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Location: Thredbo, NSW, Australia | I fully understand Michel's view.
I can't wait for the next instalment!
Keep them coming Dan. |
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Location: Texas | "red and white jeweler's rouge" I remember my grandmother finishing up her makeup with it before she would take me to a movie. I think the Joker also used it. It should go with black just fine. You might try a little blush, also, Dan.
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | I drive a convertible. I don't need the blush.  |
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Location: Indiana | Beautiful work Dan. |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | Thanks, Jon. |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | I got the bowl cut and polished, so I decided to take off all the masking so I could see what it looks like.
Front.
Back. 
I'm going to let the back paint cure for a couple of days, then glue the bridge on. While the bridge glue is curing, I'll make the bridge saddle and nut.
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Location: SoCal | Wow. Just wow.
Another week and I may be playing that puppy..... |
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Location: Texas | It's beautiful Dan. Thank you! That top is awesome in the natural light. You gotta be proud...not to mention feeling a little relief that this restoration is almost over. You think my Grandma's rouge will make my Grand Cherokee shine like that?
Edited by jay 2015-10-10 7:16 PM
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Location: Boise, Idaho | What Moody said. Wow! |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | That is NICE.
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Location: Tuscany, Italy | Bravo, bravissimo Dan !! |
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Location: Thredbo, NSW, Australia | Outstanding! |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | Thanks, everyone.
It shouldn't be long now and we'll all get to hear what it sounds like. |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | amosmoses - 2015-10-10 5:15 PM
It's beautiful Dan. Thank you! That top is awesome in the natural light. You gotta be proud...not to mention feeling a little relief that this restoration is almost over. You think my Grandma's rouge will make my Grand Cherokee shine like that?
Hi Jay,
Yes, on both counts. I am happy with how it's turning out and that it's almost done.
Dan |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | immoody - 2015-10-10 5:09 PM
Wow. Just wow.
Another week and I may be playing that puppy.....
At this rate, I may be done by next Saturday. Got any plans for the day/evening? |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | I decided to glue the bridge down, after all.
Put the bridge into place and lightly scored the finish around it.
Peeled the masking tape up to reveal the bare wood. 
Masked around the bare wood and scuffed it with 220-grit sandpaper, then cleaned it with naptha.
Scuffed the underside of the bridge with 220, then cleaned the underside of the bridge really well with acetone to remove the rosewood oils. (pretty greasy wood) Applied a layer of Hysol 9462 to the underside of the bridge and the top wood, then clamped it into place.
I'll pull the clamps off tomorrow night, then start making the bridge saddle. |
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Location: Texas | It FINALLY gets used! That bridge was in the case when I got the guitar. I thought it was cool, but what the hell was I going to do with it? One of the many previous owners had gotten it (along with the kluson tuners) from the MS. One of the previous owners was Nick Black, who use to post here. He said he had envisioned "restoring" it. until he realized what it entailed. He may have scored those or some one else...but what is cool is that it appears evident that many owners of 485 have wanted to make sure that it lived to see another day...and thanks to you, Dan, it will. :-)
Edited by jay 2015-10-11 7:50 PM
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | How long have you owned this guitar?
Yeah, it took a lot of intestinal fortitude to do a complete restore of this guitar. I can see how a lot of people might have wanted to restore it, but it was definitely a big job and not one for the faint of heart.
The photos above do a good job of presenting just how beautiful the top wood looks. Thumping the top gives a big hollow sound. I can't wait to get some strings on it.
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Location: SoCal | DanSavage - 2015-10-11 5:24 PM
immoody - 2015-10-10 5:09 PM
Wow. Just wow.
Another week and I may be playing that puppy.....
At this rate, I may be done by next Saturday. Got any plans for the day/evening?
Yeah, getting together to play the guitar and compare it to a few others...... |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | All righty, then. I guess that's settled. Now, all I need to do is finish the guitar. LOL!
I'll be making the bridge saddle tonight. |
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Location: SoCal | I've got several guitars with silking like that. But neither of them have a torrified top. It will be interesting to hear. |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | The old top had strong silking like this one does. The new top also had good silking, but was a lot more pale.
The coloration between the old top and the new one is different. In natural light, the old top was more honey colored while this one has more of the color of brown sugar.
Yes, like you I'm really looking forward to how it sounds. I've been wanting to play/hear a torrefied top for the last few years.
The sound of thumping this top while holding it by the neck is like a kettle drum --very resonant. Lots of sympathetic vibration from the bowl. |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | The high temperatures we've been experiencing lately really helps epoxy cure faster, so I was able to pull the clamps off the bridge. 
Here's the unbleached bone blanks that will become the saddle and nut. I'm using unbleached bone so the finished product will have a nice, vintage look. 
Saddle cut to length, sanded to thickness and the ends rounded to fit into the bridge slot.
Saddle sanded to a 10" radius to match the fret board.
Compensation marked with pencil. 
Although it's hard to see here, the compensation has been sanded into saddle and the saddle has been polished.
At this point, I'll leave the saddle height alone until I get the nut made and I'm able to adjust the action. I am going to try to get the saddle low enough so that I can put a couple of shims under it to allow for easy adjustments in the future.
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Location: SoCal | Cool Dan. One of the things I always found interesting about old Ovations is that the saddles always seemed loose in the bridges. They were never as long as the slot and with the strings off, they fell right out. I was always under the impression that you wanted the saddle to be snug in the slot for full contact with the bridge which should mean better vibration transfer..... |
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Location: Pueblo West, CO | That's correct.
In addition to better vibration transfer, a snug fit also prevents the saddle from laying down as the strings are tightened which affects the intonation. |
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1967 Balladeer Rebuild...
