Neal
Senior Member
So, for those of you that frequent the forum, you may recall an eBay listing a few weeks ago for a '81 D-35 that was so totally whipped that it begged for redemption and salvation. Covered in a gloppy, sprayed-on finish that was heavily and amateurishly applied, so that it encased the guitar in suffocating plastic. Added to the abuse was a poorly painted rendition of the Guild logo on the headstock, a section of the guitar's side that had been replaced with mismatched mahogany, and to top it off, two sets of left-side tuners!
First the bad news. It is as fully encased in crap as the photos suggested, especially the top, which got an extra heaping helping of the stuff (which I can only surmise is poly from Lowes). It is a big, drippy, runny mess. The back, sides and neck are also sprayed with the Death Grip, but not nearly as thick. Here is a full frontal view of the carnage, once I removed the Martin (insult to injury...) pickguard.
As you can see, the glop is starting to curl up around the edges. Nice touch.
Now for the good news. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this D-35 in terms of its structure or playability. Action at the 12th fret is perfect. Neck angle is good. Fretboard and frets are in good shape. The saddle is about 1/8" proud off of the bridge. The bridge is firmly attached to the top.
I tuned it to pitch, and somehow, it sounded good. Not as good as it will, once I free it from its poly tomb. But intonation is spot-on, the neck feels good and I can feel the guitar trying to resonate, even with strings dating from the Reagan administration. I did have to remember which way to turn the upside down tuners on the right side (backwards!).
So, here is the plan of attack. First, I will sand the top and the front of the head stock down to bare wood. I will go easier on the rest of the guitar, just evening out the existing finish without getting too heavy handed. I found a complete set of '89 Guild tuners, which are on order. I will also order a can of nitro from Stewmac to respray the top and head stock only (lightly!).
The inside has something black in there, but I do not think it is anything too bad. I will take some mineral and soak a pad of steel wool and just use some elbow grease in there to clean things up, unless someone has a brighter idea
What I am still in search of is a silkscreen Guild headstock logo to replace the crudely painted one on there now. Does anyone have a line on one of these?
My hope is with the top freed of glop, it will vibrate as it should and this D-35 will have a nice woody voice. I will post updates periodically as the work progresses.
Neal
First the bad news. It is as fully encased in crap as the photos suggested, especially the top, which got an extra heaping helping of the stuff (which I can only surmise is poly from Lowes). It is a big, drippy, runny mess. The back, sides and neck are also sprayed with the Death Grip, but not nearly as thick. Here is a full frontal view of the carnage, once I removed the Martin (insult to injury...) pickguard.
As you can see, the glop is starting to curl up around the edges. Nice touch.
Now for the good news. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this D-35 in terms of its structure or playability. Action at the 12th fret is perfect. Neck angle is good. Fretboard and frets are in good shape. The saddle is about 1/8" proud off of the bridge. The bridge is firmly attached to the top.
I tuned it to pitch, and somehow, it sounded good. Not as good as it will, once I free it from its poly tomb. But intonation is spot-on, the neck feels good and I can feel the guitar trying to resonate, even with strings dating from the Reagan administration. I did have to remember which way to turn the upside down tuners on the right side (backwards!).
So, here is the plan of attack. First, I will sand the top and the front of the head stock down to bare wood. I will go easier on the rest of the guitar, just evening out the existing finish without getting too heavy handed. I found a complete set of '89 Guild tuners, which are on order. I will also order a can of nitro from Stewmac to respray the top and head stock only (lightly!).
The inside has something black in there, but I do not think it is anything too bad. I will take some mineral and soak a pad of steel wool and just use some elbow grease in there to clean things up, unless someone has a brighter idea
What I am still in search of is a silkscreen Guild headstock logo to replace the crudely painted one on there now. Does anyone have a line on one of these?
My hope is with the top freed of glop, it will vibrate as it should and this D-35 will have a nice woody voice. I will post updates periodically as the work progresses.
Neal
