Assembly & Construction

A guitar that's designed to be disassembled and reassembled countless times has certain hardware/fastener requirements if the goal is durability and longevity. Destructive fasteners like wood screws are (mostly) out. Machine screws and female threaded receptacles are the obvious choice, ideally made from materials that are resistant to corrosion. With a few exceptions every fastener on a TEN32 instrument meets these requirements. There are however 2 situations where I opt for wood screws.

1) Headstock string retainer bar - This is a part that needs to maintain it's position after the instrument is setup and has to deal with the upward tension applied to it by the strings. Threaded fasteners don't excel in these situations, as they tend to vibrate and move around (unless they're fully tightened). A wood screw is simply the right choice here.

2) Floyd Rose Spring Claw - This is one of the shittiest pieces of hardware ever to appear on a guitar, which is why I replace it with the Schaller Sure Claw. This little gem enables you to adjust spring tension far more accurately via 3mm wrench, without the risk of slipping and gouging your finish. Since there's no good reason to ever remove it, it's installed in the rear Floyd cavity with two #5 wood screws. 

Fastener Drive Size and Type

There are a variety of screw types and sizes required to maintain a Ten32 guitar. I went to great lengths to minimize the number of drive tools required, but there are of course physical limitations to what tools can drive which fasteners. All Ten32 fasteners are standard offerings available online, many at your local hardware store.

If at all possible, the most ubiquitous Allen key size known to guitarists - 3mm - was chosen. All of the following are driven by a 3mm wrench:

• Neck/Body Bolts (5x M5 Flat Socket Cap)
• Primary Headstock Bolt (1x M5 Low Socket Cap)
• Headstock Plate Bolts (3x M4 Socket Cap)
• Trem Block Screw (M4 Socket Cap)
• Ten32 Custom Hipshot Hardtail (5x M4 Socket Cap)
• Ten32 Exclusive Jack Clamp (M4 Socket Cap)
• Schaller Sure Claw Spring Tension Adjustment

From there, depending on bridge and electronics selections, a variety of smaller wrenches are required, all of which are included with your instrument (often in duplicate).

Wrench Storage

The tools you'll need to work on every single fastener on the instrument are stored under the electronics cover, either mechanically or via magnets. If you happen to lose one of these tools, you'll find at least one backup stored in the case. All drive tools are standard offerings available online, should you require a replacement.

Finally, lets examine neck stability and lumber selection.