THE WORST I'VE SEEN
Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2012 6:27 pm
This AZ '77 4001 came in for a neck crack repair and setup. It had been ridden hard and put away wet for decades. The owner had paid $250.00 for it. Bridge pickup non-functional, numerous issues besides the crack.
Here's what I found when I stripped it and pulled the nameplate:
As you can see, the truss rod nuts are torqued to such an extreme that, not only did the neck crack nearly to the 5th fret, but the rods themselves were bent into the neck pocket to the point where there was no choice but to dig them out with a special tool, leveraging against a small steel parallel.
Here's the result:
The nasty gouge in the neck pocket will be filled with a very strong epoxy to add thickness and sustain and stabilize the headstock.
While I was gently prying at the rods, the aluminum spacer took exception and cracked in two places and distorted throughout. Note that this is soft (extrusion-grade) aluminum bar stock, and that's why the nuts tend to bury themselves in the spacer as the tips of the rods knuckle under:
The nuts are still usable with a bit of clean-up, though.
Once made accessible, the rods slid out very easily. I'll probably shorten and re-thread them; the original threads are very distorted...
Oh, yeah--here's the crack curing after glue-up. I would use nothing but gap-filling super glue on this type of repair, incidentally--as long as the wood is dry and reasonably clean, it is stronger than the wood once cured. Must be clamped, though. Neither AR glue nor epoxy has this kind of strength!
However, It got a harness repair, new pickguard (to accommodate the '80s DiMarzio humbucker that was in it), and some other tweaks and fixes. Wait'll you see the bridge and nut, though...
The owner does not want a refinish...he loves the beat up look; kinda grew on me, too, I must admit. Charming...
Here's what I found when I stripped it and pulled the nameplate:
As you can see, the truss rod nuts are torqued to such an extreme that, not only did the neck crack nearly to the 5th fret, but the rods themselves were bent into the neck pocket to the point where there was no choice but to dig them out with a special tool, leveraging against a small steel parallel.
Here's the result:
The nasty gouge in the neck pocket will be filled with a very strong epoxy to add thickness and sustain and stabilize the headstock.
While I was gently prying at the rods, the aluminum spacer took exception and cracked in two places and distorted throughout. Note that this is soft (extrusion-grade) aluminum bar stock, and that's why the nuts tend to bury themselves in the spacer as the tips of the rods knuckle under:
The nuts are still usable with a bit of clean-up, though.
Once made accessible, the rods slid out very easily. I'll probably shorten and re-thread them; the original threads are very distorted...
Oh, yeah--here's the crack curing after glue-up. I would use nothing but gap-filling super glue on this type of repair, incidentally--as long as the wood is dry and reasonably clean, it is stronger than the wood once cured. Must be clamped, though. Neither AR glue nor epoxy has this kind of strength!
However, It got a harness repair, new pickguard (to accommodate the '80s DiMarzio humbucker that was in it), and some other tweaks and fixes. Wait'll you see the bridge and nut, though...
The owner does not want a refinish...he loves the beat up look; kinda grew on me, too, I must admit. Charming...
