Takamine F360 Repair, April 14 and 21, 2012

  

 

Back on February 18, 2012 the luthier at NorthWest Guitars, Shawn Demots, did a setup job on my Gibson Dove:

 

Gibson Dove Setup, February 18, 2012

 

I was so pleased with Shawn's work on the Dove that I decided to have my beloved old Takamine F360 refurbished. The old Takamine (Serial #: 75081017) was manufactured in Sakashita, Japan - at the base of Mount Takamine - on Sunday, August 10th, 1975 (the 17th guitar made that day), and was given to me new by my parents as a high school graduation gift in the Spring of 1976. This guitar has been at my side ever since... and forever it shall be...

 

Saturday, April 14

 

When I stop in at NorthWest Guitars, usually on Saturday mornings, I park Bigfoot behind the building and walk around, by the little creek...

 

NorthWest Guitars, in Bellevue... 13107 NE 20th St Bellevue, WA 98005 425.284.1960 www.northwestguitars.com

 

Shawn Demots, Luthier extraordinaire... 425.284.1960 shawn@northwestguitars.com shawnnorthwestguitars@gmail.com www.sixstringservice.com

 

Replacing the old machine heads with Pings...

 

       

 

     

 

Setting up the neck...

 

During the neck setup a separation was discovered between the fret board and neck near the nut, requiring glue and clamps...

 

       

 

     

 

The clamps needed to stay on for at least 12 hours so I left the Takamine in Shawn's capable hands and returned to the shop the following Saturday...

 

Later in the evening I found myself at the Bai Tong Thai Restaurant in Redmond, where Master Bartender Robert and bartender-in-training Cassidy were on duty. At the Bai Tong I pondered the craftsmen I had recently observed: a mechanic working on a relay in Bigfoot's brake system, Larry and Diego cooking at Crossroads Cafe, Shawn Demots the guitar tech at NorthWest Guitars, and Master Mixologist Robert at Bai Tong. Robert was pleased that I placed him in such skilled company and a pleasant conversation followed...

 

The following Saturday, April 21...

 

With the fret board separation fixed, setup continued. A buzz on the D string at the 3rd fret required attention, and a strap button was attached to the heal of the neck. A pack of Elixir NANOWEB "wires" completed the job...

 

       

 

     

 

The old Takamine played good as new! Better than new, as I never did like the original tuners. Great job, Shawn!