Tips and Tones – From the Ashes
Gbase.com – From The Ashes The Restoration of a 1942 Gibson® Southern Jumbo
Vintage restoration is part of everyday business; however, I knew this guitar could have amazing dynamic, volume, and tone; making this restoration most memorable.
In Late April of 2008, a gentleman called me about a guitar he wanted to restore. To my surprise, he had a Pre-War Southern Jumbo in absolutely horrific condition. He explained to me that the guitar belonged to his late father and had deep sentimental value to the family. I was shocked when he opened the case to find that the guitar had survived a fire, flood and lying in the rain overnight. I knew this was going to be a significant challenge.
This 1942 Gibson Southern Jumbo (Banner logo!) was an amazing guitar. It had a Spruce top, Mahogany back & sides, Brazilian Rosewood bridge & fretboard and a Maple neck. The headstock had the signature banner logo “ONLY A GIBSON IS GOOD ENOUGH”. These are remarkable guitars known for their broad, dynamic tone and powerful volume. A guitar truly worthy of restoration!
Figure 1.1 1942 Gibson SJ—photo by John LeVan
Unfortunately, it had been the victim of neglect Fire and water damage. The first step was to stop crying and start evaluating!
This guitar had serious problems!
- The guitar was white with oxidation and covered in suet.
- Neck was is desperate need of a reset.
- Internal braces had collapsed.
- The original keys had been replaced.
- It had a warped neck and the frets were shot.
- The bridge was loose.
- Most of the finish on the headstock had peeled off.
- The Ivory String Nut & Bridge Saddle had been replaced.
- The top, back & sides were cracked.
The project was a luthier´s dream-job. The first thing I did was take measurements of the action, neck angle, string alignment and top flex. As my work began, photographs and measurements were taken to chronicle the restoration process.
Figure 1.2. Fire and water damage, note the white, hazy layer of oxidation—photo by John LeVan
I checked the neck angle; which was awful! It was underset by over 5/32″. The best way to check the neck angle is to lay a straight edge over the frets and see if it clears the top of the bridge. In this case, the straight edge was 5/32″ under the top of the bridge. This results in high action and lots of intonation issues.
Figure 1.3. Low or Under-set neck angle (results in high action)—photo by John LeVan
Next, I looked inside the guitar with the help of a bi-fold mirror and a rope light. I found most of the braces either loose of broken. The biggest challenge was the back braces. I had to make a few new tools to be sure to repair them correctly. To my surprise, the bridge plate was ok. There were several cracks in the top, back & sides that had to be repaired.
The original Kluson Keys had been replaced with an off-brand set (made for a slotted headstock). I replaced them with a set of Gotoh vintage replicas. The Gotohs dropped right into place without having to re-drill any holes are modifications. They have a good turning ratio (15:1), so they’re tune easy.
Figure 1.4 Old Worn Out Keys—photo by John LeVan
The neck had quite a warp in it, and many of the frets were worn as deep as the board. This process had to wait until repaired the braces &I re-set the neck to avoid a hump at the 14th fret. I used a great new fretwire made by Menzerna. It’s harder than traditional wire, and a little more difficult to work with, but it lasts longer and sounds great.
At first glance, the bridge appeared to be ebony. It was actually a beautiful piece of Brazilian Rosewood. The suet had made it look black. I noticed that it was very loose; in fact, I didn’t even have to heat it up to remove it. It seams the fire it was so cruelly subjected to, already done most of my work for me. I gently pried it off with a thin putty knife and began to clean off the old glue.
Figure 1.5.Bridge separating from the body—photo by John LeVan)
The Headstock had significant damage. The “wings” on both sides had separated (where they had been glues on at the factory), and most of the black finish had peeled off from the heat. I re-glued the wings and did some touchup on the color. I had to use a great deal of caution to preserve the banner logo and the Gibson script; it took me countless hours to work around them.
Figure 1.6, 1.7 Before & after photos of headstock—photo by John LeVan)
The original Nut & Saddle had been replaced with plastic, so it was important to replace them with Ivory. I had a small stash of ivory I had purchased from a knife company some 20 years ago. It had been left over from the 1930′s, so I knew it would be a perfect match for this guitar. Ivory generally produces a warmer tone than bone or plastic without compromising volume. It was commonly used on guitars from that period.
Figure 1.8 The New Ivory Saddle—photo by John LeVan
The cracks in top, back & sides weren’t too severe. The pickgaurd had curled (as they always do) and caused a small crack in the top. The back & side cracks were likely the result of heat exposure. With the finish covered in a white, hazy oxidation, and a lot of suet, the finish would have to be buffed by hand. When a finish had been exposed to a lot of heat & water, it becomes brittle, so running it on a buffing wheel can be disastrous. It took roughly 8 hours to buff out the finish, but the results were well worth it.
I began the restoration by dismantling the guitar:
- Tuning keys
- Bridge
- Neck
- Frets
Next, I repaired the internal components with hyde glue:
- Top & back braces
- Curfing
- Top, back & side cracks
There is an ethical boundary that must be recognized when restoring a vintage guitar. The structural repair of an instrument so that the damage is not obvious is ethical. However, normal wear and tear should never be hidden or masked because that would distract from the natural imperfections that come from aging.
With the body repaired the next step was to reset the neck, I replaced the first and 14th frets and began the tedious process of resetting the neck angle. Once the heel of the neck was re-carved to the proper angle, I rebuilt the tennon and then sanded to perfectly to match the dove tail block in the body. Using hyde glue, I glued the neck onto the body and secured it with a custom jig and clamps. When the glue was dry I installed the rest of the frets, the string nut, and the new tuning keys. I calculated the saddle placement by stringing the guitar and tuning it to pitch, and using a saddlematic® bridge saddle locater; which is available from Stewart MacDonald. I carefully marked and routed the exact location for the saddle slot; if the saddle slot is cut in the wrong location, the guitar will never play in tune. The saddle slot in the bridge was very shallow, so I cut it a little deeper to give the saddle a better fit. Next I carved an ivory bridge saddle to match the ivory string nut.
Figure 1.9 Fully restored 1942 Southern Jumbo—photo by John LeVan
Finally, the guitar was fully restored and ready to play. I was amazed at how loud and dynamic it sounded. This guitar was a canon! I had secretly hoped that the owner would not want it back. Unfortunately, he did.
Of all the vintage Gibsons I’ve had the pleasure to restore; this project stands out most in my mind. As the owner played the guitar and knowing what this poor guitar went through, I couldn’t help but think what an honor it was to bring such a fine guitar from the ashes back to a great guitar. The historical value of the 1942 Southern Jumbo and the reaction from my customer is what made this project the most memorable.
If you would like to learn more about guitar care, maintenance & repair, check out my book & DVD series. They are perfect gift for any guitarist or repair tech! Learn more at www.guitarservices.com or at www.melbay.com.
Figure 1.10 Guitar Care, setup & repair book.
Figure 1.11 FAQ Acoustic Guitar Care & Setup book.
Figure 1.12 FAQ Classical Guitar Care & Setup book.
Figure 1.13 FAQ Electric Guitar Care & Setup book.
Figure 1.14 FAQ Bass Guitar Care & Setup book.
Figure 1.15 FAQ Electric Guitar Electric Guitar Care & Setup DVD.
Figure 1.16 Electric Guitar Electric Guitar Care, Maintenance & Restringing DVD
John M. LeVan
LeVan’s Guitar Services-Nashville, TN
www.guitarservices.com
(615) 251-8884
This section Copyright ©2008 John M. LeVan all rights reserved.
John LeVan
The Guitar Services Workshop
That is a great story! It is too bad the man would not just give you the guitar after you spent all those long hours restoring it…. I probably would have kept it for myself to after the restore haha. I hope he was charged an arm and a leg though for the restore.
I like hearing stories like this! Keep them coming.