McConville Guitars

Vintage Martin / Guild / Neck Re-set tips

#martinneckreset

mcconvilleguitars@gmail.com

Touching up after correcting neck angle

The plastic binding had pulled away at the waist. The binding needed to be slipped off from the waist to the dovetail before attempting to re-glue; otherwise, the pressure of forcing the binding down without releasing the the glued portion, will crack the plastic binding .... and then you're into a whole can of worms to correct that situation !

As you can see in the photos, the Martin guitars ( neck and body ) are finished before the neck is attached.

The Guild and Gibson acoustics are finished after the neck is glued to the body. Although this Guild re-attached very cleanly without any fuss or touchup; generally, you can expect to be spending more time touching up and shading when doing a Gibson or Guild neck re-set.

Martin neck Dovetail.

Guild neck Dovetail.

Guild dovetailed headblock after neck removal.

Martin dovetailed headblock after neck removal.

LR Baggs to B-Band Conversion

This is the retro-fitted compensated bone nut.

The original LR Baggs system on this Godin was swapped for a B-Band A3 acoustic/electric.

Video Guitar Repair Step-by-step Up close and Personal !

Now you can study with me on
Patreon
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Up close and personal:
Videos on every guitar repair imaginable !

Guitar Repair and Design

Michael,

Thanks for hosting us for such a great learning experience! My life will never be the same.

I did manage to get the neck reset started tonight. I hope the rest of it goes as smooth as the neck removal...

Thanks,

Chuck Surette ( May 2015 )

Thanks for providing such a great videos !

It makes it so much easier when covering such a variety of jobs.

These videos are so inspiring, thanks for making this happen.

Clarke V.

Guitar Repair and Design Course

With the online offerings on my Patreon channel
my students have the time to reflect and absorb
the information; and the opportunity to
watch the lessons over and over again !

In these Patreon videos - we end up with a broad cross-section of different types of guitars as well as different repairs. With all the various members of the 'Guitar Family' ..... 12 string / solid body electrics / classical / fretless bass / arch-top / flamenco / dobro / left-handed / floating tremolo systems / acoustic-electric systems / etc.. etc... there is layer upon layer of information to cover.

Comments from students:

" I have benefited hugely from these videos. It has allowed me to learn a lot of skills. Tons of knowledge in a small period of time. Ryan Mc.

" I believe I have a solid foundation for making money when these skills are applied". Dan P.

"Thank you for your graciousness, enthusiasm and encouragement ". Warren H.

" Given the enormous potential range, these videos are well paced and presented ". Dan P.

"A lot of great information has been shared with us." Amber G.

"Great guy. Very knowledgable. He really knows his stuff." Bill C.

"Very thorough ; many things to know, so many variables." Ryan M

"Great videos and great info! Thanks a lot Michael!" Michael S.

"Always speaks positively about the progression in learning." Carlos P.

"I can now do things I wouldn't have even dared to try before". Cody M.

"Teacher is great, videos are great. Looking forward to

future videos . ! Matt B.

"Everything brought to the table is well planned and demonstrated." Rob D.

"Mike makes this video-course really enjoyable, a great person to learn from." Peter D.

"Excellent experience, I would strongly recommend to others." Warren H.

"Obviously you have been through many processes of elimination to come up with the most efficient, simple, yet correct way of doing each repair and to me they seem logical , not mystical. The thing that impressed me most was the way you take what seemed to me, to be the complex make-up of the guitar; and simplified it to a step-by-step, controlled process that most could follow." Paul H.

"I can't believe what I've been able to do on my own." Bill C.

" I found that having the opportunity to view the videos a second or third time is always very beneficial. There has been a quantum leap in my skills as a result and a much clearer, improved understanding of theory and ability. You always make a special effort to make sure we all have a chance to cover our to-do lists and ask our questions" Warren H.

I am filing papers this week seeking a Court Order that Mike adopt me, requiring that he teaches me everything he knows. Given his vast knowledge, this may take 20 or 30 years.
Seriously, many thanks Mike, for your instruction and guidance. It is always an absolute pleasure to watch the new videos as they are released !
Dave S. ( the Lawyer / Rippin' blues guitarist )

"The amount of information and the variety of topics that you cover in these videos is incredible." Josh D.

"I own a number of guitars and wanted to learn how to do basic repairs. The videos are always very informative. You take the time, to show us in great detail." Larry J.

#techdeckworkstation A Luthiers Workshop ... where multi - tasking is an everyday affair

Guitar Repair and Design

The TechDeck's design,

function and versatility, eliminate the

the need for vices, dial calipers posts,

arbour presses, vice grips,

or computer controlled

fret dressing machines.

All of your fret-work needs are now

in one multi-adjustable package.

Fret work and fret dressing

just got a whole lot easier.

Hello Michael,

Long time, no chat. I hope all goes well in beautiful Stratford.

I have been using my TechDeck regularly since I got it from you. I know you've heard this before, but I really don't know how I got along without it. It just makes everything so much easier.

Best regards from Ottawa. ( May 2015 )

Murray

( Murray Jackson .... bought his TechDeck in November 2011 )

Thanks for a great product and exemplary service !
R.L. Burns ( Las Vegas , Nevada )

Bridge slotting / pickup + electronic cavity jig

snuggled in between the leather rails

and ready to ship ;^ ) ... !

2 long V-blocks ( above ) for extra reach on those

long flexible electric bass necks

Mini-neck assembly ( below )

For the International customers,

shipping the BSJ in the TechDeck carton,

can amount to quite a significant

savings in shipping costs.

Hi Michael,

Thanks for the video link,

The TechDeck arrived yesterday, and I am very impressed with it already!
I put it to work straight away with a fret level and dress on a locally (factory) made Maton 325 dreadnought.
after a couple of views of the video I had it all set up with the guitar secured and the neck well supported, the level and dress came out perfect.
The job went very smoothly with so much less effort to level, crown and polish with the guitar so well held and supported.
The customer picked up his guitar today and was very pleased with the set up.

I will be adding a new bench for the TechDeck and setting up a designated repair area very soon, so will send you a pic when it is all set up.
No more putting away the guitar I'm building to repair or inspect a customers guitar.

Thanks for designing such a great tool, I think it will be invaluable to my business.

Regards,
Daniel Hoban

Nothcote, Australia

April 30th 2014

New Reduced Air Freight Shipping

for Australia / Brazil / EU

( email for details )

For those of you who are interested in the NSK;

it is shipped out separately, in it's own carton.

Jeff Rice is a full time super-pro Guitar Technician,

that runs his business down in Atlanta Georgia.

Jeff received his TechDeck and " Neck Surgery Kit " last March.

Hi Michael. Good to hear from you. I’m loving the Neck Surgery Jig. I’ve done 5 neck surgeries in the last 6 months. Works like a charm. One customer took his ES-339 that I had just completed, to a gig that night, and had it on his guitar stand plugged in. He tripped over the cord and the guitar went face first onto the stage (the same way he broke it originally) but this time it didn’t break. It’s stronger after the surgery.

Hope all is well up north.

Jeff

Fitting the neck with an off-set dovetail. Cutting the dovetail off centre for this cutaway Jumbo .... puts the male dovetail in the centre of the head block for more stability.

This is my ( very early ) version of a compensated nut
.... cut from a bone blank.

This was the day ( 11 years ago )
that the new StringTech "TechDecks" had arrived.
I was " One Happy Camper that day ! "
Been using both of them every day since
and have more than doubled my shop output.

Thanks goes out to the ,
machinists, designers and trades people,
who continue to make this product available !

In the early stages, when I first developed the initial
proto-types; I had never imagined that we'd be
shipping this product around the World.

A few years have gone by since I put up this post.....

There are now hundreds of happy TechDeck owners putting this workstation to good use ..... from Webster Texas, Boston Mass, Toronto , LA, Nashville , Raleigh NC, Oakville, Farmingdale New York, Dayton Ohio, Grand Rapids Mich, Moncton NB, Windsor New Brunswick, Halifax , St John's Nfld, Guelph, Kitchener, Hamilton, Dundas, Mississauga, Brampton, London, Paris, Calgary, Atlanta Georgia, Clarkson Australia, NorthCote Australia, Manchester UK , Copenhagen Denmark, Torrington UK , the Isle of Malta and numerous other cities across Canada, US, and the EU.

info@techdeckworkstations.com

TechDeck Order / Purchasing

Sales: 519 796 0332
info@techdeckworkstations.com

Canada + Continental USA $60.00 Flat Rate Shipping

5 Business Days;

to Australia / Brazil / EU

( email for shipping details )

The following accessories are available for all TechDecks:

Mini Neck Assembly $87.50

Extra V-Block $17. 50

Bridge Slotting Jig $187. 50

Neck Surgery Kit $315.00

For International Customers:

Shipping the BSJ in the TechDeck carton,

can amount to quite a significant

savings in shipping costs.

Fret dress video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kknr4bZg-2o&feature=player_detailpage

Sincere thanks goes out to all of you "TechDeckers",

for your enthusiastic support and encouragement

during the early stages of our development !

See the "Gibson 335's ...free fret dress and setup tips "

http://mcconvilleguitars.blogspot.ca/2010/04/gibson-trio-3-335s.html

for a detailed description of the

TechDecks' advantages

for fret work and fingerboard levelling.

For any other "Old School" Tech's or Luthiers like myself ...

This workstation will definitely reduce your stress level;

especially when handling any

"High End" or Vintage instruments !

Even the bowl back instruments, like this Ovation,
can be handled firmly and safely without the use of clamps or vices.

This is a Ricky 4001 Re-Fret with Dunlop 6105 fretwire.

Re-Fret ( Dunlop 6105 ) 73' Strat.

Levelling an Upright Bass fingerboard can be
thirsty work .... nothing like
an ice-cold Tuborg Gold to rinse down the dust .. lol !

Bass De-Fret - free tips and valuable advice

#bassdefret

.025" Brass inserts are used to fill the saw kerf after removal of the frets. This restores the rigidity that is lost when frets are removed from a fingerboard.... much more effective ( and cleaner ) than trying to fill the kerf with up epoxy!

Handling the Double Bass on a TechDeck

Handling this full size Double Bass,

is no different than a guitar;

in less than 30 seconds it was
strapped down and ready to go.

The fingerboard was levelled, the new bridge

was fit and new strings installed;

comfortably / safely / quickly / precisely .

Free National Tri-Tone. / Taylor 12-string Guitar Repair Tech Tips

Rick Taylor dropped this guitar off for a pickup install after indicating that he was ready to drive to Michigan USA to get this job done because after checking with the "12th Fret" and a couple of other places within a comfortable driving distance of home ( Bayfield ) he had failed to find anyone who had done this installation. After hearing this, I took a few dozen photos of the job-in-progress and decided to post this tutorial / pictorial for the "12th Fret" and the "Guitar Repair Community" as well as my "Guitar Repair and Design Course" students ( past and future ) .

You can check out Rick Taylor at http://www.ricktaylormusic.com/

Click to see fret dress video !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kknr4bZg-2o&feature=player_detailpage

The following photos are a step by step pictorial / tutorial for the installation of the Highlander pickup system for the Tri-Cone National steel.

This is a fairly involved installation, so if you are thinking about doing this job and have any questions ... zip me an email .. I'll be happy to walk you through it !

StringTech / TechDeck Info:

http://mcconvilleguitars.blogspot.ca/p/stringtechs-techdeck-workstation.html

The clearance between the "chrome clip" ( see previous picture) and the pickup ..... " WITH THE STRINGS TUNED TO CONCERT PITCH " .... needs to be between 1/16" and 3/32".This is the single most critical part of this install.