S
stevieb
Just another guy, really.
Three acoustic guitars under consideration:
Left-handed Seagull S6 Dreadnaught- bridge is lifting pretty badly, no other mechanical/sonic issues;
Right-handed Seagull S6 Folk. No problems at all. (Oh, for anyone who remembers, I got the Alvarez all ready for Gale, she decided she likes it better than the Seagull because I got it expressly for her.) My friend Don is currently enjoying possession of that guitar, him playing in the Too-Big Guitar Group (TBGG) and he only owns a nylon-string guitar- I've loaned him this guitar for the time being.
Harmony Tenor. When it came to me, bridge was split badly- I super-glued it back together, but have not glued it back to the top yet.
Before you go off, I have the right glue for the bridges- superglue was the only thing that would work on the bridge pieces. Not sure if the bridge will stay together- tenor bridges are not available anywhere I have looked, if it turns out I need a new bridge for the tenor, I will have to either use a classical bridge, or shape one from a blank.
I re-glued the bridge on an Aria, over ten years ago- made cauls from 2 x 4's, it worked well. I know about intonation, bridge location, etc.- not a total noob at this, but not an experienced, trained-in-the-old-world luthier, either.
Some personal history, that applies to this thread: I play left-handed. I once owned another right-handed Seagull S6 Folk, re-strung it lefty, and although intonation was off, I loved it's tone and timbre. I foolishly decided having a left-handed guitar was more important to me than "that sound," and I sold the Folk and bought the Dread.
A couple years later, got a Martin D-16, mahogny top. Now, the 'Gull and the Martin have different tones- the Martin, with it's mahogony top, is brighter, cuts thru the mix better (I love that, both when I had my bluegrass band, and now, with my too-big guitar group, I can make myself heard when I feel the need.) The Seagull's Spruce top gives me darker, "smokier" tones. Both have strong bass, due to their dreadnaught bodies.
What I loved, and miss, about the S6 Folk, was it's balanced tone- the smaller body did not emphasize the bass like the dreads do. I bought "Folk II" to get that back. (I think F-I had a cedar top, and I think F-II has a spruce top, but as neither is here, I can't confirm that right now.)
I THINK I want to keep two of these three guitars (keeping the tenor, regardless)- Martin and Seagull Folk, and want them to both be lefty and thus playable by me. So, I would switch the bridges and nuts of both 'gulls. But wait, there's more! Nuts will not exactly switch, as the folk has a slightly wider neck. (I've shaped a nut from stock material before- no fun, lots of tedious work.) The pick guards would both be in the wrong place- I'd either have to switch them over- perferred, but not sure they will come off in one piece and not damage the wood, or put a second pickguard on both tops (yuck. Ugly.)
Now, I know the pickguards will leave a "shadow" of themselves on the top, so I am thinking of refinishing the tops of both 'gulls.
So, here are my questions:
1. I have never had to remove a bridge- they always were already off, or loose. Can I use my kitchen tea kettle to steam the bridge off the S6 folk?
2. I have heard the nitrose-cellular lacquer used on Seagulls is water-based, and not compatable with some readily-available NC lacquers. Does anyone know who to test the existing finish?
Thanks.
Left-handed Seagull S6 Dreadnaught- bridge is lifting pretty badly, no other mechanical/sonic issues;
Right-handed Seagull S6 Folk. No problems at all. (Oh, for anyone who remembers, I got the Alvarez all ready for Gale, she decided she likes it better than the Seagull because I got it expressly for her.) My friend Don is currently enjoying possession of that guitar, him playing in the Too-Big Guitar Group (TBGG) and he only owns a nylon-string guitar- I've loaned him this guitar for the time being.
Harmony Tenor. When it came to me, bridge was split badly- I super-glued it back together, but have not glued it back to the top yet.
Before you go off, I have the right glue for the bridges- superglue was the only thing that would work on the bridge pieces. Not sure if the bridge will stay together- tenor bridges are not available anywhere I have looked, if it turns out I need a new bridge for the tenor, I will have to either use a classical bridge, or shape one from a blank.
I re-glued the bridge on an Aria, over ten years ago- made cauls from 2 x 4's, it worked well. I know about intonation, bridge location, etc.- not a total noob at this, but not an experienced, trained-in-the-old-world luthier, either.
Some personal history, that applies to this thread: I play left-handed. I once owned another right-handed Seagull S6 Folk, re-strung it lefty, and although intonation was off, I loved it's tone and timbre. I foolishly decided having a left-handed guitar was more important to me than "that sound," and I sold the Folk and bought the Dread.
A couple years later, got a Martin D-16, mahogny top. Now, the 'Gull and the Martin have different tones- the Martin, with it's mahogony top, is brighter, cuts thru the mix better (I love that, both when I had my bluegrass band, and now, with my too-big guitar group, I can make myself heard when I feel the need.) The Seagull's Spruce top gives me darker, "smokier" tones. Both have strong bass, due to their dreadnaught bodies.
What I loved, and miss, about the S6 Folk, was it's balanced tone- the smaller body did not emphasize the bass like the dreads do. I bought "Folk II" to get that back. (I think F-I had a cedar top, and I think F-II has a spruce top, but as neither is here, I can't confirm that right now.)
I THINK I want to keep two of these three guitars (keeping the tenor, regardless)- Martin and Seagull Folk, and want them to both be lefty and thus playable by me. So, I would switch the bridges and nuts of both 'gulls. But wait, there's more! Nuts will not exactly switch, as the folk has a slightly wider neck. (I've shaped a nut from stock material before- no fun, lots of tedious work.) The pick guards would both be in the wrong place- I'd either have to switch them over- perferred, but not sure they will come off in one piece and not damage the wood, or put a second pickguard on both tops (yuck. Ugly.)
Now, I know the pickguards will leave a "shadow" of themselves on the top, so I am thinking of refinishing the tops of both 'gulls.
So, here are my questions:
1. I have never had to remove a bridge- they always were already off, or loose. Can I use my kitchen tea kettle to steam the bridge off the S6 folk?
2. I have heard the nitrose-cellular lacquer used on Seagulls is water-based, and not compatable with some readily-available NC lacquers. Does anyone know who to test the existing finish?
Thanks.