1984 Ibanez RS130 | Part 2

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Full Refret

This post is the second of a five-part series on a gloss black Ibanez Roadstar II RS130 Strat-styled guitar. In this post, I will focus on the full refret carried out. To start off, this guitar's frets appeared to be original, and as expected, were terribly worn and in need of replacement. The back of the neck, as well as the fingerboard face and edges; were scarred and pitted.

To compound the situation, the original lacquer had chipped off in several places, and the exposed maple there had become blackened; a sure sign that decay was setting in. After removing the original frets, I sanded the whole neck lightly and cleaned the fret slots of gunk and other debris. In the process, I also smoothed out the chipped finish, and sanded off any decayed wood I found.

I then ran water-thin superglue under the edges of the cracked finish to seal them. Superglue was also used to even out the pitted and scarred wood surface, especially along the fingerboard edges. Having taken care of that, I refretted the neck as I usually do, using Fender "Jumbo Guitar" fret wire.

1984 Ibanez RS130 | Part 1

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Overview

This is the first of a five-part series on a gloss black Ibanez Roadstar II RS130 Strat-style guitar. As such, this post will only focus on its main features. In subsequent posts, I will share details of the various repairs carried out, namely the [2] refret, [3] neck refinishing, [4] bodywork; and [5] rewiring. Now, let's look at the main features of this Japanese beauty.

Series: Roadstar II Standard
Serial No: C843679
Place of Manufacture: Terada Plant, Japan
Year: 1984
Body: Basswood/Birch
Neck: 22 frets, 1 piece maple
Nut: Graphite
Machine Heads: Smooth Tuner II
Scale: 25.5"
Pickups: Three Super 5 (SSS)
Controls: Master volume, Master tone, 5 way pup selector switch
Bridge: Brass I (fixed, top loading)
Control Knobs: Sure Grip II
Strap Buttons: Ibanez Dead End
Hardware: Chrome
Finish: BK (Gloss Black)

Jack & Danny Brothers JDL380

Here's a 24 fret rosewood board strat-style guitar by Jack & Danny Brothers. It had been lying unused, cold and naked in a dark corner of a rehearsal studio for quite awhile. The whole instrument was covered in a layer of dust and grime, which I had to painstakingly remove with naphta (Zippo lighter fluid). I really wish that people would take better care of their guitars, and not leave them naked and exposed to the elements. Even a cheap gig bag would be sufficient, you know.

Continuing our tale, the twin pivoted tremolo bridge showed signs of serious corrosion. That being the case, it took lots of elbow grease, steel wool, sandpaper, plus Autosol to get it looking presentable again. Luckily for me, the 12 saddle height adjustment and 6 intonation screws had not yet frozen in place, and a little WD40 had them turning smoothly again. The tremolo arm was also missing, so I went with a fixed bridge setup by adding another spring, screwing the trem claw flush with the body, and lowering the twin pivot posts. The electronics were pretty straightforward: two humbuckers, pup selector switch, master volume and tone controls.

Amongst the features I really liked about this guitar, besides the recessed bolt-on neck joint, was the thin dark brown body finish. It was velvety smooth and you could even see/feel the wood grain. Nice touch. Finally, as the truss rod was working, I managed to straighten the neck, and after action/intonation adjustment and a string change (009s); returned this JDL380 to its owner. But not before giving him a stern reminder to keep it in a gig bag when not in use. 'Nuff said, let's look at some pics.

    

2007 American Series Stratocaster

This segment focuses on a Chrome Red 2007 American Series Stratocaster. It was a smooth player, thanks to the rolled fingerboard edges. However, a couple of problems needed to be addressed. Among these were badly tarnished frets, a dead neck pickup, messy wiring (someone had taken a soldering iron to the innards); and a worn-out 2nd (Delta Tone) tone control. I ended up restringing this strat, resetting the action/intonation, replacing the neck pickup and tone control, rewiring the electronics; and giving the frets a good clean and polish. Now, let's take a look at some specs, as sourced from the Fender Frontline 2006 Catalog (pp. 60 - 61) and Fender Forums.

Specifications

Model Name: American Stratocaster®
Series: American Series
Body: Alder
Neck: Maple, Modern “C” Shape, Satin Polyurethane Finish
Fingerboard: Maple, 9.5” Radius, hand-rolled fingerboard edges
No. of Frets: 22 Medium Jumbo
Scale Length: 25.5”
Width at Nut: 1.6875”
Hardware: Chrome
Machine Heads: Fender®/Schaller® Deluxe Staggered Cast/Sealed Tuning Machines
Bridge: American 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with Stainless Steel Saddles
Pickups: 3 American Strat® Single-Coil Pickups
Pickup Switching: 5-Position Blade
Controls: 

Master Volume, Tone 1 (Neck Pickup), Tone 2 (Delta Tone)*

*The “Delta Tone” system includes a high output bridge pickup and "No-Load" tone control for Middle and Bridge Pickups

Special Features

• Staggered tuning machines which "provide more of an angle over the nut for better tuning."
• Original contour body made of solid, non-veneered alder; "providing more resonance and tone."
• Stamped neck plate.
• Micro-Tilt™ adjustment, which "acts like a shim allowing the player to adjust the tilt of the neck."
• Rolled-edge neck for "smooth playing action."

Ibanez GSR200 Neck Repair | Super Glue Refinish

Technical Specs
Manufacturer Part Number: GSR200JB
Date of Manufacture: August 21, 2008   
Body Shape: SR
Color: Jewel Blue (JB)
Body Material: Agathis
Body Finish: Urethane
Scale Length: 34"
Number/Size of Frets: 22, Medium
Fingerboard: Rosewood, 12" Radius
Fingerboard Inlay: Dots
Neck: Maple, Bolt-on
Neck Shape: GSR4
Nut Width: 1.614"
Bridge/Tailpiece: B10
Number of Pickups: 2
Middle Pickup: POWERSOUND P Single-coil
Bridge Pickup: POWERSOUND J Single-coil
Controls: PhatII EQ, Volume, Tone, Volume

References
Ibanez GSR200 - Jewel Blue

The neck/headstock scarf joint and part of the fingerboard on this Ibanez GSR200 had come unglued. The only thing holding things together was the truss rod. As the bass had been played in this condition for quite some time, the end of the fingerboard did not line up with the neck any more (lateral displacement). Besides this, both the fingerboard and frets were grimy and in need of lots of TLC.

After prepping the joint, it was reglued and clamped for two days. I also used a small C-clamp to realign the end of the fingerboard with the neck. After unclamping, it was time to clean up excess glue and start sanding down the repaired areas. Finally, the repaired area was refinished with super glue, waxed, and hand polished. While I was at it, I managed to de-grime the fingerboard with naptha (Zippo lighter fluid) and polish the frets with Autosol. That's about it. Thanks for reading, now let's look at some pics.