Please forgive the self-indulgent addition to this thread, ....but I'm still happy as a clam over this resurrection. My 360/12 turned 46 years old this month and, after seeing all the gorgeous FG's and MG's on this forum (which make me green with envy!), this may seem mundane, but to me it's beautiful and a bit of a Phoenix.
Years ago I found a ‘66 360/12 at Elderly within my 'spur of the moment impulse purchase' budget of the time.
- Elderly Listing Main.jpg (3.25 KiB) Viewed 1968 times
It had been completely refinished in uberthick white urethane (FG under the pickguard), including over all binding, cat’s painted black, etc. Not my cup of tea cosmetically, but it played well, had a dead straight neck and all original hardware except bridge plate and strap buttons. Still missing my 620/12 from years ago, it became a new, if somewhat homely, addition to the family.
However, after only a month or so, it developed a crack near the heel of the neck. So, back to Elderly where they did their usual quality work on the repair. I had them leave the neck stripped as it was the perfect excuse to refinish in the Jetglo for which I've always had a fondness, yet never owned. And so, home it returned, partially "in-the-white", awaiting my 'refin project’.
Unfortunately, a series of life events intervened, bringing my playing to an end and put any and all projects on the “someday” list. And so it sat, …unfinished, ignored, cased in the closet …for 8 years…
Fall 2010, the more urgent pragmatic concerns sufficiently subsided to allow a return to a few of the many long overdue tasks and pursuits.
…enter the forlorn closet creature…
Adding up the intervening years left me horrified I had left it in such a state, so, with a guilt-fueled sense of purpose, on the long drive back to Elderly we went. Told to ask for Johnny in the repair shop, I took it downstairs anxious for the prognosis. Now, known for the fine repair work they do on old acoustic instruments, I had complete confidence in getting a quality refin. However, I admittedly did wonder if my electric might be given to the “new guy” of the shop, or at least maybe not the attention of that ’53 D-28 on the bench in the corner,.. not to mention that Rics are a bit, ..well, ...'quirky’. But my goal was modest; just see if it can be salvaged and paint it black so I can at least play it again. However, within 2 minutes, Johnny was pointing out all the things that had been changed from original, including a few I hadn’t even noticed myself, and what he wanted to fix. Way beyond my simple request. In short, he was a Ric fanatic!, ..and was making ME a list of what HE wanted done. I left knowing my baby was in good hands.
The result is as follows:
In addition to stripping the finish (and the unnecessary and sound-deadening body filler found underneath), he restored the sound hole by stripping out the black that had been sprayed inside and rebinding the slash.
Next, after refretting, he restored the neck binding and fretboard to factory correct. Previously, someone had rebound the neck with standard width binding, I assume due to lacking the Ric correct width on hand, thereby eliminating that cool, uniquely Ric glimpse of rosewood on the side. Thin rosewood strips were matched to the fretboard and neck binding restored to original. Fretboard, which had also been earlier stripped, was brought back with the correct gloss finish.
In short, I asked for a refin to make it playable. Instead, they gave me a full restoration.
And with the heavy coats of unneeded filler and urethane paint replaced with a thin nitro finish, the tone just came alive with a deep rich resonance wholly absent before.
Birthed Fireglo, once defaced, it is now reborn and, with a shiny new coat, has rejoined the ranks and is once again chiming with its brethren. A year later, it's still like getting a new Ric everytime I open the case.
And best of all …
...now it matches the dog!
It's nice to hear good things about Elderly's repair and restoration skills. I had no idea they offered that kind of service.