Hello from deep South Texas
 

I am not new to guitars, but haven't played in a long time.

I recently inherited my late brother's mid to late 60s Regal Jumbo Western that is in need of a lot of repair / fixing and overall reconditioning. The bridge has broken off leaving a lot left on the sound board. It has at least one loose brace for the back towards the bottom of the lower bout, and the tuning machines are toast. There's a lot more needing attention, but I think you get the general idea.

I'm wanting to rejuvenate it and bring it back up to a good playable condition and I am needing some help.

I'm not sure if this is the correct forum for this but I thought I would give it a shot and see if there were any build / repair threads available for some experienced help from here.

Thank you for your time and patience for I have never done this before and it would mean a lot to me to hear the old girl sing once more like it did when my brother was playing it. It was also the guitar I learned how to play on so there's a lot of sentimental feelings that go along with it.

Thanks,
RonMay

https://i.imgur.com/3ErkyCP.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/m3V9L2g.jpg

Hi Ron, and welcome. There is a search function on this forum. The build and repair group is a good place to start. Also check out frets.com. Lots of useful information there.

Howdy, Ron, and welcome to the forum. There is a subforum here called “Build and Repair,” which is probably the best place to get answers for you. Up above this forum thread you’ll see the phrase “General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion,” and you should click on that. That will show you a list of discussion forums, and one of them is the “Build and Repair” subforum.

Looking at the photo it’s clear that the guitar definitely needs some major work, the bridge only being the most obvious. The frets are past saving, and will need to be replaced, plus the fretboard will need to be planed.

So where in Texas are you? What’s the nearest major city? There are lots of folks who participate from all over the English-speaking world (and occasionally folks from other parts of the world show up here, too.) So if we more or less know where you are, we can give you more precise advice about who might be able to help you.

Hope this helps.


Wade Hampton Miller

It looks like a lot of work but hey, I truly hope you get the guitar back into playing shape. No doubt that it is special to you. Get 'er done.!!

I don't know about far south Texas....assuming Kingsville, Brownsville, Rio Grande Valley ?
However, San Antonio may be a good option.

Clay Daugthry at St Cloud Music/Fretpower ; https://www.facebook.com/fretpower/

Tommy Shilts Guitar Repair ; https://goo.gl/maps/QMLRQoBBECHoZ1JG6

Guitar Tex ; http://guitartex.com/guitar-repair/

G'Luck !

Wow! He's a nice old fella and played a lot too by the look of him. That will be a great project to bring back to life in partnership with a restoring luthier. No cracks on top in photo. That's a big thing. Regal Guitars 1896 to 1954. Then just a brand. See Wikipedia article. I'm guessing pre1954 then. Any more info from family sources? Has the label come off? Is it inside the soundbox? Or maybe the case?

My Regal RC51 would like to meet him but I dont think they'd speak the same language!!!

I'm a builder, not a repairman, but I have done a few repairs on old guitars. I would carefully remove the remainder of the bridge, make a new bridge and install it. You need to be very careful to preserve the original finish, unless you plan on refinishing it, which I would not recommend. It can be clamped with bolts through the outside string holes into a caul that evenly distributes the pressure on the bridge. You may be able to reglue the loose brace yourself, it can be clamped magnetically. I'll disagree with Mr. Miller about the frets, at least initially. If it needs a neck reset, it needs new frets.

The real issue that we cannot see from the photo is the neck angle. There's a reasonable chance it needs a neck reset. When you rest a straightedge on the fretboard with no string tension, all the frets should touch the straightedge. If they do not, you may be able to fix that with an adjustment of the truss rod. With the fretboard straight, the straightedge should be about even with the top of the bridge, which should be about 3/8" thick. If it's much lower than that, it will need a neck reset.

If you do not understand my instructions, there's a good chance you should take it to a pro repairman, especially if it needs a neck reset. I'm assuming you do not want to spend more on the repair than the guitar will be worth when it is fixed.

Thank you Mr. Hall.
Sorry about the late reply. I was looking for a notification of replies in my email, but I guess I didn't set that up right.

Again, thank you. :)

Ron

Thank you Mr. Hampton I'm in McAllen, only 9 or so miles from the border with Mexico.
The nearest major city would be San Antonio, which is about 3 hrs or so north of me. Brownsville in the tip of Texas might be another, but it's not really a major one, but important due to shipping there.
Thank you very much for your help.

Ron

Thank you 3notes.
It has a lot of sentimental value to me. A well known luthier in Missouri quoted, with out seeing anything but photos, about $500. I can't afford that being semi retired, but I'm trying to get as much done by myself as I can to mitigate the cost of a professional doing it if there's something I don't feel comfortable doing.
Again, Thank you.

Ron

Thank you AusTexMurf.
I'll check those out if or when I need to.
Thanks.
Ron

Thank you Mr. Rance.
I think you've got it right about the history and at one point Fender bought the brand but I don't think they every did anything with it.
In 1985 or there abouts it was sold to someone who now makes them in North Korea.
My brother bought it from a music store here in McAllen new. That was in the mid to late 60s. I don't think it's any older than that though. There's no label inside or any SN anywhere on the neck or anywhere else that I can see.

When it was new it had such a rich mellow tone that which made me fall in love with this size of guitar.

Thanks again
Ron

Thank you Mr. Knox.
I have heard of what you are speaking. a neck reset is a pretty big deal that's for sure, but the cost is not the metric that I'll measure in this case. The old girl needs to come to life again and sing. When my brother hears it in heaven, it will make him smile.

Thanks
Ron

Side question that may not have been addressed. The fretboard? Can anything be done to preserve and use that fretboard? His late brother played the heck out of that thing, I would not want to lose those marks/divots.

I have already addressed the fret board condition by lightly scraping it with a razor blade enough to leave the worst of the little fingernail divit and just to get rid of the decades of grime, gunk, and things I may not want to know their origin.

It looks very good but still vintage and well cared for when I oiled it with
linseed oil.

https://i.imgur.com/26hCGJn.jpg?1

Thanks for thinking about that. It was on mind when I was scraping it.

You have a good heart ClaptonWannabe2.

Ron