I have an original Newporter all Mahogany ( dark top) s/n 177748 that I bought around
1965/66 when I was in High School.
Over the years the tone has greatly improved and today it sounds great.
Thats the good news... the bad news is that I let it get too hot in the
back of my car one Texas afternoon and the large wooden mounting block
inside the body moved due to the tension on the strings and ended up
splitting the top of the body and the neck action being so high the guitar was
no longer playable. I eventually put some angled shims between the neck and
the 4 mounting screws to "adjust the action" and it plays ok now but I am considering
getting it fixed by a professional for sentimental reasons.
I know the guitar isn't worth much but hope a good luthier could repair it for me.
Anyway, the guitar has great electric neck action and doesnt BOOM like some of the
old Fender full body acoustics.
I also see an new similar model is now out by Fender and maybe that's the route I should
go and just looking for suggestions.
Ken in Texas
Fender Newporter 1966
Strat knockoff " State of the Art" electric
Ampex AX-70 1-12 amp
1 tube screamer
1 ZOOM GM-200 amp simulator
.... dont need nothing else.
$279 for a new one? Probably not too much more to get the neck reset and the top fixed. Not a terribly complicated but time consuming repair from what I imagine you're describing. Split top's certainly no big deal and a neck reset is pretty standard fare. You can't swing a dead cat in Texas without hitting a luthier. Send out some calls and see who is willing - try to find a luthier school and see if you can't get the work done for free. 45 years old, the guitar was probably ready for the reset anyway. It's a pretty good guitar with sound you like and has sentimental value, spend $450 and get it fixed, $10 for every year of loving ownership is worth that and how much would it cost you to replace the vibe, the sound and the sentiment?
$279 for a new one? Probably not too much more to get the neck reset and the top fixed. Not a terribly complicated but time consuming repair from what I imagine you're describing. Split top's certainly no big deal and a neck reset is pretty standard fare. You can't swing a dead cat in Texas without hitting a luthier. Send out some calls and see who is willing - try to find a luthier school and see if you can't get the work done for free. 45 years old, the guitar was probably ready for the reset anyway. It's a pretty good guitar with sound you like and has sentimental value, spend $450 and get it fixed, $10 for every year of loving ownership is worth that and how much would it cost you to replace the vibe, the sound and the sentiment?
+1. Right down the line.
"You can't write a chord ugly enough to say what you want to say sometimes, so you have to rely on a giraffe filled with whipped cream." - Frank Zappa
