Howdy Pardiners… your looking at our latest restoration. As can be seen, she’s had a full ground up restoration. Further to this has been the addition of scalloped X bracings. We’ve restored many a parlor guitar but this’n is up there with the best of them.. The tone is warm and smokey. The volume is amazing. All this from such a small bodied instrument. These Harmonies were made from solid birch which is a surprisingly good tone wood and this little guitar shows this in spades. Set up with over size vintage frets and deer antler saddle and nut. There’s not a lot more to say.
To be honest, when we started this “upcycle” we really didn’t know where it was heading but as it came together we could see some of our favourite things evolving out of the mist. But first the back story… This guitar was donated to us some years ago. She was in a sorry state, just the bare bones comprising of the body and the neck. The finish had been stripped and the headstock binding was missing as were pieces of the headstock and there it sat for at least three years. Being a Japanese LP replica with a semi hollow top, I would place it in the late ‘70’s-early 80’s. She’s probably a Kasuga, maybe a Stagg or maybe an Ibanez… take your pick.
The refurb process went as follows. I had some fine Japanese Gift wrap (quite appropriate I think) so decided to give it a “distressed wallpaper” vibe. Andre over sprayed this with tinted lacquer and voila! This created a slight Zemaitis vibe. Andre restored the headstock and re fretted the neck before again over spraying in tint lacquer. I had a Seymour Duncan “Dime time” pick up for the bridge and an 80’s Dimarzio PAF for the neck. All new electronics with the exception of two original 70’s Japanese tone controls (they have a slight squeak when turned which I think is kind of cute). We also decided to use a trapeze tail piece which gives the guitar a lovely woody tone and I feel also gives a slight Rick Turner vibe (another fine maker). Aged parts add further to the look which all put together also gives the end product a slight vibe of Neil Young’s “Old Black”. She sounds and plays amazingly!
You can tell that we’re pretty stoked with the finished product. Whoever buys this guitar is buying a very unique one off instrument that was saved owing to imagination and passion…
You don’t need me to tell you how beautiful this girl is. We’ve had a few things to get around like the neck set problem, electronics and what type of bridge will do justice to her. The neck we removed (actually age and several bad gluing job did it for us… But we didn’t fight it!) We then removed a whole section of the neck heal which we deemed weak and replaced it with a maple insert and a vertical dowel running right through the center. For the bridge, we ended up making a one piece compensated jazz bridge out of striped ebony. She really belongs in the hands of a professional, however, she’ll also take being owned by someone who really loves her. She’s plays like butter and the tone both acoustically and electrically is warm and woody.
Hi Folks, when we first laid eyes on this little girl, it was hard to believe that she wasn’t built yesterday. There is not a mark or scratch to indicate that this fine example has ever really been handled let alone played. This fine piece of American craftsmanship is full and loud in tone; and at 3.9kg she won’t break your back either.
Now I want to tell you a story about this beasty. We bought this Lap as a rough shaped piece of timber, a cool box and an even cooler hand wound pick up which still worked! We then set about bringing her back to scratch. This is what we’ve done
refinished the body in a black and brown hue whilst fabricating re pro vintage tort cover plates for the electronics section.
Re line the case/box.
We then installed new electronics and shielded the electronics cavities. (she’s very quite for such an old single coil pick up).
We then set up the lap with a brass (hand made) bridge, tail piece and ebony nut.
The tone is very vintage with the pick up having the character of an old P90.and the sustain is epic. Demo videos available on request
To see our current instruments, consider a visit to the shop. We also post all new arrivals on our Facebook page, and select items for sale on our Reverb Store.
Howdy Pardiners… your looking at our latest restoration. As can be seen, she’s had a full ground up restoration. Further to this has been the addition of scalloped X bracings. We’ve restored many a parlor guitar but this’n is up there with the best of them.. The tone is warm and smokey. The volume is amazing. All this from such a small bodied instrument. These Harmonies were made from solid birch which is a surprisingly good tone wood and this little guitar shows this in spades. Set up with over size vintage frets and deer antler saddle and nut. There’s not a lot more to say. 
