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April 2003
Posts: 608
Location: Caribou, ME | A couple months ago I bought a 1983 Collector's Edition prototype. It had various and sundry problems; a top crack, missing rosette, incorrect nut, loose braces, nothing awful I guess. It's all together now, except for a rosette, and it plays and sounds great.
A couple weeks ago I found an ad on Craigslist for a "1983 Collector's Edition neck, electronics, and case". I asked about the bowl and he said it was trashed beyond trash. He wadded everything into the case, every last screw and scrap, and I gave him $155 shipped. I figured if nothing else, I bought the correct case and maybe I could save the rosette (which was shattered) and maybe I could sell the neck.
It came in today and I pieced the rosette together with a couple donor scraps of abalone from a 1719. It looks like it will work fine but I still need to do some cleanup. I should have in on the 'good' '83 within a few days. The case is excellent except for a few bumper stickers. The neck is very good except for some cowboy chord fretwear. I tested the pickup/preamp and it works fine. The bowl.... well... anyone in their right mind would walk away.
Nobody's ever accused me of being in my right mind. And I've pieced together some that were a LOT worse than this.
I was going to part it out and whatever I got back would go against the $155 outlay. But now I think I'll piece it together. A big piece of the spruce was still stuck to the fingerboard extension and there will be some grafts required. I'll be adding some serious spruce cleats under the fingerboard extension too. The bridge is no problem other than some chipped finish which will show. I have one very rough Balladeer rosette I can use or I can use a NOS incorrect one. I even plan to swipe the good preamp knobs and replace them with some super glued ones.
So I will end up with a cobbled together guitar that will be structurally stable but one I can leave in the car without worrying about.
Jigsaw puzzle anyone?
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Posts: 1565
Location: Indiana | Looking forward to seeing the proto. |
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April 2010
Posts: 1227
Location: Connersville, Indiana | I have to ask since I can not repair guitars, how do you even start to fix this. And how long have you been repairing guitars. I have a hand made giannini classical guitar that the neck is warping up and someday I would like to have it fixed. It has a hand carved headstock. I guess I mean to ask how much would a guy have to pay to have that type of work done.
I would love to see that when it is done, it a beautiful color |
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Posts: 5567
Location: Blue Ridge Mountains | Love it when a plan comes together...all the best with this! |
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December 2003
Posts: 13997
Location: Upper Left USA | First of all, I applaud your compulsions and praise your efforts!
Why do you do it?
Because you can!
Secondly, for the twisted Giannini Craviola, take it to a Luthier and get a free estimate for the repair or an educated opinion for where to take it next. Likely they will block, twist and heat the errant body part until it submits or crumbles.
Worst off they will remove the frets and re-plumb the fretboard and refret. |
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Posts: 12761
Location: Boise, Idaho | 83 was the year our first daughter was born. Glad you are trying to save it, even though there were a lot of them made that year. |
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Posts: 3111
Location: Nashville TN. | Have the wizzards put it back togeather.
Kim & John can put it back to like new. |
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Posts: 4833
Location: Campbell River, British Columbia | Me, I see a popcorn bowl with a long pass handle.... |
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April 2003
Posts: 608
Location: Caribou, ME | Originally posted by fillhixx:
Me, I see a popcorn bowl with a long pass handle.... I've already got one of those.
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Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | I admire you guys who resurrect these poor souls at the last minute. Where do you find the time? I remember a friend in high school whose father did the same thing with cars, in this case, a specific type of car, T-Birds from 1955-1957. He had an entire storage yard full of them. I think I counted 50 before quitting. He could've had a hundred or more. They were essentially beaters and junkers, most not running, but all certainly restorable. He was buying them as fast as he could find them for a few hundred dollars each at most, then he'd slowly restore one in the garage. The place was always a mess. This would have been about 1968. We all thought he was crazy. I think his wife finally went nuts over it. Time sure changes perceptions. I lost track of my friend, but I'm sure he, through his father, cashed in big time with those cars. |
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April 2003
Posts: 608
Location: Caribou, ME | Feather by feather the goose is plucked.
I try not to think about the big picture. If I did, I would never start. Fix one little thing and then walk away for a couple days. After a while it starts taking shape. I don't get discouraged until I get to wet sanding or buffing.
As to the Birds, in 1971 my parents were offered a pristine '57 porthole Bird for $2500 and they recoiled in horror. That would have been better than money in the bank but they didn't think so at the time. |
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Posts: 13997
Location: Upper Left USA | I call it therapy and write it off as a medical expense (I wish). |
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March 2005
Posts: 12761
Location: Boise, Idaho | Most of those old car restorations, and probably guitar restorations, cost more than what you can get out of them. I did see an old Univox on ebay for $1250 last night that was just like the one I bought for $35 in 1972, though. |
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Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | Restorations and resto-mods are horribly cost-ineffective if you have to outsource the labor. Even the out-of-pocket expenses for parts, plating and paint can exceed the value of the finished product. Owners surely don't do it to make money. We've done a few (Jeeps), including some body-off custom builds. It was never about the value or cost. I'm sure the same holds true for personal guitar restorations and custom builds or mods. Its a passion, not a vocation. Hats off to the artists and craftsmen who have the passion to keep these models alive and in the pipeline, notwithstanding the time and expense to do so. |
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Joined:
April 2003
Posts: 608
Location: Caribou, ME | Originally posted by Mark in Boise:
...probably guitar restorations, cost more than what you can get out of them. It's almost never 'worth it' from a financial standpoint. It's usually driven by sentimental value or the challenge of rescuing something from the dumpster.
I like challenges. I married a redhead. |
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Posts: 4833
Location: Campbell River, British Columbia | OOOOOooooOOOO!
Danger Will Smith! Danger! |
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April 2003
Posts: 608
Location: Caribou, ME | Aside from a little bit of cleanup to do on some repaired bowl cracks, it's up and running.
I'm glad I decided to put "too much" work into it. It doesn't sound as good as my other '83 but I don't know how long it was left for dead. It needs to remember it's a guitar again.
1983 barnburst |
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Posts: 815
Location: Colorado | Very good. Well done. |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | That is Awesome!
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Location: Indiana | Fantastic. |
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Location: Atlanta, GA. | Nicely done! My compliments. |
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Location: Blue Ridge Mountains | Very Nice: Congrats! |
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Posts: 13997
Location: Upper Left USA | Very good! |
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Posts: 2985
Location: Sydney, Australia | It's alive! Well done. |
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April 2006
Posts: 1017
Location: Budd Lake, NJ | Seems to me that New Hartford isn't the only place that's gonna be known for its' wizardry...kudos to you, ks; beautiful job! |
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DOA? Not on my watch....
