Cort MR600F Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar

Nice made-in-China guitar, this. Dreadnought with a Venetian Cutaway, solid Sitka Spruce top, Mahogany neck, back and sides; Ovangkol fretboard and bridge, body binding, Fishman preamp. What's not to like?

Now, the bad news. The Fishman preamp was dead as a dodo. The guitar was also covered in a year's worth of dust and grime. Guess it'd been hanging on a wall all this time. And don't get me started about the fretboard and frets, please. In any case, it was a guitar worth saving. Actually, the owner asked for a cheap and easy fix, and so that's the route I took.

The preamp remained dead despite my best efforts to revive it, so that was that. Then I disconnected the piezo pickup from the preamp and soldered it directly to the output jack, and there was sound! So now he'd just have to control output and tone from the amp he's plugged into. Yes, a cheap and easy fix indeed.

The guitar was cleaned up and polished with Gibson Guitar Polish, the fretboard degunked and reconditioned with lemon oil; and the frets given the Autosol treatment. After stringing her up with a fresh set of 10s, this Cort MR600F was good to go.

Taylor 214CE-G Acoustic-Electric Guitar

Here's a fine made-in-Mexico acoustic-electric that not only has the looks; but plays just as well. It was brought in for cleaning and polishing, fretboard reconditioning; as well as a setup. The guitar was nestled in a sturdy plush foam-lined "Taylor Quality Guitars" gig bag that could best be described as a semi-hardshell case. 

Curious about its specs, I did some research online and found lots of useful information on Taylor Guitars and Reverb. Strangely enough, there's no information on the kind of wood used for the bridge. I'll hazard a guess that it's some species of rosewood or ebony. Well then, let's take a look at some of the more pertinent characteristics of the Taylor 214CE-G.

Body
Shape: Grand Auditorium with Venetian Cutaway
Length: 20"
Width: 16"
Depth: 4-5/8"
Top: Solid Sitka Spruce (Natural Gloss Finish)
Back/Sides: Layered Indian Rosewood (Satin Finish)
Bracing: Forward Shifted Pattern
Soundhole Decoration: Three-Ring Rosette
Pickguard: Faux Tortoiseshell
Binding: Black/White/Black(Top), White (Back and Heel Cap)

Neck
Material: Tropical Mahogany (Satin Finish)
Width: 1-11/16"
Joints: Neck/Headstock - Scarf Joint, Neck/Body - NT Neck Joint
Heel Length: 3-1/2"

Fretboard
Material: West African Crelicam Ebony
Nut: Nubone
Scale Length: 25-1/2"
Radius: 15"
No. of Frets: 20
Inlays: 4mm Dot Italian Acrylic

Headstock
Peghead Overlay: Layered Indian Rosewood
Tuners: Die-Cast Chrome
Truss Rod Cover: Rosewood

Bridge
Material: Solid Wood
Black Bridge Pins
Micarta Saddle

Electronics
Taylor Expression System® Preamp
9V Battery Box/Endpin Jack Combo