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70 Gretsch Country Gentleman " Finished "
http://mowrystrings.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10137&t=43247		 Page 1 of 2
Author:  WudWerkr [ Fri Apr 18, 2014 3:56 pm ]
Post subject:  70 Gretsch Country Gentleman " Finished "
Have started the Restoration / Repair of the Gretsch ... Pics to follow

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Author:  WudWerkr [ Fri Apr 18, 2014 4:04 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
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Author:  Chris Pile [ Fri Apr 18, 2014 4:08 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Boy, that one should be interesting. Keep us informed!
Author:  WudWerkr [ Fri Apr 18, 2014 4:09 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
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Author:  WudWerkr [ Fri Apr 18, 2014 4:12 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Little Steam and Razor and Elbow Grease later ...... ohhh and ALOT of Patience

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Author:  cphanna [ Fri Apr 18, 2014 4:42 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Hi, Wud,
I'm glad you're doing this and sharing it with us. I've never had a chance to handle one of these guitars, let alone look inside one. I have no idea whether these guitars are highly regarded by the general playing and collecting community, but I remember a college friend back in the second half of the '60s who wanted one of these. To him, it was more or less his dream guitar. I do have a few questions, and I hope you'll pardon my ignorance when I ask them:

1. What is/was that funky looking orange thing attached to the back right over the heel block? Surely, nothing that Gretsch stuck on there. It wasn't even applied in any sort of alignment.

2. There is a small square hole that looks to be lined with orange plastic right south of the bridge pickup. Now, that looks like it MIGHT BE a factory install. At least, some sort of add-on done by a competent person. What is the purpose of that hole?

3. Very interesting to me that the outer layers of binding had degraded so uniformly all around, yet the inner-most layer of white seemed intact. What do you suppose? Maybe two different types of plastic represented in those layers? Regardless, I don't blame you for getting rid of all of it and starting fresh.

4. My inexperienced eye mostly shows me cosmetic issues in your photos. Pretty bad ones, but not the end of the world. Have you detected any structural issues yet?

Thank you for posting this thread. Please post frequent updates and let us know how it's coming--and how you are dealing with various issues.

Side note: I once took a layoff from playing that lasted about twenty years. When a friend asked me to start playing again, I remarked: "I'm scared to open the case. My Guild might be green everywhere." Mine wasn't. I see that this Gretsch literally IS green in quite a few places. But you can remedy that.

Best regards,
Patrick
Author:  WudWerkr [ Fri Apr 18, 2014 7:21 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
( 1 ) Someone had used carton sealing tape and put a playlist on back of guitar ?? lol

( 2 ) That is Orange felt and its factory . there is a dampening bar that comes up through that hole and is operated by that small really green knob just below the bridge

( 3 ) it appeard in better shape but in coming off was quite brittle as well , yep start at bare wood.

( 4 ) A few but I think the pics magnify them.. not as bad in real life ... all the wood seems quite sound and solid .. more finish issues than anything .

This one sat in a case in the garage for 15 yrs ...... sad huh
Author:  Alex Kleon [ Fri Apr 18, 2014 9:55 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Is this a customer's guitar, or one that you got for yourself, Wud? I'm looking forward to this adventure as well! There was a very nondescript teacher at my high school who had a Country Gentleman. Didn't seem so nerdy when he started wailing some Hendrix on it!

Alex
Author:  WudWerkr [ Sat Apr 19, 2014 6:38 am ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Alex Kleon wrote:
Is this a customer's guitar, or one that you got for yourself, Wud? I'm looking forward to this adventure as well! There was a very nondescript teacher at my high school who had a Country Gentleman. Didn't seem so nerdy when he started wailing some Hendrix on it!

Alex



This is a Customers Guitar ..... Beer Monnneeeyyy ! laughing6-hehe
Author:  David Collins [ Sat Apr 19, 2014 9:08 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Very cool old Gretsch there. The binding they used is of course notorious for this type of decay, and working on them can be a royal pain (especially in trying to come up with a realistic estimate in labor).

The good part is often that when it crumbles, it severs the finish line at the joint quite cleanly, and can leave a nice clean unaffected edge when removed. I've taken lately to pre-bending and pre-thicknessing the replacement binding so that it can be glued in flush and cleaned up without any finish touch up. If you can find a suitable cream color, the unfinished plastics can blend in remarkably well after buffing.

Of course if there's other finish work to do than it makes better sense to finish the binding as well (allowing much better opportunity to color match of course). If the binding is all that's being done on the outside though, most owners quickly choose the unfinished option once they see the difference in quotes. :lol: And though it may not be a full complete restoration (which most Gretsch values just don't justify the expense of), if the finish separates cleanly you can achieve a pretty seamless binding replacement without ever worrying about the pains of blending new finish in to old.

Very cool guitar, and I look forward to seeing it be brought back to life.
Author:  WudWerkr [ Sun Apr 20, 2014 6:32 am ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Quote:
The binding they used is of course notorious for this type of decay, and working on them can be a royal pain (especially in trying to come up with a realistic estimate in labor).

This one is being billed Time and Materials [:Y:]

Quote:
If you can find a suitable cream color, the unfinished plastics can blend in remarkably well after buffing.

The inner part of the binding appears to have been white , so i haven't checked yet to see if it was cream or white from factory ? idunno
Author:  WudWerkr [ Thu Apr 24, 2014 5:42 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Looks like a refret and fretboard leveling is in order .. I see a pretty heavy dip at 14th fret back . Suggestions ?

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Author:  WudWerkr [ Mon Aug 25, 2014 10:37 am ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Working on the Binding , Body Done . Now for Neck and Headstock . When its all in place I will do touch ups

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Author:  Chris Pile [ Mon Aug 25, 2014 11:01 am ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Looking good so far!
Author:  cphanna [ Mon Aug 25, 2014 1:02 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Hi, Wud,

I'll be interested in whatever suggestions you receive about the neck dip. Looks like the binding is going pretty well for you. I'm glad you're on this. I had forgotten all about it. I'll be watching with interest. Keep it up!
Patrick
Author:  WudWerkr [ Tue Aug 26, 2014 12:08 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
cphanna wrote:
Hi, Wud,

I'll be interested in whatever suggestions you receive about the neck dip. Looks like the binding is going pretty well for you. I'm glad you're on this. I had forgotten all about it. I'll be watching with interest. Keep it up!
Patrick



I pulled the frets and level sanded it after checking the truss rod and I am going to refret . That seemed like the easiest solution at this point . I will probably have a little tweeking to do after refret and restringing . but for now it looks great
Author:  dzsmith [ Sat Aug 30, 2014 8:24 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Looking really good!
Man, that's quite a challenge, and I admire your skills.
I love to listen to Chet Atkins picking.
Nice work!
Dan
Author:  WudWerkr [ Mon Sep 01, 2014 6:18 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Doing a Lil Gretching around this weekend , Im liking how this is coming together

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Author:  fumblefinger [ Mon Sep 01, 2014 6:49 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
I'm gonna have to get some of that perforated rubber matting. What a great idea!
Author:  cphanna [ Mon Sep 01, 2014 7:51 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Wud,
From way over here, your repair is looking fabulous. Keep the progress pictures coming!
Patrick
Author:  WudWerkr [ Tue Sep 02, 2014 9:53 am ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
cphanna wrote:
Wud,
From way over here, your repair is looking fabulous. Keep the progress pictures coming!
Patrick


laughing6-hehe Yeah I agree laughing6-hehe


Customer did stop in today and looked it over , he is very pleased with what he saw [:Y:]
Author:  Wayne Brown [ Tue Sep 02, 2014 6:58 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Wud,
What kind of glue did you use so as not to destroy the existing finish?

Interesting project and I know your customer should be very happy with the results!
Author:  Jfurry [ Tue Sep 02, 2014 9:31 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Nice job!!!!
Author:  WudWerkr [ Wed Sep 03, 2014 10:26 am ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
Wayne Brown wrote:
Wud,
What kind of glue did you use so as not to destroy the existing finish?

Interesting project and I know your customer should be very happy with the results!


Im using the binding glue from stewmac on this and i kept the finish taped off to keep squeeze out off it and cleaned it up immediately
Author:  Alex Kleon [ Wed Sep 03, 2014 4:36 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: 70 Gretsch Country Gentleman
You're doing some really nice work with this restoration, Wud! [clap] :D [clap]

Alex
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