Restoring Old Guitars

felix'apprentice · Post by **felix'apprentice** » Sunday Nov 29, 2009

I'm tryin to "restore" this old Kay Guitar (its like a freakin squier from the 70's) anyways - reason being it was my grandmothers and i wanna have it done for christmas. Anyways.

the fretboard is well, its not destroyed it just raises concern. How can i fix this thing up, can i sand it was like 600 grit ?

Also the original bridge was wooden, and the one section for the A string the part of the wood broke. So i bought a floating bridge, its a lot higher than the original bridge and i have to drill holes for it. is the height difference goin to cause issues when i put strings on this thing. like i guess it would be the trem - do i need to move it down the body more (if that makes sense).

the wiring is also all corroded and if i remember correctly, it sounded like crap.

im thinkin its gonna be a wall hanger and not something i can play. its got so much work it needs done to it.

any advice anyone has will be greatly appreciated! thanks

- kayla.

lonewolf · Post by **lonewolf** » Sunday Nov 29, 2009

I like to use 250 grit green (for use on paint) sandpaper to remove clearcoat and paint down to the wood. Its also good to remove any imperfections in the wood. Once you have the finish off, you can use a high quality 400 grit to get the wood ready for finishing. Get the stuff that has a uniform pattern to the grit.

You don't need the really fine stuff until you start finishing it.

shell_shooter · Post by **shell_shooter** » Sunday Nov 29, 2009

I would look on ebay for a lower bridge at least same height as original other wise the strings will be high and difficult to get a good setup. if you was just looking to clean up the frett board over all providing its a unfinished rosewood i have used like a 0000 steel wool after cleaning it up i use lemon oil on it . now that is me and i am not a professional but it clean a old dry board up and put some life back into it

felix'apprentice · Post by **felix'apprentice** » Monday Nov 30, 2009

im having a terrible time with this thing. ive learned that i do not know how to use stain very well

ive sanded and sanded and sanded.

i have some fretboard conditioner, wonder if that would help it out at all? im not sure, im thinking - once i get it all together its goin to be non functional. just something i can hang on the wall.

thanks for the advice ya all!

- kayla.

MeYatch · Post by **MeYatch** » Monday Nov 30, 2009

there's lots of cool old Kay guitars that people play. Could you post some pictures of what you are trying to accomplish? I'm not even sure if you are talking about an accoustic guitar, or electric guitar. I'm also having a hard time envisioning a guitar that could possibly have a floating wooden bridge, and a trem, so its hard to figure out what you are talking about.

From what I can imagine about the bridge, I'm guessing you either need to make the bridge you have smaller, get a new bridge, or just make the thing fit on there if you really have no intention of ever playing. but I think with a little more effort you can probably make a playable guitar that also looks cool hanging on the wall.

felix'apprentice · Post by **felix'apprentice** » Tuesday Dec 01, 2009

I finally got a picture. Heres a pic before paint ... you can barely see the holes for the original bridge. i will take a pic tonight of the original bridge and post it.

- kayla.

tonefight · Post by **tonefight** » Thursday Dec 03, 2009

Body looks good, curious to see that bridge.

felix'apprentice · Post by **felix'apprentice** » Friday Dec 04, 2009

finally got a decent pic of the bridge.

lonewolf · Post by **lonewolf** » Friday Dec 04, 2009

Does this have a tailpiece to go with that bridge?

What fits in the two holes below the pickups and to the left of the circuit cavity?

felix'apprentice · Post by **felix'apprentice** » Friday Dec 04, 2009

if this is the called the tailpiece, lol then yes

and the bridge is what goes in the two holes you see on the body

MeYatch · Post by **MeYatch** » Friday Dec 04, 2009

I'm still having a hard time figuring out what you are talking about. I'm guessing the tailpiece goes in the holes, and the wooden bridge just lays on the body? I don't know, you seem to refer to them interchangeably, but they are different things...

At any rate, I would definately consider just buying a hardtail bridge for a strat, drilling the holes, and putting that on there.

Something like this
http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bridges,_ta ... ridge.html

There's probably cheaper options available.

Do you have any pictures of the neck? I actually think the body is pretty cool, and with a little work you could probably have a pretty neat playable instrument/conversation piece.

lonewolf · Post by **lonewolf** » Friday Dec 04, 2009

felix'apprentice wrote:if this is the called the tailpiece, lol then yes

and the bridge is what goes in the two holes you see on the body

Yes that is a tailpiece. Does the tailpiece have another metal loop that wraps around the base of the body and screws in near the bottom strap knob? If so, that is a trapeze tailpiece.

If you want to restore it to original and make it a wall prop, you can restore the bridge.

If you want to make it work, you might want to consider one of my cheap bridges in the for sale section or even one of these:

http://cgi.ebay.com/WILKINSON-Aluminum- ... 0183828195

felix'apprentice · Post by **felix'apprentice** » Monday Dec 14, 2009

well i've decided im goin to get the Hardtail Bridge. that should be much easier. i tried reinstalling the old bridge and because of the paint i couldn't get the screws back into the body - and while i was installing the screw it broke off so now the screw is stuck in the wood. hopefully i can get that out and close those holes up to install the new bridge.

my other thing is, i need a pick guard. well i dont need one but its a maroon marble color and doesnt match the paint like i thought maybe it would. how hard is it to cut the material for pickgaurds? anyone tried?

and while im doin the whole pickgaurd thing im goin to get new humbuckers and all new pots/wiring. might as well make it playable.

just an update. thanks

- kayla

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Tuesday Dec 15, 2009

You can get sheets of the pickguard material. Just trace around your old one and cut....carefully.

felix'apprentice · Post by **felix'apprentice** » Tuesday Dec 15, 2009

VENTGtr wrote:You can get sheets of the pickguard material. Just trace around your old one and cut....carefully.

what should i cut it with??? thats what im wondering...

lonewolf · Post by **lonewolf** » Tuesday Dec 15, 2009

felix'apprentice wrote:
VENTGtr wrote:You can get sheets of the pickguard material. Just trace around your old one and cut....carefully.
what should i cut it with??? thats what im wondering...

A band saw with a narrow blade would be easiest to get a good cut. If you don't have access to one, a jigsaw would work, probably with a little more filing.

Once you have it cut & filed to size, you can chamfer (bevel) it with a router.