The Hub

Hi, I have been sent a couple pics from a customer and they want to know what guitar they have. No branding and not something I recognise. It looks old though, tortoiseshell binding. But tail pice looks on the cheaper side of things. Any pointers to identify this one would be greatly appreciated. Apologies for the bad photos. I didn’t take them!

Kapton polyamide Heat resistant tape. Combined with heat resistant soldering matts, can help as a heat sink to protect finishes from getting scored. The tape is to line the matt with, not to stick onto guitar finish as it’s high tack. The matts are usually made from fibre glass so ideally needs a heat resistant covering to make it more usable. https://plumbingsuppliesdirect.co.uk/soldering-equipment/soldering-mats/ https://www.strouse.com/b…

Hello everybody! I've got a newer Martin Special 16 (all solid wood with matte back/sides and gloss top) in for some loose braces. Here in Houston I'm used to dealing with acoustics damaged by over-humidification or extreme heat rather than what I often see addressed in the group by you wonderful folks in your colder (normal) climates. My customer had this guitar shipped to him from Wisconsin, and I suspect it was exposed to some extreme…

Listening in on the great zoom call today, a question was asked by the Stewmac representative, if the shop in the hot seat was an authorized repair center for any major brands. How many of you shop owners are authorized repair centers for the major brands? Gibson, Fender, Martin, Taylor and so on…. Do you have any wisdom you can share or contacts to get signed up to do work for the major brands? Also do you find doing warranty repairs i…

A customer brought a Martin D28 in for an assessment and below is the main issues with the guitar. It has two loose braces and two warped/broken "stringers" along the back of the guitar. In addition, the guitar is a candidate for a neck reset, although I think I can possibly kick that can down the road, and my main concern is the loose braces. I'm wondering what the best way to repair something like this is? I don't have much experience…

Hello, Just heard of this group and decided to join. My name is John Read and I live in Indianapolis, IN, USA. I have been building Martin style acoustic guitars for 5 years and am on scratch build #28. I am also the website administrator for both kitguitarsforum.com and asiartisans.org/guitarmaker.org. Loothgroup looks to be a fantastic, next-generation communication tool and I look forward to joining into the conversations. Here's my c…

Hi all, hopefully some useful information. Dovetail mortise sized from 39mm to 45mm front to back, 19mm deep. I drilled 18mm in from the sides of the fretboard - the extension and neck came off quite cleanly - extension heated with heat pad and pocket with heat sticks and a tiny amount of injected water. Steve

Customer brought in his D35 which he bought new 6 months ago from a local shop in here in Toronto. The way he describes it— the finish on the back of the neck began to ripple, and in one spot bubbled and chipped off about the size of a quarter. Where the lacquer has chipped off, there’s still sealer and pore fill underneath. I’ve heard about finish adhesion issues on Martins of various eras. The rest of the neck finish is starting to ri…

Has anyone here sprayed a Martin-Style Ambertone top? Curious how you approach it color wise....seems to me the amber base coat is a very orange/red color, then a very light and warm feathered in brown