MooMoo!
New Yorker
im currently refinishing my guitar and was wondering if its possible to remove o sockets that the pins that hold the bridge on screw into. and would it be ok to take the neck off?
guitar bodies re:Les Paul models.
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discothequeLP
Rock n' Roll Doggie FOB
hmm
i think that some gibsons are made from one peice of wood, so im not sure if you can take the neck off
i guess you can take off whatever you want as long as you remember how to put it back. and you can always bring it to guitar center or something to get it fixed if the worst happens
i think that some gibsons are made from one peice of wood, so im not sure if you can take the neck off
i guess you can take off whatever you want as long as you remember how to put it back. and you can always bring it to guitar center or something to get it fixed if the worst happens
OP
OP
MooMoo!
New Yorker
heh heh....its not a Gibson, if it was i'td be wrapped in cotton wool and i'd use surgons gloves to play it so the acids in my fingers didnt corrode the neck!!!
*wishes for a decent guitar*
it has screws attatching the neck on, so i think you can unscrew it. i was just wondering whether it was a good idea or not.
(90% of body sanded!!)
*wishes for a decent guitar* it has screws attatching the neck on, so i think you can unscrew it. i was just wondering whether it was a good idea or not.
(90% of body sanded!!)
discothequeLP
Rock n' Roll Doggie FOB
hmm...i dunno if its a good idea but its possible
OP
OP
MooMoo!
New Yorker
i just dont want to kill my guitar thats all.
discothequeLP
Rock n' Roll Doggie FOB
haha....whatever
if you cant put it back, just bring it to a shop
if you cant put it back, just bring it to a shop
OP
OP
MooMoo!
New Yorker
im sure itd go on and off ok, im just worried in case itd be warped when i put it back, or somthing else.
discothequeLP
Rock n' Roll Doggie FOB
hmm
if you dont want it to warp, don't leave it off for more than a few hours, not in the sun, and definitely not overnight
hopefully nothing else will fall out
if you dont want it to warp, don't leave it off for more than a few hours, not in the sun, and definitely not overnight
hopefully nothing else will fall out
Pinball Wizard
Refugee
Is it a two-piece Epiphone Les Paul?
If it's not a solid body, I would not suggest unscrewing it yourself. Take it into a reputable shop and keep all your receipts. Unless you know how to modify/recover the action and intonation of the guitar, it's probably not a good idea to fragment it. If you ever plan to sell the guitar, it's always a great advantage to have written documentation (on any adjustments that have been made on the guitar) for a candidate buyer .. instead of toying around with the undercarriage yourself. From personal experience, the transaction is usually smoother and those papers of authenticity only increase your selling position.
If it's not a solid body, I would not suggest unscrewing it yourself. Take it into a reputable shop and keep all your receipts. Unless you know how to modify/recover the action and intonation of the guitar, it's probably not a good idea to fragment it. If you ever plan to sell the guitar, it's always a great advantage to have written documentation (on any adjustments that have been made on the guitar) for a candidate buyer .. instead of toying around with the undercarriage yourself. From personal experience, the transaction is usually smoother and those papers of authenticity only increase your selling position.
Hey MooMoo,
Don't worry about it, it won't hurt to take the neck off for as long as you like, it won't warp unless it was going to anyway, so why worry. I have taken the necks of many instruments over the years for repair/replacement of bodies etc. and none of them came to any harm, after all it's no different to loosening/removing the strings for transportation or a long period of storage (which after all is the recommended action in those events. I generally detune my instruments at least a tone or two if I put them on a 'plane and I have now had a Rickenbacker 4001 in storage with loose strings for more than two years and so far no harm has come to the necks on any of my instruments). The real Gibson LP and the better copies have glued necks so if it's got a separate neck then it's probably a budget Les Paul copy. Sad but true to say, purely in terms of its resale value, it probably isn't worth that much anyway so if you want to refinish it you won't do any real harm since the resale value is pretty modest to start with. Yes, you should be able to take any piece of hardware out of the body though I'd suggest you be careful while doing so since you might end up damaging something otherwise... you will not damage the value of a guitar by taking it to bits and reassembling it properly, but you may well do so if you do not know what you are doing while attempting the process.
As a general pointer for other readers I have found from personal experience that, when it comes to refinishing a guitar to anything even approaching a professional standard, it is just about always much quicker, simpler, and cheaper to sell the guitar that you want to refinish and buy one whose finish you like than it is to attempt to do the job yourself. Sad but true...
Don't worry about it, it won't hurt to take the neck off for as long as you like, it won't warp unless it was going to anyway, so why worry. I have taken the necks of many instruments over the years for repair/replacement of bodies etc. and none of them came to any harm, after all it's no different to loosening/removing the strings for transportation or a long period of storage (which after all is the recommended action in those events. I generally detune my instruments at least a tone or two if I put them on a 'plane and I have now had a Rickenbacker 4001 in storage with loose strings for more than two years and so far no harm has come to the necks on any of my instruments). The real Gibson LP and the better copies have glued necks so if it's got a separate neck then it's probably a budget Les Paul copy. Sad but true to say, purely in terms of its resale value, it probably isn't worth that much anyway so if you want to refinish it you won't do any real harm since the resale value is pretty modest to start with. Yes, you should be able to take any piece of hardware out of the body though I'd suggest you be careful while doing so since you might end up damaging something otherwise... you will not damage the value of a guitar by taking it to bits and reassembling it properly, but you may well do so if you do not know what you are doing while attempting the process.
As a general pointer for other readers I have found from personal experience that, when it comes to refinishing a guitar to anything even approaching a professional standard, it is just about always much quicker, simpler, and cheaper to sell the guitar that you want to refinish and buy one whose finish you like than it is to attempt to do the job yourself. Sad but true...
Pinball Wizard
Refugee
Once again, gragravar wins the thread.
OP
OP
MooMoo!
New Yorker
well thats just as well cos i took it off before i read this! *phew* alas, it is a pretty worthless guitar, but i want to keep it as playable as possible, as its all i can afford at the moment. (maybe i could get it new pickups?) its nearly done, so im pleased. i was thinking of putting a wood stain on it rather than paint.gragravar said:
theres still the question of the bridge socket thingys. anyone?
Unless they've been glued in they should come out. It *should* be possible to take every single piece of hardware off a LP guitar body without damage to either body or hardware. Whether your copy is built like a LP is the question...
In terms of upgrading pickups, if you can't afford anything really good, I'd say don't bother. If you can afford some really decent pick-ups, the cost of these is probably not far off the cost of the guitar itself and is a disproportionately expensive way of upgrading. I'd suggest you'd be better off putting that money towards an entirely new guitar. I don't know what your guitar is like, but as a general rule you can't turn a plank into a cool, chick-pulling rock axe simply by slapping a pair of Seymour Duncans or whatever into it. Unless you just want to fiddle about with your guitar of course, which can be both instructive and fun, in which case go for it, but make sure you make a sketch of the wiring before you start to unsolder anything. Generally though, the first thing to change on inexpensive guitars are... the tuning pegs, which sounds boring, I know, but in my experience will generally slip out of tune in no time on budget models and even some mid-rangers. Great pickups won't make you sound any better if the guitar is constantly out of tune. Also, if the pickups are noisy, try shielding the pickup cavity(s) with aluminium tape/foil/paint etc. This is close to free of cost, not very hard to do, can't do any harm and you might find the guitar sounds a bit better afterwards too. Do a google search on "shield guitar pickup" and see what comes up. There are quite a few sites out there that offer useful advice on this subject.
Wood stain sounds like the way to go. It is almost impossible to finish a body yourself with paint in a way that looks like anything other than a mistake. I had a go at this a couple of years back and ended up buying a (much nicer) replacement body for a Jazz bass on ebay rather than look at the mess I'd made of the original every time I played.
Hope that helps.
In terms of upgrading pickups, if you can't afford anything really good, I'd say don't bother. If you can afford some really decent pick-ups, the cost of these is probably not far off the cost of the guitar itself and is a disproportionately expensive way of upgrading. I'd suggest you'd be better off putting that money towards an entirely new guitar. I don't know what your guitar is like, but as a general rule you can't turn a plank into a cool, chick-pulling rock axe simply by slapping a pair of Seymour Duncans or whatever into it. Unless you just want to fiddle about with your guitar of course, which can be both instructive and fun, in which case go for it, but make sure you make a sketch of the wiring before you start to unsolder anything. Generally though, the first thing to change on inexpensive guitars are... the tuning pegs, which sounds boring, I know, but in my experience will generally slip out of tune in no time on budget models and even some mid-rangers. Great pickups won't make you sound any better if the guitar is constantly out of tune. Also, if the pickups are noisy, try shielding the pickup cavity(s) with aluminium tape/foil/paint etc. This is close to free of cost, not very hard to do, can't do any harm and you might find the guitar sounds a bit better afterwards too. Do a google search on "shield guitar pickup" and see what comes up. There are quite a few sites out there that offer useful advice on this subject.
Wood stain sounds like the way to go. It is almost impossible to finish a body yourself with paint in a way that looks like anything other than a mistake. I had a go at this a couple of years back and ended up buying a (much nicer) replacement body for a Jazz bass on ebay rather than look at the mess I'd made of the original every time I played.
Hope that helps.
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OP
OP
MooMoo!
New Yorker
thanx! (um, id want a guy pulling guitar, not a chick pulling one yes im a girl playing the guitar!! *hiss* and damn good at it too! *i think...* ) well, its an Encore Les Paul *hides in shame* so would that help in determining whether the sockety things come off? do they screw off or do ya have to yank them off? 
yes im a girl playing the guitar!! *hiss* and damn good at it too! *i think...* ) well, its an Encore Les Paul *hides in shame* so would that help in determining whether the sockety things come off? do they screw off or do ya have to yank them off? Sorry, of course I meant a cool guy-pulling rock axe. Obviously.
With regard to the bridge socket thingies, not really sure... first try to unscrew them with a pair of pliers using a cloth to protect the hardware. Give them a little tug and see if they wiggle. And so on. It's one or the other so give it a whirl and see what happens. You're far enough along now that you might as well just get on with it and get the job done. I can't believe they have been fixed in with superglue or anything, much more likely a snug hole has been drilled and the part gently tapped in with a hammer or something... they should come out easily enough with a little careful effort.
With regard to the bridge socket thingies, not really sure... first try to unscrew them with a pair of pliers using a cloth to protect the hardware. Give them a little tug and see if they wiggle. And so on. It's one or the other so give it a whirl and see what happens. You're far enough along now that you might as well just get on with it and get the job done. I can't believe they have been fixed in with superglue or anything, much more likely a snug hole has been drilled and the part gently tapped in with a hammer or something... they should come out easily enough with a little careful effort.
OP
OP
MooMoo!
New Yorker
ill try it. thanx.
only thing is tho..somones run off with the pliers.....drat.
only thing is tho..somones run off with the pliers.....drat.
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