NGD '66 Mustang with some issues

[Blomberg]

Hello

I recently bought this lovely unicorn (or rhinoceros?) as my first ever vintage (well, mostly) guitar and my first ever offset:


(Imgur album link with more pics and some info. Sorry about the bad lighting, I'll try to get better ones next time I take things apart)

As you can see, it has some issues. Or at least one glaring one.

I ordered an extra Mustang-style switch and some bits and bobs to get rid of the "horn" switch/plate.
I'll be left with a big hole in the upper bout, which I'll probably tape over for now, just to keep spiders and stuff out.

What I want to do (eventually):

Switch rout (horn):
Fill it with a piece of poplar. Somehow. I'll have to look into that. I have next to no woodworking experience myself, but my sister used to build church organs for a living, so I can probably tap into some knowledge there.


Finish:
I want to do something about the body, just not sure what yet.
It's been refinished in the 90s, according to the previous owner.
The finish has some signs of painted-over wear, so maybe the original finish is hiding underneath it?
Unless what I'm seeing is the refinish that's been touched up at some point.
I'll try and scrape/sand a bit in a hidden spot to see what's underneath the green.
If the original finish reveals itself, I'll probably feel obligated to try and bring it back out somehow, even if I don't really care that much for the original red. If not, I'll look into refinishing.

Tuners:
Not sure if I want proper vintage (are they any good?) or newer repro ones, but I do want white/cream plastic buttons.
The repro F-style ones all seem to have the big extra flange on the posts, which will require reaming out the holes, don't really want to do that.
Another option would be to use the Kluson-style ones with plastic buttons, since it already has holes for them.
Or go full vintage F-tuners and redrill the plugged up holes.

[Con-Tiki!]

the finish save may not matter, if there's a big patch in the top horn.
still, I'd probably do the same thing.

as for the tuners, the first run of "f" tuners suck, IMO. I've had a couple sets here, they are cheap and wobbly. The late-70's German made tuners are light-years better, but have that same flange on the post. The new RI's are an exact match, but not as well made.

You could go with vintage 6-inline tuners, but that will require more screw-holes.
Personally, on a guitar that has had that amount of chopping done to it already, I'd probably find a set of German tuners ('77-'80, i think) and ream the tuner holes to fit. They'll work, and look right.

[Ceylon]

Happy NGD! I'd not give another thought to the original finish seeing as a part of the body that'd be visible above the pickguard has been routed away. There's no way of filling that and painting the new wood that could make it blend convincingly into an original vintage finish, or at least preserve the value and integrity of the original finish. Especially if you don't care that much for red I'd say start planning what finish you'd most like to see this in

[Kinx]

I can't help it, I really, really like it the way it is

[Blomberg]

as for the tuners, the first run of "f" tuners suck, IMO. I've had a couple sets here, they are cheap and wobbly. The late-70's German made tuners are light-years better, but have that same flange on the post. The new RI's are an exact match, but not as well made.

You could go with vintage 6-inline tuners, but that will require more screw-holes.
Personally, on a guitar that has had that amount of chopping done to it already, I'd probably find a set of German tuners ('77-'80, i think) and ream the tuner holes to fit. They'll work, and look right.

It currently has some vintage style tuners on there, the previous owner said "from the 70s". They don't say Kluson or anything on them, my guess was Gotoh, but not having much experience with vintage gear, I couldn't say for sure.
But since it's already drilled for those, I'm tempted to just put some modern repro Kluson or Gotoh butterbeans on there.

[Embenny]

I can't help it, I really, really like it the way it is

I gotta agree, that green and that "SG-meets-jaguar"pointed chrome plate are wicked!

[Blomberg]

There's no way of filling that and painting the new wood that could make it blend convincingly into an original vintage finish, or at least preserve the value and integrity of the original finish.

I had thought of maybe just putting primer over the repair and just trying to blend that, since the restored finish (if at all possible) would probably look haggard as f... anyway.

[Blomberg]

I can't help it, I really, really like it the way it is

I gotta agree, that green and that "SG-meets-jaguar"pointed chrome plate are wicked!

You people are sick

Nah, the green on its own would be acceptable, but I just can't get used to that horn.

[Con-Tiki!]

as for the tuners, the first run of "f" tuners suck, IMO. I've had a couple sets here, they are cheap and wobbly. The late-70's German made tuners are light-years better, but have that same flange on the post. The new RI's are an exact match, but not as well made.

You could go with vintage 6-inline tuners, but that will require more screw-holes.
Personally, on a guitar that has had that amount of chopping done to it already, I'd probably find a set of German tuners ('77-'80, i think) and ream the tuner holes to fit. They'll work, and look right.

It currently has some vintage style tuners on there, the previous owner said "from the 70s". They don't say Kluson or anything on them, my guess was Gotoh, but not having much experience with vintage gear, I couldn't say for sure.
But since it's already drilled for those, I'm tempted to just put some modern repro Kluson or Gotoh butterbeans on there.

oh.
if that was in the original post, i missed it.
That is defintitely the way to go, then.

I've used brand new Klusons on a couple guitars, nothing to complain about.

[panoramic]

nice neck, i'd keep those tuners if they don't suck. That switch horn thing is UGNATIOUS you should seek to plug that thing STAT
I like the color

[Blomberg]

Finally got around to messing with this a bit, had to deal with a dying father and all that that entails.

Did a couple minor things to make it look slightly more Mustang-like / to my taste.

Bought some new Kluson single-line tuners, which give off more of the proper Mustang vibe, I think.
They aren't really vintage-correct, and I'm still not 100% sold on them vs the old relic nickel ones that were on there, but I like them for now.



Removed the "horn" plate and the toggle switch and wired in a proper Switchcraft Mustang-style switch.

I wanted to cover up the golden humbucker and find a decent solution for the P-Rail I'm considering putting on there eventually (maybe), so I used an open humbucker cover combined with the cut off top of an EMG-style plastic pickup cover to at least somewhat match the stock single coil cover.
That meant I'd need a new pickguard (wanted me some pearly goodness anyway), which I bought from earlpilanz on ebay.



This required taking a few more mm's out around the bridge humbucker rout, which meant buying a router and stumbling my way through that whole process.
The end result isn't that pretty, there was some slippage and whatnot, but the routs weren't that pretty to begin with (is what I tell myself )
Routing without a template is not recommended for n00bs, btw



It looks like it's been Cobain'ed at some point, judging from the deep screw holes.

Also, the top clear coat is weirdly sticky despite being 20+ years old (supposedly). Some big flakes came off when I removed the vibrato plate, and every time I've removed the control plate, I've had to pry it off.

Haven't seen any trace of the original finish so far, so chances are it's been completely stripped.

[Dulouz]

I've got a 66 that's missing a tuner and I've been in the same boat. Vintage or modern replacement. Still haven't made up my mind.

[Blomberg]

I've got a 66 that's missing a tuner and I've been in the same boat. Vintage or modern replacement. Still haven't made up my mind.

If the other 5 are fine, I'd try and find a vintage set on ebay and hope there's at least one usable one in there (they do seem to be notoriously sketchy from those years). Might get expensive, though.

As for modern replacements, as far as I've found, there (still) doesn't seem to exist a direct replacement for the collarless (small holes) first runs of F-tuners, so the options seem to be:

1. Drill out for modern size collared F-tuners (reissue)
2. Use Kluson/Gotoh vintage style tuners (small holes, but require some new screw holes)
3. Try and find a set of the supposedly compatible Kluson Revolution F Mount No Collar tuners (won't look vintage from the back, though)

The previous owner of mine obviously went with option 2, which is honestly pretty liberating for me, as vintage-looking tuners are somewhat easy to find, even if they won't be vintage-correct to the exact year (I believe 1965 was the last year they used Kluson-style ones on the Mustangs).
I wish he would have left the original screw holes open, though, in case I do decide to get some vintage F-tuners eventually.

--Edit--
BTW, if you do end up going with option 2, think carefully about what you buy. The Kluson Single-lines I bought for mine have turned out to be quite the disappointment. Two of the tuners have a bit/lot of slop/play in them, which is something I absolutely can't stand with tuners, so I have a Gotoh set on the way to replace them.
The Gotoh buttons are a lot whiter than the Klusons, though, but I'll deal with that (or not) when they arrive.

[solfege]

I've got a 66 that's missing a tuner and I've been in the same boat. Vintage or modern replacement. Still haven't made up my mind.

If the other 5 are fine, I'd try and find a vintage set on ebay and hope there's at least one usable one in there (they do seem to be notoriously sketchy from those years). Might get expensive, though.

As for modern replacements, as far as I've found, there (still) doesn't seem to exist a direct replacement for the collarless (small holes) first runs of F-tuners, so the options seem to be:

1. Drill out for modern size collared F-tuners (reissue)
2. Use Kluson/Gotoh vintage style tuners (small holes, but require some new screw holes)
3. Try and find a set of the supposedly compatible Kluson Revolution F Mount No Collar tuners (won't look vintage from the back, though)

The previous owner of mine obviously went with option 2, which is honestly pretty liberating for me, as vintage-looking tuners are somewhat easy to find, even if they won't be vintage-correct to the exact year (I believe 1965 was the last year they used Kluson-style ones on the Mustangs).
I wish he would have left the original screw holes open, though, in case I do decide to get some vintage F-tuners eventually.

--Edit--
BTW, if you do end up going with option 2, think carefully about what you buy. The Kluson Single-lines I bought for mine have turned out to be quite the disappointment. Two of the tuners have a bit/lot of slop/play in them, which is something I absolutely can't stand with tuners, so I have a Gotoh set on the way to replace them.
The Gotoh buttons are a lot whiter than the Klusons, though, but I'll deal with that (or not) when they arrive.

I've seen single vintage F-tuners for sale on ebay/reverb. Still the most reliable option fit-wise, and also not having to modify / degrade the value of a vintage neck-wise.