Customer Repair - 1977 Yamaha FG-335

First 10 frets installed and glued.  The easy part is done.

I should have known better it was so easy last night!! Tonight I checked the fret level with a straight edge. Not so flat!! The 10 frets I installed where perfect. BUT, the 11th and beyond were slightly below. So I had to sand the new frets probably .01/.015 lower to match.  But I sanded them on a taper, so I didn't take much off on the first few frets, the ones that will get used the most.  Then the fun of filing the ends and finally crowning the tops. Tomorrow will be sanding the crowned frets smooth.

It's been over a week without an update. 

The day after the last update I finished the frets.

Then I spent a few days working on the YamaBass.

2 days ago I sanded another .025" off of the heel.  With the E's tuned to D the actions are both 3/64" and the neck projects .10" above the bridge.  The neck angle is DONE!  I also found a couple of sharp fret ends & filed them.  I also fit and glued the heel cap back on.  It had popped off during the heel sanding, as I figured it might.  I also roughed out a nut.  THE END IS NEAR!!

TODAY I GLUED THE NECK ON!!  Hot hide glue.   4 clamps. The neck jig holding the bottom of the neck to the body, the strings holding the top of the neck to the body, a spring clamp holding the end of the fretboard down, and a screw clamp making sure the neck is absolutely down. Installing the 2 outer strings also shows me the neck is clamped with the neck centered to the fretboard. There are central marks on the 3 pieces of green tape. It'll stay clamped for 24 hours. Still have to finish the nut. Then clean it up, string it up, and hang it up!! Well, in this case, I'll put it in the case.  Another couple of hours work and it'll sit in the case for probably a month for the neck to "normalize", or figure out where it wants to be with full string tension.  I left the saddle .03" high, expecting the action to creep up slightly, probably 1/64" at the 12th fret.

2 days ago I added more shims to the dovetail, I had sanded them in an attempt to get it back together after taking it apart. The heel fit looked great. Then I glued the neck back on (clamped), checking the heel gap a few times in the neck hour.

Yesterday I unclamped it, finding about a .002/.003" heel gap, completely normal.

TODAY I put old strings on it to finish filing the nut slots. I've got it tuned to Eb (don't want to break a string) and checked all the frets, up to the 14th. No buzzing!!! The action is actually 1/64" lower than I expected, but the action should creep up 1/64" as the neck settles in. But it plays great!! And sounds pretty good, even with old strings.

I'll beat on it for a few days then put it in the case for a few weeks.

It still needs the outside of the nut to be finished, the guitar needs to be cleaned up, the fretboard & bridge need to be oiled. And anything else I can find.

Tonight I took it out of the case for the first time in 8 weeks. The action and neck relief are unchanged.

I emailed the customer, asking what strings he'd like on it. I'd like to finish the nut, clean it up, and put the new strings on it this weekend. then it will be finished!!

I wanted to get a quote from FEDEX to ship the guitar back, but I didn't want to risk having THE guitar in the case. So I weighed it. 4.61 lbs. Then I pulled another guitar off the rack. 4.61 lbs!!! What are the chances??!! I put that guitar in his case, got the box he shipped it in out of the garage, and packed the case in the box with the original expanding foam bags. That awkward beast was fun getting to FEDEX and back!! It's 47" long, 20" wide and 8" deep. It's a good thing I have long arms!!

$115 from coast to coast!! And I'm going to get a couple of rolls of bubble wrap to be sure the guitar is secure inside the case. $125!!! OUCH!!