KenL
Member
- Joined
- Oct 5, 2009
- Messages
- 109
- Reaction score
- 166
I've had this 1981 Guild D-46 for 22 years now. I am the second owner. It was my lucky day when I found it. I've always taken good care of it, and yesterday I decided to give it the once-over.
I put an ancient NOS set of Elixir Lights on it back in November. They sounded fine until they didn't about a week ago. When they went bad, they crapped out big time. But I got them for free along with the purchase of another guitar, so I'm happy they lasted as long as they did.
I pulled off those old strings and treated the fretboard first, using F-1 Fretboard Oil. I let it soak in for an hour or so, and then wiped off what remained. The fretboard looked nice, but is showing some wear from my fingers under each string. And the frets are about due for some work, as they have divots in them all over the place. I use a capo a lot, so the wear gets spread around.
I then had a hard look at the body. The finish is gone on the lower bass bout where my arm comes over. I tried hitting it with some D'Addario Restore and a couple coats of Dunlop 65, but there's nothing there to polish. The finish is just gone. Oh well, to be expected, as this is my workhorse guitar. But the rest of the top still shines up nice. Very few scratches, as I keep a tight rein on my pick and it does not travel far above or below the strings. There is one pretty bad "case bite" on the upper treble bout, but that was there when I got it. It lines up perfectly with the latch on the original case, so I know that's what caused it. It would look better if I had it repaired, but it has never really bothered me.
As I started to restring it, I got to wondering how many times I've done that chore on this guitar. I dunno, 35 times or so? I mostly use Elixirs, and they last me a long time. I'm not hard on things, and fingerpick about half the time. (This guitar is an outstanding fingerpicker.) Anyway, I use an electric string winder, which makes this job a snap.
So I got 'er done, and the old thing looked terrific. I tuned up the new strings, half a step down, and was amazed once again at how little time these Elixirs take to start sounding good- 5 minutes, a couple retunes, and they are ready to go and sound great. The ol' guitar looks and sounds great once again, and I spent an hour or so playing it, enjoying it. Like I said, it was my lucky day when I found it. Other guitars have come and gone, but this one stays.
Time well spent.
I put an ancient NOS set of Elixir Lights on it back in November. They sounded fine until they didn't about a week ago. When they went bad, they crapped out big time. But I got them for free along with the purchase of another guitar, so I'm happy they lasted as long as they did.
I pulled off those old strings and treated the fretboard first, using F-1 Fretboard Oil. I let it soak in for an hour or so, and then wiped off what remained. The fretboard looked nice, but is showing some wear from my fingers under each string. And the frets are about due for some work, as they have divots in them all over the place. I use a capo a lot, so the wear gets spread around.
I then had a hard look at the body. The finish is gone on the lower bass bout where my arm comes over. I tried hitting it with some D'Addario Restore and a couple coats of Dunlop 65, but there's nothing there to polish. The finish is just gone. Oh well, to be expected, as this is my workhorse guitar. But the rest of the top still shines up nice. Very few scratches, as I keep a tight rein on my pick and it does not travel far above or below the strings. There is one pretty bad "case bite" on the upper treble bout, but that was there when I got it. It lines up perfectly with the latch on the original case, so I know that's what caused it. It would look better if I had it repaired, but it has never really bothered me.
As I started to restring it, I got to wondering how many times I've done that chore on this guitar. I dunno, 35 times or so? I mostly use Elixirs, and they last me a long time. I'm not hard on things, and fingerpick about half the time. (This guitar is an outstanding fingerpicker.) Anyway, I use an electric string winder, which makes this job a snap.
So I got 'er done, and the old thing looked terrific. I tuned up the new strings, half a step down, and was amazed once again at how little time these Elixirs take to start sounding good- 5 minutes, a couple retunes, and they are ready to go and sound great. The ol' guitar looks and sounds great once again, and I spent an hour or so playing it, enjoying it. Like I said, it was my lucky day when I found it. Other guitars have come and gone, but this one stays.
Time well spent.
