# Octaves, Zouks, Citterns, Tenors and Electrics > Tenor Guitars >  Fender Strat Mini Conversion

## Mercury

So, I have an old Squire Strat Mini from when I was a kid and was thinking how easy, or otherwise, would it be to convert it into a tenor guitar? I mean these things are cheap (less than $100) and the instrument is, I believe, even smaller than a 3/4 size travel-strat with a 22" scale and a nut around 1.59" wide.  The fretboard is a bit wider than a traditional tenor perhaps, but nearly the same as the Warren Ellis Signature Tenor by Eastwood, which has a 23" scale.


Mini compared to a standard Strat

These are my thoughts on the process;

First, change the bridge to a suitable bass one (short-scale?)
Second, replace the nut and groove it for four strings
Three and this is where it gets tricky.  Replace the headstock with a blank, shape and rebore, for 4 tuners
Four, restring using the following gauges; 38. 26. 17. 13

Voila! Tuned to GDAE, just like a mandolin. Or go a bit heavier; 42. 30. 17. 13 for a smokin' mandola sound.

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## Dolamon

I've been looking at Squire's for years and have wondered if this is possible. I think, as an experiment, you might try stringing it up first on the four high strings - and probably try an octave mandolin set of strings. This will align with the magnets on the pickups and let you experience whether it's a playable option. 

As for the tail piece / bridge - The bass version is pretty wide and depending on who made it, there may or may not be an option to move the strings sideways. I don't know ... If you already have the instrument, this would be an inexpensive way to get into it. As far as changing the headstock / You could fill the holes with glued in dowel sticks, shave to fit ... put a veneer plate over the top, then redrill for the tuners. That gets complicated if you are working on your kitchen table. (don't ask me how I know ... ) In essence the shorter the scale the easier it is to play some pretty far out chords on a fifths tuned instrument. String choice is always a problem with a longer scale mando family and you probably will have to play around to get an optimal sound. To start off - just try stringing up as simply as possible and see how it sounds and plays ... if it works, crank up the Marshall's and let us know. 

Dion

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## Earl Gamage

http://www.angelfire.com/music2/cons...page10EOM.html

Here's one approach.

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## jschall84

That is a great idea! Now you have my gears a turnin!

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## Seonachan

I've seen 4-string bridges for sale on eBay by Soares'y. If you search for [tenor guitar bridge] you'll see a few things, though other than the Soares'y they may really be bass bridges.

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## Dan Hulse

I have a Peavey T-15 that I have been thinking of converting into an octave. The Peavey has blade style pick ups insted of individual poles. You may want to look at Moongazermusic.com for an off the shelf bridge. What tempts me on the Peavey is that I already have more money into it than what it's worth, that's the other thing to consider. Will investing more into what you have to make it more valuable/useable, or will it just be throwing good money after bad.

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## Eddie Sheehy

I imagine you could save the work on the peghead and just string four of the 6 tuners.  So a bridge and a nut....

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## Earl Gamage

> I imagine you could save the work on the peghead and just string four of the 6 tuners.  So a bridge and a nut....


You could but it's 1 5/8" at the nut, pretty wide for four strings or four course.  It might be worth trying though.

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## Mercury

> http://www.angelfire.com/music2/cons...page10EOM.html
> 
> Here's one approach.


Fascinating link, thanks for sharing it.  However, a lot of extra work is put into modifying the neck and fretboard in that conversion to obtain an octave mandolin profile, which I think is unnecessary, since the mini-strat is primarily meant for small hands anyway.

Any thoughts?

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## Mercury

> I imagine you could save the work on the peghead and just string four of the 6 tuners.  So a bridge and a nut....


True,  but I think modifying the peghead is crucial to the whole process of conversion, as it sets the instrument apart as being just a de-strung guitar.

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## Earl Gamage

> Fascinating link, thanks for sharing it.  However, a lot of extra work is put into modifying the neck and fretboard in that conversion to obtain an octave mandolin profile, which I think is unnecessary, since the mini-strat is primarily meant for small hands anyway.
> 
> Any thoughts?


Yes, if you don't modify the neck and fretboard it's much too wide.  You could string up the middle four, which seems ok for trying it out but if you want to play it much it probably needs a new neck profile.

The mini strat neck is just about the same width and profile as a regular strat.

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## Mercury

> Yes, if you don't modify the neck and fretboard it's much too wide.  You could string up the middle four, which seems ok for trying it out but if you want to play it much it probably needs a new neck profile.
> 
> The mini strat neck is just about the same width and profile as a regular strat.


This is true, but appears like a lot of work to me. However, it seems in line with the Eastwood Tenor Electric's build, which is designed with guitarists and bassists, so not such a major issue unless you're a purist.  You could even play slap bass, or clawhammer style on it, given the wider finger spacing, just like the Warren Ellis.


Click to see larger image showing wider string spacing

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## Earl Gamage

Interesting approach.  It's definitely a lot less work.  Maybe I'll give your way a try.

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## Mercury

> Interesting approach.  It's definitely a lot less work.  Maybe I'll give your way a try.


Think of it like a crossover instrument, a bit like a 4-string electric mandolin, which not only allows for easier string bending and vibrato like a guitar, but also gives the flexibility to restring it as a ukulele for instance. 

I hope to make a start on the project as early as next week, once I've sourced all the  hardware and equipment necessary.

*EDIT:*  Here's another unusual conversion.  From bass to tenor guitar - CGDA.  A interesting feature of it is that rather than the nut being replaced, it was simply filled in with epoxy resin and re-grooved for the new string diameters.

So, without further ado I give you, *The Frankenstein Tenor*.  _Not for the faint-hearted..._

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## earnest

I've converted several strats to tenor including the squire mini. In all cases I made a new neck. here's a photo of the mini...

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## mandocrucian

http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?15550-convert-a-electric-guitar-into-an-octave-mandolin



> Sep-20-2005, 11:02am 
> 
> Why does everyone want to complicate this?
> 
> Get your mini-guitar. Take off the low E-string. Remove the bridge saddle and the machine head for that string to eliminate rattle. Leave the extra empty space on the bass side as it is - it will allow you to do low push bends on your lowest string. #Now re-tune the instrument G-D-A-E-b or G-D-A-E-a - you'll need to change some of the gauges. You can use these as a suggestion for gauges and adjust to your own preferences: .048G - .036D - .022A or .024A -.014E - 0.10 (a or b).
> 
> The usual 19" mini-guitar scale length will give you better tone but increase the stretches. You can capo up a fret or two to shorten the scale (keep the GDAE tuning at the capoed position) or install a new nut, but I wouldn't go much shorter than 17".
> 
> If the string spacing is too close/tight, woul can shift some of the string slots over to the bass side (equal spacing).
> ...


http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?53495-5-string-emando-or-electric-dola-how-low-can-you-go



> Aug-03-2009, 4:57pm 
> 
> Get yourself a mini-guitar with a 17-19" scale length, and do a conversion to 5-string on it. Do not respace the nut, do not respace the bridge. Where the lowest bass string was - don't put a string - this will let you do low "truck driver bending licks" (pushing the string rather than having to pull it). Tune GDAEB or GDAEA an octave lower than mando. You are now essentially have a 5-string short scale guitar-in-an-alternate-tuning..
> 
> Details about conversions in Mandocrucian's Digest #13 (see link below).
> 
> This is the cheapest way to go letting you function pretty much as a guitar player. I shortend the scale lenght on mine to 17", but if you keep it longer, you'll get better responsiveness on the bass string. I also like to use fairly heavy strings - harder to bend major 3rds and up, but the stifferthe action, the "better" the tone quality (if you want SRV bite).
> 
> NH


http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?964-Does-anyone-make-a-cheapo-5-String-under-$500



> Feb-27-2004, 10:29am 
> 
> Think function! #Solid body? Single strings? Pickups? Cheap? How about super-cheap ($100-$150!!!)?
> 
> Kid sized electric guitar! Usually has a scale length of 19", but you can tune it octave down and add a high B (or A) string on top. #Or slap on a capo to shorten the scale length. #The Stew-Mac kits has a 17" scale. #
> 
> "But that has six strings, and I want five." #
> Just remove the low E string, and the bridge hardware (and the tuner) to eliminate the rattling. Do not respace the nut, or the bridge. period. That extra space where the 6th string used to be will give you clearance to do low trucker/"6 Days On The Road" push bends.
> 
> ...

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## Seonachan

I got a frankentenor recently on eBay - a tenor banjo neck bolted onto a hollow electric body (Espanada?). I imagine there's a fair bit of work involved in marrying the two, but it's another possibility.

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## Mercury

> I've converted several strats to tenor including the squire mini. In all cases I made a new neck. here's a photo of the mini...


That's pretty cool.  How did you do it?  Any advice you can offer?

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## Mercury

> I got a frankentenor recently on eBay - a tenor banjo neck bolted onto a hollow electric body (Espanada?). I imagine there's a fair bit of work involved in marrying the two, but it's another possibility.


Yes, that does seem like a bit _too_ much work, as is thinning the neck.  Just the modifications being considered are more than enough for my meagre woodworking/luthiery skills.  My idea is to keep the original 3/4 guitar neck, which to be sure is wider than a tenor's, _but still made with small hands in mind_.  This is imitating what I think has been achieved with the Warren Ellis-type electric, which has a narrower neck than a usual electric to be sure, but still widely spaced enough for guitarists and bassists to use (its target market?).  That way the muso can do other things with the instrument, like play it bass or finger-picking style, if wanted. Perhaps this thread should have been called; _"Converting a 3/4 size electric guitar into a wide-spaced Eastwood tenor"_?

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## Earl Gamage

> http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?15550-convert-a-electric-guitar-into-an-octave-mandolin
> 
> 
> 
> 
> http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?53495-5-string-emando-or-electric-dola-how-low-can-you-go
> 
> 
> http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?964-Does-anyone-make-a-cheapo-5-String-under-$500


Yes, but the Mini Strat scale is 22.75" or so which means your string gages would probably need to be recalculated.  It still seems like a pretty good alternative to rebuilding the guitar with a thinner neck.  Why not go ahead and put a C where the low e was while you are at it?  Maybe the string would be way to thick like a bass, but so what?   You could play a whole bunch of keys real easy.

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