Mass St. Music co-owner Jim Baggett explains the next steps in the restoration of the 1939 Martin D-18 that is our latest ‘On the Bench‘ project. It should be finished and ready for sale in June or July 2012. From Jim:

The '39 Martin D-18 before we began work on it.

We recently acquired a 1939 Martin D-18 (serial #73525). Always one of our favorite guitars. This is one of the dirtiest guitars I have seen in a while but, though worn through in the expected normal areas, the original finish remains intact.  The bridge is not original and the neck has been previously reset and is in need of a fresh reset and refret. Since the bridge would not be reused and there was no way of knowing the type of glue that was used, we elected to plane the bridge down very thin before removing it. This can be done with a small hand plane or a router and jig. I had just reset and sharpened my planes, and was not all that interested in spraying the shop with ebony dust, so I decided to do it the old fashioned way.

Jim (very carefully!) shaves the bridge down on the Martin before removing it.

The bridge shaving in process...

The bridge shaved down as low as Jim would go before heating and removal.

Once I had the bridge down to about .080″, very little heat was required to free it up. It came off slowly, but not a splinter of Spruce came with it. The surface should clean up nicely, and even though the bridge that was removed was a tiny bit oversized (as is common), I don’t think it will be much of a challenge to make a new bridge that is the correct size and profile. The fact that the original bridge plate is clean and nice should make for a great tone sandwich.

After heating, Jim gently brought the bridge up with no damage to the soundboard.

Success!

The next step was to remove the neck. The previous neck set was a bit sloppy and had excess glue, requiring patience, but it has paid off as the beautiful heel of the 30s Martins remains uncracked. The original finish, though chipped and scratched, has a great look that goes with the rest of the guitar.

A little patience helped Jim remove the neck, which had excess glue from a previous reset.

Off and ready for a reset...

The neck pocket

The guitar and neck are now ready for our Repair Shop Manager and luthier Mike Horan to get busy on. Making a prewar style bridge is harder than one might imagine, but having lots of original prewars at the shop and having made dozens, Mike has it down. We also have a secret stash of beautiful, naturally dark Ebony set aside for these special and deserving instruments.

The lower bass bout is just one of the areas on this '39 Martin that definitely needs a little TLC cleaning!

The lower treble bout is another area that will get some TLC clean up!

I wanted to share some pics of the guitar in the dirty phase and will try to remember to update with more photos as the cleaning goes along. We have learned that patience pays off in this process. There is just no easy, quick way to get through 70 years of sweat and dirt, but I have always found the end result of a worn, honest finish to be worth all the effort. – Jim Baggett

(We just received our annual shipment of Blazer and Henkes acoustic guitars – usually all spoken for before we even get them out of the box, but we had to share them. Check out all our Blazer and Henkes guitars here or check the links below. Also below, boss Jim Baggett shares why we love these guitars and what makes them such amazing instruments…)

The Blazer and Henkes D-18 Burst

The  much anticipated arrival of Blazer and Henkes guitars has finally happened. It was a like a great holiday gift opening these up the other day. Normally the Blazers we order show up one or two at a time, but this year all five came the same day. This year’s batch includes D-18 style with a burst top, a D-18 with a natural finish, a Rosewood dreadnaught with a burst top, a Rosewood dread with a natural finish, and lastly a beautiful Rosewood OM with natural finish top.  Knowing the high standards to which Rudie Blazer and Willi Henkes hold to, it’s no surprise that all five guitars are delightful to look at and to play.

The Blazer and Henkes OM-28

My original association with Rudy and Willi was a result of our common interest in the great guitars of the 1930s. When they build guitars they have the great advantage of having access to a number of the finest vintage Martin and Gibson guitars. Their keen eyes, depth of understanding of wood, and high standards of craftsmanship result in new guitars that stand proud with the best of the 30s icons. I know that they compare their new guitars to great vintage guitars they have on hand – and when we receive them, we do the same. I come away thinking that the sound and feel of the new Blazer and Henkes must be very close to what players heard in 1937 – the sound that ended up giving these “Golden Era” guitars the reputation that they deserve. The sound and feel is automatically recognizable to  anyone who is a fan of that era.

Check out the beautiful back on this Blazer and Henkes D-28!

I feel that as players today we are so fortunate to have such a wide array of fabulous builders from our current era, making great guitars in many different styles, from the very traditional to the ultra modern. The Blazer and Henkes are definitely from the traditional style, and they have done an exceptional job.

The Blazer and Henkes D-28 Burst finish - simply stunning.

(For more info on Blazer and Henkes guitars, check out Fretboard Journal’s 2011 interview with Rudie Blazer and our 2009 interview with Rudie.)

A word from one of our owners, Jim Baggett, on the three spectacular Collings Custom CJs we recently received:

The three new Collings Custom CJs at Mass Street Music were inspired by my late 30s Gibson J-35. These are different than most modern guitars – with a short scale (24 7/8″ on two of them) and three non-scalloped tone bars (on all three). These sound very different from a typical Martin or traditional Collings. We intentionally tightened these guitars up. The sound is compressed significantly and the short scale makes me feel like a real guitar player. It’s really amazing what a fraction of an inch can do, giving you easier reach and less tension. We collaborated on three variations of these.

The CJ with a Sitka top and Mahogany back and sides is Jim's favorite.

The CJ MH SS SB Custom is a short scale with  Sitka Spruce/Mahogany, the CJ MhA SS SB Custom is a short scale Adirondack Spruce/Mahogany, and the CJ G Maple SB Custom is a standard scale (25.4″) German Spruce/Maple.  The fact that every player in our store seems to prefer a different guitar is very encouraging. I have tried to block out the opinions of others and make my own decision. The Sitka/Mahogany sent me home with tired fingers  – I just couldn’t put it down.

Our Repair Shop Manager, Mike H. favors this CJ Custom with the Ad top and Mahogany back and sides.

My old fav, the J-35, is still at Collings, but if my memory serves me, this Sitka/Mahogany is the Alpha pup. Not the loudest like the Adirondack, nor the prettiest like the German Spruce/Maple, but the one that continues to surprise and tickle my curiosity.

Our acoustic manager Tim Nelson says this Collings CJ Custom with a German Spruce top and Maple is "very responsive to even the lightest touch".

The '65 Firebird in a plaid vintage case

From Mass Street Music owner Jim Baggett:

Very, very cool finish checking on this '65 Gibson Firebird in Gold Mist!

This 1965 Fender Strat Sunburst was in amazing condition - what a classic

The 1965 stars were aligned last week!  We were fortunate enough to have a 1965 Fender Strat Sunburst and a 1965 Gibson Firebird custom color Gold Mist pass through our hands at Mass Street Music. We took some photos of these guitars for the website, but they sold before we had a chance to list them on our Vintage page, so all we can do is share the cool pics here. We are always looking for nice examples of great guitars for our wish list customers and for our website. Enjoy the photos and keep checking our site as we never know when something like these two beauties will show up!

The full on '65 Gibson Firebird

Folks thought the Firebird was cool, but I think Jim loved this '65 Strat more!

Jim often checks the neck stamp date as well as the pots and pickups on vintage electrics.

Jim helping drum up memberships for PBS affiliate KTWU

Were you watching tv Sunday night? You might have caught our own boss Jim Baggett lending a hand to PBS Topeka affiliate KTWU, Channel 11, during their recent fundraising campaign on Sunday, June 5th.   Jim was co-host  for the evening concert of Tommy Emmanual and friends and Mass Street Music offered a challenge grant for new and existing public television supporters. The concert was great and if you missed it, it will be rebroadcast this Wednesday evening (June 8th) at 8:30 pm on channel 11. The Mass Street Music challenge grant of $20 for each membership will still be in effect, so your pledge can go even further in supporting public television funding. Plus you can see Jim Baggett in a suit and tie – and isn’t that worth a look-see?

If you’ve been a friend of Mass St. Music for a while now, you’ve no doubt noticed we’re giant fans of Collings Guitars.  They’re simply impeccable.  We’ve been dealers for years (for both their acoustics and electrics), and are continually impressed with the craftsmanship and tone that is a trademark of this great Texas based company.  Of course that doesn’t stop us from dreaming even bigger…Tim and Jim here at Mass St. put their heads together recently and came up with a few special custom order Collings acoustics with one specific thing in mind – the best resonance available.

Our Collings OM1 Custom Acoustic

We haven’t reinvented the wheel here, anyone can order Collings with special options, but we have made the choice to do so with some very specific options on several models in our ongoing quest for the perfect tone.  Considering the great tone of some vintage, pre-war acoustics and the options Collings currently offers, Tim ordered several with a Vintage Now neck, no tongue brace, Adirondack bracing, and Sitka tops. The Vintage Now neck was chosen for a little bit wider playing area and comfort in playing, as well as for making the guitar perfect for a variety of playing styles – equally fantastic for fingerstyle or strumming.  This neck also, we believe, will give you a smidge more sustain.  We also ordered these with no tongue brace, which lightens the weight of the guitar and in doing so gives the top another wee bit of resonance as well.  Add in the Sitka Spruce top and you’re firing on all cylinders.  Small choices that add up to a noticeable difference.

The result is an even more open, mature sounding instrument.  If you’re in the area, stop by and play one of our Custom Collings and judge for yourself if you can hear and feel a difference.  Currently two, the Collings OM1 VN and the Collings D1V Custom, are available. We have also had a D2H VN,  an OM2H VN Custom, and a spectacular OM1 V SB in the past. We plan to continue adding more Custom Collings with these great attributes.  While each of the guitars is different, they all share a truly spectacular sound and great feel with that unnameable mojo.  We think you’ll be pleased.  Questions about Collings or these Custom Collings?  Just give us a call at 1-800-747-9980 or shoot us an email at info@massstreetmusic.com.

The musical community lost one of the good ones today, Gary Palsmeier of Wichita, Kansas.  Gary was a fine mandolinist and guitarist.  He always approached music with enthusiasm, great taste, and a desire to share  the experience with others.  He had  the mark of a fine musician in making his music seem effortless.  His smiling face and kind nature will be missed by all that knew him.  We will post plans for services  as we become aware.  – Jim Baggett

1st Place National Flatpick Champion Jason Shaw with his new Collings CWMHA presented by Jim Baggett on behalf of Collings

Our own Jim Baggett presented the prizes to the top three 2010 National Flatpick Championship winners at last week’s Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield – the first place winner, Jason Shaw, had his pick of three very cool acoustics and took home the Collings CWMHA – a custom made beauty. Check out the wheat headstock inlay on this!  This was the third time Jason won the title, an honor once held only by Steve Kaufman.

Custom inlay for the Collings Winfield CWMHA

Collings did a tremendous job on this custom CWMHA

2nd Place winner Allan Shadd receiving his trophy and Martin Performer Series DCPA1 acoustic

3rd Place National Flatpick Champion winner Andrew Hatfield with his tropy and Taylor 8 string Baritone!

We also had the pleasure of presenting the 1st place prize for the National Mandolin Championship which went to Bryan McDowell! Collings really did a beautiful job on the prize MF mandolin!

This Collings Winfield MF mandolin went to 1st place National Mandolin Champion Bryan McDowell

Beautiful!

The back of the Collings Winfield MF Mando - wow!

Congratulations to all of the winners, participants and those in attendance, jamming with friends and just hanging out  – Jim, John, Tim, and Josh had a great time and we can’t wait ’til next year’s festivities.

Jim at Mass St. Music, surrounded by some of his vintage favorites

I have had the pleasure to work with the PBS  television show Antiques Roadshow for the last 8 years as a musical instrument appraiser. The  show visits  six cities per summer,  setting up in large convention centers where about 5,000  guests bring in their family heirlooms, collectibles and unknown objects to be looked at and evaluated by ‘experts’ in the particular field.  My specialty is fretted stringed instruments, guitars, mandolins, banjos and some violin family instruments.  Out of the several thousand items that show up on the day of the show, only fifty or so actually have the “right stuff ” to be filmed for a television broadcast.  A good day for me would be to look at 200-300 items and find one or two that make for good TV.

This year’s itinerary took me to San Diego , Calif., Biloxi, Miss., and Des Moines, Iowa.  It was a great year, where I saw many interesting items, met lots of new people and found camera-worthy musical instruments in each city.  The most interesting, but not the most valuable, was found in Biloxi.  The guest brought in a large travel trunk with lift out, stacked trays full of percussion and sound effect instruments that were used by his grandfather behind the screen during the silent movie days.  The instruments ranged from cow bells, train whistles, to coconut shells to make the sound of the clip-clops of horses.  Great stuff and still owned by the original family.

The show affords me the opportunity to look at several hundred items in a fairly short 10-12 hour period.  It’s great fun and a great way to learn.  At Mass Street  Music we find that we are doing more and more with instrument appraisal, restoration and buying and selling of vintage instruments.  I have found the experience from the Roadshow to be very helpful  in determining the direction to take with customers’ instruments.

The  six shows that were filmed this summer will be produced and edited during the fall and will air after the first of the year.  Some of my past appraisals can be viewed by accessing the Antiques Roadshow website and viewing online.  I won’t know which  cities will be selected for next summer, but I always look forward to finding out and having the opportunity to visit new places, have some fun and hopefully see a few great treasures. - Jim Baggett

Jim (left) & buddy Caz (right) with Jim's first guitar creation from 1977

In know I’ve said it before, but it’s true – you just never know what’s going to walk in the door here at Mass St. Music and yesterday was a great example. Caz Loth, former Lawrencian now living in Nashville, came by to say hi to his old buddy Jim Baggett (our esteemed boss) and he happened to bring along a guitar. This guitar was the first one Jim Baggett ever made, back in 1977.  It still sounds really great, has some beautiful finish crazing and a very simple label inside with Jim’s signature. This is one of only 5 that Jim constructed.  Thanks Caz for stopping by with the show and tell!

Caz shows off his "Baggett dread" from '77

Signed label complete with water stains from the sweat of Jim's brow. Kidding.