Yo Bubba & muttley & anyone else..

[Armistice]

Of course, as I go looking more deeply at my new Gibson LP, I see evidence of the lack of care that Gibson is famous for.

I have a scratch in the fingerboard running parallel to the frets in one spot - midway between frets, then in another a couple of lighter ones much closer to a fret up higher around fret 18 or so, probably from someone working on the fret.

How best to remove? Light (2000) wet/dry sandpaper after masking the frets a good place to start?

[muttley]

Almost certainly the result of lazy fretwork during crowning and polishing. If they dont factor when fretting just leave them. Without seeing how deep they are it is not really possible to comment on a method to fix them. Solutions range from sweating out with a bit of moisture and heat then lightly scrap with a cabinet scraper to removing the fret and skimming. Like I said if it doesn't affect playabilty or feel just leave them. You dont mask off frets BTW, you'd work between them. If you do scuff up the top with 2000 grit you'd use some silver polish to shine them up.

[Bubba]

My considered advice to you, is to take the damned thing out on the road, clonk it into a few cymbal stands, wear a belt with a big buckle, wear a studded wristband on your strumming hand and stop obsessing over it. It's a tool for making music, not a priceless piece of Chippendale furniture.

[Greg_L]

My considered advice to you, is to take the damned thing out on the road, clonk it into a few cymbal stands, wear a belt with a big buckle, wear a studded wristband on your strumming hand and stop obsessing over it. It's a tool for making music, not a priceless piece of Chippendale furniture.

This ^^^^

If it doesn't affect playing, don't worry about it. Once you get one ding on it all that stuff becomes irrelevant. The worst and best day in having a new guitar is that first ding. It's the worst because you dinged your new guitar. It's the best because it's finally over and you can breathe easy.

[Armistice]

Almost certainly the result of lazy fretwork during crowning and polishing. If they dont factor when fretting just leave them. Without seeing how deep they are it is not really possible to comment on a method to fix them. Solutions range from sweating out with a bit of moisture and heat then lightly scrap with a cabinet scraper to removing the fret and skimming. Like I said if it doesn't affect playabilty or feel just leave them. You dont mask off frets BTW, you'd work between them. If you do scuff up the top with 2000 grit you'd use some silver polish to shine them up.

The main one's not very deep, the lighter ones are barely noticeable. I'll try a quick hit with the sandpaper and see... cheers

[Armistice]

My considered advice to you, is to take the damned thing out on the road, clonk it into a few cymbal stands, wear a belt with a big buckle, wear a studded wristband on your strumming hand and stop obsessing over it. It's a tool for making music, not a priceless piece of Chippendale furniture.

Obsessing? If it's something I can smooth out in 5 minutes with a bit of sandpaper, that's not obsessing, just routine maintenance... I'm not going to go any further than that with it.

I just like keeping things as new as I can for as long as I can.

And it's far more expensive than any piece of furniture I actually own.

I wanted a road guitar I would have bought something cheaper without the AAAA top ... oh wait, I have another LP anyway... that's my road guitar This one stays at home.

This ^^^^

If it doesn't affect playing, don't worry about it. Once you get one ding on it all that stuff becomes irrelevant. The worst and best day in having a new guitar is that first ding. It's the worst because you dinged your new guitar. It's the best because it's finally over and you can breathe easy.

I daresay once I play it a bit and get a few bends going in that spot it'll smooth out anyway... I just hope it's on a position that fits in with my pentatonic E scale, or else I'm fucked...

[Greg_L]

Yeah just play it in. Maybe oil it and the scratch will visually blend away. I oiled my fretboards recently and they feel great. Even though it's brand new, it might could use some oiling anyway.

[miroslav]

I just like keeping things as new as I can for as long as I can.

Can you say...relic'd...?

I'm the same way...not wanting to age a guitar too prematurely and due to carelessness...but then, shit happens, even in a controlled studio environment.

The first ding is the worst...

[Bubba]

I really couldn't care less about the physical condition of the finish of my guitars. I want them set up right, I want the condition of my frets to be good, I regularly change my strings, oil my fretboards, clean my bridges and I always redo the intonation after every string change. But noticing tiny marks? never in a million years! In fact with my gigging guitar, the more "historical" wear, the better.

[Greg_L]

I'm the same way...not wanting to age a guitar too prematurely and due to carelessness...but then, shit happens, even in a controlled studio environment.

That's how I am. I'm not gonna throw my guitar into the trunk of my car without it's case, but I'm not gonna worry about actual wear and tear either. I don't abuse my guitars, but wear and tear from actual use doesn't bother me at all.

My Goldtop is getting some minor wear around the pickup switch and where my arm hangs down across the body and I love it. The back of the neck is smoothed out and worn in wonderfully. That's good wear and tear.

[Roman]

If it was me, I'd take it out. fine fingernail "sanding sticks" work well for that. I steal them from my wife all the time to have a stock on my bench for just that purpose.

Gibson tends to be sloppy and sometimes you have to take matters in your own hands.

2000 grit might be way too fine to take it out, hence the sanding stick suggestion. No need to go down below 400 grit. (actually for myself as a player, I'll stop at 220 grit. Too smooth it feels funny to me, and I like a bit of "tooth"n the F/B. it gives me traction for bends.)

Follow up with some 0000 steel wool, and some Lemon oil and you're golden.

I routinely clean my fingerboards and polish my frets with 000 steel wool. You just have to mask off the pickups so no wool fibers get stuck to them.

[ido1957]

I guess my Richlite board is a godsend then...lol...
My daughter showed my LPC to her friend shortly after I got it back in 2014. She put it back in the case without closing any of the clips.
I grabbed the case by the handle (happily on my way to Mike's) and my LPC fell out and bounced off the other cases below/a chair/the floor on it's way to it's demise, oh I mean new-found mojo. There's a couple of dents on the back of the neck now but I don't notice it when I play it, thankfully. Could have snapped the neck so could have been way worse. It was (cringe) the happiest day of my life I guess.

[Greg_L]

I guess my Richlite board is a godsend then...lol...
My daughter showed my LPC to her friend shortly after I got it back in 2014. She put it back in the case without closing any of the clips.
I grabbed the case by the handle (happily on my way to Mike's) and my LPC fell out and bounced off the other cases below/a chair/the floor on it's way to it's demise, oh I mean new-found mojo. There's a couple of dents on the back of the neck now but I don't notice it when I play it, thankfully. Could have snapped the neck so could have been way worse. It was (cringe) the happiest day of my life I guess.

Holy Jesus! Man you are so lucky. Gibsons don't have the sturdiest headstocks!

[Armistice]

I guess my Richlite board is a godsend then...lol...
My daughter showed my LPC to her friend shortly after I got it back in 2014. She put it back in the case without closing any of the clips.
I grabbed the case by the handle (happily on my way to Mike's) and my LPC fell out and bounced off the other cases below/a chair/the floor on it's way to it's demise, oh I mean new-found mojo. There's a couple of dents on the back of the neck now but I don't notice it when I play it, thankfully. Could have snapped the neck so could have been way worse. It was (cringe) the happiest day of my life I guess.

Holy Jesus! Man you are so lucky. Gibsons don't have the sturdiest headstocks!

Yeah, I'll say. The Les Paul facebook group gets regular pics from people who've managed to detach their headstocks by accident.

[Bill L]

My LP Custom has had 2 neck breaks/ repairs . Both after having fallen off of a guitar stand onto a thick carpet. Thankfully my friend was able to fix it. Only cost me a case of beer and some smoke.