General
Model Number
SGK-1
Series
SG Style
Body Information
Body Material
Mahogany
Body Shape
SG Style
Body Finish
Sealed
Neck Information
Neck Material
Mahogany
Neck Finish
Unfinished
Scale Length
24.75" / 628mm
Fingerboard Material
Rosewood
Fingerboard Radius
12"
Number of Frets
22
Frets
Medium Jumbo, Nickel Silver
Nut Material
Plastic
Nut Width
42mm
Position Inlays
Crown
Truss Rod
2-Way-Action
Truss Rod Nut
4 mm Hex
Hardware & Electronics
Finish
Chrome
Pickup Configuration
2 x HB
Pickups
Ceramic Pickups
Pickguard
3-ply Black - BWB
Controls
2V, 2T, 3-Way Toggle
Bridge
Tune-o-matic, Stop bar
Tuning Machines
Grover Style
Potentiometers
Full Sized Pots
Misc
Includes all mounting screws, strap buttons, and plates
Accessories
Includes
Hex Adjustment Keys & Instrument Cable
Carol. (verified buyer) –
It was a gift to my son for Christmas. He did a fantastic job and think he actually sent you a picture. He loved it. Had a little trouble getting the wiring but after calling for some help he got it. And you sent out some replacement parts for something that had broken while wiring. He even had a reaper done by his sister with wood burning. He has received quite a few compliments on it. I would do another one given the chance.
David F Calello –
My 1st time with a DIY. Great product with easy to follow instructions was the big help! Customer service is outstanding and very professional. Thanx for a great product!
Jean-François RÉMILLARD (verified buyer) –
This review is for the fantastic sale and delivery services provided by Solo. This is my second kit and although I have yet to complete the build for both guitars, I think it is important to emphasize this aspect of the business. Matt is extremely helpful. The delivery is extremely quick. I ordered during the weekend and the guitar got delivered on the following Wednesday. A friend of mine built a P bass from Solo and he is quite happy with the quality and playability of the instrument. Plus, he uses it live…
jdsdoh8381 (verified buyer) –
Just ordered a second one for my son after finishing one for my wife. Kit is very well made with quality parts. The mahogany body is very easy to work with. The fretboard is probably the best part of the kit as the guys did a fantastic job on both kits.
jonestom –
Absolutely fantastic ????????
kevfg54 (verified buyer) –
Very happy with the quality and fit of this guitar. This was my first order through Solo, but second DIY guitar. The mahogany body needed very little sanding and was perfect, as was the neck. All holes were drilled perfectly. Very happy with the finished product. The only questions I had, had to do with the wiring and after emailing them, I quickly got a response from Matt confirming how I needed to wire. The order was shipped promptly and packaged well. I would definitely order from Solo again – it was really fun to put together, and to play as well!
todd-0390 (verified buyer) –
This is my 4th Solo Guitar build, and I am very pleased, especially because of the unanticipated extra work I had to go through with my previous LPK-1 kit (which ultimately finished beautifully).
After customizing the body with a belly-cut, forearm bevel, knee bevel, and also sculpted backside horns for better upper neck access, I finished the guitar as I did with my 3 previous kits, with Keda-dye and 15 coats of Tru-oil, resulting in a beautiful wine-colored mahogany body and neck, with dark woodgrain, that looks showroom spectacular.
As for the hardware and electronics supplied with the kit, I replaced everything from the get-go with black Hipshot locking tuners, TUSQ graphite nut, Seymour-Duncan Vintage Blues humbuckers, 500k CTR pots, .022 orange caps — wired as ’59 vintage-style, a String-Butler to correct the string angle off the Gibson neck, and perhaps most importantly, I added a roller bridge — what a difference in intonation and tuning that makes! Strung with 9.5 Ernie Ball strings, this guitar stays in tune and sounds incredible. I’ve not played a better feeling or sounding SG anywhere.
The only issue that popped up was that this guitar required a neck shim of about .25mm. Rather than buy one from StewMac at a crazy price coupled with insane shipping fees, – I went down to my local Lowes and bought a pack of 20 wooden shims for $1. Trim one with a razor blade —perfect custom fit and angle — no gap between the neck and body. Easy.
So there you have it. I rate this kit 5 Stars.
woozle_arse5 (verified buyer) –
soooooo I am a complete novice with guitars, I have a little experience soldering but only from a hobbyist once on a blue moon type thing. the last bit of wood working I completed was a stool in jr high which operated more as a collapsed pile of wood and screws than a stool, if I’m honest, but I digress. anyway, I picked up a kit for the quarantine and it showed up super fast. the wood was beautiful, the build was simple, the wiring (while it takes a second to trace it out and understand, makes perfect sence).
Everything fit perfect. time wise after the staining and clear coat it was maybe 2 hours to build. and now I have a kick ass sg that plays great and that I had a hand in building…. and a desire for about 10 more of your kits. I cannot suggest Solo Music Gear and their kits enough. btw the youtube channel is great and very helpful
Thank you my sg which I’ve named “my Drop D-mon”
kcraig351 (verified buyer) –
Very easy to put together. The neck fit perfectly. The wiring was easy to finish. The only problem I had was the jack nut was too big but I just bought another one, 5 bucks , no big deal. Great kit
jcarndt1 (verified buyer) –
This is a pretty good kit. Very good fit on the neck/neck pocket. To me, that is the most important aspect of putting any guitar together. My only complaint is that at least half of the pilot holes for the small screws ( tuners, mounting rings, pickguard ) were off. Enough that I had to plug and redrill. Not a big deal if you know how to use toothpicks and a drill. Good quality compared with other kits I have done. Unlike some folks who assemble kits, I don’t start by throwing away all the parts that come with the kit unless something is defective in some way. The only thing I might swap out would be a roller bridge for the tune-o-matic. Maybe the pickups if they are horrible.
physicsman (verified buyer) –
This was my second Solo Guitar Kit build. It went much faster and easier than the first one (which hopefully means I learned some things.) If you’ve never done this before, you should know that lacquering is by far the longest part of the process. 3 coats per day; 6 days. I used StewMac Cherry Red nitro lacquer with a gloss finish on the body and headstock; satin on the neck. One day sanding and polishing. One day to build. A couple days tweaking.
The hardware was ok. Tuners aren’t super high quality, but serviceable. The nut was better quality than on my first build (a TCK-1). As far as the electronics go, I had already decided to put in Seymour Duncan Phat Cat P-90s (Sweetwater, $169) from the get go based on my previous kit experience: the kit pickups aren’t terrible but good pickups can really bring the guitar to life. In the kit, the pots and switch came pre-soldered which was nice; I only had to solder in the pickups and the ground wire. The pots aren’t great – if I switch anything else out, it would probably be them. Stewmac sells SG wiring kits.
The guitar came out lighter than I thought, which is nice. Also, I have to say that the neck and fretwork were excellent this time. On the TCK-1, there were some high frets. Extremely happy about that. The overall result is a great SG. I love it. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.
trmott1968 (verified buyer) –
This was my first kit and I had an absolute blast making this SG. I stayed with a warm mahagony stain after the wood grain fill and then a satin poly coating. It looks amazing and I can’t wait to build the next solo kit I ordered, the RR flying V. Thank you Solo for making such great kits!
Jeff Wasinger (verified buyer) –
This SGK-1 kit was the first kit I ever put together. I ended up using a mahogany stain on the body and rub on polyurethane for the finish. I painted the face of the headstock black and put the polyurethane over it as well with one thin coat on the neck. The kit was 100% complete and went together very well. I bought tools to do the neck and frets and didn’t need them. The neck was great. The strings they give you are cheap but I’m glad they supply them because there perfect for getting everything set up and when done you can add better strings for final adjustments.
I did have a issue with the pickups. They would feed back at pretty low gain and volume settings. Not a good feed back more like 4k on a microphone. I called Solo and they put me through to Padraig and he had new pickups on the way before I hung up the phone. Thank you Padraig and Solo for the awesome customer service. The final product came out great and it is a blast to play and it sounds damn good. I have since ordered 2 more kits from them and love putting these together.
biswell.td (verified buyer) –
This is my first kit build. Before buying the SG kit, I did a bunch of research for SG kits at this price point. I picked Solo and am glad that I did. I just got the kit and am working on sanding, staining and finishing the body. I will write another review once the build is done. At this point, this is an excellent kit. Shipping was fast. The packaging the kit was shipped in is very good. It arrived with no damage. The quality of the wood in the body and neck are excellent. There are no imperfections or sloppy glue marks. The neck is straight and the finishing on the frets is excellent. The fret edges are smooth and the inlay work is top notch. The pots, wiring, pickups, bridge and tuners are good and what one would expect for a kit at this price point. (I wanted gold hardware, so I have bought other tuners, bridge and pick ups and don’t plan on using what came with the kit.) I had a question about a replacement bridge and emailed Solo support. They contacted me the same day and answered by question. The assembly and wiring instructions are detailed and easy to understand. At this point I am very pleased with the Solo SGK-1 kit and would recommend it to anyone looking to build an SG.
greggeby (verified buyer) –
This is my third Solo kit. I’ve built the TCK-1SB Telecaster and the FBK-1 Firebird kits previously, and just completed this one today. It’s my best effort so far, and this is a guitar I’m REALLY happy with. I sanded it thoroughly first, then applied 18 coats of Tru-Oil, ending up with a really nice glossy finish. Everything fit together perfectly, and the playability & sound is awesome. I don’t see any need to upgrade it all, which was also the case with the Firebird, but I did need to install a 0.5 degree full-pocket neck shim in order to get enough neck angle to be able to lower the bridge and get the action I like. That part was simple and I have no complaints with this kit whatsoever.
biswell.td (verified buyer) –
I am following up on my earlier review. I am finished with the build and could not be happier with the guitar! I highly recommend this kit. The instructions are easy to understand. The neck fit in the pocket perfectly and alignment was spot on. I am impressed with the quality of the neck. It is straight and the fretwork is very good. The pilot holes for the neck, covers, pick guard, pickups, strap buttons were in place. After adjusting the string height and intonation, the guitar is easy to play and sounds awesome! It is quickly becoming my favorite electric guitar. After sanding off the sealer that is on the body and neck, the stain went on well and looks great. I did a burst with black edges fading to red. I started by staining the entire body black and sanding all but the edges to bring out the grain. Then applied the red. I used water-based, semi-transparent stains. It went on easily and looks great. I finished with 20 coats of Tru-Oil and polished with wax and a rotary buffer. The guitar looks as awesome as it sounds. This is an excellent kit!
adbhowler (verified buyer) –
My fist build and am probably 70% through the process. I have made my mistakes but none because of the kit. The kit is exactly what I was hoping for, easy bolt on neck kit that has most of the heavy lifting already done. The finish work is what you make it. Take your time and it will come out great. I have the rest of the body to complete and then I can assemble the hardware, not worried since I already dry fit everything before getting started. All the holes in the right places and everything fit. I have made a few modifications since I got and upgraded wiring kit and pickups. Can’t be more pleased with the quality and fit of all the components. Actually, looking forward to building another one in the future and it will be a Solo kit.
mark.moondrops (verified buyer) –
A great kit that my son is in the process of building. All the components are of high quality and fitted together well during a dry fit. It arrived very quickly too, so all in all am very pleased with the purchase.
bill.connolly.75 (verified buyer) –
Being the first kit I’ve assembled I was unsure what the quality would be, but I was amazed how gorgeous the wood was. I wanted to show off the wood grain. After sanding, I used a simple wipe on stain with a wipe on satin poly on both the body and neck.
The neck was perfect out of the box. No sharp edges.
The bridge and tail piece are good quality, no flaws, tuners are so far so good. I counted a 15.5 : 1 ratio.
Most importantly the sound is good. If I remember correctly, the neck pickup measured out at around 8k and the bridge pickup was around 12.5k.
I’m very pleased with this purchase and would do it again.
James Newton (verified buyer) –
First impressions: I had intended to go with a natural finish on this build but the three piece body is miss matched to the point that I will go with a solid color instead. The kit seems to be very solid and I am anxious to get started on it.
Arthur Robb (verified buyer) –
So far, this seems ok. Body took the finish well — I like the sealant. I am not especially skilled at finishing but I got it to look good. But there is a big difference between a cool guitar to hang on your well and one that you want to play. For the latter, there is always a lot of adjustment necessary, especially with a kit. So far …
* Neck was really bowed out of the box. Not sure why.
* Either the neck cavity is too deep or they should have drilled the holes for the bridge saddle bushings so the lip is recessed. Either way, the saddle simply did not go low enough. When the nut slots were their correct depth and the saddle was at the minimum height, it was still too high for a standard electric guitar action. I did not want to manipulate the truss or pull the bushings to recess them so I put a shim under the neck. Not a great solution.
* Frets were supposed to be pre-dressed. They were not. Sanding and dressing were necessary.
* What I am about to say is true for all kit guitars. You are really buying the body and neck, the bushings, and possibly the wiring (though some people like to replace the pots). If you want a usable guitar, the rest gets replaced. This was especially true with this kit’s tuning pegs and pickups which were really bad.
After all this, why 3 stars? It is still better than other kits I have encountered.
kurtbarger (verified buyer) –
Overall was a good kit. The wood didn’t quite match as it was a three piece body but I decided to stain it anyway. It turned out good. I upgraded the pickups to seymour duncans, jazz neck and overwound at the bridge. I also upgraded to locking tuners. I upgraded the bridge but had to use the included posts as the upgraded bridge had slightly smaller posts. I did have to level frets as several spots up and down the neck weren’t level. The main fix I had to do was add a 1 degree shim. The action was too high at the bridge with the bridge adjusted all of the way down. It is really good for the price point. It sounds great.
joe somuk (verified buyer) –
First guitar build for me took a week to build with sanding and painting and letting paint cure. Everything went smoothly together, now have to fine tune for my playing style but plugged it in and plays and sounds good through my fender Princeton amp. If you are a first time builder just be patient.
Lewis Humphries (verified buyer) –
I was a little leary about purchasing another guitar kit. You see, I purchased another kit from another company and it had a twisted neck (not bowed but twisted). They sent me a replacement that also had a twisted neck and the holes for the bridge posts were drilled too close together. I sent both of those back.
I really wanted to build a kit guitar. So, I took the leap with Solo Music. THIS ONE WAS PERFECT. By PERFECT I mean this:
Body was ready for sanding and finishing
All holes were in the exact perfect location and perfect size
Neck straight as an arrow
Neck fit in neck pocket perfectly
Tuners were smooth with no issues
All wires on electronics were well soldered
All electronics including pickups worked flawlessly.
I was planning on replacing the pickups but they sound great.
You will have to sand and file fret ends, polish frets, stain/paint and finish coat. It will become a 1 of 1.
If you have an itch to build your own guitar, your own color, you’re own style, THIS IS THE COMPANY TO WORK WITH!
I ended up staining it with Crimson Guitars Stunning Stains – Crimson Red (water based stain) and their Penetrating Guitar Finishing Oil. I don’t have access to a spray booth. This method worked perfectly.
Maybe I do another one in a different color…
pndavis67 (verified buyer) –
The order was processed, shipped and delivered in record time. All of the components are excellent quality. I look forward to finishing them with Heritage Cherry Red Transparent nitro from Oxford. The neck fit is very tight. The neck is straight. The fingerboard and fretwork is done very well. The pots are full sized and ready for assembly.