grocott is the man to ask... but I'm not positive he's ready just yet.
I got my BMG Super today after 4 year waiting. String action (factory set up) is about 2 mm on every string. The worst setup I ever had after buying an expensive guitar. How do you set it up? There is no adjustment. It looks the same to the way you built it yours bridge
Hard to share info on here, but you can find my FB blog, Luke H Guitar... or you can check out the Red Special Library forum. There is a thread on there with a lot of detail, more than I've posted myself.
2022!!! Hi man!!!! From what i see in the photos, the red special use only a logaritme volume potentiometer (a) withouth any kind of resistor/capacitor (treble bleed) to clean up the som ( drive to clean)!!! Can you confirm?????
Long story. But a friend had original JR's. He took them apart and sent me all the measurements. I made some of the parts using CNC, the bronze housings were cast by my father in law, and the contacts were harvested from a different style, vintage JR switch. It was a hell of a side project to complete actually!
I assume you're referring to the small oak insert? Yes. Two wood screws were screwed directly into the larger oak insert on the bottom layer, and two machine screws go all the way through into the tee washers I used. (which were not how Brian did it. He used penny washers and a nut, supposedly. I changed this on mine so I could make it more flush)
I stopped keeping track after about $1200. But as this was my first build, and I was also trying to track down very specific parts, I spent more than I needed to. I've heard other builders spend way less and way more.
I tried to make mine the May way everything make from wood and metal items I had laying about and using hand tools I even made my own pickup hand wound in an electric dill . Bits of old 30 year old wood . Scrap steel and aluminium.
I wanted to focus on more pieces, but I also wanted to get the big picture stuff out. I might go back and do some more in depth videos tho. Perhaps the tremolo and the bridge install?
Hi. No manual, but I'll try to list it so it makes some amount of sense. (I may do a more in detail video later on) 1. Loosely assemble the bridge on top of some masking tape, check intonation and mark the rough position. 2. When intonation is set, mark the position of the individual bridge blocks. (I used a drill bit to score the tape beneath it) 3. Drill the holes for the Hank Rivets (or alternate) 4. Apply plumbers tape to the mounting screws and install into hank rivets and set assembly in the holes. 5. Fill with Araldite (epoxy) 6. Remove mounting screws and gently sand the surface flush 7. Remove masking tape 8. Install pick guard insert, shims, bridge blocks, mounting screws and rollers. Hopefully this helps. But fair warning, this was my first time doing this, so it's possible there's a different method. But it worked for me. Just keep an eye on the spacing of the mounting screws after you set the rivets in the epoxy inside the holes. I had a bit of play and the high 'e' was mounted a bit wider than I would have liked.
Can you (or somebody) please explain how to wire the polarity posts. I’m going to build my own soon and have no clue what wires connect to the polarity posts.
Very briefly, they were there to make the pickups easier to install and uninstall... so the pos and neg wires from the pickups all mate up to the posts, (one for each), and their corresponding wires for the pickup selector switches attach to the same posts... this way, the pick guard can be removed and the pickups can be removed without needing to also remove the switches.
@@Lukeyourself So it’s essentially like wiring it normally, but your just putting those posts in between. The wires still follow like how they normally would?
Yes and yes. The strings being close to the edge was on purpose, to mimic Brian's. I made an error with my neck, so it's slightly thinner than it should be at the heel, but it doesn't affect playability.
@@Lukeyourself I am just starting my build and I only just noticed how close to the edge of the fretboard the strings sit on Brian's guitar. I am worried this might make it awkward to play
@@phililpb It's not awkward. At least it wasn't for me. The neck is quite thick and quite wide... so there is an adjustment period anyway... but I've become quite accustomed to it, myself.
@@Lukeyourself thats good to know. thanks for the replies. I guessing it will still take me about two years to build mine but I think it will be worth it
it's like the same but different appreciate that, but also this guitar had to be designed and tweaked. Where as the plans for this guitar are out there now. Not say it shouldn’t take that amount of time though. If I were building one, I certainly wouldn’t rush it.
Lovely work! probably the most professional build that I have ever seen! Every cut and alignment made is perfect! Love the video composition as well! Curious to know though, what's with the string action on the low E string @5:24 ? is it a bit too high or do my eyes deceive me?
Thank you, Kurt! I really appreciate it!. The low E string does look a bit odd in the video, partly the angle of the camera, but also because I was trying to mimic exactly the string spacing on Brian's original, which is not standard... the strings are quite far out on the edges... but in addition to that, I had one or two slight miscalculations, so the strings are just a bit further out than I wanted them. It's still totally playable tho, happy to report. I may try to modify it, but it hasn't bothered me yet.
Thank you! Electronics... well, I made the switches, I found the capacitor in an online electronics thrift store, and the Bourns pots are pretty easy to find.
@@henriqueerenner5741 No, that came from Ron Smith at the Cyber Shop. If you're looking for a trem system, definitely check him out. Tell him Luke sent ya!
That could be its own video series! I had a friend dismantle an original Jean Renaud switch, send me all the details and measurements, another friend helped with some other elements, and through a lot of trial and error, eventually managed to fashion each piece of the switch one at a time. The casings were cast in bronze with help from my father in law.
I have had the pleasure to play this guitar live and it does not disappoint. As a life long Queen fan and Red Special enthusiast I can say it is one of if not the best home build I have ever played! Luke is not only a talented film maker, photographer and guitar builder, he can play too! Well done mate! Great job all around
Thank you, brother Jono! It was great to have you over for the week... and awesome to have you co-host the event. Having the UK Meetup Man in attendance made the whole thing legit! Glad we got to hang as long as we did.
But why it isn't hollow like the original.
@@-dale2051 it is.
This is so inspirational. As soon as I saw the switches walk onto the metal guard like bugs, I gave a thumb up.
Thank you! Took a lot of training to get them to do that.
@@Lukeyourself LOL
Amazing! Probably the most inspiring build I have ever seen!
Wow! Thanks very much!
@@Lukeyourself The music helps a bunch, too! So good. I wish there were RUclips uploads because smokescreen.tv is a little weird to navigate at first.
@@radio7353 Yeahhhh... that was by design. :) But thank you for enjoying the tunes!
Please tell me who this band is i love it, please what is the name of the song
@@Lukeyourself
Red Special is an absolute architecture !
I'm a Queen fan from the Philippines, and because I'm inspired by you, I would also like to build the Lady in Red using only scratch and our local wood, without any power tools. Thanks for the inspiration!
Excellent! Probably the best red special build series on RUclips! Very nice camera work and music. Great craftsmanship and attention to detail!
Thanks very much! I appreciate it.
That is quite a beautiful job you've done. It takes a steady hand and a lot of patience to create that. It deserves a few Million views at least.
Amazing build! It makes me wanna build mine sooner than I thought!
No time like the present!
That Petersen strobe tuner! *swoon*
Beautiful build of an iconic guitar!
Excellent build .Love the rollers.
Thank you!
It's mind-blowing! So much love to detail (the roller bridge video parts I surely like most). I just wonder whether such a perfectly created instrument would ever be played. Proudly owning one of the latest BMG Super, I am actually only taking it off the Hiscox case every now and then, wearing white butler's cloves, and worship. Scared to scratch it ...
Nope! Guitars are meant to be played. You get it nice and shiny once... then you let it live. Plus, you can always respray it. Thank you for watching.
@@Lukeyourself It's exactly the reply I was afraid to receive. Bad boy I am, not playing my fancy guitars, nanny spanking my butt. Seems I am looking at all this more from a geeky point of view - and honestly, I am not good on playing guitar at all. Only having all this stuff around, amongst it three BMGs (Super/"Frank"Design/Special), an original VOX AC30BM, the newest Deacy clone, Digitech BM pedal etc etc.
For me it's hard to imagine how you would use this wonderful creation, build by you over a considerably very long time, and then torture it with a Sixpence to the worst. At least you did NOT in your PT13 Demo video, I also would only carefully pluck strings as you did :)
Two items -1. Cool touch with the on/off and phase switches doin the pacman and, 2. Putting the pence piece inside the control recess. Very cool.
Thank you, thank you.
a fantastic inspiration and excellent background music! i don't know where my other comment went off to, but i still stand by it! im planning on doing my own build soon, but it's more in line with your modded jags than this
Magnific assembly
Wow!! Just Wow!! Amazing!!
NO friction on the bridge at all. A Fine Luthier indeed!
Great work Luke! I love it!
Thank you, sir! I appreciate it!
It's like as if it were made by BMG or Bri himself. Even sounds the same. Cool!
Maravilloso!!Like a Rolls Royce!!
I love this guitar, Nice work!
Thank you, kindly!
Beautiful work
I have a feeling this build is probably better quality than the real one. This is some next level skill.
Love the use of the araldite!
Masterpiece!!!
you're the best! great videos!
Stunning build well done ❤️
I see, very cool, it was obviously your switch build I saw on the RS forum then !
Epic
wow great job, well done 😊👌👍
sir this is really impressive
Lovely build, I bet Brian would have loved the tools you have to build his old lady. Did you get close up specs from the Red Special book or from an official build? How does yours sound?
Great work
Nice build!
Absolutely superb.
amazing! very cool
Mis mas sinceras felicitaciones!!!!
O m g This is Fkng INSANE
Brilliant how close are the pickups set to the strings please
Awesome, though can you tell me how you made the pickup system and master vol and tune
Red Special Forum on facebook or just google Red Special wiring diagram. Lots of great info out there.
great job 😊👌
I wanna hear this guitar so badly
Planning to have something out this week... hoping to, anyway!
It's fucking beautiful love it
Fucking thank you!
Hi, where did you find all the plans and the informations?
Amazing but I would like to see more about the bridge
When did you drilled the tremolo adjustment holes??
Amazing!
Hi, this is amazing btw, i want to build my own brian may guitar, or shall i go for the red special for 600 pounds, i also have no idea to wire, but my dad knows how to build it since he works around the materials, like wood. its way cheaper + you dont have to buy everything at once, you can save up.
Amazing job! I was wondering if you could tell me where you bought the pickups and if you need to put the coin under the volume pot?
I got my pickups secondhand from a friend, but there are options available. If you search eBay for Burns Tri-sonics, they will come up. You don't NEED the coin, unless you're going for accuracy. Tho, it can help stabilize the volume/tone plate.
@@Lukeyourself ok. Thank you
Sounds and looks amazing. The best replica ever done. Like a Guyton or better. Incredible. Amazing skills Lukeyourself! How many hours per day did you work in this replica? Cheers from Chile!
I couldn't even guess how many hours. It was very very off and on. Lots of trial and error. It took nearly 2 years to complete, tho. Thanks your comment!
Great build! I assume you removed the metal base plate from the neck pickup as per the original?
I didn't, as my pickups were a prototype set of Adeson's, I didn't want to wreck them.
i’d like to build a guitar and i really love the one on the red special so i was wondering that were did you get that
Fantastic, can you please let me know where to get those switches ? Thanks
I built the switches.
@@Lukeyourself excellent ! Do you have spares for sale?
@@Matiasss1980 Sorry, they were a hassle to make! But there is someone on the RS Facebook forum working on making sets available. Tim Grocott is the man to ask... but I'm not positive he's ready just yet.
@@Lukeyourself thanks so much for your reply!!! Much appreciated. Keep the great work.
The screw for the middle pickup is SOOOO close to the edge.
amazing
How would you change the strings on it?
Just like a Jag or Jazzmaster.
I got my BMG Super today after 4 year waiting. String action (factory set up) is about 2 mm on every string. The worst setup I ever had after buying an expensive guitar. How do you set it up? There is no adjustment. It looks the same to the way you built it yours bridge
Hi. Are the rollers unique pieces or are they an axle threader in a cylinder? Very nice build😊
Can you give me any information on the slide switches? No matter how much research I do I can never find anything on the original switches.
Hard to share info on here, but you can find my FB blog, Luke H Guitar... or you can check out the Red Special Library forum. There is a thread on there with a lot of detail, more than I've posted myself.
2022!!! Hi man!!!! From what i see in the photos, the red special use only a logaritme volume potentiometer (a) withouth any kind of resistor/capacitor (treble bleed) to clean up the som ( drive to clean)!!! Can you confirm?????
Luke, beautiful job, Ive been following your build for a while, also building my own. How did you make those Jean Renaud style switches though ??
Long story. But a friend had original JR's. He took them apart and sent me all the measurements. I made some of the parts using CNC, the bronze housings were cast by my father in law, and the contacts were harvested from a different style, vintage JR switch. It was a hell of a side project to complete actually!
Do you screwed the 2 other screws directly in the oak-wood?
I assume you're referring to the small oak insert? Yes. Two wood screws were screwed directly into the larger oak insert on the bottom layer, and two machine screws go all the way through into the tee washers I used. (which were not how Brian did it. He used penny washers and a nut, supposedly. I changed this on mine so I could make it more flush)
hi how much money in total did you spend making a guitar like this?
I stopped keeping track after about $1200. But as this was my first build, and I was also trying to track down very specific parts, I spent more than I needed to. I've heard other builders spend way less and way more.
I tried to make mine the May way everything make from wood and metal items I had laying about and using hand tools I even made my own pickup hand wound in an electric dill . Bits of old 30 year old wood . Scrap steel and aluminium.
Excellent! I like the sound of that.
btw the coin in the red special was that part of it or part of the building process?
Brian had added one to help raise up one of the pots. At least that was my understanding.
How did you ground the strings did you ground the bridge or knifeedge?
I grounded the bridge with a bit of copper shielding. Similar to how Brian/Greg Fryer did it.
I hope there is tremolo installation video
I wanted to focus on more pieces, but I also wanted to get the big picture stuff out. I might go back and do some more in depth videos tho. Perhaps the tremolo and the bridge install?
@@Lukeyourself yes, the tremolo and the bridge..
2:02 What’s with the coin (I’m assuming that’s a sixpence)?
How did you fit in the tremolo mechanism? Is it easily removable for setup?
I'm planning to do a few changes inside the guitar soon, when I do, I will film how the tremolo gets installed.
never understood the coin under the copper. . . what does it mean, or what does it do?
Pretty sure all it's meant to do is prop up the bottom of the pot, so it didn't rock back and forth.
Question: can you please give me the manual if there is one on how to fix the bridge? Cause i got confused when you did it
Hi. No manual, but I'll try to list it so it makes some amount of sense. (I may do a more in detail video later on)
1. Loosely assemble the bridge on top of some masking tape, check intonation and mark the rough position.
2. When intonation is set, mark the position of the individual bridge blocks. (I used a drill bit to score the tape beneath it)
3. Drill the holes for the Hank Rivets (or alternate)
4. Apply plumbers tape to the mounting screws and install into hank rivets and set assembly in the holes.
5. Fill with Araldite (epoxy)
6. Remove mounting screws and gently sand the surface flush
7. Remove masking tape
8. Install pick guard insert, shims, bridge blocks, mounting screws and rollers.
Hopefully this helps. But fair warning, this was my first time doing this, so it's possible there's a different method. But it worked for me. Just keep an eye on the spacing of the mounting screws after you set the rivets in the epoxy inside the holes. I had a bit of play and the high 'e' was mounted a bit wider than I would have liked.
Lukeyourself ok thanks
Where the heck you can buy those 2-way switches? All I can find is Jazzmaster/Switchcraft ones..
I made them.
@@Lukeyourself Of course :D
"in my homemade switches."
wow..........................................
Can you (or somebody) please explain how to wire the polarity posts. I’m going to build my own soon and have no clue what wires connect to the polarity posts.
Very briefly, they were there to make the pickups easier to install and uninstall... so the pos and neg wires from the pickups all mate up to the posts, (one for each), and their corresponding wires for the pickup selector switches attach to the same posts... this way, the pick guard can be removed and the pickups can be removed without needing to also remove the switches.
@@Lukeyourself So it’s essentially like wiring it normally, but your just putting those posts in between. The wires still follow like how they normally would?
@@brianmaysguitar7252 Correct.
@@Lukeyourself oohhhh. That makes a lot more sense. Thank you. Just one more question. Did you buy or make the nut on the guitar?
@@brianmaysguitar7252 I made it with a friend of mine.. he bought an old bakelite radio and cut me a piece to use.
En la parte del sistema eléctrico no sé ni lo que hiciste, porq lo hiciste en cámara rápida
The bessssssst
I never understood how the strings are connected to the bridge
I need the list of materials, I want to make it, it will be my new project
is the neck too narrow? do the strings sit too close to the edge of the fretboard?
Yes and yes. The strings being close to the edge was on purpose, to mimic Brian's. I made an error with my neck, so it's slightly thinner than it should be at the heel, but it doesn't affect playability.
@@Lukeyourself I am just starting my build and I only just noticed how close to the edge of the fretboard the strings sit on Brian's guitar. I am worried this might make it awkward to play
@@phililpb It's not awkward. At least it wasn't for me. The neck is quite thick and quite wide... so there is an adjustment period anyway... but I've become quite accustomed to it, myself.
@@Lukeyourself thats good to know. thanks for the replies. I guessing it will still take me about two years to build mine but I think it will be worth it
@@phililpb It will be. Good luck!
What kind of tremolo did you use
I got mine from Ron Smith at the Cybershop (thecybershop.wixsite.com/the-cyber-shop) Tell him I sent you.
Where can I get your blueprints?
I think you solder te Capasitor wrong . Hase to be slodered on the Volume pot out and the ground only is;n it?
Where did u get the parts?
WHERE DID YOU BUY PHASE SENSORS
The switches? I made them. But there is a chap or two on the Red Special Facebook forum who can help you out... or just use a set of switchcrafts.
Is this Brian May's guitar?
It was my attempt to come close to it.
This took 2 years to build? It’s amazing by the way, I guess you won’t be making these to order then if they take this long lol
Thank you! It was 2 years, off and on... lots of "off" in that time.
Maverick War - it also took Brian and his dad two years to complete.
it's like the same but different appreciate that, but also this guitar had to be designed and tweaked. Where as the plans for this guitar are out there now. Not say it shouldn’t take that amount of time though. If I were building one, I certainly wouldn’t rush it.
Maverick War - true, good point. I get what you’re saying.
Forgive my ignorance, but the coin? Can someone explain?
Originally used to help prop up the tone knob, done here in tribute.
Lukeyourself thanks. Now that’s a bit of awesome trivia.
Lovely work! probably the most professional build that I have ever seen! Every cut and alignment made is perfect! Love the video composition as well! Curious to know though, what's with the string action on the low E string @5:24 ? is it a bit too high or do my eyes deceive me?
Thank you, Kurt! I really appreciate it!. The low E string does look a bit odd in the video, partly the angle of the camera, but also because I was trying to mimic exactly the string spacing on Brian's original, which is not standard... the strings are quite far out on the edges... but in addition to that, I had one or two slight miscalculations, so the strings are just a bit further out than I wanted them. It's still totally playable tho, happy to report. I may try to modify it, but it hasn't bothered me yet.
2:00 someone tell me why he put a coin there?
your work was perfect, I want to know where you bought all the electrical parts?
Thank you! Electronics... well, I made the switches, I found the capacitor in an online electronics thrift store, and the Bourns pots are pretty easy to find.
@@Lukeyourself Did you do the tremolo system too?
@@henriqueerenner5741 No, that came from Ron Smith at the Cyber Shop. If you're looking for a trem system, definitely check him out. Tell him Luke sent ya!
La acción se ve alta
Is it me or is the action extremely high
the strings show me very high....
Can you make me a red special?
I made this one for both of us
How did you make the switches? That would be an interesting video!
I think it was too frustrating to relive. A bit of CNC, a bit of lost wax casting, some repurposed parts, some help from friends and lots of fiddling.
How do you make the phaser and pick up controls?
That could be its own video series! I had a friend dismantle an original Jean Renaud switch, send me all the details and measurements, another friend helped with some other elements, and through a lot of trial and error, eventually managed to fashion each piece of the switch one at a time. The casings were cast in bronze with help from my father in law.