Battle scarred Martin D-28, time for a setup

[@twoodfrd]

**************ADDENDUM!!!! I can't believe I neglected to put in the scene where I measured the neck relief. It was .008". This sometimes happens. So many individual shots.

[@voltairegoethe]

forgiven... mastery luthery... not video production. Thanks for all these. Let Freedom Strings Ring!

[@JC-11111]

That pickguard came out great, Ted!

[@MikeGervasi]

I knew it had to be the first thing you did but you already that knew WE knew :)

[@dnantis]

I have a very early 1960's D-28 but it was in very bad shape but i sent it for rebuild and it came our 98% good but it did not had the original pickguard ! Tod .... Would you be so kind to tell me what original color this pickguard came in this 1960s era ? I believe it was black like this one ! My guitar had one but in vinyl black cut exactly to the same specs so i threw that one away and now this is the only thing to be close to a 100% Martin D-28 !! Thanks in adavanced and yes..... you are one of my best YT channels for my guitar rebuild curiosity !

[@twoodfrd]

@@dnantis they came with a reddish-brown swirl from the mid 50's until 1967, then they went to black. The guards are more red than the 30's,40's or 50's. It's hard to find just the right color.

[@daveschalch4055]

Young man. I’ve been playing acoustic guitar since 1969. You have perfectly described issues with the guitar, and how to repair them. Your video was not only informative but, accurate and precise. There was no extra embellishment to illustrate how smart you are, but a perfect amount of explanation to hit home your point. Well done.

[@maltesetony9030]

Really good, informative video. The commentary on the bridge (from @11:45) was a real eye-opener.

[@davidwinokur2131]

Question: How many luthiers does it take to change a light bulb? Answer: All of them - One to actually change the bulb and the rest to talk about how they would have done it.

[@MustObeyTheRules]

That’s literally any skilled trade. Everyone wants to feel important.

[@michaelrice500]

I only use genuine 1957 Westinghouse 50 Watt Arbuckle-thread T-77B lightbulbs. You can't get them any longer; that's why they cost so much. I use the proper factory tooling to install them, of course.

[@PhilbyFavourites]

@@michaelrice500 Westinghouse, now that’s a real American brand 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@wrenchhead4378]

@@michaelrice500 habhabha habah. !!!! Nicely said.... my grandfather was a glass blower and engineer and made transistor tubes for westinghouse

[@Chuck-Bob]

Lol

[@the_releaser]

A handy tip to get off heavy adhesive like that off things is to use just ordinary household self raising flour. It will stick to the adhesive and you can easily roll it off along with the adhesive. It's much easier and less stickier than just rolling the adhesive by itself. Then you just hoover/brush up the excess flour and give a final clean up with naphtha or lighter fluid and polish it up and it's good as new. In my day job I use flour to clean grease off kitchen equipment that can't be gotten wet like parts of a microwave, deep fat friers, delicate parts of evens etc. Works just as well to get adhesive off guitars.

[@mattburnett7153]

I'm here for the awesome content and the ASMR quality of your voice which I find soothing

[@skipzimmerman]

This was really helpful. I'm a 40-year player who has only recently started to have pros look at my guitars. You helped me understand why taking them to a luthier for a setup is so much more important than just hydrating the instrument, changing the strings, cleaning my fretboard and monkeying with the truss rod at home. I'm a beginner in SO many ways! Thank you!

[@Goomer]

I'm 64 and have been ripping apart and building guitars since the 60's (Woolworth guitars). I always learn and appreciate your work aesthetic.

[@67ratsrule]

Wow! This was such an enlightening post! Now I have so much respect for the luthier that fixed my mom’s 66 D28! The factory did new frets, bridge and headstock repair in 83, then it recently had the headstock fixed again (it was coming undone) and the neck reset. I took it to a luthier a few months ago to address some buzzing on C chords. Felllow measured all the way up and down, played it, looked it up and down, and told me it was my hand position. I was flabbergasted. He could have taken my money and just cleaned the guitar. He told me I was likely gripping too tight or not getting good position. Martins are special for a reason. My mom’s is definitely a player. It has never been a case queen. Thank you for posting this video.

[@jswear2077]

Something I've noticed is that you know exactly what to play at the end to showcase the work you've done. Thank you for sharing all your wisdom. I am going to systematically chisel then ends off of all my bridge pins. Great tip!

[@akfisher7138]

How does that help? I was a bit confused by that bit. Thanks

[@brucelang1201]

It allways amazes me the patience these guys have.I can understand doing something like this once but that's it,doing it everyday as or for a living is totally different.

[@gregoryguitars6291]

After a long day of teaching lutherie, I watch a few of your vids. Thanks for keeping me sane.

[@jacobday493]

The quality and attention to detail of your work definitely merits a higher cost for a setup. I work at an American major music realtor that does guitar setups and we charge $65 ($85.02 CA) for a basic setup, that doesn't come close to your level. Raise costs, your work is worth well more.

[@TheGlickening]

Or you guys should learn his ways. More bang for buck for the player. 😁

[@susanroycroft89]

Well said Lucas,Don here from Hamilton NZ on my Wife's tablet (Susan) Most guitarists are not very wealthy, and simply Can't afford expensive setups

[@nikdrown]

Yeah and that’s why I don’t take my stuff to be worked on in places that sell guitars like that unless I know who’s doing it is beyond basic setup.

[@davidg9165]

I absolutely love this channel. This guy is a master of his craft, so rare these days. I watch 1-3 episodes per day. I wish I had your knowledge twoodfrd.

[@soulicide8150]

I sit here and trip out just how knowledgeable this guy is. I have never seen someone truly master their craft and just deliver incredible results time and time again. A joy to watch . Cheers!

[@spinelldete]

Thank you very much for your wisdom and humor (in that particular order)!

[@briguy1960]

One of the best setup vids I have ever seen. I followed along with my D28 in hand and enjoyed your vid very much. Great work

[@billybober1812]

glad to see your right thumb injury is on the mend...that looks like a bleeder for sure....love your vids...billy from North Carolina.

[@mattfleming2287]

Thank you for being such a calm voice during troubled times . Love your videos.

[@connorbettge3810]

the top on that Martin is just gorgeous. glad to see her getting the love and maintenance she deserves

[@sferguson1130]

Just found your channel. I can’t enough of listening to folks who are truly experts in their field. So much knowledge to be gained from you. Thanks!

[@jerrytee2688]

You are the master, I learn at least one thing from every episode. The bridge-pin tweak was the thing here. "Po-wing", 😀

[@tommypetraglia4688]

You woke up my cat with the squeeky part. The adhesive appeared to be gum based. Perhaps a citrus cleaner or Goo Gone. Another fine vid. The thing is I am not a luthier, nor even do I play, but I've watched nearly all your videos, and you do such an outstanding explanations of every repair that this set-up was reveiw for me. Also I nodded out last night with the earbuds in around minute 4, so I had to finish catching this a.m.

[@RoyZenzo]

My 1 year old daughter love your videos, they are so calming)

[@SuperNarcissius]

Again today I've learned something new about crowning groved frets without lowering their height. Thanks for the lessons. Leo

[@RAkers-tu1ey]

Really thorough, rich, and professional. I am going to have to watch it a few times to get everything.

[@susanroycroft89]

Don here from Hamilton NZ on my Wife's tablet (Susan) thanks for your very simple and Logical explanation ( break/angel, string/ height etc.)

[@josephpedroza632]

I love these videos... want to learn as much as possible from different guitar luthiers for my own repair purposes.

[@ericrickert3045]

For my martin D12-28 (from 1975), the pick-guard started to shrink and pull away from the top. Since I was the original owner, this was covered under the life-time warranty and it was repaired at no cost (new pick-guard installed and top refinished). Other than that, both of my Martin guitars have been flawless. This was very informative. Thanks!

[@rawjaw1881]

I love your videos so much. I’ve been getting into instrument repair in the last 5 years and since I’ve found your channel, I really take to stringed instruments. Found a martin for $15 (at goodwill) from 2013 and the height was atrocious. Your previous video on this showed me the proper way to go about shaving the the saddle down. My favorite guitar now.

[@robertamato358]

That’s some pretty flame on that spruce top! Great post as always! 👏👏

[@leftoverking]

snap! bevel on the bottom of the bridge pin, great trick.

[@Gibgraf]

Really great work! Your common sense approach and attention to detail are inspiring. Thank you for sharing.

[@1after]

Love the humor 😂 just give us the numbers…. A master of his craft. Thanks

[@SmiTTyy-sh8nc]

Somebody really neglected that beautiful guitar.... glad it made it's way to you. Once again shinning and sounding like the gem that it is !!!

[@Bextra242]

For that stubborn adhesive I tend to use wd-40, it's oily enough to penetrate under the glue layer but at the same time it's easy to clean it off. There's also spray cans of adhesive remover, which I prefer when I have to take the badges off the cars I work on for polishing

[@bigrickRC1144]

Another great video Boss.. the level of detail you give everyone is so great. It’s impressive the level of knowledge from your first hand experience is a luthiers treasure. Please keep up the great work. Never get tired of watching your work sir.

[@alepwalling]

This Luthier Guy is special. New Subscriber here . you are Professional, Sensitive , Your camera angle in the video is so good, The way you treat the Guitar is Smooth and caring. Love from India Pal

[@rogersorensen5225]

Thanks for the great videos! Regarding the adhesive residue on the pickguard, we have a product here that is called "Goo Gone". It comes in a little bottle and it will take that stuff off. I use it to clean the residue off my windshield when I replace the licensing stickers each year.

[@tommylitchfield3450]

That is one fine top! That grain is amazing!

[@michellessard7047]

Thank you Ted 😊 for another awesome and very informative video ! 😊👍👍 Cheers from Alberta 💖

[@VictoryGuitarShop]

Lots of good information. A note about intonation compensation. While the act of pushing down a string does increase the pitch of the string, intonation compensation is also needed because of the physical characteristics of each sting. The thicker the string is the less elastic it is, therefore the thicker strings have a "dead" spot where it passes over the saddle. It doesn't actually vibrate at this point, but further away from the saddle. With an electric adjustable bridge you can see this pattern. The wound string's saddle all shift up a bit at a fairly consistent pattern but once the strings change to plain steel, which is more stiff than wound, the saddle jumps back a bit. The remaining plain steel strings will then continue to shift in a fairly consistent pattern also. A Classical guitar with nylon strings needs no slant to its saddle because all the strings have generally all the same flexibility.

[@davidherringgo]

Beautiful sounding Martin, thank you for the tutorial. I learned some things.

[@FC-cz6zd]

Classic D-28 sound, beautiful.

[@theeuglyduckling9476]

Thank you indeed. Just yesterday I levelled the frets on my strat style guitar and did a proper setup. It was my first electric although I bought it secondhand. I could not agree more when you mentioned that it's not always about the recommended specs but about what you can get away with. It was only after I saw those very numbers when I realised the high action (that I'm used to by now) was preventing buzzing on the lower strings (even after making several saddle adjustments and checking both the neck and the nut.) I'm by no means a pro but you along with several others on this platform inspired me to start somewhere.

[@randolphpatterson5061]

No way I'd ever be critical of your nice work, Ted. But I noticed there was little or no mention of checking & adjusting neck relief (maybe too complicated of an issue if that Martin had only the square tube tension rod), nor any demonstration of using a long straightedge atop the fretboard to see if the ruler lands in the sweet spot on or a little above the top of the bridge, to check for whether or not there's a need for a neck reset. I know you've covered those topics in other videos. And again, I'm not complaining. It's only that you'd said at the outset that you wanted to put all of the elements of a setup in one video. Thanks tons, for inspiring me to find confidence in the quality of my repairs. I want at least some of my customers to watch your videos. It can help them understand the reasons behind my recommended repairs. I want them to be informed, so that they can feel confidence in their guitar, too.

[@garcemac]

From a mainly electric player, that little bridge pin tip earns you my gratitude, Ted. I am ALWAYS cursed with "twangs" when replacing stings on my acoustic.

[@rustyaxelrod]

In your local automotive store you may find a product called Blaster DSR (Decal and Sticker Remover). I’ve used it many times and found it safe on most guitar finishes. Even so, I am careful to only get where I want it. If you are familiar with solvent types, it’s a citrus product that smells like oranges. It comes in a spray can and I spritz a dime size wet spot on a rag over my finger for good control of the application. I do more poly finish electric guitar work and have found it didn’t damage that type of finish if I slip but I do wipe up immediately. It is very quick and effective but it can leave a thin oily residue that must be removed as a second step. Alcohol works well for that. Enjoyed the video and nice guitar 👍

[@Skulllywag]

I also prefer the products made for sticker removal, I use "Sticker off!", and it does a great job. I don't think I'd ever us WD-40 as some have suggested...I'm not a fan of using petroleum based products on plastics.

[@ziggylayneable]

I enjoy watching guitar says videos. I have to tell you my friend after watching a million channels you run the back channel on KZbin and I'm being serious as hell the knowledge that you had to disperse is so much fun to watch. I could never do this. Except maybe change volume pots

[@frederickthompson8686]

One of the most insightful set-up videos I've seen. I own a similar guitar -- a 1993 HD-28 -- and have done a few adjustments on my own, with some success. This video gave me some new perspective on the entire process, especially the finer points of adjustment and intonation. Regarding intonation, I'm usually content to ignore it, and have never heard any complaints. I also have a 1960 Martin 00-18 and it's had dodgy intonation since day one. A neck reset in the early 90s only made matters worse, but as long as I fiddle with the tuning and keep the capo above the fifth fret I can usually get away with it!

[@RickJones222]

The most successful videos on YT have interesting content, good videography, and pleasing presentation. You have those, brother! Always great!

[@elklakeradio8776]

Amazing work... I wish you lived in my town! That martin now looks and sounds lovely without losing any of its played in character.

[@jonathanmartin3375]

I could hear the almighty tone when you were scraping the adhesive off the pickguard by hand. I hope that didn't get altered :)

[@jordonbarrybaker]

Lol. Smartass. Lol

[@jordonbarrybaker]

Lol. I love the comment area almost as much as the video's. Smartass's

[@JoDoDesigns2011]

I really enjoy your videos, and the tone of your voice, is calming. Like I said before I just started playing again after about 20 years off, mostly rhythm to sing.

[@robertturner5138]

Nice work. Beautiful sound!

[@arctichare8185]

Another great video. (I have a D-28, nice to see one worked being on.)

[@toysbackzen]

Try pure almond oil for conditioning, works well and no buildup. Thanks for your tips, I always learn new approaches for tackling guitar problems. Raise your prices!

[@Timoteo53575]

3-M "adhesive cleaner" or DuPont PrepSol works immediately on gummy adhesive. No harsh solvents, will not resolvate old finish unless left on for hours. It evaporates slowly so no rush. Any auto body supplier will have it. Thanks, always fascinating videos!

[@Wheel333]

Great episode I learned a lot thank you 🙏❤️🙏

[@awoodford462]

Thanks Ted, I appreciate the little footnote in the anthology that is your channel. Reading the comments there are many great Adhesive removal suggestions...but I get you proceed as you do. Melting the finish or pick guard with a chemical reaction created by good intentions wouldn’t be a great follow up repair video. 60 for the setup is cheap. The wealth of time and effort and trials it took to build the knowledge and skill you share with those who clamour for your videos... is truly priceless. Thanks for what you do.

[@CaptainRon1913]

Lars is really good too, if you haven't seen his work kzbin.info/www/bejne/lZ-QipSelKtqfNU

[@Claytone-Records]

CaptainRon1913, Thanks for the Lars link. His work is impressive.

[@donaldholman9070]

Thank you so much for another great video! That glue on the pick guard should be on tires to reduce wear...lol

[@laddlll]

nice work thanks for helping us learn

[@arnienonymous4458]

Well, it certainly didn't lose any personality through the setup. Thanks for the blow-by-blow on the process!

[@jixxxxer17]

great video enjoyed your discourse and watching you spruce up that battled scarred D 28, Peace !

[@BrianKlobyGuitar]

Nice... great sounding guitar :)

[@shaundevine1950]

May I suggest R-M 901 plastic prep solvent. I work in an autobody shop and I've personally found that nothing comes close to it's effectiveness while being plastic safe when it comes to removing stubborn adhesives and tar. Their reducers and 900 metal paint prep cleaners are great too if you do a bit of touch up on resonators frequently enough to justify a gallon on the shelf.

[@gregf438]

I really love your videos bro. Thanks for the content 😊

[@garybrady9531]

I had to clean a pick guard that'd had one applied over the old one and found it easy once I applied Ernie Ball polish which also removed the white ceiling paint specks from a J45 leaving just the factory finish

[@MichaelLloyd]

That was a nice sounding guitar. Nice work!

[@TheAlanSaunders]

Thank you for your excellent demonstrations of the skill, experience and time that it takes to repair and set up a guitar. I am confident working to tight tolerances in any material but having some typical starting point is useful. Every instrumentalist should be able to do basic maintenance on their instrument. For more technical adjustments you demonstrate what we can expect from our local luthier. $60 CAD (£35 GBP) for a one hour setup? Here in the UK independant garages charge >£50/hr and main dealers ~£200/hr! I believe your skills are worth more than that. The whole concept of either an hourly or 'piece' rate is counterproductive. You could do an excellent job in an hour for $60/hr and I could spend two hours doing a poor job for $100/hr! In the UK there is a rule-of -thumb for self-employment, an employer will provide you with work space, tools and benefits equal to your salary. i.e. If you can command $40/hr as an employee you need to charge $80/hr. You are a sucker for assisting the 'hard up musicians' who can afford to own a multi thousand dollar guitar but want to pay you bottom dollar to achieve its value!

[@tlhome7565]

Nice, thanks for all the tips. Very usefuil.

[@kylecarman4809]

I didn’t take the time to read all of the comments, but have you ever tried WD40 or Kreoil to remove glue/adhesives? I know you use a few different adhesives, but the kreoil has worked on a lot of the common adhesives for me. I dig your trade, brother. I love seeing old school tradework and the mastering of the skill. Thank you for allowing us to be a witness to your craftsmanship.

[@kevinohalloran7164]

To your last sentence, "Hear, hear!" Totally concur!

[@60sfoley]

Thanks for the video, its amazing to see how you work on such a high end guitar.

[@nicolen.9642]

So...I have lemon oil and d"'Addario lotion. Here in France the guitar store (where I live) doesn't carry linseed oil. I'd have to buy a whole jug (don't know where either...hardware store doesn't have it either...). Online from here same story, just lemon oil (Dunlop) or d'Addario. I'm glad Ted you mention lemon oil. Thanks 👍🎶🎶🎶

[@yanhasmut4005]

Omg! That thing sounds amazing!

[@ds2jim]

terrific work; I learned a lot, too! thanks so much.

[@DarkRattlehead]

As someone with perfect pitch I can confirm: the intonation problem that is inherent to fretted instruments is an absolute nightmare. The other problem is: as recording engineer, when you start layering guitars with synths that don't have this problem, it can cause all sorts of issues. Sometimes we have to tune the guitar to the part and punch in. The joys of equal temperament + equal spacing.

[@tenzinla1]

Great stuff. I love how you are so 'Zen' about anything you find... no screeching, just common sense. I've actually become brave by watching your videos to lower the action on one of my guitars. I don't think I'll be doing my own neck resets in the near future.

[@randolphpatterson5061]

Find a junk guitar or two, & try your hand at a neck reset. You may always regret it, if you didn't at least give it a shot. And I think you'll feel it's time well spent, regardless of whether or not the outcome is successful.

[@tenzinla1]

@@randolphpatterson5061 That's exactly what I would do!

[@raystargazer]

This is great stuff. Thanks for the information.

[@1980bwc]

I somehow ended up with enough extra money in 2010 to finally get a good guitar. I was 30 and had been dreaming of one day owning a Martin for 20 of those years, so I bought me a brand new D-28. It was the best purchase I've ever made. It drowns out my buddies HD-28 Custom Shop. Its actually the best sounding guitar Ive ever played.

[@Llohr]

Interesting, I did the same thing, except with a custom-D that's solid rosewood back and sides instead of mahogany. And by the same thing, I mean I bought one around 2010 when I was 30. Recently got a Yamaha that may actually sound better though. Really.

[@contrabandjoe7974]

"Gum Wraper Shim" LOL. Now that was funny... what some people use for shims is comedy at its best.. and our Master Luthier here has seem them all...

[@rogerking7899]

Another great, straight forward video. Thank you.

[@CMRWoodworks]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

[@1-eye-willy]

when i did my first neck reset and bridge removal, the handle of the knife i was using dented the sound board the further the blade was driven between the joints, if the guitar was already beaten then i dont think its that big of a deal as long as your joints are clean and it functions

[@walterw2]

big +1 on putting a little bevel on the ends of the pins so they don't snag the string balls i just swipe the pin on a flat plate with sandpaper on it, one swipe takes like a second

[@thebreakfastmenu]

I don't mind factory setups on Martins. I feel like I'm the only one. But I also have giant hands.

[@peterbryan3081]

Great video! Thanks, Ted.

[@1980bwc]

Simichrome works great for things like that pickguard. Its good on wood, metal and plastic. Pretty much anything.

[@botahoratiu]

Hi. Thank you for the video. It's a pleasure to watch, as always. I'm an amateur trumpet player and I work for over 20 years in advertising such as car wrapping. Can I suggest using gasoline for removing that adhesive? I don't know what it will do to the finish of the top, but it does a great job with the adhesive. God bless you!

[@russcorbett3923]

Awesome !!! Thank you for all that you do !!

[@tochriss]

I have a set of feel gauges for action. Two in the front of my head and five on each hand!

[@gustavoheberle6265]

Very nice video. Great job !

[@happierdude4536]

I've had similar adhesive adventures and found that starting with fresh duct tape to peel the sticky mess away usually works. Then, lighter fluid, WD40...

[@virgiltibbs6971]

The pick guard part drove me nuts lol. Good job as always.

[@feral91_]

Loved the video, but I really would wanted to see how you setup neck relief. Simple as capo at first fret and feeler gauge using the low E, or how. I allways find some difference in relief between the low and high E, and sometimes even doubt if measuring using the hole fretboard or just to where the neck meets the body

[@darrellblanchard2362]

In all actuality each string has its own in releif.

[@feral91_]

Darrell Blanchard exactly, and that makes me crazy, I would love to see how he “scans” the neck to make choices. I always get different measurements if I take the strings (low and high e) and if I use a ruler in the middle. And different even if I go to the body or to the end of the fretboard. Seems easy to measure relief but it can be really tricky, specially if the first fret is higher than the rest ones

[@KBorham]

Are you boys confusing string action height with neck relief? Neck relief is the amount of bow on the neck and measured using a straight edge across the fingerboard. Neck relief MEASURMENT is not related to strings but is precisely why the string distance above the fretboard varies fret by fret. Normally, to measure relief (acoustic), tuned to pitch, straight edge across frets, feeler gauge under the straight edge at 6th fret. See Ted's "addendum" at the start of comments for his neck relief measurement on this caper....... String gauge will likely change the relief, but not the way you measure it.

[@jeffdevries5044]

Thanks Ted. I learned a couple of methods today that I will use. :)

[@troyclayton]

I love your videos, thank you so much for them. I just wanted to say there is no such thing as "winter growth" in annual rings. It's spongy spring wood/growth and solid summer wood/growth, just a friendly note from a plant biologist pretend luthier. : )

[@jamesmills4850]

Wow! That's 35 quid over here in the UK. I wish I lived just round the corner from your place. You're right, you ought to raise the price of a set-up. You're practically giving it away at your current price.

[@Sungodv]

Excellent work as usual...

[@psyneurb]

Thanks for the vids,