Boogie Bill's - Things to do when you get a new guitar

[Craig]

[From Boogie Bill's October 4, 2011 Lunch Report post]

Here are some of the things I do when I get a new guitar.

It’s a good thing to let the guitar sit for a bit once it comes into the house to let the temperature equalize.
No point in rushing, only to see the finish crack and check—better safe than sorry. When I get the package
open, I inspect the guitar for any superficial or unexpected damage.

Most of my G&Ls I’ve bought were used guitars. Some came to me in beautiful shape, like Dwasifar’s, while
others were chock full of dirt, grime and DNA. So usually the first thing that happens is a bath and a polish.
The strings come off, and I use a couple of ice cream bar sticks under the DF Vibrato’s bridge plate to keep it
from damaging the finish. (NOTE: the Haagen-Dazs chocolate and almond bar sticks seem to work best!!! Yum!)
One guitar I bought years ago was so nasty, I actually had to remove the pickguard to get at all the grime.
I generally just use a damp, soft rag to wipe the guitar down, and then I wipe it dry. And now’s a good time
to vacuum out the guitar case. Good thing to do—it can collect grit that can damage the finish.

That one guitar that was so grimy must have seen a lot of usage in smoke-filled bars—it just reeked of
stale tobacco smoke. I’ve tried a lot of things to clean out the smell—I tried wiping it with a baking soda
solution. I used a carpet shampoo/spot remover. I left it out in the sun for a few days. I used Febreeze.
It still reeks, but not as bad. If you have a luggage retailer in your area, you might have some luck with
them if you need case repairs—like a broken hinge, clasp or lock. The repair shop for Portland Luggage has
worked some miracles for me—even with the plastic SKB cases. Tears in Tolex can be tacked down with
Super Glue. If you have chunks missing, you might be able to cut a piece from a speaker cabinet back,
or an amp to glue in. Or a tiny dab of black silicone sealant can be used. Do it carefully, and the repairs can
be nearly invisible. Use some shoe polish, like Meltonian cream, on the leather ends of a Tolex case.

I have several kinds of polish that I like. Virtuoso Cleaner is good for removing most fine scratches. A couple of
coats will usually make the finish like new. I will usually follow it with the Virtuoso Polish. I might use some
Carnauba wax like the Dunlop 65 or Gerlitz for a protective coat.

If the fingerboard is really gunky, the damp rag will take most of it off. I might need to polish the frets, so I will
use the Fret Polishing Cloth that came in the Dunlop 65 Guitar Maintenance Kit, or use the ones I have from
Planet Waves. Both will get those corroded frets shiny again. I might use some of the Dunlop 65 Fretboard Cleaner,
and follow it with the Fretboard Conditioner to give it an oil treatment. Gerlitz Guitar Honey is also excellent to
restore a dry fingerboard.

Finally, I’ll get out my screwdriver set, and start in on the pickguard screws, switches and pots to remove
any of the bits of protective plastic remaining around those holes.

With the guitar clean, it’s time to do some set-up work. I check the tightness of the tuner mounting nuts—they can
work loose and cause an odd buzz. I restring the guitar, using my preferred Fender Super Bullet 9-42 gauge strings,
and check the tuner button tension. Next step, I check the neck relief. I like a little more relief, as I hit hard with
a heavy pick; so .015 is good. Each guitar is different though, and each one seems to have a “sweet spot”. I make
sure the bridge plate is level by adjusting the spring claw tension, and I often use a quick shot of Tri-Flow on the
springs—just a small amount of lube to keep them from binding. Best to spray it on a rag and wipe it on, to keep it
off the finish.

I’ll check the action. I’ve found that the radius of the saddles makes a big difference on how it plays. I bought a
set of radius gauges from Stewart-MacDonald and my guitars are playing better than ever. With the saddles
properly set, the final height adjustment is made to the bridge plate—and now I can adjust the pickup heights for
the balance I like.

Often I find the nut action on my guitars is too high, causing the low E-string to give me a sharp G at the third fret.
Time to schedule an appointment with my luthier, as I do not do any nut filing. If it is okay, I’ll use some Big Bend’s
Nut Sauce in the grooves. If it is not right and binding, I’ll WAIT until I get the guitar back from the tech before using
the Nut Sauce. And yes, I apply it even on a properly cut and functioning nut—the lube minimizes wear. I want to
keep my nuts working smoothly for as long as I can! (Pun intended!) I might even use a bit on the bridge saddles,
especially if they show any signs of wear. And the string trees!

It’s time to set the intonation with my Peterson Strobo-Stomp tuner; this is the only tuner I have that is accurate
enough for intonation work. It’s a tinky, slow process, but it has to be done.

The strap buttons on a G&L are the best, so I rarely ever change them. In this case the new black Legacy had the
Schaller Strap Lock buttons I like, but Dwasifar didn’t have the parts that fit on the strap, so I had to make a trip
to the store for some new Schaller Strap Locks, in black of course. And I’m making the rounds of the various guitar
shops, looking for the perfect strap. For me, I like a leather strap, and it has to be the “perfect” strap for that guitar.
I had a chocolate brown Franklin leather strap that looked perfect with the black Legacy’s rosewood fingerboard and
tortoise guard. I was using that strap with the Martin HD-28V acoustic I bought last year, so I made the swap.
The Martin got a brand new dark brown leather strap from Levy’s Leathers that is designed for acoustic guitars.
For the blue flake Legacy Special, I wanted a black strap to go with the ebony fingerboard and black Gotoh Blades pickups.
I discovered that the 4” wide Moody strap I had on another guitar looks awesome with the blue flake. Moody’s are really
expensive, but are made of a very luxurious leather. I bought this one used off E-bay about four years ago, and it has been
living in the case of a guitar I don’t play very often. The blue stars inlayed in this black strap with the blue stitching fit
perfectly with the color of the flake finish. Winner! So for now, the extra strap I had lying around goes to the other guitar
that isn’t used much—and it actually looks pretty good. Perfect!

Miss Leslie, who is my accountant, confidante, roadie and paramour, will keep track of the receipts and purchase data.
It’s time to think up a name for the guitar. With so many guitars, and so many being duplicates, I need a short code word
for the guitar. It helps Leslie perform her Roadie duties. After a little debate, it looks like it will be named “Midnight”.
And she instantly named the blue flake “Stardust”; and since I’ve not been able to come up with anything better—“Stardust”
it is. And now you know who rules the roost! LOL!

Now it is time to upgrade my equipment list. I keep a list of all my gear, and it is currently four pages long. Before each gig,
the Roadie and I talk about what gear to take, and I’ll just highlight the stuff I want for her to load into the car. This has
worked very well and we rarely have gone to a gig and forgotten something at home.

I’ll be getting out my digital camera soon and take some pictures of the new toys. This is fun to have for posting on the
forums, but pictures are a good thing to have in case of a loss or theft; especially when dealing with the police and an
insurance claim.

So that covers my G&Ls. There are a few things I do differently when I get an acoustic, and then there are the Gibsons.
The basic routines are the same. The acoustic guitars may need some nut filing, but the big thing is taking them to a luthier
and having a strap button installed on the heel. Luthier time—no point in me ruining an expensive guitar by splitting the neck!
The Gibsons, first thing, get a set of Schaller Strap Locks. The Gibson strap button is HORRIBLE! I won’t even put a Les Paul
on a strap without Strap Locks. Most of my Les Pauls get metal jack plates, though these won’t fit on the Historics.
The plastic plates have a tendency to break at the worst possible moment. I may think about new pickups on a Les Paul,
or perhaps an RS Kit, and I’ve found that I like a LW Tailpiece. It adds a bit of air and resonance that I like. I use the
inexpensive LW Gotoh tailpieces from the Stew-Mac catalog. And the luthier gets to do some saddle filing on the
Tune-O-Matic style bridge to get the radius EXACTLY right. This is really a big key in getting any guitar to “play like buttah.”
I’ve NEVER seen a Tune-O-Matic filed right from the factory.

So that’s what I do when I get a new guitar. There’s a lot of work, but it’s all part of the fun when I get a new toy.