NGD Switch Vibracell Stein III, a poor man's Aristides?
Posted: Wed Jul 01, 2020 4:37 pm
I was scanning through Facebook Marketplace and I found this interesting guitar. It is not much of a looker, but I found out that it was a one-piece guitar made of resin. So, it's kind of a poor man's Aristides! I don't really need an extra guitar, but it was being sold for an irresistible $100! It was just in my neighborhood, so I just had to snatch it!
About "Switch", from Wikipedia...
Switch was a brand of electric guitars and electric basses that featured a one-piece body-and-neck construction, made by injection moulding of a patented polyurethane resin-based synthetic material called Vibracell, very similar to Cort's Luthite. The brand belonged to the short-lived Switch Music company in the mid-2000s. The primary designer of the various Switch models was Trev Wilkinson, later of Fret-King.
The company first presented their guitars at the 2004 NAMM show. The instruments weighed roughly the same as comparable wooden instruments. The sustain was described as excellent.
Fretboards are of either rosewood or synthetic Ebonol. The front and back of the guitar body were sculpted.
The body is made of a resin that they call "Vibracell Technology. I know that "Tonewood" is a pretty much-argued topic here. But, here is what a description from the net says...
Traditional wooden guitars and basses can be produced from a number of different types of woods or combinations of wood. It is the selection of the type of wood that will give the instrument its character. Not all woods are created equal nor are two pieces of wood exactly alike. Another factor to consider when selecting the wood is the cost. Good quality woods simply cost more and are no longer in abundant supply. The wood for guitar bodies is not the only consideration, woods for the necks and fingerboards are equally as important. Different types of wood used for fingerboards and necks will transfer energy at different speeds and intensity.
Now, imagine for a moment that you could give the guitar designer a piece of wood with the exact density to deliver ultimate vibration and frequency. Imagine a piece of wood that can be styled and shaped and also have a perfect balanced weight. Imagine a finger board that could deliver energy to the guitar body faster than traditional wood. And consider the cost for a guitar or bass guitar with a neck and body made as one piece. Wouldn't this be the ultimate neck-thru body? Are these ideas too far out in the future?
Vibracell Technology delivers all of this and more...
Vibracell is a patented process of completely molding both electric and bass guitars including the neck and headstock, from the patented Switch Vibracell material creating an instrument with precise harmonic resonance and sound frequency. Vibracell allows the entire instrument to be created as a whole with complete control of neck, body weight and density by controlling the internal cells. With the ability to control the cells we can effectively tune the body and neck to exceed the characteristics and response of those instruments made from the best available woods in the world. Additionally, Vibracell has the pure strength to withstand extreme temperature changes that affect traditional wooden bodies and necks.
The ability to control the cells density allows the neck to be formed with the body as one piece. Vibracell allows a true one piece neck-through design that eliminates the gluing of two half bodies to the neck. The one piece neck-thru body approach allows for energy to be transmitted through the entire body not only with extreme efficiency, but at a higher rate of speed ultimately delivering pure sustain and clarity.
Vibracell technology allows the instrument to be created equally, time and time again without variances in sound due to the variances in wood.
Vibracell models are offered with traditional Rosewood fingerboard and our proprietary Ebonite fingerboard. Ebonite provides the bold rich smooth warm sound of ebony along with the punch of hard rock maple. Ebonite transfers the energy from the neck to the body at an extreme high rate of speed and intensity resulting in superior crystal clear harmonics and extraordinary sustain.
Vibracell is considered one of the few, if not the only, major breakthrough in the creation of musical instruments today. Since the beginning of time change has been inevitable. However, change would never be a consideration if there were never a question of need or improvement.
Based on a catalogue I found, I believe I have a "Stein III" model...
Specs (If I got the right model):
Specifications:
• Vibracell® One Piece Body & Neck
• 2 Switch Designed Single Coil Pickups
• 1 Red HotHumbucking Bridge Position
• Roller-Saddle Tremolo Bridge
• Black Hardware
• Grover Tuners
• Rosewood Fingerboard w/ Pearl Dot Inlays
• Pickguard (Black)
• 5-way Lever Switch
• Single Volume control
• Dual Tone Controls
• Scale: 25 1/2"
• Neck Width @ Nut 1 21/32"
• 22 Frets
• Weight: 8.2 lbs.
The guitar has not been used for 15 years says the owner. It needs a lot cleaning but it looks like structurally intact!
More pictures:
Oh... did I mention that for $100, it included a nice gig bag, Alesis Spitfire 15 Guitar Amp, stand, and a cable?
I haven't looked at the electronics yet and the strings are already rusty. Not really good at fixing guitars, but I will try to set the guitar up to playing condition in the next few days and probably give you guys a demo.
I will be coming back to ask questions on how to refurbish this interesting guitar!
I am still working on house renovations (honey-do list) which are keeping my busy on my summer break. I hope I will have some time soon to work on this guitar! I'm thinking of stringing and tuning this to drop B.
About "Switch", from Wikipedia...
Switch was a brand of electric guitars and electric basses that featured a one-piece body-and-neck construction, made by injection moulding of a patented polyurethane resin-based synthetic material called Vibracell, very similar to Cort's Luthite. The brand belonged to the short-lived Switch Music company in the mid-2000s. The primary designer of the various Switch models was Trev Wilkinson, later of Fret-King.
The company first presented their guitars at the 2004 NAMM show. The instruments weighed roughly the same as comparable wooden instruments. The sustain was described as excellent.
Fretboards are of either rosewood or synthetic Ebonol. The front and back of the guitar body were sculpted.
The body is made of a resin that they call "Vibracell Technology. I know that "Tonewood" is a pretty much-argued topic here. But, here is what a description from the net says...
Traditional wooden guitars and basses can be produced from a number of different types of woods or combinations of wood. It is the selection of the type of wood that will give the instrument its character. Not all woods are created equal nor are two pieces of wood exactly alike. Another factor to consider when selecting the wood is the cost. Good quality woods simply cost more and are no longer in abundant supply. The wood for guitar bodies is not the only consideration, woods for the necks and fingerboards are equally as important. Different types of wood used for fingerboards and necks will transfer energy at different speeds and intensity.
Now, imagine for a moment that you could give the guitar designer a piece of wood with the exact density to deliver ultimate vibration and frequency. Imagine a piece of wood that can be styled and shaped and also have a perfect balanced weight. Imagine a finger board that could deliver energy to the guitar body faster than traditional wood. And consider the cost for a guitar or bass guitar with a neck and body made as one piece. Wouldn't this be the ultimate neck-thru body? Are these ideas too far out in the future?
Vibracell Technology delivers all of this and more...
Vibracell is a patented process of completely molding both electric and bass guitars including the neck and headstock, from the patented Switch Vibracell material creating an instrument with precise harmonic resonance and sound frequency. Vibracell allows the entire instrument to be created as a whole with complete control of neck, body weight and density by controlling the internal cells. With the ability to control the cells we can effectively tune the body and neck to exceed the characteristics and response of those instruments made from the best available woods in the world. Additionally, Vibracell has the pure strength to withstand extreme temperature changes that affect traditional wooden bodies and necks.
The ability to control the cells density allows the neck to be formed with the body as one piece. Vibracell allows a true one piece neck-through design that eliminates the gluing of two half bodies to the neck. The one piece neck-thru body approach allows for energy to be transmitted through the entire body not only with extreme efficiency, but at a higher rate of speed ultimately delivering pure sustain and clarity.
Vibracell technology allows the instrument to be created equally, time and time again without variances in sound due to the variances in wood.
Vibracell models are offered with traditional Rosewood fingerboard and our proprietary Ebonite fingerboard. Ebonite provides the bold rich smooth warm sound of ebony along with the punch of hard rock maple. Ebonite transfers the energy from the neck to the body at an extreme high rate of speed and intensity resulting in superior crystal clear harmonics and extraordinary sustain.
Vibracell is considered one of the few, if not the only, major breakthrough in the creation of musical instruments today. Since the beginning of time change has been inevitable. However, change would never be a consideration if there were never a question of need or improvement.
Based on a catalogue I found, I believe I have a "Stein III" model...
Specs (If I got the right model):
Specifications:
• Vibracell® One Piece Body & Neck
• 2 Switch Designed Single Coil Pickups
• 1 Red HotHumbucking Bridge Position
• Roller-Saddle Tremolo Bridge
• Black Hardware
• Grover Tuners
• Rosewood Fingerboard w/ Pearl Dot Inlays
• Pickguard (Black)
• 5-way Lever Switch
• Single Volume control
• Dual Tone Controls
• Scale: 25 1/2"
• Neck Width @ Nut 1 21/32"
• 22 Frets
• Weight: 8.2 lbs.
The guitar has not been used for 15 years says the owner. It needs a lot cleaning but it looks like structurally intact!
More pictures:
Oh... did I mention that for $100, it included a nice gig bag, Alesis Spitfire 15 Guitar Amp, stand, and a cable?
I haven't looked at the electronics yet and the strings are already rusty. Not really good at fixing guitars, but I will try to set the guitar up to playing condition in the next few days and probably give you guys a demo.
I will be coming back to ask questions on how to refurbish this interesting guitar!
I am still working on house renovations (honey-do list) which are keeping my busy on my summer break. I hope I will have some time soon to work on this guitar! I'm thinking of stringing and tuning this to drop B.
