Archtop Guitars

This is for general arch top guitar images and the work done on them.

An old Harmony I got from Stan Milam that needed work.  He had already done some of it.

Some of the cracks were stable, some not.   This is not a laminated top or back so it will split in dry weather.

Showing how much the top had separated from the sides.

The sides had distorted over the time the top and sides were not secure and now the sides didn't match the top.

The back of the neck was very sticky...wrong finish applied before Stan and I got the guitar.

I removed the tuners to be able to clean it up better.

     The neck was scrapped down to get rid of gum.  Then gun oil was put on it.

       The frets were recrowned and polished.

The clamping and regluing with Titebond aliphatic resin.

Lateral clamp was to pull in the side under the smaller bout so it would mate with loose top. 

The tail piece was improperly shaped and secured...probably at the factory. 

Adding the original white painted "binding."

  (I was dressed this way as a social experiment.  I went through a complete standard day dressed this way.)

The body and neck was completed and it just needed the vintage-looking pickguard.

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I used proper material and color from Stew-Mac and applied masking tape so I could mark it.

  I had shaped it at this point and drilled it for the screws.  I had an old one for a pattern.

The pickguard bracket at the bottom came from a similar Harmony; the one at the top, I made from sheet stock.

The pickguard is mounted and with a few swipes of steel wool, it had the vintage patina that one would expect.

It is completely repaired and playing good.   It is ready for new owners well into the 2030s.

(It is all that I could do to resist installing a neck pickup!)

DeArmond X-155 as it came from factory.  I wanted a more Art Deco look to it.

I reshaped the pickguard and put gold speed knobs on to match the gold of the pickup covers.

The silver tuners (left) were changed to Imperial gold Art Deco.

The action was set up by local New Orleans fellow.

This Harmony tenor arch top had a bad tail piece shape.

I am setting the angle so there would be slight pressure to the bridge,

but not so much that it would be difficult to tune.

(The "wavy" top looks that way because of the overhead light reflection.)

This is a really nice-playing and good-sounding guitar.

The only blemish is an apparent burn,

but it is really from the plastic strap that was against the finish when stored in a case.

G-40 Maccaferri

The G-40 Maccaferri that was owned by Mario Maccaferri himself

and handed as a gift to John Pearse, of John Pearse Strings.  I purchased it from John.

To protect the Maccaferri Maccaferri, I purchased this G-40

and it turned out that this guitar also was  connected to John Pearse,

but without the provenance of having been the designer's guitar.

The markings on the guitar top are not on the top material. 

Kay Catalina

A super-nice little arch top.  It is a blonde Catalina with brown cat stripes.

The guitar is especially nice with the 1950 floating DeArmond pickup.

I purchased it from Waco Vintage Guitar Company and

it had no pickguard which is not that unusual.

I made a clear pickguard because I wanted to see the striping under neath it.

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     Two DeAngelico New Yorkers (replicas) were purchased for brothers who lost their instruments in the Katrina New Orleans flood.  My assistance in getting these guitars might be the most important thing I have done in music in my life...for my whole life.  These are working, professional musicians feeding a large family with their music -- every day and every night in New Orleans. He had just received these guitars and was choosing which he wanted.  He chose the burgundy rather than the apricot.  He was overwhelmed.  Note stunned look...and the "night-owl" eyes of a late-night performer.  It is nice to help these guys.

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