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Posts: 11
| i! I purchased an AWESOME looking Viper for my 19yr old son Josh and would like to figure out what to do to it. This one is #E 10690, so it is a 1271, 1975-83.
It is natural colored body and fretboard and my son wants an original style black pickguard, like WDMusic has. But where do I find the right trussrod cover?
Someone replaced the pickguard with a not-quite-same-shape hunk of clear 3/16" thick lucite, two humbuckers (one works and is really really HOT), a broken toggle, and speed knobs.
I'd like to hear from some more experienced folks whether I should try to restore it by finding original pickups (we don't have a lot of excess cash, though), or just put a new replacement oem style pickguard on with a pair of Mighty Mite Motherbuckers I have.... I've also got a set of Schecter humbuckers, Lace P-90 soapbars, and one Ibanez INF-3...
I would love to restore it, but all the clips I've heard show the original pickups as very "bright" sounding. Ignoring for a moment that it would be worth more restored, I don't have a lot of money to spend, so will probably use pickups I have already. Besides, I think my son would prefer a less bright-sounding tone than the originals...?
I guess I could put the INF3 on with working HB currently on it... Or should I find a replacement for the originals, like minibuckers?
I don't play, I just build guitars for my son and live vicariously. So, which route do you guys suggest? Thanks in advance! |
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May 2016
Posts: 11
| Hi, all! If someone could trace their Viper trussrod cover and send me the drawing, I could make one by hand: I used to own a trophy shop, and guitar plastics are really just the engraver's plastic used to make the "plates" for trophies. :-)
And maybe someone might correct me on this: I have just assumed, due to the high sales value of vipers on feebay, that parts would not be easily located, nor affordable... If I am wrong, I'd really rather restore this for my son to play. Was I wrong in thinking parts couldn't be found, and are unaffordable?
And, is there a way to upload pics of our Viper? Thanks, all! |
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Posts: 10777
Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | GuitarsforJosh - 2016-06-07 9:04 PM
And maybe someone might correct me on this: I have just assumed, due to the high sales value of vipers on feebay, that parts would not be easily located, nor affordable... If I am wrong, I'd really rather restore this for my son to play. Was I wrong in thinking parts couldn't be found, and are unaffordable?
Truss Rod Covers and Pickguards are scarce because only a limited number of Vipers and other electric Ovations were made, and the was Decades ago.
Someone here may have a template for one that you could make yourself.
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Posts: 1118
Location: NW Washington State | GfJ-
What kind of music is your son playing, and what sound does he like? Does he have other guitars and wants a different sound, or more of the same?
Choosing from your pickups, the Lace P90s are probably the closest to the originals (as Mr. O wrote on your intro thread).
Looking at eBay SOLD auctions, I see some "player's" Vipers in the $400-$450 range, so they're not always that expensive. The really clean Viper IIIs are the ones that get up into the $1000 range. Asking prices don't mean much if they don't sell. Parts are different, the pickups, knobs, and engraved "viper" pickguards sometimes sell for enough to make you want to take your guitar apart. But if you wait long enough, you might find any of the parts cheap.
I know I have a loose trussrod cover around here somewhere, but that doesn't mean I'll find it anytime soon. Would a scan with a ruler included for scale work instead of a tracing?
Why not cut your own pickguard instead of ordering? Especially if you're using different pickups.
If you have an account on a site like Photobucket, just post links to the pics. Then a helpful old guy might post the pics in this thread.
-Steve W.
Edited by numbfingers 2016-06-09 8:50 PM
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Posts: 11
| Hi, Steve : great q's. My son plays a bit of everything: classic rock, green day, jazz, blues, hard rock, funk, whatever... He really isn't sure what he wants in terms of tone, but he gravitates toward a fuller, more warm sound; not so much of the harsh or bright tones. Not that it wouldn't be good for him to have a little more variety in guitar tones...
So the Lace soapbars would be the closest to the sound of the original pickups? I just hate the way they look, though: big chunks of plastic... I wonder if I could make some thin metal covers that look like the OEM ones...?
A scan of the trussrod cover with ruler might do the trick; I think I could make a pretty good approximation. If you could do that, I'd appreciate it.
But the pickguard has more curves, and the location of the pickups is concerning since i have nothing to start from... A template for that would be necessary for me to cut a pickguard... I'd love to give it a shot if the template exists...
I don't have photobucket, but I'll ask my sons for help. Lol!
Thanks for your help! -Joel |
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Location: Taxed To Death State | I have a PDF scan I can email you. It's actual size correct DPI. PM me your email |
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Posts: 11
| Thank you! I pm'd. If you have a scan of a pickguard, I would certainly be up for making my own guard, too? Thanks! |
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Posts: 1118
Location: NW Washington State | I dug in the pickguard box and found a Viper. It didn't fit on my scanner, so I scanned it in two passes, with a ruler for good measure. Maybe you can stitch them together and make a complete picture. Here's the album; let me know if you can't get to it: http://s285.photobucket.com/user/anagrams/library/Viper%20Pickguard...
I think this is an original pickguard without the "Viper" logo. It suffered the fate of many Viper guards and has a busted output jack hole. Someone made a cute little plate out of pickguard material to cover it up, so there are extra holes in the vicinity of the jack. You'll want to check mounting hole positions against your guitar anyway.
I have a WD-made guard here, and the plastic is not as heavy as the original. The holes for the controls are closer together. Seems like I read somewhere that Ovation changed the layout over time.
-Steve W.
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Posts: 11
| Thanks, Steve! (Sorry, I haven't been on for a while.) I'll try pasting these together and test fitting it to the Viper to be sure O print ot right scale. Thanks! |
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May 2016
Posts: 11
| BTW, are the plates supposed to say VIPER, or not? |
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Posts: 597
Location: Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA | Hi, Guitar for Josh,
It depends on the Viper model, I think? There is a used 1979 Ovation Viper, w/ case for sale, ($550.00 CAN), at a local music store I deal with here in Ottawa, ON., CANADA.(www.spacemanmusic.com/vintageinstruments) The pick guard plate looks to be plain black in the photo. The guitar itself looks to be in good shape, but it doesn't say exactly what model it is on the site, however. Maybe a Viper I?
Mike S.
Ottawa, ON., CANADA
Edited by Mike S. 2016-10-15 4:41 PM
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Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | There was only the Viper and the Viper III. The Viper had Viper on the pickguard originally, but then later... they just stopped doing it. There is a slight variation on the control locations on the pickguard as well over time, but nothing significant. If you google "ovation viper electric" for images you'll see some where the pickup switch is sorta between the tone and volume pots, and others where it is in front of the tone and volume pots.
The Viper III was the 3 pickup version and had 3 toggles, one for each pickup.
Speaking of models... you can tell if you have an earlier one or a later one by the routing under the pickguard. The early ones were only routed for two pickups, but as soon as they started making Viper III's they were all routed for 3 pickups and then just used the 2 or 3 pickup guard as needed for the model they were building. |
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Advice needed for pickups and rebuild.
