Commitment

[TheGITM]

So, I haven't played in a while. I haven't recorded anything in a while. I feel like I need to, so I'm posting this as a commitment to do so this weekend.

I realize that many (most?) of you are going to react with unbridled joy and enthusiasm at the prospect if seeing and hearing me play something new... I get it. I've starved you all for far too long. After seeing/hearing me post such great covers of such a wide variety of songs and artists over the years I'm certain that you've all been wondering... wondering, and waiting... 'When is he going to post something new?' 'Where has he gone?' 'Is everything alright?'

I assure you, I am fine. I'm still here. And I deeply regret having deprived you all for such a lengthy amount of time. You deserve better. So, for that, I deeply apologize.

Stay tuned, my wonderful fellow forumites. I will post something new. I will amazing you yet again with my delicate, wistful playing and soulfully melodic vocal tones and timbre.

Excelsior! We shall fly high over the Peaks of Mediocrity and sail into the Bay of Enchantment!

Of course, it's nearing lunchtime and I'm getting a bit peckish. And I do have some other things to get done over the weekend... I mean, I should probably power wash my deck and windows... and get the landscaping in order... and I do want to spend some time at the lake... and I probably would need to change strings first... and if I'm doing that, I should go ahead and polish the guitars... maybe inspect the frets and dress them, if needed...

Hm... yeah. I think I'll probably record something this weekend. Maybe.

[rick-slo]

Hmm, after all of that it had better be good.

[TheGITM]

Originally Posted by rick-slo

Hmm, after all of that it had better be good.

Well, I did what I could... lol...

This post did push me to actually record something new and post it, though.

[Glennwillow]

Enjoy the process...

- Glenn

[TheGITM]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

Enjoy the process...

- Glenn

Can't really say I totally enjoyed the process, as the first thing I noticed when getting ready to change strings on my Martin was that the binding was coming loose...

So after fixing that, then cleaning the frets and fretboard, then polishing/buffing the finish, then restringing... I was finally able to play something...

That turned out to be Impossible Germany, which I'd never actually played before this weekend... so, yeah, all's well that ends well! I can now play Impossible Germany somewhat competently...

Happy Tuesday!

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by TheGITM

Can't really say I totally enjoyed the process, as the first thing I noticed when getting ready to change strings on my Martin was that the binding was coming loose...

So after fixing that, then cleaning the frets and fretboard, then polishing/buffing the finish, then restringing... I was finally able to play something...

That turned out to be Impossible Germany, which I'd never actually played before this weekend... so, yeah, all's well that ends well! I can now play Impossible Germany somewhat competently...

Happy Tuesday!

Did you repair the lose binding yourself? If so, good for you. It's hard to do that job well without a lot of experience.

- Glenn

[TheGITM]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

Did you repair the lose binding yourself? If so, good for you. It's hard to do that job well without a lot of experience.

- Glenn

Yes, sir. It's not really difficult. It just takes some patience and a willingness to risk screwing up.

I was okay taking the risk. The cost was a new bottle of glue ($5). This shows the separation, the glue up, and the result. It ain't perfect, and it may separate again (I've heard stories), but it will work for now. If it separates again, I will serious consider pulling the ABS binding completely from the back and replacing with maple... though that would almost certainly affect the finish and might require additional refinishing. For now, though, I'll just keep my eye on it and hope for the best. Luckily, I've had no issue with the topside binding (so far).

[TBman]

Do you have to heat the binding before clamping? Just curious. I'm looking forward to hearing your recording.

I was never a fan of ivoroid binding or whatever they call that plastic junk.

[TheGITM]

Originally Posted by TBman

Do you have to heat the binding before clamping? Just curious. I'm looking forward to hearing your recording.

I was never a fan of ivoroid binding or whatever they call that plastic junk.

I did use my heat gun briefly to warm it up and make it a bit more pliable before I clamped it. I basically did heat, test fit with my thumb, heat, apply glue, press in with thumb to get an initial set, wipe off squeeze out, tape, heat, clamp, then heat. That seemed to work okay.

But again, I've heard too many stories about repairs that just pop off again, so I kind of expect that to happen here. Just don't know if it will be days, weeks, months, or years.

I posted the song yesterday so it's down there somewhere in the forum... I'm not really a perfectionist on anything, so it's just what I figured out yesterday with maybe half an hour of practice it before I hit the record button. I don't play enough these days to stay proficient on anything except the songs I've known for decades. Most of those I can play in my sleep... new stuff takes work, and I'm just too darn lazy these days.

[Glennwillow]

Good for you for going after this repair yourself. It looks like you took a very reasonable approach. Thanks for the elaboration on your method. This is cool!

- Glenn