Going Stagg: Part 1

A few months ago, a family member came to town on a visit.

He brought a guitar.

I had mentioned on a previous visit that I had taken some of mine apart and replaced parts, and he was eager to find out what I could do with his.

Challenge accepted?

Well, I've let it sit around for a few months, but I've finally made some progress...

But we've got a long way to go.

Step 1: Get Frustrated

The most glaring problem right off the bat was the poorly adjusted neck.  Relief was just about zero.  Unacceptable.

I had actually taken a swing at giving this a tune up not long after I received it, but a truss rod nut that was partially stripped left me frustrated (and admittedly uninterested).  It's one thing to go to town on your own gear, but reaming on another man's nut (truss rod or otherwise) risked permanent damage (both to the nut and the relationship).

Never rub another man's... Nut.

To the corner it went.  I went to Portugal.  Seemed fair.

Step 2: Get Creative (Less Portuguese and more Swedish?)

Having returned from Portugal and feeling much less frustrated, I decided to take another run, this time experimenting with just about every tool in the house.  Eventually, I found the commonly discarded Ikea Allen wrench, which seemed to be a size that didn't quite match any of the standard sizes I owned.

Huzzah.  Movement.  The neck creaked (ack!) and relief was restored.

Time to go to work.  This patient might just make it.

Step 3: Inspection

With the neck straightened out (or rather, un-straightened), it was time to see what I was up against.  I quickly tuned up the dead strings just to have a listen.  Plugged in, it was as you'd expect - weak humbuckers without much character.  I've heard this before though, and it's usually the pots, not the pickups - more on this in a bit.

First a quick inspection.  The neck is made of a few pieces (the first sign of a budget LP copy).  These joints worry me, but there isn't anything I can do about it.  Besides, the glue is probably stronger than the wood.

Probably.

Not exactly invisible seams

Not sure about this back plate either.  I understand trying not to infringe on copyrights, but I'm not sure making the back plate a ridiculous shape is enough to make Gibson lawyers heel.  Ask PRS.

Strange that they didn't continue with the back plate for the switch.  Why not make this splooge shaped as well?

If they had waited 20 minutes to get their energy back...

Can't blame the problem below on the manufacturer - looks like the bridge was put on backwards during a restring. The saddles also seem to be poorly adjusted, but the position of the A and D saddle might indicate a larger intonation problem - we won't know until later.

Either poorly adjusted or a VERY bad sign.

Getting back to the pickups, my suspicions were correct.  I removed the splooge shaped back plate and found the plague of budget guitars - tone sucking mini pots.

There's a joke in here about suck behind that back plate

Step 4: The Strippening

It was clear that this guitar needed a ground up approach, so I decided to strip most of the parts, and all the electronics.  Rather than break out the soldering iron, I opted to cut the pickup leads - they were long enough anyway and I might just replace them, depending on what they sounded like with new pots.

Once I pulled the pickups, I wasn't surprised to find stock Epiphones.  It seems like any budget LP made in China has these pickups.  

There must be a pile in a Chinese factory somewhere higher than Cheech Marin before he met Don Johnson.

Maybe after too.

This might actually be a good thing.  My Epiphone LP has these pickups (though I'm sure there is variation), but with Alpha pots.  I've got a ton of Alpha pots sitting around, so you see where this is going.

Step 4: Cleaning and Smoking

With all the parts stripped, it was time to clean it off.  Years of living in a smokers house left "Captain Stagg" smelling like a wet pirate ashtray (hence the name "Captain Stagg").  Dunlop polish and copious amounts of lemon oil to the rescue.

It smelled like this

Now it smells like lemon flavored smoke. Slightly better.

One unpleasant surprise - When I flipped the guitar over to clean the back, a couple of tuner bushings fell out.  I'll have to look for a solution to this - is a touch of glue the correct approach?  The correct application is a bushing that sits firmly in the peg hole.  This is not that. Electrical tape wrapped around the bushing?

Hmmmm.

 Finally, in applying lemon oil to an exceptionally dry fret board, I noticed the residue between the nut and the first fret.  Looks like someone glued a new nut on the guitar and was less than careful with the glue.  A bit of high grit sandpaper should take care of this - but not today.

I hope it's glue... That fret looks rough... Uh oh

Next time

1. Sand off the glue
2. Re-Oil the fret board
3. Restring the guitar
4. Adjust the bridge, tailpiece and truss rod
5. Pray I don't need to buy a fret file (while wondering why I don't have one...)
6. Intonate the guitar

If all of the above goes well, then we'll worry about putting the electronic back together.