Cleaning, Restoring a Crusty Japanese Guitar- Sekova? Teisco? No Talking, Sympathetic Restoration

[@ukranianbandura]

Thank you man for reanimating this old six string Japanese lady! Such a satisfying video❤

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

@@ukranianbandura thanks, no guitar left behind!

[@peterkurtze9244]

Great job and vid! I learned to play on the identical guitar about 1965; wouldn't mind finding another, just for old times' sake.

[@theComaCalling]

Very satisfying video! Great work!

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thanks, I appreciate the kind words!

[@joecooper7803]

Had the big brother 4 pickup with a trem version of that. Had an “Ideal”metal badge on it 5 screws in the neck too

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Cool

[@MarkMcCluney]

How did I miss this? Great job Tom and a very enjoyable vid. Thanks mate.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thanks, I enjoyed bringing her back to life.

[@leomilani_gtr]

I like that you kept most of the guitar original, but without changing the frets, the tuners and even adding a truss rod, I'd say this keeps being just a wall ornament.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thanks, it had a truss rod under the chrome cover, if I remember.

[@petarkosovic6455]

Damn these guitars sound organic. Absolutely beautiful. Great job man.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you

[@TuneIn1]

Great work!!

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you

[@ashleycampbell613]

Very nice done - love your work

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

@@ashleycampbell613 thank you, very nice of you to say.

[@innocentoctave]

Nice job. It's always interesting to see how these cheap Japanese guitars degrade over time, and what young impoverished players had to put up with in the days before Squier etc. You brought it back to playing condition, and anything more would be overkill. What a shame that the original pickup was dead: some of them sound good. But really, any low output singlecoil would do as a replacement: the originals aren't magic. I see from the comments that some people don't get it. Restoration is a labour of love. Your time is always the biggest cost. Nobody would do this to make their fortune.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you, yes, everyone has different opinions, just some people are mean expressing them.

[@heraldeventsandfilms5970]

Indeed. The action was so high on cheap guitars that you had to stand on the fretboard to play them.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Yes, very discouraging to a new player.

[@jbrobertson2758]

I really dig the curved side pieces in the original build. Absolutely a great reclamation! Looks very light, how much does it weigh?

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

@@jbrobertson2758 thanks, I'm sorry, I don't remember, I sold or traded this a while ago.

[@vespa64m26]

That was a great watch. Thanks.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thanks for checking it out!

[@mikeandstony]

def the charlie brown Xmas tree of guitars.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank-you

[@andreventurini8055]

Great job, nicely done !

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you!

[@bigkeg9173]

Great job and love the editing Well done, that thing was roached 😅

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you! This was definitely the worst one I've worked on.

[@louisborselio8608]

When you put on that first string, and plucked it, then tapped the string against the fret board. I thought you were gonna play the opening of Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Ha, yeah, I can see that.

[@louisborselio8608]

@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse cool

[@scottsagor674]

Same, that little guitar was going to show us all how it's done (with the Black Sabbath) I'm sure it could with that fat neck P/U - truly shows the value of the sympathetic restore

[@davebauerart]

Nice rescue. Cool how it cleaned up so nice but shows all the age.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you, that was my goal.

[@jimmyz2098]

Another cool vid, Tom! Always great to see anything you put out. So interesting, and a lot of fun. Man... this baby was BEAT DOWN!! And so ugly. LOL It's weird guitar, anyway. And we all now you have a special sweet-spot for these ugly duckling, off-beat guitars, like this one. Well... you cleaned her up, and brought her back to life. Looks so much better, and she's making music once again! So cool.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thanks, I really appreciate you checking it out.

[@briansimpson8116]

You turned garbage into treasure. Good video

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you, as you might have guessed, it was from the garbage. I didn't find it, but gave the guy a $20 that found it. I'm gonna try to get $125 for it locally.

[@briansimpson8116]

@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse Good luck. It looks great.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

@@briansimpson8116 someone is supposed to come get it today.

[@cartoonliker4666]

Excellent job restoring that Teisco electric guitar 🎸🎶👍☺️ Always curious what the Japanese Teisco guitar sounded like. Sounds great though!!

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thanks

[@remydeveze]

nice, I would love to find one of this kind, just to do like you !

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

They're seems to be plenty out there, just got to look on Facebook marketplace and yardsales. Yardsales are probably the best way to find one.

[@skalewilly]

What a great job in this old guitar, great restoration! Congrats!!!

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you!

[@ТатьянаКорешкова-ж7ш]

Очень запущенный инструмент.Удачи!☺️

[@davestahl572]

How reliced do you like your guitars? This poor thing has some character, hopefully it will be taken care of by later owners. These were not expensive guitars new, certainly seen a ton laying in pawn shops that were cheap in the 80's. What they lacked, and they were lacking in various aspects, they did have character and were the first guitar many of us kids then got to learn on. Good job fixing this one up.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you

[@milosbilos3186]

Very nice !

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you!

[@ToddTheJoker]

wow great job....you didnt show what you did to repair the neck pocket crack but anyway if I may ask what is the name of that polish you are using? again great job on the guitar man!

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thanks, I think I just shot some glue in the cracks. For the polish, I just use whatever auto polish that's on sale at the auto parts store.

[@ToddTheJoker]

thank you! great job@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse

[@dancolukdc]

Brilliant. Im currently restoring old guitar. What kind of vinegar did you use forbthe steel

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you! It's just regular distilled white vinegar that you'd get at Walmart or a supermarket.

[@louisborselio8608]

There are two things someone needs to do a job like this. Stuff and skill. And you got both. But if I may ask, why didn't you paint around the edge of the body, and the headstock before applying all the hardware? Is there a part 2?

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you. No, no part 2. On this one I did a sympathetic restoration, meaning just getting it back together and working, without new paint. That guitar had a rough life, and I wanted to show that.

[@louisborselio8608]

@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse I wasn't sure what sympathetic restoration meant. I thought it meant you'll fix it for little or no cost because you feel sorry for someone. Anyway, I thought another youtuber had the same guitar as this, but after paying more attention I see the other guitar has a slant input jack on the pickup guard and a different shaped headstock. Thanks for the explanation.

[@bvfgfvbgch4853]

​@@TomPetersonRefuseReuseI think the sympathetic approach is the right one. Great job! Love these old Teiscos.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

@@bvfgfvbgch4853 thank you

[@Jackofallthetrades]

That looks like the kind of guitars I rescue and repair, too :) Nice job! What was the black bottle of cleaner/polish that you used? I saw two, and not sure what they were. Nice touch with swapping out the old dead pickup with a Fender-looking pickup, and damn near perfect fit :) Any video of you playing the guitar clean instead of the vibrato setting? I'm really curious how it sounds with the newer pickup and not the older dead one, which we've almost all heard before. Impressive!

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you, this was the worst body that I've ever restored, totally rotted and coming apart. The black bottle is Turtle wax polishing compound. As far as a playing demo, that's my weak spot, not a great player, and I get anxious in front of people and even on camera. It's been sold already, so I can't play any demos anymore on it. I have a harmony h804 that I'm currently working on, the single coils work fine, but I might switch them out for some mini humbuckers.

[@brownobservablephenomena]

​@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse can I have the single coils out of your harmony if you do?

[@joshuataft5541]

I had one as a young guy it seemed old then i widh i had those guitars i rmtraded before amthe info on the net

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Cool, yeah, me too. I had some in the 80s and 90s, so they were pretty old then already.

[@rickkutzer1981]

Great job! What did you use to remove the rust from the pick guard?

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thanks, yeah sorry, I used vinegar. Soaked it for a day or so.

[@rickkutzer1981]

@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse thanks! I’ll try that. Keep up the good work.

[@rodlepine233]

those should have had the smaller witch hat knobs but I noticed you only had one in your box of knobs and it was black not white

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

@@rodlepine233 I use whatever I have

[@marcelonavarro2764]

Quedó hermosa 💪🏼💪🏼🎵🎶❤️

[@DonJWalsh]

My dad has this exact guitar. Do you think this is a nitro laquer finish or a poly??

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

I really don't know, you can probably find out by seeing what they used on these Japanese imports back then. I do know that they will crack heavily like nitro, and if you're thinking of painting his, Duplicolor perfect match works well.

[@emeraldguitarist2529]

Could you have shown the innards of the guitar by soldering or maybe just putting the pickups or pickgaurd on

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Yeah, next time

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

I guess in this video, I was mainly focused on the deteriated body. There were things that I did to the body that I wasn't able to show, because the video was too long already. I just showed the highlights.

[@lanceflanagan]

Would you consider routing for a bridge pickup?

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Probably not, I'd just enjoy it as is, but I traded this one away already anyway.

[@Joe-lt7ir]

Looks like Would Have Thrown Out! Oh' Yeah' I Did A 70's Global! I liked When That Piece Of Wood Came Out, You Can Hide Your Dope!😂😂😂😂

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Ok

[@chofo2130]

Mac demarco's carboard queen

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

I had to Google that, yeah, they do look very similar!

[@francoarg3761]

hello friend could you tell me what is the scale of that guitar?

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

I don't have it anymore, I sold it. It was a full size guitar, but the body was very thin and small.

[@marcelonavarro2764]

Quedó hermosa ❤️🎶🎵💪🏼

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you!

[@garetkonigsfeld2]

Who says you can't put lipstick on a pig. Nice job. I just wish you talked. I think it makes a better video. Nice job. Thanks for sharing 👍.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you, it's funny, I like to explain things as I go, but I've gotten comments saying they can't stand my voice, or I drone on. I just figured I'd try this style of video for a while.

[@andrewschilling3287]

Kawai made Sekova

[@serjones-j5g]

ну, здравствуй, Урал!

[@Drzingo]

Kawai brand i think it is

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

They almost all look similar, I did an image search and the body is exactly like a Sekova, but the ones I found had a whale tail head, which was pretty cool looking.

[@Drzingo]

@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse Ok. Nice. 👍

[@СергейМихеев-ь6с]

Очистка гитары старыми трусами к ресторации не имеет никакого отношения!

[@eduardboray9940]

Nach dem Restaurierung schauen genau so kaputt aus wie Vorher. Verrostete Teilen neu verchromen, oder ersetzen, neu furnieren, lackieren.Das wäre was.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

To each his own, some like the look and feel of a legit beaten guitar.

[@goodun2974]

​@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse, this guitar got it's battle scars the old-fashioned way ---- it earned them! 😉 PS, I'm fairly certain I have some New Old Stock metal pickguards similar this one somewhere, though they might be a 2-pickup version. Got a plastic tub full of weird old pickups and such stashed away in the garage, I think......

[@avepunkfloyd7691]

It looks like Teisco Global

[@andrewschilling3287]

Made by Kawai

[@Joe-lt7ir]

It Cost You More Restoring This, Then What It Cost New!😂😂😂😂😂

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

I don't remember what it cost, usually I just use things that I have on hand. I don't spend much on these.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

I had to re-watch, I didn't see anything that I spent money on other than new strings.

[@Memento_maiores]

Cutting the strings is barbaric! Why such a load on the neck?! To change the pickup, but leave the old paintwork and resistors, and then what is the point of such a restoration?

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Wrong

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

It's called a sympathetic restoration, it keeps all of the MOJO obtained over the years, but making it a playable instrument again. There wasn't a lot of tension on the strings, it does no harm whatsoever.

[@AudibleFist]

Bro didn’t even attempt WD-40 to loosen the screws on the pick guard

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Bro might have, can't remember, not everything can be in the video. Then people will say it's too long. Bro took a trashed guitar and got it working.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

If bro did show himself using WD-40 on wood, someone would say bro was an idiot for using it on wood.

[@goodun2974]

​​@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse, heat from a soldering iron applied to the screwhead might help loosen the screws from the wood body; this requires care not to melt a plastic pickguard but the metal pick guard has no such issues. In this particular case however the guitar was exposed to a lot of moisture and the pickquard screws were so rusted in place you might have had no choice but to drill them out, especially If they had been badly chewed up by a previous owner.

[@goodun2974]

​@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse, I suspect the reason so many of these guitars show up with badly chewed screwheads is that they were probably built with JIS , Japanese Industrial Standard, Phillips screws which are somewhat different from an ordinary Phillips (different angles, and shallower screwheads); and many ordinary Philips screwdrivers don't fit them very well (as owners of Japanese motorcycles who attempted to take the carburetor off may have discovered, the hard way). JIS screws were used in most Japanese stereo equipment from the 1960s through to the 90s; They can sometimes be identified by a dot or divot punched into the screwhead but some of them have no identifying marks. I don't actually own any JIS screwdrivers (made by a company called Vessel) but I've discovered that certain impact-rated Phillips drive bits work quite well, Milwaukee in particular (especially if you file off a little bit of the rounded tip of the screwdriver); but those are seldom found in smaller sizes than a number 1 Phillips. Anyway if you work on a Japanese guitar again search through your screwdriver and drive bit collection and see if you can find some that work better than the rest.....

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

@@goodun2974 I work on so much stuff, I honestly don't remember what I might have tried, but I don't worry about that stuff too much. I don't care too much about being gentle with my own stuff, especially one in this condition.

[@hupur]

well at least it sounds worse than it looks

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

You're a sweetheart

[@Nega-Tim]

Oh shit! I have that same sock!

[@ICU2B4UDO]

Let's be honest...That 🎸 is NOT a restoration project, it should be used to stoke a 🏕 🔥...

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Ok, sunshine

[@ICU2B4UDO]

@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse ...I was playing that song before you were born, infant...

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

@@ICU2B4UDO are you ok? You seem like you have issues, I'm sorry.

[@ICU2B4UDO]

@@TomPetersonRefuseReuse ...You seem pathetic, I'm not sorry...

[@JimWright1950]

Great job! What did you soak the metal parts in?

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Thank you! It's just regular white vinegar, it sucks the rust out after a few days.