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Private member DiscussionNeck Reset Database

neck reset acoustic guitar with two necks (harp guitar)

I've owned this Jersey City made 12-string/drone 'harp' guitar for a few years and want to get on the repair. I've taken the necks off many dozens of Schmidt-made guitars but never one with two necks. I've searched the web looking for harp guitar neck removal and didn't find anything of use. Asking for any tips/aids/experience from the loothers. My plan is to make a custom neck removal jig that fits the necks, and then drill the typical…

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Beautiful guitar. Will your neck jig(s) bind the two necks together top and bottom, as well as push up equally on the heels while you release the joints? Seems like any loss of rigid coupling between…
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Builds

Gibson Advanced Jumbo plans

Anyone have plans/drawings for a vintage spec AJ they can share, or a link where I can buy them? I haven't been able to find anything other than J45 plans with general notes on the differences that aren't clear enough to follow. Thanks!

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Ian Davlin
I just talked to Mark Stuttman and he's got a couple in the shop that he thought he might do some drawings from. I'm also thinking about getting a 3d scanner that the group can share and then shipping…
Private member DiscussionElectric Repair

Dunable Yeti with a backwards rod???

Hello! Im working on a repair for a cutsom build for a customer. Its a Dunable Yeti built in 2022. Anyway, all work was going fine till testing the rod... i discovered that the rod is working the opposite of how it should function on any other guitar. CCW is tightening (and no, no a dual action rod) Tightening this rod is adding relief. The guitar already had too much when disengaged. Trying to figure out how to approach this as this is a f…

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Ian Davlin
It could be that the rod is really high on the center mass of the neck. This will produce this effect in extreme examples. This should be considered a probable defect. Are you able to set it somewhat…
Private member DiscussionElectric Repair

which frets for LP Delixe 70s

Hi, I am still a little confused by the new look of the forum, hope this is the right place to ask. Which fretwire would you recommend for a refret of this 70s LP? The current frets are 2.75mm wide, but dressed down to 0,35mm height. I have heard storys about frets that are this low but never seen in real life before :-) (0.108" wide and 0.014" height). Thank you in advance :-)

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Well, Jescar makes a .108" wide by .051" tall but....that's pretty tall. I have a customer who has between 30-40 Les Paul's at any given time. I have refretted a few of his Norlan era guitars with the D…
Private member DiscussionJob Postings

Looking for CAD expert

Hello all! My name is Jake and I run a repair shop out of my NYC apartment. I am looking for someone who's experienced in CAD to help me with a project. I am working on a 5 string headless bass build for a customer. The neck & body are to be CNCed by a local mill here in Brooklyn, NY. I have a 2D design (PDF and CRD), but I need help making some modifications, as well as translating it to 3D. Pay is negotiable. I will basically pay whate…

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Private member Discussion3D Printing

More free prints

Few more prints up for grabs to anyone in the US who responds first. Fret sander and two screw holders with the gridfinity lobbed off so they are just free-standing.

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I am tempted by this offer, but I have already taken advantage of a free offer on here before. Need to give others their chance.
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

1930s Martin 00: Best practice

Long story short, customer want to add carbon fiber in the neck for strength. Without string tension, the neck is dead straight; with strings, it's about double the relief he'd like. Is it insane to add carbon to this guitar? Or is it fine?

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Hey Keith! That's a bit of a tough question to answer without having more details, but I'll take a swing at it. If, as you said, the neck is dead straight without strings and has double the relief he…
Private member DiscussionFinish Repair

PBass has been stripped of it finish… looking for expertise, friends!

Hi friends, I just stumbled upon a 1966 P-Bass, nearly completely original. The owner bought it in 1971 and it had already been stripped of its original finish. That was a thing back then. You can guess that 55 years of gigging had the wood absorb much of the owner’s DNA and sweat. Maybe a few beers as well. Surface was quite tacky as you can expect. I cleaned it with naphta and StewMac’c brand-new cleaner (quite a great product I'd say…

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Ian Davlin
Ill chime in. Go with shellac first. It may be all you need and if you decide to go with something else, youve already applied the universal seal coat. Also, it has the best chance of sticking to any…
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Builds

Cheap-ish Brace Wood Source

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/wppages/bargainbag_spruce.php The air craft industry uses 1/4 sawn sitka and this is a box of their "Scrap wood" that is a good value to have on hand, (usually like 36 in long and various width) imo if anyone is in need. It's an odd ball source, but just spreading info. Be well.

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Very cool! Thanks. Bookmarked. That website has some other cool stuff as well.
Private member DiscussionNeck Reset Database

1918-1922 Gibson A3 " Ivory" Mandolin Dovetail Joint Measurements and Angles

Here are some pics of 1918-1922 Gibson A3 "Ivory" Mandolin Dovetail Joint Measurements and Angles.

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Ian Davlin
@member The sides being detached from the neck block is really interesting without overt evidence of the instrument getting wet. Are you going to release the sides completely…
Private member DiscussionGeneral Business

Appraisals

Friend brought his "old guitar in the basement" over for me to have a look at. Long story short, it's a 1945 D-18, it's all original and it's a beauty. He had no idea. I explained to him that it was worth somewhere between 15 and 25 thousand bucks, that it needed some fairly routine repairs and that he should get - among other things - an insurance rider and take a little more care of the guitar than he has been. Picture attached for fu…

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Ian Davlin
The VG price guide is a pretty good place to start. On something like that, I'd be tempted to pay for an appraisal from Gruhn's though. They used to do email appraisals that were reasonably priced. Re…
Private member DiscussionGeneral

Tremolo issues. Not returning to "zero"

Hey guys. I guess this is an old topic, everyone talks about it but I haven't been able to find a definitive solution for this. Here's the deal: I'm working on a PRS Silversky that has this old problem that when you use the trem bar, one string (G in this case) goes sharp. I made a few adjustments to the nut as we all know that's the first thing to look at...no good. This guitar is new so I'm pretty much ruling out the bridge and posts si…

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Ian Davlin
There's the old tremsetter. I haven't seen anyone extolling their virtues any more, but here is the link to the device. https://www.stewmac.com/parts-and-hardware/all-hardware-and-parts-by-instrument/…
Private member DiscussionElectric Repair

Bass Neck Stiffness, Can't Get Enough Relief

Hello, I hope everyone is having a great 4th of July weekend so far. I was recently asked by a friend to work on a cheap S101 bass someone had given to him. It had no electronics and it was severally back bowed. After finishing up the electronics, I did the set up. He wanted the guitar tuned low, to Drop C. So, I went out and bought some Ernie Ball Power Slinkies 55-110. Once I got to the nut depth check, it was clear there were large, g…

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9m✎🗑 A standard heat treatment, with the neck clamped in an upbow, should help. I have been using an Aria neck heat bar for 50 years with more successes than failures. You can find the Aria on eBay for…
Private member DiscussionNeck Reset Database

Spanish Heel failure

Hi all, I got a Do Santos DSMSCC RC in shop, the Spanish heel has failed , or rather collapsed into the soundboard, splitting it on both sides along the grain, a broken brace just under the fingerboard extension , cracks on both sides on the top/side bindings, I measured wood humidity on the fingerboard 9% and inside the (very inaccessible) body 11% The normal procedure would be to re-humidify before jacking or clamping back into place ,…

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@member More Picture of the Decapitation ...

Experienced Builder and Red Wing Grad

Howdy folks, I'm a 2026 graduate of the two year guitar program at Red Wing (Minnesota State College Southeast). Between my two years at Red Wing I worked at Collings Guitars in Austin, TX for two years in the acoustic neck department, shaping and finish sanding ~2000 necks, radiusing and gluing ~750 fingerboards, and pressing ~100 sets of frets. I also spent a couple months in the finishing department level sanding and pore filling ~300…

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Lucas does great work.
Private member DiscussionSELL! SELL! SELL!

Buffing compounds! Cheap!

I’ve changed up my buffing protocols (again) and am selling off two lots of compound bars: -four bars ColorTone Fine, $55+shipping -three bars Menzerna P204 + two bars GW16, $100+shipping. USA shipping only. thanks, Creston

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Hey Creston, I sent you a connection request so I can DM you
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Builds

Mandocello neck block

I am building an archtop mandocello (A style) and I'm trying to find out how to make the neck block. It would be more or less like an A style mandolin neck block, but obviously quite a lot bigger. More or less like the image attached. The blank should be aprox 10 x 8 x 12 cm. I'm trying to find a piece of hardwood big enough for this, would it be acceptable if I made some kind of laminated piece? And how should the grain direction be idea…

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Ian Davlin
The traditional A style mandocello neckblocks were mahogany. There are some really good reasons for laminating them because there are forces on the block that make any single grain orientation a damne…
Private member DiscussionTools and Jigs

LOOTHTOOL VL’s Precision Feeler Gauge Set !

LOOTHTOOL I've made some purchases on LOOTHTOOL, but it will not let me review. SO, the VL’s Precision Feeler Gauge Set is a rock solid 10 of 10 or five Amazon stars. Nice blades, EXCELLENT tool box, well marked, I'm thrilled!

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Absolutely worth a mention! Paid for itself in time saved the first week I put it on my bench. Thanks Buck for doing all the big thinking behind it...