Repairing Guitars and More Since 2013
Not really. But this 
guitar has been. Sometimes, you just have to shake your head, then put the pickguard back on. This and lots of other photos are over on the IG Insta page which is updated most days.
I always intend to put more wordy/nerdy content here on the website, but I never have time…
As always, email is the best way to get hold of me: info@imperialguitars.co.uk or use the contact form.
Q
uick note to say if you want something done by Christmas, you should probably get it to me soon. However, on that subject: I’ve a bad a cold-flu that is really slowing me down. Hoping it’ll be gone in the next day or two.
What am I saying? I think: get your stuff to me. But maybe not this week, thanks.
(Pictured: one of my favourite instruments that have been through the shop this year: a Lakland Skyline HB-30)
Totally tr
ansported through time while working on this US-made Epiphone Sheraton.
Similar time travel occurs while operating on an classic Ibanez JEM or an original Fender Thinline Tele.
Most guitars are little time capsules, regardless of their vintage, whether it be a 1980s Westone or a 1962 Fender Precision. Even a 2015 Gibson Les Paul with robot tuners…
Hey, guys. Spraying and gluing and allsorts today. Please email or leave a message if you can’t get through.
Hello, kids!
Getting back to work this week. Thank you all for your patience over the past week or so. If you want to pop over, email is the best way to get in touch: info@imperialguitars.co.uk.
I made some spool clamps the other day. I didn’t need them right then, but I will need them sooner or later. You always need more clamps.
There are few different ways to do them, but they all basically involve making some small wooden cylinders (either with a hole cutter or cut from a pole), drilling a hole through the centre and attaching them to a threaded rod. Adding a bit of cork is also a good idea. You can buy them, but for the cost of a couple, you could make yourself, I dunno, a dozen or more?
We’ll be closed for a few days due to a family bereavement. Thanks for your understanding.
–Keith
The sun slowly emerges from the dark cave of winter, like a grumpy bear. Which means it’s a good time to get in the garden. And make stuff out of wood.
For a long time, I’ve been using the workbench as the platten for my neck levelling set-up. It’s a nice and easy solution, especially if you have limited space. If you’ve a bench dog system, you can use the holes to mount your hardware and strap the guitar directly to the bench. However, there are some drawbacks: 1. The bench is out of commission until you’ve finished with the guitar; 2. The guitar is stuck on its back–you can’t check it in the playing position; 3. You’ve got to assemble and reassemble everything.
Weirdly, the thing that convinced me to build a new jig wasn’t a levelling job at all; it was a steam-bending/neck reset job.
Like most repairers, I don’t really trust in the claims of some about ‘instant’, ‘free’ neck resets. Steam bending is hit and miss, and that is not generally an option in a professional scenario. However, sometimes–as in the case of this old Norlin-era Epiphone jumbo–there is no other way to attempt a cost-effective repair.
You can find links to read/watch other folks’ takes on the non-surgical neck reset by searching ‘free neck reset’. My way also combines some elements of traditional neck-resetting.
Anyway, the point of all this is that I needed somewhere to keep the guitar neck under tension for a few weeks until both wood and glue had (hopefully) set into a newer, happier position. So I made a new, beefy support jig: an all-purpose neck resetting/levelling/fretting device.
The jig itself is a steroidal take on the first version of the Erlewine neck jig. You can find plans online, but it’s a simple build, and easily tailored to the space you have available. The key, for me, was to make it as adjustable as possible as I’m going to use it for everything from Fender Strats to acoustic basses.
I managed the old way for about 10 years. Hopefully, I’ll get another 10 out of this new jig. And then, just maybe, I might finally bite the bullet and get the fancy aluminium StewMac version. Although, the price will always give me nightmares.
Hey, guys. I’m working on a new repair blog for guitar nerds about compression fretting an old Spanish guitar. In the meantime, have a look at this Martin 000-42 and get in touch if I can help you with an instrument!
Hi, chaps!
We are basically open now. I’m trying to do handovers of instruments en plein air: i.e. in the garden. Please take any precautions you think necessary and let me know if there’s any procedure you’d like to follow.
As ever, the best way to get in touch is via email at info@imperialguitars.co.uk. Thank you to all for your continued support.
I’ve writ up a new repair blog called Treating Rust with Phosphoric Acid. It features dangerous chemicals and, as such, is very exciting.