VINTAGE CLASSIC GUITAR RESTORATION

I had a badly damaged guitar requiring a complete restoration and, since I like to play heritage folk songs, I wanted it to reflect an early period in North American history. The body was painted in the colour “Soapstone” to represent the Indigenous carvers of that material, The flat top is done in white with the iconic 4 -colour stripes of the Hudson’s Bay Company. Founded in 1670, the HBC dominated the fur trade for centuries but its trademark stripes live on as a historic symbol of that bygone period.

Materials:

An old guitar. (Mine is a classic with nylon strings)

Materials and tools will be mentioned and illustrated in each step.

Strip the guitar of all parts. A small Philips screwdriver was used to remove the tuners and strap buttons. The saddle and nut were pulled off with a pair of needle nose pliers to be replaced with new.

I had to glue the neck back in place. Since it was a clean break exposing the spline, I used epoxy on the spline and carpenter’s yellow glue on all contact points. I clamped it at the sound hole, wiping off the squeeze-out with a damp cloth then weighed it down with a sandbag till dry. (24 hours)

Masking the bridge and fretboard with “Frogtape,” the entire guitar body was sanded with # 400 wet aluminum oxide sandpaper making certain not to go through the veneer. The edges that showed wear were slightly rounded over including the worn edges of the headstock.

Everything was cleaned with a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and water using a microfibre cloth. After re- masking, a shellac based primer was applied with a brush and small microfibre roller then lightly re-sanded when dry. The sanded edges of the headstock were touched up with a stain pen. Two coats of Soapstone colour were applied to the back and sides using a small microfibre roller and brush, sanding between coats. The same was done with the top in white. The stripes were laid out with “Frogtape”. Stripes were brushed on in 2 coats, removing the tape before the second coat was dry. After the paint cured, the repaired headstock and neck was given 2 coats of satin finish spray lacquer.

NOTE: All paint is Fusion Brand mineral paint in the colours, Soapstone, Casement White, Park Bench Green, Fort York Red, Little Star Yellow, Liberty Blue.

I wanted to be able to plug into an amplifier but didn’t want any knobs or pickups showing on the guitar surface. I built a “Stealth” pickup bracket from thin wood using two Piezo transducers epoxied to the bracket, then soldered in parallel and connected by wires to a female mono 1/4” socket. The bracket was epoxied to the underside of the flat top just below the sound hole and clamped till the glue set. I drilled a hole with a step bit on the lower right side of the body and fished the socket through with some stiff wire, fastening it with the supplied nut and washer. I did this after painting the body but before the top was painted. The pictures illustrate the build.

I re- installed the tuners and strap buttons. A new nut was glued in place with epoxy. The new saddle just snapped back in place*. I have re- strung many steel string guitars but stringing this guitar was a challenge as it uses nylon strings. There are many videos on YOUTUBE that guided me through the process.

Result: It plays well and sounds great played acoustically and even better when plugged into the amp.

NOTES: *The saddle needed to be lowered by 1/16” to achieve the proper clearance for the strings. This was done by clamping it in a vise and filing away the excess material.

It is best to space this project out over a number of weeks to allow the individual coats of paint to dry and cure.