LR Monday September 2, 2013 - Heck, isn't Labor Day May 1st?

[yowhatsshakin]

Hi gang,

Thanks to Boogie Bill and Brock for taking care of the LR for the last 2 weeks. We got a small streak with no open mikes going!

For those that don't know me, my name is Jos van Schagen, physicist PhD, software developer, Apollo project nut, and avid G&L collector of ASATs in particular. As usual, I'll showcase some of the latest additions to my collection. If you don't like to read (but heck, you got this far didn't you?), I hope you'll appreciate the porn

Lunch
Just a sandwich I guess. It's just past 9am here and I still have to do groceries.

And happy Labor Day to all of you in the US. Since I was born in Europe, I still associate May 1st with Labor Day. Traditionally there would always be some protest march somewhere in the Netherlands that day, especially at the end of the '70s when a lot of industrial jobs were disappearing due to increased competition of mostly Japan in those days. And given the symbolic meaning of that day, you'd be pretty sure to get exposure. So I have always been wondering why in the US it was the first Monday of September, expecting that it had some Cold War background. This LR enticed me to read up on it and there were some interesting tidbits I learned. As it turns out, it is more than a century old and a culmination of a lot of exploitation and unrest associated with the advent of industrialization and the migration of jobs from farm lands to cities throughout the 19th century. The first 'Labor Day' was Monday, September 5, 1882 when more than 10,000 workers took unpaid time off and marched through the streets of New York from City Hall to Union Square. This started the tradition of the first Monday of September being a day on which laborers would march to promote better working conditions. This tradition was recognized by states well before it became a National Holiday. That only happened after dozens of workers died in June 1894 during riots resulting from the federal government trying to break up the Pullman Palace Car Company strike in Chicago and the boycott called upon by Eugene V. Debs of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW or Wobblies) union which crippled the railroads nationwide. To mend relations with workers Labor Day was enacted. So there you have it!

Non-G&L question
What does Labor Day mean to you if any? Just the end of summer? And how are you spending this day?

Not being raised in this country, Labor Day weekend is merely a day off. And frequently an indicator that my vacation is around the corner. My wife and I like to camp in early September since with all kids gone back to school, it is so much quieter everywhere and easier to get a good spot. Incidentally, why it is a day off for so many while other are making extra hours in stores is still a question to me ...

A week or so ago, James of the Seattle Guitar Store threw out a little exercise to design an ASAT. I proposed a G&L 'Cabronita' but with a Bigby. Basically, slightly modify this thing:


This model has the incredibly cool TV Jones Filter'Tron pups

which took me some time to get used to and some subtle adjustments to the tone stack on my Mesa Express 5:25. But then with some slapback echo and subtle reverb you get that wonderful surf or rockabilly sound. From the note in the pickup cavity it is clear it is a prototype; the 'steve' undoubtedly is Steve Grom, director of the CCD at the time.

It is nice to see a CCD logo on the back of the headstock but after taking off the neck the reason was easily revealed. It was a repurposed Korina Collection Junior II neck, which automatically implied the board is Pau Ferro:

My Korina Deluxe II also has a Junior II neck, so I was wondering whether there are any Korina Deluxe II necks with a sticker that properly indicates the model or whether G&L didn't bother to make different labels since the headstock looks entirely identical on these 2 models.

G&L question
Who of you take the neck off to take a peak? (See poll above)
Maybe there are some of you that take the whole instrument apart. If so, tell us why. For me the neck always comes off since it is part of documenting the instrument. I usually do not take the pickguard off, take the pups out, and/or open up control cavity to peek at the electronics unless I have a compelling reason. But I do always measure the DC impedance of the pups.

I have been taking up enough of your spare time. Go outside, enjoy the tail end of summer with your family!

- Jos

[Fumble fingers]

seems to me labor day was more for the Union jobs , seems like I always had to work


the curiosity of the date sticker was killing me on my new Legacy and SC 2 ..... I was a little intimidated at first as I would have rather taken a neck off of a cheap guitar first but everything went fine , the shim under the trem did the trick , now on my used G & L guitars I like taking the neck off to verify dates and just to clean it real good , I was told my Comanche was 06 or 07 when I bought it from CL but it ended up being a 2000


Jos , that sure is a sweet guitar !!

Eric

[Sprinter 92]

Non-G&L question
What does Labor Day mean to you if any? Just the end of summer? And how are you spending this day?

Labor Day to me means the end of summer. I've been spending the day getting my 1929 Maytag model 92 Multi-Motor running.






It's running good but it has a fuel leak at the carb. I just finished ordering a couple of parts for it online.

G&L question
Who of you take the neck off to take a peak?

I do!!! I like to see what's under the hood!

[NickHorne]

Jos,

What a fine, unusual and lovely guitar you have there; a Chestercaster?!
The finish really looks beautiful, and Pau Ferro fingerboards are great. What an instrument.

Perhaps one day we'll see a G&L "California Gentleman" model?

I don't take necks off, in case I stress the thin part of the body by the cutaway and crack the finish. I will loosen the neck screws a little, under string tension, in order to firmly seat the butt of the neck into the pocket so it's butted-up wood-to-wood and not just held in place by the screws and some friction. I'll also possibly fine-tune the alignment, to get it nicely centred, if need be. Likewise with shims. But I wouldn't remove it just to see the info underneath, only if there is an engineering reason.

Love the kill-switch on Sprinter's Maytag!!

[meursault]

labour day doesn't mean anything to me... 1rst of may, Haymarket riot...


I've never took off any neck... too scared I can't put in back properly...

[KenC]

I never had any particular associations with Labor Day growing up, since my family didn't include any union members. It was always a solid weekend of boating for us. Come to think of it, my wife did just join the teachers' union a couple of weeks ago.

Today we headed up to Philadelphia with some friends. It was a quick trip - up and back in eight hours. We started the day at the Mutter Museum (http://www.collegeofphysicians.org/mutter-museum/). It was a beautiful old building with three rooms full of medical oddities. Not for everybody, and definitely a one-of-a-kind experience! From there we got cheese steaks in South Philly, and headed to Independence Hall to see the Liberty Bell.

I typically pull the necks off of all of my G&Ls when they arrive, unless a previous owner has entered the dates in the Registry. If the fretboard is anything but maple, it gets a good soaking with walnut oil before going back onto the body. There are only two G&Ls that I haven't checked the dates on. My '82-ish S-500 and mid-80s Skyhawk are so perfect that I haven't wanted to risk throwing anything out of adjustment. I will probably pop the necks on both of them during the next string change.

Ken

[Boogie Bill]

Labor Day doesn't have a lot of significance for me. When I was an xray tech working at the Harborview Trauma Center, I learned to hate ALL holidays. Lots of car accidents and people doing dumb things. When I got out of medical I learned to have more appreciation for those precious three-day weekends.

I don't take a neck off unless I have to. There's just no reason to mess with it if it's right. And dates just don't matter to me. I don't really care whether it was made on Wednesday or Friday, June or January, 1994 or 1995. It's a useless factoid for me. Knowing the date doesn't make it a better guitar. People obsess over this, and I don't think it matters.

I will say that with certain Martins and some Gibsons it MIGHT make a difference to me. But I don't have to dismantle these guitars to date them, either.

Why doesn't G&L use a date-coded serial number? Gibson does. Martin has serial number records dating back to the very beginnings. Fender now uses a letter code. Ibanez does.

No, ....not taking the neck off my guitar to see a meaningless date.

Bill

[LeoFThe Champion]

Hey Jos, I have always taken the neck off my G &L's and Fenders for a look. Bill is right it doesn't matter anyway . The exception is my S- 500 it plays to perfectly to change it.
Interesting tech advice , after you have taken the neck off and when you put the screws back in .Firstly turn them as if you are loosening them ,that way they will find the thread without any pressure.Then proceed to tighten . if you do this you can't strip the thread .
Anthony

[darwinohm]

Lunch today was as unhealthy as it can be. We had notorious state fair food. Good to see you at the helm this week Jos. A beautiful ASAT in the pictures. I would also like to have an ASAT with TV Jones in it. I think it would be interesting to put them in a Legacy with a bathtub route. I have more Legacys than I need, maybe that would be a good project with one of them.


What does Labor Day mean to you if any? Just the end of summer? And how are you spending this day?

My parents were farmers so labor day didn't mean anything to us other than school was about to begin. When I became a member of the work force it became another 3 day weekend. I am back to where I when I was young, every day is another day in paradise. We happened to spend today at the Minnesota State Fair. We attend almost every year and I can't recall the last time we missed. It is a tradition and overall attendance was down this year due to severe heat. On a side note, I will especially remember this Labor Day as the lead player from my original band died recently. There was no service and instead a picnic and celebration at his home farm yesterday. People had the best and funniest things to say about him. At 4:00 PM, his ashes were shot out of a 3 inch bore cannon, one patterned after the civil war models. What a send off. He told me a while back that he had planned his memorial party and he did a bang up job. He was a stand up guy and I will always remember yesterday.


Who of you take the neck off to take a peak? (See poll above)


If I am curious, I remove the neck but I have several that I haven't removed the neck on. I am always cautious when removing the neck as it can be a good way to chip the paint if the neck is very tight in the pocket. If I don't like the action were the saddles are adjusted, I will remove it, record the dates in the registry, and shim as needed. I am not at all afraid but if you have a tight neck pocked, you need to know what you are doing. Most of mine have been easy to remove but I have had a couple of Fenders with very tight pockets which required force.

Sprinters kill switch on the Maytag is the way it was done on all small engines years ago. When it broke off, it was always fun to hang a wire off the spark plug and watch someone get jolted when shutting it off. We weren't devious, just looking for clean fun.--Darwin

[KenC]

And dates just don't matter to me. I don't really care whether it was made on Wednesday or Friday, June or January, 1994 or 1995. It's a useless factoid for me. Knowing the date doesn't make it a better guitar. People obsess over this, and I don't think it matters.
Bill

I am always curious about my guitars and basses and like to know where they fit into each model's timeline, but the main reason I check dates is to have another bit of documentation in case the instrument is ever stolen. I've never had to deal with that situation before, but if (when) it does happen I'll want to identify the body and neck if they are parted out. Seeing the pocket also lets me confirm the body wood under solid finishes, both out of curiosity and to help identify the instrument.

Ken

[blargfromouterspace]

I am with Bill on the neck dates. Without a legitimate reason to remove the neck I feel no need to. The only guitar I'm unsure of the build date of is my blonde Classic, the rest were all bought new.

I'd take one of the G&L "Cabronitas", though minus the Bigsby, and with the directly mounted pickups instead of the clear pickup mounting rings. I can't imagine them doing a production one, what with the Fender original only a couple of years old and having been so popular, but one can hope.

[Brock]

I still wouldn't take the neck off of any of my G&Ls without good reason, but that said, once you're removed a neck and put it on something else (like I did for the Bass Banjo project) it becomes far less intimidating.

I paid $25 for the whole Crate bass guitar used from craigslist, so that was a nice, low stakes intro to the process.

[Boogie Bill]

If someone is trying to sell a guitar of mine that was stolen, then I will check the date...of the ammunition I'm loading!



Bill

[bassman]

Labor day is a good holiday. No religion, no weird rituals or gifts to give. Its nice to have a day off in September!
My wife and I took advantage of our last day at our community pool on Labor Day. It was pretty hot around the wash. D.C evirons on Monday.

I've taken the necks off of some of my G&Ls. I don't really have any problem with it.
If you want to do something intimidating - try replacing a truss rod!