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Hamerhead's 77 Sunburst restoration.


BCR Greg

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Young Tim(Hamerhead) can give the backstory on this one. When it arrived at the shop, this is what I found in the case.....

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Yes, that is a truss rod channel full of bondo, a THICK layer of brushed on paint and a severely broken headstock.

Looking closer at the back of the neck, we find....

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Why, the neck's nothing BUT bondo!

A couple of hours later.......

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Good God, this thing is worse than I though! If I hadn't found this....

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...I would have trashed it. BUT....it's the 89th Hamer Sunburst made, from 1977. After a long phone conversation with our owner, the decision is made to move forward.

Full armor on, kids, this one will be a battle.

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We're gonna need a bigger boat!

jawshiresphotos001.jpg

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Repeat after me six times.

You. Can. Do. It.

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Looking forward to the development on this thread.

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Yeah, I knew it was ugly when I opened the case for the first time - I just didn't know HOW ugly. The serial number was covered with barn paint (at least that's what it looked like) and I was pretty sure the only original part left on the body was the bridge. I was on the phone to Greg in a matter of minutes, and it was back on the big brown truck before the end of the day.

I didn't know what to do. And it wasn't until Greg found the serial number that it was decided to fix it (the guy will take on ANYTHING!!). I can't wait to see it.

I'm on the fence as far as trying to find period-correct parts, or slap some GregWinds/Triple Shots in there. On one hand, it'll never be a museum piece. On the other hand, how many really early ones are left out there? I dunno........

I gotta thank Frank (guitarzandstuff) for snagging this one for me. The guy didn't want to ship it, and Frank picked it up and sent it. Beyond cool.

Oh - I guess I better thank Greg too - but not 'til I see more pictures! :P

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Yeah, I knew it was ugly when I opened the case for the first time - I just didn't know HOW ugly. The serial number was covered with barn paint (at least that's what it looked like) and I was pretty sure the only original part left on the body was the bridge. I was on the phone to Greg in a matter of minutes, and it was back on the big brown truck before the end of the day.

I didn't know what to do. And it wasn't until Greg found the serial number that it was decided to fix it (the guy will take on ANYTHING!!). I can't wait to see it.

I'm on the fence as far as trying to find period-correct parts, or slap some GregWinds/Triple Shots in there. On one hand, it'll never be a museum piece. On the other hand, how many really early ones are left out there? I dunno........

I gotta thank Frank (guitarzandstuff) for snagging this one for me. The guy didn't want to ship it, and Frank picked it up and sent it. Beyond cool.

Oh - I guess I better thank Greg too - but not 'til I see more pictures! :P

Rio Grande Baby!!! Loose the chrome rings (all three) and that chrome switch and knob. Class it up with some creme rings and a black knob. Play it, get board with it and sell it to me. I love my 77 with the repaired BCR Head. Its my take everywhere guitar. People never give it a second glance until they hear it.

MORE PICS MORE PICS MORE PICS!

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The serial number was covered with barn paint (at least that's what it looked like)

Wait a second...I know the barn you're talking about! Its on the north side of I-94 between Madison and the Ixonia exit. Its has cow eyes painted around the windows! Them hefers with them big brown eyes...they flirt ya know.

caddie

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Here you can clearly see the previous punishment that this guitar has suffered from....

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So it goes on one of Uncle Greg's fancy schmantzy headstock jigs. I ran screws into the wood to keep it from sliding under clamping pressure, this wood will eventually be sawdust so the holes are not an issue.

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Yes, it will work.

The madness continues....

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Well, a few days later, here's the headstock being carved for the new wood inserts. Since it was basically buggered, I made the decision to replace ALL THE WOOD between the headstock and neck. The previous buggery had taken away any sort of solid clamping area, so the idea is to mill away the existing scrap and put in fresh(in this case, 1950's Gibson mahogany from my stash) Honduran mahogany. So here's the way I decided to do it....

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A generous scoop is carved out of the area, and the plug is shaped to fit exactly, with the grain oriented to be strong and solid.

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Both sides done, and the area rough carved....

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More to come...

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now see, why on earth would you tech for Ace, when you can being doing cool stuff like this, and sleep in your own bed at the end of the day with all its fringe bennies :P

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Okay, this is the first of Unka Greg's workbench series that I am not sure how to even PLAN a way to repair, let alone have the skills to do it. That is a pretty ingenious solution there with the two chunks of mahogany.

And a possibly stupid question: how did you get through the brushed on paint enough to see the serial number but not destroy it? I assume whatever ya did, you'll be doing all along the back of that poor mutilated neck.

Makes me grateful my '81, while pretty well relic'd, is 100% intact structurally.

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Two chunks of mahogany?

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To get to the serial number, I sat with several pieces of 400 grit sandpaper and a water bottle. It takes a while, but even thick, nasty enamel can be removed if you are patient enough.

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