Quote from: cozmik_cowboy on October 31, 2026, 08:33:52 PMHey, Greg, I have an instrument that needs a full set-up.....

Peter

I get a strange one every so often. Nothing like that yet. 

That old Kay bass made it to its new home at the Floyd Handmade Music School. I repainted the warped original fingerboard (you can see it in a couple of the work-in-progress pictures, leaning against my bench) and returned it to the daughter of its former owner to hang up as a souvenir. It was useless as a fingerboard again, but I couldn't see tossing it in the scrap pile without asking first.

My banjo customer was happy to have his Gibson back in one piece too. I met him on the way home from Floyd Country Store and handed it off.

Think I'll take the day off. I'm still beat from yesterday.

Quote from: edwardofhuncote on October 31, 2026, 03:20:49 AMAfter assembly and setup... ready to go.

Looks great!

Sometimes I get to work on one that's rewarding beyond the monetary benefits. This 1979 Martin HD-28 came in the other day for some minor repairs and setup. It's still with its original owner, who clearly played it but took great care of it. I can count on the fingers of one hand the near-50 year-old guitars in this condition that come my way.






Just some background on the HD-28, for those who aren't total Martin guitar nerds... the H is for "Herringbone", a reference to the distinctive wood purfling around the top border. It was a defining feature of Style 28 until the German supply of it ended post-WWII, the last of these guitars with it in 1946. It did not reappear until 1976. When Martin reintroduced the them they also brought back the scalloped bracing that had been abandoned in 1944. The new designation would have an H in front of D-28 to differentiate between the two established models. It continues to this day. (though admittedly Martin does their level-best to confuse this at every opportunity...) Another feature that returns is the "zippered" backstrip, another casualty of war in Europe.




So this guitar represents one of the earliest reissues of the Herringbone D-28. And it's a fine representation. I'll detail the work in following posts. It doesn't need much.

Man, that is a seriously clean box!  Onliest thing I can see that ain't factory is the finish around the tuner pegs.
Looking forward, as per usual, to further reports.

Peter

Quote from: cozmik_cowboy on <strong>Yesterday</strong> at 07:51:53 AMMan, that is a seriously clean box!  Onliest thing I can see that ain't factory is the finish around the tuner pegs.
Looking forward, as per usual, to further reports.

Peter

I think what you must be seeing is the half-moons of finish chipped out around a couple of the bushings on the headstock. This is pretty common, especially with Grover Rotomatics, less often but also with the superceding Schaller machines these came with. See, what happened was; the threaded part loosened just enough to allow the post to pull into them and those washers dig in. Sometimes the lacquer shatters just from overtightening to compensate. But I assure you, there's been no overspray or touchup ever applied to this one. I don't think anyone has ever done anything but change the strings. It doesn't even have a strap button on the neck.

-----
First up, the pickguard was shrunken, lifting, and had started to split open the top. Sometimes they called this a B-string crack. This one is under the little E-string. I eased the pickguard the rest of the way off and preserved it for the owner. It won't be used again. They curl up like a potato chip, and have usually shrunken some. That's what splits the tops, by the way. Here it was, liberated from the guitar:



Anyway, digressions... Martin stuck pickguards directly to the wood and finished over them from c.1930 until the mid-1980's when they finally moved away from that practice and to adhesive-backed plastic guards. The proper replacement for these is to brush some finish onto the bare wood footprint for the adhesive to stick to. Some say a coat of hide glue is good. I'll make a tracing of the footprint for a perfect match. And somewhere in this disaster area, there's a new sheet of black pickguard material.

As I said, the top had just started to split. It only required a little squeeze of glue (I used fish glue) and overnight clamping between cork cauls to close. I'll clean this glue line and put a small triangular cleat right at the intersection of the X-brace to bind it and call this good. It closed right up... no stress here. A very, very common Martin repair. Here's the in-progress pics.
And one from, inside:

From the outside:



*Made this spruce cleat to fit, and glued it inside with some magnets. I'll quit here for today. 

That does look like a well cared for guitar.  Does the pick guard issue happen with modern guitars, or was that just from the process used from the '30s to the '80s?

That is exactly what I was seeing, and pretty much why I thought I was seeing it.
And yeah - the pickguard-under-the-finish thing wasn't Martin's best idea ever......

Peter

Quote from: David Houck on <strong>Yesterday</strong> at 12:30:05 PMThat does look like a well cared for guitar.  Does the pick guard issue happen with modern guitars, or was that just from the process used from the '30s to the '80s?

The cracks were from the pickguard, glued right to the bare wood, shrinking & pulling the wood; as far as I know, putting it on top of the finish has solved the issue.
Greg?

Peter

Quote from: cozmik_cowboy on <strong>Yesterday</strong> at 01:28:46 PM

Quote from: David Houck on <strong>Yesterday</strong> at 12:30:05 PMThat does look like a well cared for guitar.  Does the pick guard issue happen with modern guitars, or was that just from the process used from the '30s to the '80s?

The cracks were from the pickguard, glued right to the bare wood, shrinking & pulling the wood; as far as I know, putting it on top of the finish has solved the issue.
Greg?

Peter

Correct. That, and the plastic is a different stuff now. Vinyl, I think. Versus the old material either celluloid or later an acetate. Don't quote me on which or when. Both at different times. 

The drive-home point is that the pickguards are now applied to the fully finished guitars.