Post by CTGull on Nov 28, 2023 19:50:47 GMT -5
The Story – I wasn’t looking for another guitar… Well, sort of. I look at Facebook Marketplace once in a while. I saw this was in the next town over, they were asking $65, so it was worth considering. I sent a message and asked if they had owned it their whole life, and they replied SOLD. Oh well, I didn’t need it. A little later they replied it was still available, but it has a problem with the neck (as expected), would I be interested in it for $50.
I took the 10 minute ride with my travel hard case. I again asked if they had owned it their whole life (they are both 78, so it’s possible), but he said they bought it at an estate sale a couple of years ago. He wasn’t aware of the high action. The first person who was interested in this came up on a train to find the high action and rejected it.
There’s the normal dings and scratches, finish crazing all over, and a couple of cracks on the lower side, one that had been glued. The neck had come loose, so he added a screw to the heel, plugging the hole with some wood putty. That didn’t improve the action much. He an artist and showed me lots of stuff that he’s made. After about a half hour his back was bothering him, so he asked what I’d like to pay for it. I said $40, he said $30, which is what he thinks they paid for it. SOLD! Another one to be saved! I’m pretty good and the Rescue and Repair part, but not so good at the Release.
I told him I’d send a link to the repair when I get to it, which I hoped to be in the next few days.
INITIAL OBSERVATIONS – Lots of small dings, scratches, and finish crazing all over, which is very typical for its age. There is a plugged hole in the heel, covering a screw. The cracks on the lower side look stable. The pickguard is loose in a small area below the sound hole.
INSPECTION - Tuned to D, the nut action is good, the neck relief is high (about .020”), the action is 1/4” low D and 15/64” high D (possibly the highest I’ve seen for a guitar that wasn’t falling apart). The bridge is .33” thick, and the saddle sticks out .10”/.10” (low D/high D). I assume the saddle has never been touched in 55 years.
Removed the old strings with difficulty, some of the strings were tied to the tuner posts. Wrapped a rubber band around the tuner posts to keep the bushings from falling out. There are very deep divots at the 1st & 2nd strings, 1st fret, with some minor fret wear for the 2nd & 3rd frets. Lots of finger grunge on the fretboard up to the 10th fret. The 1st fret certainly needs to be replaced, but with the bow in the neck I may need to pull them all, sand the fretboard level, and refret.
There are cracks in the top at the edges of the fretboard, with the bass side shifted forward very slightly.
Took internal pics. Found the internal date code (F-67), but I couldn’t get a picture of it. The serial number is missing the first digit (?593H162). The bridge plate is full width, and the holes are blown out from when they drilled them. The cracks in the side aren’t visible on the inside.
THE PLAN – Remove the neck and check the flatness the next day, the frets will probably need to be pulled, level the fretboard, and refret. Remove the bridge to widen/deepen the slot. Add a 1/8” maple patch to the top under the fretboard extension area to keep the cracks from getting worse and the neck block from shifting forward.
The plugged hole in the heel, and the "rotting" celluloid binding.
The finish crazing.
One the cracks, that was filled with glue. It's at the top of the internal kerfing, so there's no way to patch in on the inside.
The other crack is very short.
The untouched saddle.
The action is a "little" high!!
The deep divots at the 1st fret.
The date code, which is barely readable.
The blown out bridge plate.
The heavy top ladder braces.
The serial/model number. Why are there hammer marks??
And hammer marks in the neck block?? And the protruding added screw.
You can sort of see the crack at the top of the kerfing, to the right of the side brace.
And I couldn't find the other crack inside.
I took the 10 minute ride with my travel hard case. I again asked if they had owned it their whole life (they are both 78, so it’s possible), but he said they bought it at an estate sale a couple of years ago. He wasn’t aware of the high action. The first person who was interested in this came up on a train to find the high action and rejected it.
There’s the normal dings and scratches, finish crazing all over, and a couple of cracks on the lower side, one that had been glued. The neck had come loose, so he added a screw to the heel, plugging the hole with some wood putty. That didn’t improve the action much. He an artist and showed me lots of stuff that he’s made. After about a half hour his back was bothering him, so he asked what I’d like to pay for it. I said $40, he said $30, which is what he thinks they paid for it. SOLD! Another one to be saved! I’m pretty good and the Rescue and Repair part, but not so good at the Release.
I told him I’d send a link to the repair when I get to it, which I hoped to be in the next few days.
INITIAL OBSERVATIONS – Lots of small dings, scratches, and finish crazing all over, which is very typical for its age. There is a plugged hole in the heel, covering a screw. The cracks on the lower side look stable. The pickguard is loose in a small area below the sound hole.
INSPECTION - Tuned to D, the nut action is good, the neck relief is high (about .020”), the action is 1/4” low D and 15/64” high D (possibly the highest I’ve seen for a guitar that wasn’t falling apart). The bridge is .33” thick, and the saddle sticks out .10”/.10” (low D/high D). I assume the saddle has never been touched in 55 years.
Removed the old strings with difficulty, some of the strings were tied to the tuner posts. Wrapped a rubber band around the tuner posts to keep the bushings from falling out. There are very deep divots at the 1st & 2nd strings, 1st fret, with some minor fret wear for the 2nd & 3rd frets. Lots of finger grunge on the fretboard up to the 10th fret. The 1st fret certainly needs to be replaced, but with the bow in the neck I may need to pull them all, sand the fretboard level, and refret.
There are cracks in the top at the edges of the fretboard, with the bass side shifted forward very slightly.
Took internal pics. Found the internal date code (F-67), but I couldn’t get a picture of it. The serial number is missing the first digit (?593H162). The bridge plate is full width, and the holes are blown out from when they drilled them. The cracks in the side aren’t visible on the inside.
THE PLAN – Remove the neck and check the flatness the next day, the frets will probably need to be pulled, level the fretboard, and refret. Remove the bridge to widen/deepen the slot. Add a 1/8” maple patch to the top under the fretboard extension area to keep the cracks from getting worse and the neck block from shifting forward.
The plugged hole in the heel, and the "rotting" celluloid binding.
The finish crazing.
One the cracks, that was filled with glue. It's at the top of the internal kerfing, so there's no way to patch in on the inside.
The other crack is very short.
The untouched saddle.
The action is a "little" high!!
The deep divots at the 1st fret.
The date code, which is barely readable.
The blown out bridge plate.
The heavy top ladder braces.
The serial/model number. Why are there hammer marks??
And hammer marks in the neck block?? And the protruding added screw.
You can sort of see the crack at the top of the kerfing, to the right of the side brace.
And I couldn't find the other crack inside.