The Guitar Gallery Forums - The Guitar Legacy of Matsumoku

Q&A, discussion, and information for the labels covered by The Guitar Gallery (Specifically and exclusively guitars made by Matsumoku up to 1987)
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 Post subject: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Fri 06 Jan 2012 02:34 PM 
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Axe Slinger

Joined: Mon 29 Mar 2010 06:10 PM
Posts: 31
Finally got around to working on my Hondo ii Professional. I got it off ebay as a project (it was labeled as junk) and was pleased to find a set of MMK 45's in there when i recieved it. It was horribly refinished and in pretty bad shape but i decided it would be a fun challenge to get it going again. After TONS of hand sanding i got down to the neck and realized it was a 5 piece neck, and pretty much confirmed it was a Matt. The input jack area was pretty splintered so i glued the heck out of it, sanded and it looks alot better. Here is a pic from after i glued ( one crack was easily 1/8 inch wide)

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then sanded:

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The back of the neck had the original finish but was painted at the back of the headstock which made me sure it was busted at one time, but i was pleased to find it wasn't. :D

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The pickups were covered in laquer but work fine so i sanded them with 400 - 600 grit (due to Barrys advice), not done yet but look alot better.

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Frets are in great shape, and the only original part i left was the headstock and logo.


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I was going to paint her, but after all this sanding i kinda like the grain and thought about a clear finish instead. I realize the cracks will stand out but i can deal with it, may even look cool. Any opinions or advice would be greatly appreciated. I was inspired by Johns munted U-60 for this project, and even thought about a slimeburst. I'm not sure about how it will stain with mahogany though, this is my 1st attempt at a refinish so its a good guitar to experiment with. The stained headstock may look wierd with a green body also. :-? I almost done sanding so thats the next step, should be fun!

Image


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 Post subject: Re: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Fri 06 Jan 2012 09:14 PM 
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Virtuoso
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Joined: Wed 29 Apr 2009 12:32 PM
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Location: St. Catharines, Ontario Canada
Nicely done so far! :up:
Because of the crack you could maybe consider a black edge burst of some kind? There are some simple directions as to how to do that with rattle cans over at the Reranch site: http://www.reranch.com/sunburstaerosol.html

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 Post subject: Re: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Sun 08 Jan 2012 01:20 AM 
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Virtuoso
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Joined: Tue 26 Oct 2010 11:50 PM
Posts: 162
Nice stuff so far :up:

I agree with you on the grain , it would be a shame to hide it under paint , like Barry said though, a dark rim burst would hide those cracks nicely , something like a tobacco burst would be perfect .


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 Post subject: Re: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Sun 08 Jan 2012 04:35 PM 
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Virtuoso
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Joined: Mon 19 Mar 2007 08:50 AM
Posts: 1588
Black edge with a burst is a good idea. You could also do a black edge with faux binding and clear on the top.

BTW most guitars a finished with colors added to the clear rather than staining the wood itself. It is tough to get the stain even if you are doing any end grain.


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 Post subject: Re: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Sun 08 Jan 2012 06:57 PM 
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Virtuoso

Joined: Tue 09 Sep 2008 02:07 PM
Posts: 145
I second RSB's opinion on stains. They are very dicey to use, especially where endgrain is involved, and they're a bear to strip if you don't like the result.

An alternative to painting the edges black would be to obtain or make an oversized jack plate to cover the worst of the damage.

Anyway, best of luck!


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 Post subject: Re: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Sun 08 Jan 2012 10:17 PM 
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Axe Slinger

Joined: Mon 29 Mar 2010 06:10 PM
Posts: 31
Thanks guys for all of your input. I checked that site out Barry and it was real helpful, i think you all convinced me to go with black edges and some kind of burst. I'm a bit intimidated by a burst but i'm going to try to pull it off. RSB thanks for the tip, i had no idea that was the case. Time to do some more research and try to do this right. I was also thinking of putting some kind of clear or burst on the back of the neck cause i really dig the look of the grain there also. I hope to get to this soon. :)


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 Post subject: Re: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Sun 08 Jan 2012 10:21 PM 
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Virtuoso
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Joined: Wed 29 Apr 2009 12:32 PM
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Location: St. Catharines, Ontario Canada
Bohop Rebebop wrote:
...obtain or make an oversized jack plate to cover the worst of the damage...
That would be the Mother of all jack plates! A pick guard might cover it maybe? Image

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 Post subject: Re: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Mon 09 Jan 2012 11:01 AM 
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Virtuoso

Joined: Tue 09 Sep 2008 02:07 PM
Posts: 145
A new jackplate half or three quarters of an inch longer than the factory plate would cover the area of missing wood. Granted, the repaired cracks would still be visible but I don't think they would look all that bad, considering where they're located, except maybe to the high rollers in the front row.

An easy way to get an idea of how it would look with a clear finish is to wet the area with alcohol or mineral spirits


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 Post subject: Re: Hondo ii Pro Restore
PostPosted: Mon 09 Jan 2012 11:56 AM 
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Axe Slinger

Joined: Mon 29 Mar 2010 06:10 PM
Posts: 31
I like that Barry, a pickgaurd jack plate. :D I figured on replacing the original plate because there is still a little chunk of wood missing and thus nothing to screw into there. I don't want it TOO big or it may look cheesy. I think the black should cover most of those cracks, yes?


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