Summer Projects

The weather has improved, so I've been outside again and working on three of my older guitars before progressing with restoration of the Hummingbird. Painting anything outside means that there's always the chance that dust and feathers can ruin your finish. 

I've lost count of the amount of times I've sanded back parts to polish out the little mistakes. For the Ibanez Bass and the Lagrange Strat I've used cheap spray paint, which is a little tricky to work with as it dries slowly and is a little more fluid than the paint I've used on the Kay SG copy. 

The Ibanez is being returned to it's factory colour (well.. shade...) and the Strat copy is painted in a nice surfesque "creation blue". The strat copy has had it's horns cut off, dents filled in and is part way through a conversion to a lap steel configuration. 

The Kay  SG copy was to be painted Surf Green, but the closest thing the local paint seller had was "Dark Calypso" which is a few shades darker than I wanted, but kind of cool in it's own right and looks nice coupled with cream headstock & pick guard.

The last couple of days have been raining and xmas lunch with the family interrupted work, but I'm hoping to have them all in playable condition by the time I return to the office in mid January. 

1991 - La Grange Strat Copy

The La Grange looked like this, but I have no pics of it before it met Mr Band-saw.

Like most kids, I started with a pretty low quality nylon string.
I can't remember the name of my original now, but I soon got tired of it and coerced my mother into buying me an electric guitar!

This was before the internet and I lived in a large rural town/small regional city (depending on your perspective). The guitar was tracked down via the local "trading post" and from memory came with an amp and cost $250.  Back then I knew jack all about guitars and this looked as good as a real Fender to me so the deal was done. My first electric guitar, like a big boy!

It was branded La Grange, had 3 single coils, a basic vibrato and broke strings all the time.
I used light gauge d'Dario back then and broke an e or be string at least once a week.
As all music equipment addicted people know, their first guitar is usually their gateway into GAS-ville.

I couldn't afford anything at the time as I was 13 and had no job.

My guitar teacher gave in to my request to "customise" the poor guitar and I discovered that guitars could be made out of plywood!

Along with changing the shape, he filled in the tremolo hole and made it a string through body non trem guitar to improve the sustain.  Think there's a chunk of mahogany in there filling the gap.

The neck is now a total mess. I thought that making it fretless was a genius idea, but the reality was that I'd pretty much destroyed the guitar. Maybe one day I'll find a replacement neck and all will be well.

Mr Band-saw, bring me a dream....

Uh... fretless wonder?

Doubtful though....