I just found one of these gems, single owner in incredible shape. All I have done is change the strings and replace the bridge pins. Does anyone know what the nut and saddles were made out of back then?
Lucky you!...nice find! My (now sold) 1974 F-30 had some type of OEM plastic at both saddle and nut. Your guitar is certainly worthy of a bone upgrade.
Congrats!
Don't worry about OEM nut and saddle, just put some good bone in there. It will always be better than plastic, and doesn't change the value at all. Like strings, they are considered a maintenance item.
A pressure-formed resin called "Micarta", actually quite well suited to the task, but yes bone probably would yield a little extra tone.
It did on my D25, anyway.
Very Nice, Congrats Robbob! I definitely agree with the bone upgrade over the micarta nut and saddle. There will be a noticeable difference in tone at least to my ears anyway.