Post by CTGull on Nov 16, 2023 19:55:15 GMT -5
His Story: In the hallowed halls of acoustic guitar history, one often stumbles upon hidden treasures that redefine the essence of tone. Enter the Yamaha FG-150, a vintage maestro that has gracefully stood the test of time, and in the hands of sonic alchemist Dave Fengler, my most recent obsession will undoubtedly deliver a tonal journey of unparalleled brilliance. These old Yamaha FG-150s stand as a testament to Yamaha's commitment to excellence, boasting a paragon of playability and craftsmanship from a bygone era. The neck profile invites your fingers to dance along its frets effortlessly. From bluesy bends to delicate fingerstyle playing, this guitar is a versatile muse for the discerning guitarist. Now, enter the realm of Dave, who can bring out the technical brilliance and emotional depth of any instrument IMHO. His mastery lies not just in his technical finesse, but in his care and passion for the project. He doesn’t quit until he gets it right. In my mind, the FG 150 is not just about the wood and strings; it's about the stories these guitars tell and the emotions they evoke. So, embark on this sonic journey with me, where vintage gold meets an amazing contemporary artisan!
Observations: From a distance it looks to be in really great shape, but up close there are many small dings all over, but nothing that is obvious a little farther away. The pickguard is solid! At some point they must have realized leaving the top unfinished under the pickguard was a bad idea, resulting in most of them coming loose or falling off, because the adhesive didn’t stick to the bare wood, and the shrinking pickguard would eventually shear the glue, and the pickguard falls off. The bridge is cracked thru all of the pin holes. The frets look to be original and haven’t been previously leveled. There are some divots in the first 2 frets for the B & E strings. Thos frets should be replaced and level the rest. Other than that, it’s pretty solid!! And, of course, even with old strings it sounds great! Looking closer, I find a small break in the back neck, opposite the nut! And then I press on it there is a tiny bit of movement at the outer edges.
The nut action is low. The neck relief is a little high. Tuned to “E”, the action is a little under 5/32” low E and a little under 9/64” high E. Pretty high! The bridge is .27” thick, and the saddle sticks out .10”/.10”. Checking the weight, at 3.70 lbs, I found it is the lightest FG-150 I’ve seen! Only .03 lbs lighter than the next lightest, which happens to be his other FG-150!!
Removed the strings. The E, A & D strings windings were very stuck in the slots they had made in the bridge. All the tuners are a bit loose, either the mounting screws, the brackets, or both. Removed the saddle. Measured with precision gage blocks, the saddle slot is .119” wide on the ends, and .116” in the middle. And is .09”/.17”/.07” deep (B, M, T).
Internally, there is nothing unusual, with the typical chewed up bridge plate. There is a date stamp on both sides, and both are nearly impossible to read, I’m guess one is 47.5.2, which is 5/2/2972.
The Plan: Will be to remove the neck, humidify the crack in the bridge, replace the first 2 frets. Then glue the bridge crack, add a bridge plate patch, level the frets, and glue the small break in the neck. Then do the neck reset.
Lots of little dings all over.
The typical low and flat Yamaha saddle.
Not much break angle.
There's a hint of neck crack here!! More pictures later.
More "stuff" on the back.
WHAT caused that??
A fine crack in the heel corner. I have to cut thru it anyway.
I love this color!!
The action is a LITTLE high??
And the neck crack. It doesn't go very deep.
The first 2 frets have some divots. Not too deep, but it's not worth level the rest of them to clean these up.
And the crack thru the bridge pin holes.
LOTS of dust bunnies!
The typically not well stamped serial number.
The top bracing in the mirrors.
And the typical chewed up bridge plate.
And the typically poorly stamped date code, partially under the kerfing.
I think it's 47.5.2.
Observations: From a distance it looks to be in really great shape, but up close there are many small dings all over, but nothing that is obvious a little farther away. The pickguard is solid! At some point they must have realized leaving the top unfinished under the pickguard was a bad idea, resulting in most of them coming loose or falling off, because the adhesive didn’t stick to the bare wood, and the shrinking pickguard would eventually shear the glue, and the pickguard falls off. The bridge is cracked thru all of the pin holes. The frets look to be original and haven’t been previously leveled. There are some divots in the first 2 frets for the B & E strings. Thos frets should be replaced and level the rest. Other than that, it’s pretty solid!! And, of course, even with old strings it sounds great! Looking closer, I find a small break in the back neck, opposite the nut! And then I press on it there is a tiny bit of movement at the outer edges.
The nut action is low. The neck relief is a little high. Tuned to “E”, the action is a little under 5/32” low E and a little under 9/64” high E. Pretty high! The bridge is .27” thick, and the saddle sticks out .10”/.10”. Checking the weight, at 3.70 lbs, I found it is the lightest FG-150 I’ve seen! Only .03 lbs lighter than the next lightest, which happens to be his other FG-150!!
Removed the strings. The E, A & D strings windings were very stuck in the slots they had made in the bridge. All the tuners are a bit loose, either the mounting screws, the brackets, or both. Removed the saddle. Measured with precision gage blocks, the saddle slot is .119” wide on the ends, and .116” in the middle. And is .09”/.17”/.07” deep (B, M, T).
Internally, there is nothing unusual, with the typical chewed up bridge plate. There is a date stamp on both sides, and both are nearly impossible to read, I’m guess one is 47.5.2, which is 5/2/2972.
The Plan: Will be to remove the neck, humidify the crack in the bridge, replace the first 2 frets. Then glue the bridge crack, add a bridge plate patch, level the frets, and glue the small break in the neck. Then do the neck reset.
Lots of little dings all over.
The typical low and flat Yamaha saddle.
Not much break angle.
There's a hint of neck crack here!! More pictures later.
More "stuff" on the back.
WHAT caused that??
A fine crack in the heel corner. I have to cut thru it anyway.
I love this color!!
The action is a LITTLE high??
And the neck crack. It doesn't go very deep.
The first 2 frets have some divots. Not too deep, but it's not worth level the rest of them to clean these up.
And the crack thru the bridge pin holes.
LOTS of dust bunnies!
The typically not well stamped serial number.
The top bracing in the mirrors.
And the typical chewed up bridge plate.
And the typically poorly stamped date code, partially under the kerfing.
I think it's 47.5.2.