1JAN64B Jag

PitViper

Hello all, am new here and have a few questions...

I have aquired a Fender Jag made in Jan of 64...serial number L35392. All pots, pickups and electronics are original as well as all hardware except for a string tee.

The question I have is this...this guitar was sanded in the early 70's and all of it's seagreen(guessing) color was removed(except for areas under hardware that show the original color) and the headstock decal was removed. Should I refinish this beast or leave it as is. The clay dots have shrunk and you can see a few small gaps around the dots...the frets are dented at the cowboy cord areas...the hardware is intact.....overall still a solid guitar.

Since this guitar has gone thru so much I was thinking about refinishing it...is it a "sin" to attempt restoration? Will any value be erased if I do so?

Thanks ahead of time...

nirvana23freak

Do what ever you want, Dont let people tell you your (in your words)"Sinning" if you alter a vintage guitar. But, because yours has been refinished once, no value will be lost in resale. I say go for it.

Oh and, PICS!

PitViper

I'll snap some pic's later tonite and post them.

This guitar has not been refinished...just sanded...and thats what I worry about, the wood is unprotected...although it looks as if it might have had a tung oil applied at one time or another because I would expect if left untreated...the wood would be in horrid shape by now.

Just to look at her vintage self in her shape saddens me to no end. I firmly believe that if it's a true vintage guitar you have...then leave it alone. I'll get the pic's up and hopefully some further comments about the direction I need to go will follow.

nirvana23freak

sanded is equal to refinished, once the OG finish is gone putting new finish on wont make it loose resale

robertoriginal

the original finish was green?

ooooooo you may have a custom jag!

whatever you do, leave the original paint whever it is, keep that there always, even if you paint it a different color, you should mask it off,

if anything it would help the re-sale value, maybe only like 5 bucks tho.

DO NOT ATTEMPT A RE-FRET, if this is your first time.

back then fender used to shoot the frets into the sides of the neck so when you re-move the fret itself the tangs rips away at the rosewood really badly.

definitly have aproffesional do it.

how did you aquire it?

PitViper

Here's some pic's, sorry for the rookie quality and composure, It bears mentioning that I really have not researched this guitar past it's DOM, I have assumed it's a Jag...please let me know your opinions on what it is and isn't. I've decided to have it professionally refinished in lieu of a good reason why not.

The finish was for sure sea foam green (is that correct for Fender Green?)...under the hardware there seems to be a blue/white base under the green.

I know first hand about the frets..Thanks for the info..I'm not touching them myself.

From what I know this guitar was taken/sent to the Philippians from the USA in the late 60's (might have been a custom order because the person was a Dignitary) and stayed there until yesterday....this person died recently and his brother (my friend) returned with it from the funeral.

It was then presented to me for restoration. When I read the date code I thought twice about what he wanted done with it, as I inlay and do set-up work...not factory restoration.

PitViper

Also the pickups are very difficult to remove ( I wanted to include a pic of the bottom of them)...I'm afraid to put pressure without first knowing what to expect...any tricks? I don't think they have ever been removed.

All the solder joints look factory...the wiring is solid and the guitar functions well. All the pic's have no screws fastened so the appearance of the guitar looks skewed..and mis- aligned....it's straight and true when assembled.

Thanks ahead of time.