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Private member DiscussionGeneral

1964 jazz bass calamity

Any suggestions if this can be saved? It is a neck I received for free upon replacing it for a customer. The wood was missing and the rod is missing the adjusting nut. The truss rod had pushed the inlay out as well as the wood damage . I wasn't sure if it could be a structurally sound repair. I have no idea of the neck rigidity or action with strings. I wont be online because of a previous dr. appointment but I figured it would be a go…

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Private member
The Elders are correct .It is a 1976 neck. I was presently working on a different neck , a 1965, so it was on my mind. Thanks to all for the suggestions. My initial instincts were what Doug had reco…
Private member DiscussionFinish Repair

Preserving Signature’s

Hey yall! I am thinking through multiple options for preserving a large signature for a customer that is on the Front of a white Strat. I have done this a few ways before but never got to see much how they aged. What’s the general consensus for doing this sort of job? Thanks in advance!

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Ian Davlin
I don't know about aging, but they always gave me the heebie geebies. I wouldn't do one unless they had the type of pen that was used so I could test it.
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

Humidity Pack Leakage...

A customer recently brought in a Gibson J-185-EC for some setup work, and also wanted me to address some leakage from a humidity pack the was apparently left in the guitar before he bought it, and it leaked in a number of places. I was wondering what the best way to clean this up from the inside? There's also finish lifting on the back of the guitar where it's leaked through the wood. I'm curious to know the approach here. I believe it…

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We had dozens of those come back to Taylor. We tried everything under the sun with very little success. The salt impregnates itself into the wood and is impossible to remove. We stripped and refinishe…
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

1917 Gibson U-type Harp Guitar

I’ve had a customer come to me wanting to electrify the guitar without any modifications to it. No drilling, routing etc. I did convince him an end pin jack would be the only mod I would make, and he was ok with that. After a little thought, I thought, a K&K with a microphone (K&K Mini Pro) might work, using the transducers on the six string side and the microphone on the ten string side. I have no doubt the transducers would work fine.…

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Private member
Just a follow up, K&K is making a custom 3-4 transducer system for this. Vance at K&K was a pleasure to work with... thank you Vance!
Private member DiscussionGeneral Business

Advertising and starting from 0

Hello all! I've moved across country after having a reasonable success loothing back in the USA, but upon arriving in my current location in Europe, i've had to diversify my skill set and take what i could to stay in the country. Anyway, its been 2 years since then and i'm slowly kicking up dust with repairs again, that i'm primarily supplementing with fix and flip guitars. But, i've hardly had any customers since arriving, outsi…

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Ian Davlin
Are there music shops in the area that you might connect with. It's always a good source of work until you can get on your feet. Always tough to give up the percentage, but it's a place to start.
Private member DiscussionGeneral

1917 Gibson U style Harp Guitar

I've had a customer come to me wanting to electrify the guitar without any modifications to it. No drilling, routing etc. I did convince him an end pin jack would be the only option, and he was ok with that. After a little thought I thought a K&K with a microphone (K&K Mini Pro) might work, using the transducers on the six string side and the microphone on the ten string side. I have no doubt the transducers would work fine. My concern…

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Ian Davlin
00:43:46 Q4. Amplifying a Vintage Harp Guitar @member your video sir.
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

Seagull Acoustic Neck Reset...

Hey everyone, I wanted to do a bit of a follow up on a repair I'm doing. A customer brought in a Seagull acoustic guitar that had been dropped, causing the heel block to separate. I managed to get that glued back together with pleasing results, however I did need to take the neck off by removing the two bolts which thread into the heel block, and unglued the fretboard extension. All went well here, although I'm left with a situation whe…

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One other issue with the guitar that I wanted to mention was a fairly sizeable split in the back. At its widest, there is a gap of about .015" and I'm curious to know how you all would handle this? I…
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

Neck resets on Mexican Martins

Customer has this Martin 000-RS1 that needs a neck reset. He's looking to me for advice because he knows the guitar isn't really worth that much. But it's unplayable at the moment. What are you chaps doing for guitars like this? A real cheap, old guitar, I'd just hack the neck off, but this doesn't really fall into that bracket either. Are you doing proper resets on Mexican Martins?

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It's most likely a mortise and tenon joint. But to be certain you should buy Pat's book. It details every Martin neck joint, how to identify and reset. https://www.amazon.com/C-F-Martin-Guitars-Patrick…
Private member DiscussionGeneral Business

Full Service vs. Selective

I’m curious to hear from everyone in the trenches, how they manage repairs they really don’t want to do. At this point I am offering customer work again to a small group of people who know me and have worked with me over the years. I’ve had a few people email that I don’t know, being a little pushy wanting to know price and turnaround time because “I need this by the xxth of the month”. I’ve simply offered them a referral to another sh…

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i prob turn about 70% of repairs down but i tell them sorry the building business is my priority & truthfully id rather leave les paul breaks , bridge reglue , pickup swap etc to people that do it mor…
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

Advice/tips needed on bridge repair

This is a new one for me and I’m willing to give it a shot with the customer’s understanding. What are some things that I need to look out for and what do I prioritize first… I’m up for it but I want to be efficient. Thanks for any tips/advice!

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What kind of guitar? Anything can be repaired but of course this goes to what the customer wants? Interestingly, I just cleaned up a mess like this. I didn't take pics of before but popsicle stick…
Ian Davlin DiscussionJob Postings

F Bass Is Hiring

We at F Bass Inc have been crafting boutique basses out of Hamilton, ON since 1978 and we’re looking for a Master Builder to join our small but mighty team. Applicants must have a sharp eye, strong organizational skills and the ability to problem solve in creative ways. Someone who genuinely loves crafting custom instruments and appreciates the little details even more so. If you pride yourself on precision and creativity and get a kick…

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Private member DiscussionTools and Jigs

Deal alert!!

Just received these sandpaper rolls from Red Label. 4.5"x60' cloth backed aluminum oxide. Killer deal at $15 a roll (about 30% of normal price). Quality is excellent. Various grits available. Don't know how long the deal lasts. https://www.redlabelabrasives.com/products/4-1-2-inch-x-20-yd-roll-cloth-backing-aluminum-oxide?utm_source=Customers&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=1%2F6%2F26%20-%20Bulk%20Surplus%20Reminder%20%28Customers%29%…

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Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

Missing soundhole braces Gretsch 6021 Town & Country Rancher flattop

A customer recently brought in a 1950s Gretsch Town & Country Rancher 6021. In addition to two main ladder braces being loose/cracked, it’s missing the two braces on either side of the sound hole (see photo). Because this is such a wide instrument (17” lower bout), I’m thinking that installing those missing braces will help with the stability of the top, which is pretty sunken right now. Does anyone have any photos or measurements of or…

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Yes, of course Ian. That’d be fantastic if Dan could take a look! Sorry for the late response, I wasn’t paying attention with the holidays 😆.
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

Seagull Acoustic Neck Tenon...

Hey everyone, I'm dealing with a Seagull acoustic guitar which has a neck design that I'm unfamiliar with. It has a bolt on heel but a seemingly glued in neck. The customer brought it in when his child knocked it off that stand and created a gap between the heel and the neck. It doesn't appear that these pieces were glued together so I'm guessing that I'm safe to just fit the heel and screw it in. I am a bit worried about a gap remainin…

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Ian Davlin
David, would you mind if I added this to the council of elders ?
Private member DiscussionElectric Builds

Fender Double-tap humbucker problem

Hello all, A customer dropped a recent American Professional II Strat to have a Double-tap humbucker installed at the bridge. I rewired the guitar following Fender's schematic (see below) and installed a stacked 250 and 500k volume pot, treble bleed PCBs and push-push coil split/tap for this pickup. All went very well, until I tried it at switch position 2. Sure enough, the new unit does not play well with the others and combining delive…

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Understood. Plus the pole spacing is slightly different also. Just tossing out troubleshooting ideas.
Private member DiscussionFinish Repair

Finish repair from mystery solvents

A customer brought this Gibson songwriter deluxe in, it’s approximately 20 years old to his recollection. It needs a few things done including fret work and a bridge re glue. At some point the guitar was lent out to a friend who dropped it then tried to fix the finish themselves. It looks like they used some kind of cleaner or something that didn’t get along with the lacquer at all. I’ll attach pictures but it’s kinda hard to get a pic…

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Ian Davlin
I agree with this. Just Novus probably wasn't going to be enough. It kind of looks like someone accidentally used alcohol instead of naptha. It's a very subtle boo boo. Use some 2000 grit sanding pape…
Private member DiscussionAcoustic Repair

Anyone use vacuum clamping for bridge re-glues?

I bought the O'brien vacuum clamp and a pump to clamp bridges on new builds, but also to use for repair work. I got tired of making custom top and bottom cauls for every odd-shaped bridge that comes in my shop. The vacuum clamp works great on a flat surface with no pick guard. I put it on a J45 with a pick guard, and it won't seal. The gasket is too hard to form over the pick guard. I've seen YouTube videos of other folks using vacu…

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Scott, Here is a pic of me using the clamp over a Taylor guitar that has a pickguard. I am able to get it to create a seal. The bigger issue for me is making sure to mask off the bridge pin holes and…