Gretsch Streamliner modification project

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Veenture
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby Veenture » Thu Jul 07, 2011 1:29 am

Nice going! Will you be sanding and refining [the edges of] the pickup cavities too? (not that it's necessary) :|

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Sarah93003
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby Sarah93003 » Thu Jul 07, 2011 6:07 am

Veenture wrote:Nice going! Will you be sanding and refining [the edges of] the pickup cavities too? (not that it's necessary) :|


Yes, in the spirit of keeping the quality at a higher standard. I won't photograph that part of the process though. ;)
____________________
1965 Mosrite Celebrity Prototype with Vibramute
1972 Mosrite Celebrity-III
1977 Gibson MK-53
1982 Fender Bullet
1994 Gretsch Streamliner G3155 Custom
2005 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus
2006 Jude Les Paul 12 String

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olrocknroller
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby olrocknroller » Sun Jul 10, 2011 8:56 pm

Been away for a while visiting a sick friend... Nice work! This project will turn out BE-au-tif-ul!
Olrocknroller

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Sarah93003
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby Sarah93003 » Sun Jul 10, 2011 9:00 pm

olrocknroller wrote:Been away for a while visiting a sick friend... Nice work! This project will turn out BE-au-tif-ul!


Thank you very much!
____________________
1965 Mosrite Celebrity Prototype with Vibramute
1972 Mosrite Celebrity-III
1977 Gibson MK-53
1982 Fender Bullet
1994 Gretsch Streamliner G3155 Custom
2005 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus
2006 Jude Les Paul 12 String

vetovideo
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby vetovideo » Tue Jul 12, 2011 1:22 pm

Sarah ... just a quick note on the binding you're doing. Did a small project last night and tried something that worked VERY well. Used a professional hair dryer! Temp was hot enough to make the material pliable but not so hot to damage the wood or its finish. Less dangerous than the heat gun, less messy than keeping the water at temp and although it was slow going, the material turned and twisted symetrically. Don't know if that will help.

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Sarah93003
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby Sarah93003 » Tue Jul 12, 2011 2:06 pm

vetovideo wrote:Sarah ... just a quick note on the binding you're doing. Did a small project last night and tried something that worked VERY well. Used a professional hair dryer! Temp was hot enough to make the material pliable but not so hot to damage the wood or its finish. Less dangerous than the heat gun, less messy than keeping the water at temp and although it was slow going, the material turned and twisted symetrically. Don't know if that will help.



Thank you! I will give that a try.
____________________
1965 Mosrite Celebrity Prototype with Vibramute
1972 Mosrite Celebrity-III
1977 Gibson MK-53
1982 Fender Bullet
1994 Gretsch Streamliner G3155 Custom
2005 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus
2006 Jude Les Paul 12 String

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Sarah93003
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby Sarah93003 » Fri Sep 16, 2016 9:57 pm

I had forgotten that I put this thread on this forum. When I took the job in Philadelphia for three years everything went into storage. After returning to SoCal I finally retrieved everything and unpacked what I needed to finish this project. So, I will post up the remainder of the work that it took to bring music back to this guitar. Please note the text is sort of past tense.


Okay, all of the parts to be inlayed have been cutout. The next step is to clean them up with a Dremel so they have a perfect fit.

This big "S" will go in the Headstock. It stands for "Sarah" or "Streamliner". Okay, it stands for both.

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The letters for the logo cut from Turquoise stone. This logo is actually copied from a White Falcon owned by my friend, Hot Rod Michelle. I photographed the logo, printed it off, and glued it to a slab of stone. From there each letter was cut with a Jewelers saw.

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Here are the rest of the markers. Note the theme of "S".

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After they have been all fitted together, we will see how they fit on the new fretboard.

The pieces have been cleaned up with the Dremel and glued together for form each fret marker. The fretboard is also cut. There is a pencil line down the fretboard to center up the markers. Looking at the picture I notice the bottom one is backwards, so don't worry, I will fix that !

The next step is to have my buddy Shane do the actual inlay into the wood. I've never done that before so I'm a bit nervous to cut into this beautiful wood and screw it up. As a reminder, when I bought this Pao Ferro piece, I had it hand selected for it's beautiful wood grain.

I think this photo will give you a good idea. Can you tell where the 12th fret is?

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A little update. The turquoise logo is now completed along with the "S".

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____________________
1965 Mosrite Celebrity Prototype with Vibramute
1972 Mosrite Celebrity-III
1977 Gibson MK-53
1982 Fender Bullet
1994 Gretsch Streamliner G3155 Custom
2005 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus
2006 Jude Les Paul 12 String

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Sarah93003
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby Sarah93003 » Fri Sep 16, 2016 10:06 pm

While I'm waiting for the inlays I decided to get the bridge taken care of. When I got this guitar the bridge anchors were in but the thumbwheels were missing. After wasting money buying the wrong size I decided to just buy a matched set of anchors and thumbwheels.

One of the old anchors came out with little effort. The other one, not so much. I took the guitar to a local hardware store and found a metric screw to fit the threads.

This is the old anchor. One out and one still stuck/glued in place.

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With the metric screw down the full length of the thread I gave a little tap in a couple of directions to break the glue loose. Easy peasy! With the big washer I was able to get my fingers under it and pull straight up. Kinda like a gear puller. I didn't want to make the hole any bigger so it would be snug when the new anchors go in.

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Okay, both of them are out!

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There's the stubborn one.

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Weapons of choice. Gorilla glue and new anchors with thumbwheels.

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Now for the new parts.

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A couple of drops on each anchor.

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Okay, the two new anchors are now glued in place.

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A test fit to make sure I've maintained the 2.9" spacing for the bridge. I won't use this bridge except for spacing the tailpiece, etc. As soon as I can afford it I will buy the turquoise glass bridge that I want to use.

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____________________
1965 Mosrite Celebrity Prototype with Vibramute
1972 Mosrite Celebrity-III
1977 Gibson MK-53
1982 Fender Bullet
1994 Gretsch Streamliner G3155 Custom
2005 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus
2006 Jude Les Paul 12 String

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Sarah93003
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby Sarah93003 » Fri Sep 16, 2016 10:28 pm

So, let's see what a mockup will look like. This is the tailpiece I will use.

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Hey, now it's starting to look like a guitar!

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I'm satisfied so far with how it's going. :)

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The fret markers are now in and the binding is done. I am really loving how this is looking. I am anxious to see how the "S" theme is all tied together once it's fully completed.

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The original truss rod was put in upside down and therefore the threads were all messed up from people trying to adjust the neck over the years. So, a new truss rod was needed.

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Next up, gluing the new fingerboard onto the neck.

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I'm anxious to get this project done so I can play this guitar. My buddy Shane also put the new frets in for me. I am totally stoked with how this is looking!!

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Another view.

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You might notice this is going to be a Zero Fret guitar. I am a big fan of zero frets. As a rhythm player it seems I can barre chords for hours. If you are a shredder, you might not like them so much.

Okay, lots more to be done!

Just in case you're not tired of looking at it, here is another view. I can see it coming together.

Image
____________________
1965 Mosrite Celebrity Prototype with Vibramute
1972 Mosrite Celebrity-III
1977 Gibson MK-53
1982 Fender Bullet
1994 Gretsch Streamliner G3155 Custom
2005 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus
2006 Jude Les Paul 12 String

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Sarah93003
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Re: Gretsch Streamliner modification project

Postby Sarah93003 » Fri Sep 16, 2016 10:36 pm

Although the Gretsch Streamliners of the '50's and the later Historics did not have a zero fret, the Streamliners of the mid '60's did have a zero fret.

For this project I purchased a bone nut blank.

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Once the thickness was sanded to fit into the little slot I could take a look at the height.

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Now to sand it down a bit in height. The final height will be determined after I slot it and shape it.

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Okay, I am satisfied with the current height so it's time to glue it in place.

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The string guide is now marked for slotting. Yes, that is a Teddy Bear.

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The next task will be cutting the slots with these precision saw rods.

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____________________
1965 Mosrite Celebrity Prototype with Vibramute
1972 Mosrite Celebrity-III
1977 Gibson MK-53
1982 Fender Bullet
1994 Gretsch Streamliner G3155 Custom
2005 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus
2006 Jude Les Paul 12 String


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