PSA: Guitar Fetish parts

[Doctor Jeff]

I just ordered parts for my 3rd Fender build. I have previously built a Tele and a Strat, going back to another Tele.

If you haven't ordered from GFS, they are a great company with good quality and excellent customer service. I have been VERY impressed with their bodies and necks (assuming you don't mind a poly finish).

Here's the PSA part: right now parts are 15% off, and 35% off for clearance and relic'ed parts. So all the parts--neck, body, pickups, wiring, hardware, etc.--for my Tele in Lake Placid Blue (double bound) with a rock maple neck with Pau Ferro fretboard--came in at $339. I doubt there is any way you can build a Fender-style from parts for cheaper.

Prices are currently not reflective of tariffs. I think they import a lot of their stuff from Korea, not sure about China, but these are pretariff prices. Like most companies I imagine they upped their inventory in anticipation of tariffs. I did note that certain pickups and bodies were not in stock, which was the case in the past when I ordered stuff. (One body I wanted was out of stock for a week, then was available.)

It is rather easy to put together these guitars, especially if you buy the Kwikplug wiring and pickups. Takes about 2 hours, and quite fun and relaxing. The results are excellent, IMO, and at least as good as any Fender Squier out there, with the exact specifications and colors and woods that you picked and the knowledge that you "built it yourself."

Act now if you need a new Tele or Strat, and let's be honest who doesn't; these prices aren't going to last long.

[RobbieAG]

I purchased one of their Xaviere 57 strats a number of years ago. I think the single coil strat pickups it came with sounded really good but the neck feel wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. It's currently on loan to my son in law.

[Doctor Jeff]

I purchased one of their Xaviere 57 strats a number of years ago. I think the single coil strat pickups it came with sounded really good but the neck feel wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. It's currently on loan to my son in law.

Yeah IDK about their built guitars. They're so cheap it's not like it's a big risk. I like some of the Earl Slick guitars, but I'm not really in the market for a "rock guitar" per se.As a parts company, GFS is great, unless you really want to spend the big bucks for something special.

[Jimmy blue note]

I had purchased their Liverpool humbuckers which were quite the surprise! Modeled on the Gretch Filtertron, they were fantastic pickups at any price for a bargain spare change price point. And they look great.

I did wonder if they'd experience tariff price increases but if they're on sale, GFS has been one of my best kept secrets in doing custom work and mods on guitars.

I will say out of fairness that a while ago they ran several models of mini floating neck mounted pickups, a fat one that had deeper bobbins (might not fit tight clearance guitars) and a thin line floater option(s). I was NOT happy with the sound of these. Bland and lifeless to my ears.
But for all the other things I've gotten from them, I've been really happy.

[Skip Ellis]

Their stuff is pretty good from my experience....but.....my problem is that their warehouse is about 10 miles from me and they won't let me just pick stuff up; I've written emails and pleaded and even offered to bring pizza, but no dice. I just irks me to have to pay for 10 mile shipping and they wouldn't even have to wrap it.

[ruger9]

They have developed a reputation for good pickups. I've purchased a few different types of pickups of theirs over the years, and they are all very good- especially the P90s.

I keep toying with the idea of buying a finished body from them and building a partscaster (tele).

[Jimmy blue note]

I get really high quality Chibsons and replace any parts and hardware that don't do justice to the good quality builds. Great opportunity to customize pickups on the cheap. Especially since price of things from China has had the desired effect of just not wanting to buy any parts. Period.

I just passed on a pretty basic bread and butter repair because the cost of a part that usually cost me $10.00 now costs me a $120.00 shipping fee. No repair. No business.
Grateful to GFS that they have a good domestic supply of back stock. Maybe a good time to buy stuff from them. I believe a lot of their stuff is from China and when they need to restock, it will make life for the budget minded guitarist more uncomfortable.

I just say this as an inescapable fact of MY luthier life. PLEASE let's not turn this thread into a politically divisive thread that will have to be removed. There's good info here.

[andrew]

I once bought a telecaster body from them and I wasn’t too pleased to discover that the neck mounting screw holes didn’t line up with my Fender neck. I needed to plug some of them and re-drill. (I had the same problem on another lower cost Tele body from a different supplier too).

[Doctor Jeff]

I once bought a telecaster body from them and I wasn’t too pleased to discover that the neck mounting screw holes didn’t line up with my Fender neck. I needed to plug some of them and re-drill. (I had the same problem on another lower cost Tele body from a different supplier too).

I have not experienced that. My neck and body fit perfectly on the Tele.

Re’ my Strat build, I got a Strat body from Ebay (Chinese product), which was flawless EXCEPT that the string holes for the through-body stringing didn’t line up with the neck, so I had to fill them with epoxy and The neck/body holes lined up perfectly.

Annoying, but if you’re reasonably skilled with woodworking not a big deal nor a deal-breaker for me.

I have the new Tele parts coming this week, so will post how well they match up.

[lammie200]

I have had the same good experience with GFS pickups, but I have only tried a couple on experimental (Yeah, right. More like f-ups.) assemblies that I have done.

[chris32895]

I’ve been really impressed with their pickups and love the quick switch pickup system they have

[Doctor Jeff]

I’ve been really impressed with their pickups and love the quick switch pickup system they have

Yes I don't see why we are still soldering and pulling pots through tiny holes with aquarium tubing in 2025.

You can still use their Kwikplug harnesses with any pickup, you just need to wire the pickups to a plug--which is best done through soldering, of course. Much easier to solder 2 wires together on a bench than to fiddle with multiple wires and pots, caps, etc.

[ruger9]

I bought the Kwikplug system for my Gretsch, because I was trying a bunch of different pickups, but then got tired of working on the guitar (because it's SUCH a PITA) rather than playing it, so I never swapped pickups again, I just played the thing LOL. So the kwikplugs never got installed.