Comments on: How to Make a Guitar Look Like New Again

By: chris

chris — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 18:38:56 +0000

Rob,
Refinishing the top is a huge no-no. As far as buffing it out, that is a personal call. The instrument has already taken the value hit, so buffing out the top would be OK if either your repairman thinks it can improve the look of his work, or if you want the guitar’s top to be shiny again. My motto is usually “if it ain’t broke”. The touch up work is always the customer’s call. Would the repair be more complete if the guitars top was refinished, yes (I wouldn’t suggest refinishing the entire guitar). Would it devalue the guitar, of course. We always advise against refinish unless the guitar is not original, but sometimes customers want it to be factory new. If it were here, we would probably airbrush the repaired area and blend it in with the original finish, but that is pretty tough work that only a handful of shops do. We always advise the customer of our opinion, but in the end, it is not my guitar so I will do what the customer asks (within reason). Whatever you do, make sure you are 100% comfortable with it and it’s a good idea to trust your guy.

By: Rob Bazer

Rob Bazer — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 01:56:18 +0000

I have a 1961 Gibson dot-neck 335 sunburst that had the neck pickup hole widened by the original owner to fit a bizarre replacement pickup. As horrible as this is, I closed my eyes and had the area filled properly, but the nobody feels comfortable trying to match the finish. The solution is to place a small piece of pickguard material over the 3/8 inch are below the pickup ring and just live with it. The problem is that the tech first suggested refinishing the whole guitar which scared the hell out me. Now he wants to buff out the guit even thought the finish is original and, other than the hole problem, it is almost like new…no crazing or grime or clouds. It looks almost perfect. Would buffing out the entire guitar make sense? Would this devalue the instrument more than it already has been? Can you tell that a guitar has been buffed? Please help before he starts his work.

Thanks so much,
Rob

By: chris

chris — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:38:48 +0000

Tom, We have used a ton of different lacquers over the years and we have finally come to our favorite which is made by Mohawk. It is their high gloss instrument lacquer 9it is the same Lacquer Gibson uses now). As far as colors, we mix our own with Trans Tint lacquer tints. There are so many variations on old guitars and they change colors so much, having the original color really doesn’t help in the end!

By: tom taylor

tom taylor — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 03:19:37 +0000

Thanks Chris for the professional advice. The guitar has been case for well over thirty years and I hope to start playing it frequently,the strat,guild,and the Gibson 355 has taken front seat. But the 61 has to be repaired before its played. I understand the nitrocellulose lacquer drop fill technique after much research, what clear coat manufacturer, would you recommend? And would you use a dupont lacquer based paint to mist over to match the color? Thanks. Tom

By: chris

chris — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 19:40:34 +0000

Yes, we would usually drop fill the area, then do a mist of over-spray to make sure the color matches and then a little clear over that to make sure it holds. We can usually make that sort of thing disappear!

By: tom taylor

tom taylor — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 19:20:33 +0000

I have 61 Gibson lp custom Polaris white I believe, with some cracking along the neck just below the fret board,is the lacquer drop fill technique the proper fix .?

By: chris

chris — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 20:05:22 +0000

Richard,
Unfortunately, refinishing a guitar like that drastically reduces the value. Even though the guitar may have been well played and a little beat, it is a very expensive vintage instrument and taking off the original finish and refinishing it can reduce the value by about 50%. As far as the difference in tone, I would really have to take a look at it and see what is going on with it.

By: Richard

Richard — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 00:19:27 +0000

Hi guys…
I hope that there might be resolve to my dilemma.

A few years ago I bought a vintage Martin 1943 00021 from an old family friend. He had obtained it years earlier and wanted to down size his collection.
The guitar had been used well thoughout the years. Apparently a lot of Bar playing had taken its toll and it came with a history.
It had a quarter size gouge in the lower front face below the pick guard. I had heard the guy that owned it was a very physical player and had worn out the area from missing the pick guard.
I had a close friend who is a fine luthier and who had built several custom guitars over the years to take on another project.
I was confident he would do a nice job on this job as well.I asked him to refinish the instrument and reset the neck.
After the work although beautiful it was, The tone and sustain had dropped a fair amount. It still is outstanding but lacks a bit of the original tone that I had loved. Is there anything that can be done to bring back the tone more so.
Also since I bought it for an investment only reason, Is there those out there who may be interested in a vintage guitar though refinished condition? Thanks for any advice. My main instrument is Mandolin and violin.

By: chris

chris — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:15:41 +0000

That is amazing Bob! Just a little imagination, the right tools and patience will do it.

By: Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:15:47 +0000

I live in the UK and in 1972 my 1 year old son dropped my early 1960s Gretsch down stairs, snapping the neck at the 2nd fret. My local Scottish guitar shop owner knew a local violin maker whom he said I should try for a repair. This guy hand carved a nine inch wedge including the headstock, milled out the wood for the “Gretsch” logo and carved the remaining part of the neck to match the new wedge. How he managed the truss rod I don’t know. The actual fret board was undamaged somehow, so a refret was not needed. He did this job in three days, allowing me to use the guitar at a gig! He charged me all of £15 – about $25! I had to use car cellulose to refinish the guitar myself and he said for the next 10 years or so I’d have to rub down the join every so often. I have done this three times now and the join is now completely stable and invisible at last. I used several thin color coats and finished with several thin clear coats, using 1000 wet & dry between coats. I still use this guitar today (I am 69)and at present I am replacing the fingerboard binding which my son damaged recently – not the same son! Who’d have kids!