u/According_Store_559

This is Taiyō (Japanese for "sun"), probably the clingiest cat on Earth!

​He’s an adorable, super affectionate 7-year-old boy. He weighs 9.5 kg (21 lbs)—so yeah, he’s a big, chunky guy! We rescued him as a kitten from a terrible fate. In Spain (my country), many people let their cats breed, and if they can’t find homes for the kittens, they often put them down.

​Besides being a heavyweight champ, he has a strict daily routine of loud, non-stop meowing just to get inside, sit on my mom’s lap, and get cuddles while he purrs non-stop. He does this the exact moment we wake up, right before we go to bed, and with a little intermission in between to beg for food (sometimes he meows for literally hours and hours). Still, he’s one of the most loving cats I've ever had. He adores hugs, kisses, and any kind of affection, and he shows his appreciation with these funny little groans of pure bliss.

​I’d love to know what breed or coat pattern you think he might be. Here is some proof of how much he’s changed over the years!

​

Cheers from Spain!

A few weeks ago, I posted about the Harley Benton TE-52 I had just bought second hand. It was overall a great guitar but pretty heavy (10.7lbs/4.8kgs) and some of its components were of really bad quality to the point of unusable (I'm looking at you, tuners!).

In my post, I said I was going to mod the guitar as I felt it was worthy of some work. So this is the post about it! I would also give some tips and info that could be of use to someone.

First of all, I bought a bridge to change the original one. The stock bridge was decent, but nothing special. I also wanted compensated brass saddles, so the choice was easy: a Wilkinson WTB. A really high quality yet budget friendly bridge. Changing it was no trouble, for anyone wondering it's a drop-in replacement. I highly recommend using the original screws because Wilkinson's are bigger and larger, and that would need extra work that's not worth it in the end.

My second mod, was the tuners. The original ones, being an older model (probably 2012-ish), were different than those in the newer models, they were vintage style but not slotted and to be honest, they're probably even worse. My choice was also really easy, I bought the Wilkinson WJ55, regular, non EZ-Lok. I knew it would take some time and work, because the Wilkinsons were not drop-ins (they have a bigger post, so I had to change the bushings too). The main problem was taking older tuners out, as literally all screws got stripped while trying to take them out (I was using correct screwdriver, they were just so bad that got fucked up by themselves). Being that I'm not a professional luthier (though I have some knowledge) and not having almost any tools, taking out the bushings was my second biggest problem. My solution was really easy, simple and anybody can do it at home: bamboo chopsticks + hammer. After you take the tuner out, just hammer down the bushing from the back using the chopstick. Clean and easy work. The next step was enlarging the holes. Really tough work with no tools so I had to bought a peghole reamer off Amazon for 6.45€ (7.52$). It was my first time doing it so I was really careful. Just do a bit of enlarging and then check the size with the new bushing, also, remember to mark with tape once you find the exact size and don't forget to enlarge the back too. Where's the point when you should stop? When the bushing is almost inside and that last part should be pressed in. To pressed it inside with no pro tools, I used a plastic clamp I had at home. After that, just put the new tuners taking into account they have to be in line to each other (use a ruler for that) and everything's good to go.

My last mod was reshaping (the nut was nicely done but shape was "unfinished") and polishing the bone nut. If you want to polish your nut and have no tools, sanding paper or whatever, you could do it at home with a bit of polishing compound (I used Music Nomas Guitar polish, which is a polish for nitro finishes, also used Polywatch) and a cut of denim fabric out of a pair of old jeans. Protect the area near the nut and just scrub a few times. Remember to apply the necessary force to make heat in the nut. If your nut is really really rough, you can polish it before with a bit of 0000 steel wool + polish, and then the denim for better results.

After everything, I put some strings (the older ones were fine) changed them a week ago. A setup and the guitar was in another level! The new bridge makes the guitar vibrate and ring really loud. The tuners are a breeze to use, really precise and solid. Sure, reshaping and polishing the nut is not noticeable, but makes the guitar look like a higher end one.

Here are some pics of the process.

Total cost of the mods: 12.60€ (bridge) + 23.13€ (tuners) + 6.45€ (peghole reamer) = 42.18€ (49$).

Really fun project but man it was a lot of manual work! Next step would be changing electronics!

Hope this helps anyone!

TL;DR

Over this past years, I've been in the hunt for one of these Harley Benton TE-52s, but I always wanted the "older model" that still had the Wilkinson pickups and regular maple neck. It has been quite a long hunt (apparently, there are more newer TE-52s - those with Roswells and caramelized necks - for sale, at least in my country) but finally scored this beauty.

It's probably one of the most beautiful examples of the TE-52s that I've seen, both in person and in online photos.

When I received it, I was greatly impressed by its quality and craftsmanship, it is at least on par with any Squier Classic Vibe I've owned. I couldn't find any flaws or defects on the finish. The frets are almost perfectly seated and levelled and it was beautifully setup by its older owner.

For some reason I can't explain, my TE-52 has a few quirks. Mainly one string tree and a 9.5" fretboard radius. Also, the tuners are not slotted. Maybe somebody can shed some light in this?

• PROS:

- Great build quality and craftsmanship. No flaws whatsoever.

- Pickups sound really good, very "Telecaster" like.

- Beautiful woods (4 piece body with really nice grain, quartersawn fretboard with amazing figuring). Feels really solid.

- Neck joint is PERFECT, really tight.

- Amazing playability, frets are nicely done.

- Bone nut (probably added by previous owner).

• CONS:

- ATROCIOUS tuners. One of the worst I ever had. They are stable but really bad when tuning.

- IT'S A CHUNKY BOIIIII. Probably one of the chunkiest guitars I ever had and probably one of the chunkiest TE-52s you can find in the wild. Approximately: 4.825kg or 10.63lb.

- Electronics work fine but could be better. Hardware (mainly bridge) it's decent but could be upgraded as I prefer brass saddles.

So far, I've already ordered a Wilkinson WTB bridge. Next step would be tuners, my main option are Wilkinson WJ-55s (I want slotted, vintage tuners, non-locking) but I don't know if they're direct replacements to those in the HB.

Is there also any way for dating this guitars? I would like to know more or less when it was made. I assume is somewhere in the early 2010s, must be one of the first made.

Cheers!