50's LPC restoration

WezV

I'm aware I have mentioned this a few times, but never stated a thread.


It came to me looking like this




At some point the binding had been replaced by 4 thick white strips front and back, then painted over white too


it was refinished and a few parts changed along the way.   There was also a suspicion of some neck work, which I have now confirmed was a heel end break.


Blacklight showed a few interesting bit


The refinish glows, which alogn with the wear shows  it was all done quite a while ago


some bits of original lacquer remained, like where the finish was scraped back after the rebind shown here


or on the heel where you can see some evidence  of the break



or this rather worrying patch that looks like a screw head.   Pretty much invisible in normal light.   I can confirm it was not a screw head, just a drop fill that has melted the old lacquer into that round  shape...  the bright green is all original lacquer




The good news is that all the old structural work was done really well.  The guitar has been solid for a long time.

WezV

First step was to get that old binding off, which went really well


Nice clean channels for the most part


and a hint of original binding hiding under the fretboard

WezV

and new binding  gets shaped to fit before any glue goes near it





We also finally get a good look at that old neck break


some damage to the front of the body



and that brings us up to date

fftc

Fascinating seeing the way the binding is L shaped on this style.
Are you re-doing the neck as well to sort out that split?

WezV

I have repaired the neck binding rather than replace it.  The splits have been repaired with binding goop 

Winny_Pooh

So the original finish was black. So then probably stripped and was then refinished to black again? 

TTony

You *are* a craftsman.

WezV

Winny_Pooh said:

So the original finish was black. So then probably stripped and was then refinished to black again? 

Yes, but i don’t think it was stripped.   Presumably the damage to the neck heel killed the binding and it all got finished over when it was all repaired

PhilKing

It's looking great Wes.  It always sounded good and never had any tuning issues, so I was sure the old repair was good.  The one thing you didn't mention was the hold drilled into the body for the pickguard screw.

WezV

Yeah.  now plugged.   I think i will just shorten the bolt rather than re-drill the hole


Lets have some  more pics 

SteveF

This looks great - looking forward to following this one.  

OilCityPickups

beautiful job Wez ... and well photographed too mate :-)
The poor old girl must have taken one hell of a tumble in her distant past to do that neck heel/front damage. 

mudslide73

Great documentation Wez. I love these threads of yours because it's all so normal for you - Great explanations for the decisions too.

WezV

TheGuitarWeasel said:

beautiful job Wez ... and well photographed too mate :-)
The poor old girl must have taken one hell of a tumble in her distant past to do that neck heel/front damage. 

The most confusing bit for me is the repair was done so well, but they clearly gave up on the binding.     Similar with the plugged bridge posts.   They looked badly done because they had not been finished correctly, but actually they were fit and grain matched quite well   The result was a solid guitar that plays well and sounds good

mudslide73 said:

Great documentation Wez. I love these threads of yours because it's all so normal for you - Great explanations for the decisions too.

I don't know if I would class this one as normal, but I am really happy to have the chance to do this one.

My own custom build has been delayed as its now been rebound twice.   First go was fine, but it made sense to try a few repair techniques on something with less value first.  I managed to get a much better technique sorted before working on this

I have done plenty of binding work before these, but never more than 4 ply.  7 is a whole different challenge. 

WezV

still a few bits to perfect before i start on  some tinting and clear,but i couldn't resist a quick mockup

ICBM

That looks fabulous .

If it was me I'd go for a very light tint, subtle ageing and no 'damage' - there's just the right amount of wear on the gold to make it look like it's been better cared-for than it actually has. And no pickguard unless you can get an original... a flat shiny one like it had before just won't look right.

But not my guitar so feel free to ignore me .

WezV

I think the wear and colour on the headstock will dictate the tint and wear I add to the rest. 

2 options on the guard.  First will be one I make and age from scratch.  Second is making one from a 50’s archtop guard.

roberty

Fabulous is the word, I concur!

Danielsguitars

Really nice work Wez, looking forward to seeing this finished

PhilKing

That's looking great Wes.  So much better that it was a few month's ago.  It was gigged for years (not by me), with Ian Hunter.  I got it from James Mastro, who has worked with Ian for many year, besides working with many other artists (https://www.njarts.net/uncategorized/ian-hunter-adds-impressive-legacy-help-james-mastro/).  When he got it the refin had already been done, so not sure when the guitar was damaged.  However it is a great player and sounds awesome.

WezV

found  some pics. you mentioned the Ian Hunter connection but i don't think i caught the guitarists name


2010





2004