Peeling Headstock Veneer - Fix?

aamapes

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I'm looking at a '60's F30 that sounds sweet. The veneer on the headstock is about 1/2 loose, curled up and it's missing all but the "G" of the name. What is the proper way to address this? Glue it down?

The guitar is listed as in "Good" condition by the seller, and they want $1200 for it. The playablility is good, but it has lots of bumps and dings. Does this sound overpriced?

Thanks for any help - Alan
 

fronobulax

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I'm thinking $1200 sounds like you are paying for a lot of mojo but I really should keep my opinion about acoustic prices to myself because I am wrong more than right. To be clear I think $1200 would be reasonable for a 60's F30 with an intact headstock overlay and less that "lots" on the bumps and dings, but without pictures this sounds like an instrument with serious cosmetic issues.

As for the repair, there aren't any parts/decals/labels out there that you could use to replace so the repair is pretty much up to you. I might start with glue but I can imagine not being happy with the results.
 

adorshki

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I'm looking at a '60's F30 that sounds sweet. The veneer on the headstock is about 1/2 loose, curled up and it's missing all but the "G" of the name. What is the proper way to address this? Glue it down?
It did that because it's a type of plastic that shrinks over time, so the "correct" method would be to remove and replace, although we've seen other work-arounds that are about as good as you can hope for because, like Frono said, new material that matches just ain't out there.
One of our members, Tom Jacobs, "Fixit" on this forum, runs Jacobs Guitars in FL and off the top of my head I think he'd be the best source of for an estimate or actual work on it, haaving actually worked at Guild for a while in the '80's.

The guitar is listed as in "Good" condition by the seller, and they want $1200 for it. The playablility is good, but it has lots of bumps and dings. Does this sound overpriced?
I agree with Frono, it sounds like top dollar for one in VERY good condition with a case, and I tend to over-value used items as it is, compared to some other members.
Thanks for any help - Alan
Good luck from another Alan!
 

SFIV1967

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Well, those black veneers were made of Celluloid, and that is a material that naturally shrinks over time...
So you can completely remove it and clamp it up for a few month to try to get it a bit flatter and afterwards glue it on again. However it will not be a 100% match as it will not fit all the tuner holes anymore and also will be smaller than the headstock.
If it is "just" 1/2 loose you can try using superglue and clamp it up carefully with a flat custom made plate the size of the headstock for a few days. That worked on my '67 Starfire. The missing inlay obviously needs to be cut out of new material to inlay it again. Afterwards you need to spray multiple layers of nitro lacquer on it over a time of many weeks and buff it out. All in all it will take a couple of weeks to repair due to the drying time of the nitro. But depends what the condition is and what effort you plan.
Or you do what this guy did and use a new rosewood or ebony veneer: http://twogoodears.blogspot.de/2009/11/64-guild-f-212-nt-restoration-maestro.html

Ralf
 
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