NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Discussion of vintage Jazzmasters, Jaguars, Bass VIs, Electric XIIs and any other offset-waist instruments.
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antisymmetric
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NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by antisymmetric » Fri Jan 30, 2015 6:04 pm

Finally joined the SG-2/3 club! This thing is beautiful- all original, such a nice guitar. These Yamahas are so beautifully made, truly a cut above the rest. I've had some fun with it with my mediocre playing skills, 3 friends who are good players haven't wanted to put it down.
I've given the truss rod a tweak, cleaned and lubed the bridge, and replaced the congealed/ fossilised foam under the pickups, and it's good to go. I'll replace the zero fret next, and maybe do a re-fret, but it's nice enough as is.
I got it from Found Sound in Melbourne, Australia, great shop and a pleasure to deal with btw. All because I checked Anthony's site (Harvester) to see what he was up to, saw a pic of one of his guitars their window with a link to the shop underneath, clicked the link, and.....doomed. :fp: ;D
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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by Gavanti » Fri Jan 30, 2015 6:17 pm

That's absolutely gorgeous! Well done.

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by windmill » Fri Jan 30, 2015 6:18 pm

Congratulations

Looks like the original case and trem arm as well.

What do you think of the shape of the neck ?

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by Stereordinary » Fri Jan 30, 2015 7:34 pm

Beautiful! :-*
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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by Jaguar018 » Fri Jan 30, 2015 7:42 pm

I think that's the only guitar I still have serious, continual GAS for. 8) :?

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by druunkonego » Fri Jan 30, 2015 8:35 pm

! Awesome. :freako:

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Sat Jan 31, 2015 1:02 am

That's a looker!

Ben (theworkoffire) showed me some of the design details on Yamaha guitars that make them that little bit special - trem unit arguably better than a Jazzmaster. Neck plate with truss rod access etc...

Congratulations!
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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by HorseyBoy » Sat Jan 31, 2015 12:36 pm

Great score! Looks pretty much identical to the 67 I picked up in Japan, although mine came in a different (still Yamaha) case. Mine also needed the foam under the pups replaced (it had pretty much disintegrated), the zero fret replaced and I'm thinking about a re-fret, too! :) I think the frets on these were very small and low to begin with but vintage-sized JM frets would be a good fit with the guitar.
The one thing I've had problems with is strings slipping side to side in the nut slots, causing 'pinging' on the zero fret. Be really interested to know if yours does the same. And, if you get a chance, I'd LOVE it if you could take pics of the rhythm circuit controls whenever you have the guard off. One of mine has been re-wired and I'd love to know what it's supposed to look like.

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by Gavanti » Sat Jan 31, 2015 1:42 pm

HorseyBoy wrote:Great score! Looks pretty much identical to the 67 I picked up in Japan, although mine came in a different (still Yamaha) case. Mine also needed the foam under the pups replaced (it had pretty much disintegrated), the zero fret replaced and I'm thinking about a re-fret, too! I think the frets on these were very small and low to begin with but vintage-sized JM frets would be a good fit with the guitar.
The one thing I've had problems with is strings slipping side to side in the nut slots, causing 'pinging' on the zero fret. Be really interested to know if yours does the same. And, if you get a chance, I'd LOVE it if you could take pics of the rhythm circuit controls whenever you have the guard off. One of mine has been re-wired and I'd love to know what it's supposed to look like.
I really like this version of the case--it looks much more portable than the one I got. The early Yamaha cases in general had pretty cool design, like everything else about them. Mine pings at the zero fret too, mostly on D string bends.

I took a few pics of the wiring last time I had the pickguard off. I'm not certain how clear the photos are as they were just quick reference shots, and the close up of the rhythm circuit missed the switch. Just links below so as not to distract from the NGD guitar, but we should start a mint on sunburst SG thread sometime:

http://i905.photobucket.com/albums/ac25 ... qxizxj.jpg
http://i905.photobucket.com/albums/ac25 ... cg5ji9.jpg

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by HorseyBoy » Sat Jan 31, 2015 3:05 pm

^ Thanks, man.
My case is different again!
You know, we should probably start a dedicated SG-2/SG-3 thread. There's some great info about these guitars on OSG but it's spread all over the place and is often difficult to find. Be nice to consolidate it all in one place…

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by surfin_bird » Sun Feb 01, 2015 11:43 am

HorseyBoy wrote:^ Thanks, man.
My case is different again!
You know, we should probably start a dedicated SG-2/SG-3 thread. There's some great info about these guitars on OSG but it's spread all over the place and is often difficult to find. Be nice to consolidate it all in one place…
Yes this. Maybe for all the 60's yamaha's. Maybe a picture thread and an info thread ;D

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by Gavanti » Sun Feb 01, 2015 12:24 pm

HorseyBoy wrote:^ Thanks, man.
My case is different again!
You know, we should probably start a dedicated SG-2/SG-3 thread. There's some great info about these guitars on OSG but it's spread all over the place and is often difficult to find. Be nice to consolidate it all in one place…
Definitely. We should grab past useful links for the first post and maybe add some details on hardware (neck radius, screw threads? types of cases, etc). And of course, lots of pics! Should we start with a shared Google Doc to organize initial links and details or just start posting and updating?

I'd be into a 60s Yammy thread as well, and I know SuperAxe would have some great info, but it does present a section posting problem, since only the SG's are offsets (my Hag III got kicked out of Vintage). Maybe a SG thread here in vintage and a thread for AE's and SA's in offset?

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by Gavanti » Sun Feb 01, 2015 12:30 pm

antisymmetric wrote: I got it from Found Sound in Melbourne, Australia, great shop and a pleasure to deal with btw. All because I checked Anthony's site (Harvester) to see what he was up to, saw a pic of one of his guitars their window with a link to the shop underneath, clicked the link, and.....doomed.
That shop is evil (as in incredible). I'm kind of glad I live so far away from that Maton Fyrbyrd.

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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by antisymmetric » Mon Feb 02, 2015 9:11 pm

:) Glad you all like it, I certainly do! I've had it nearly a week now, and keep noticing new details. Yamaha took the JM/Jag concept and lifted the bar a few notches for sure.
windmill wrote: What do you think of the shape of the neck ?
Feels comfortable to me, although the frets are quite low (exposing my poor chord technique :-[ )7.25" radius, just a shade off 42mm at nut, 55mm at body end. I'm not too good at describing necks, but I'd say quite a slender rounded back, no shoulders as such.
PorkyPrimeCut wrote: Ben (theworkoffire) showed me some of the design details on Yamaha guitars that make them that little bit special - trem unit arguably better than a Jazzmaster. Neck plate with truss rod access etc...
Yeah there are those things and more- the bridge is a really nice piece of work, the trem -as well as being so nicely made- is designed to pull the strings down to the body more, creating better break angle than the Fender trem (or so a quick eyeball + measure tells me).the guitar's got the stamp of craftsmanship/finesse everywhere I've looked so far.
HorseyBoy wrote: The one thing I've had problems with is strings slipping side to side in the nut slots, causing 'pinging' on the zero fret. Be really interested to know if yours does the same. And, if you get a chance, I'd LOVE it if you could take pics of the rhythm circuit controls whenever you have the guard off. One of mine has been re-wired and I'd love to know what it's supposed to look like.
Mine has the same typical zero-fret problem, hopefully it'll vanish with a new fret. I'll take some pics when I have the guard off, in the meantime I can at least tell you that mine works on the neck pickup, the rollers seem to be vol/tone. (I'm assuming it's still the original setup)
Gavanti wrote:
I really like this version of the case--it looks much more portable than the one I got. The early Yamaha cases in general had pretty cool design, like everything else about them.
The case is a little design triumph too- I didn't notice at first that one side has a gentle curve to it.The fixtures inside the case to keep the guitar in place are made from clear plastic (acrylic?) with velvet covering the contact points. There's a lug on the floor of the case under where the upper horn of the guitar sits- I didn't know what it was for until I realised that the strap button had been moved by someone to the side of the horn (as in the pics I posted). I've since moved it back to it's original place on the back of the horn, and it locates inside the lug- a simple/clever way of keeping the guitar snugly held in place inside the case. 8) I've noticed from online pics of cases like mine that they have a separate zippered pouch inside the case, beside where the neck goes. Mine's missing, but the velcro for locating it is still there, so I'll find some leather or vinyl of the appropriate shade and get one made. The outside of the case was so dirty that I wasn't sure what colour it was meant to be, so I've been cleaning it with Marine Clean. So much dirt has come out of the vinyl, nearly all out now, and I know I have a black case.
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Re: NGD- '66 Yamaha SG-2

Post by SuperAxe » Tue Feb 03, 2015 12:20 am

I think all the words have been said above.... so I just say stunning.
If you are in Orcs I am happy to help out. That way I get to see it in person...

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