The Second Official GS Mini Upgrades / Mods / Customizations Thread

[guitargeak99]

Originally Posted by nolegsfngrpickn

I've thought about those fret stickers, but thought it would look cheap. Do they look pretty legitimate? No issues with them when you play? Where'd you buy those?

No issues with playing. Can’t remember where I got them, just google fret markers. They were only about $15. I was only going to put one on the 12th fret, but it looked good. I figured if they didn’t last I could remove them and clean up with a little bit of naphtha.

[nolegsfngrpickn]

On the GS Mini spec page it says the fretboard inlays are "4mm Dot Italian Acrylic."

Do you guys think 4mm abalone dot inlays like this https://www.stewmac.com/Materials_an...lone_Dots.html would be drop in?

I think the combination of my Nichols abalone inlayed ebony TRC + abalone inlayed ebony bridge pins + abalone fret markers paired with gold hardware all around would look pretty sharp.

[AmericanEagle]

I have a GS Mini mahogany.
My mods, removed the pick guard,
replaced the black plastic truss rod cover with a custom solid rosewood one.
Replaced the black plastic bridge pins with custom dyed bone with abalone inserts from Bob Colosi. Restrung the guitar as well. Oiled the fretboard too.
Got the plug-in Taylor pickup installed as well.

[nolegsfngrpickn]

I just need to order a bone saddle and then I'll be ready for modding up my new GS Mini. The shaded edge is definitely darker than that stock photo of it; they really made the lighting perfect to make it look like that. It's still a really pretty guitar, kinda reminds me off the 322ce. I'll get a picture of it up soon.

I ordered these:



My luthier is going to drop them in for me. I'm curious if I'll be the first one to swap out the acrylic dots for abalone. I've only seen a few people put those fret stickers over the top.

With gold hardware, custom abalone TRC, ebony abalone bridge pins, and abalone fret dots, this GS Mini is going to look sharp.

[guitargeak99]

Originally Posted by nolegsfngrpickn

I just need to order a bone saddle and then I'll be ready for modding up my new GS Mini. The shaded edge is definitely darker than that stock photo of it; they really made the lighting perfect to make it look like that. It's still a really pretty guitar, kinda reminds me off the 322ce. I'll get a picture of it up soon.

I ordered these:



My luthier is going to drop them in for me. I'm curious if I'll be the first one to swap out the acrylic dots for abalone. I've only seen a few people put those fret stickers over the top.

With gold hardware, custom abalone TRC, ebony abalone bridge pins, and abalone fret dots, this GS Mini is going to look sharp.

My stickers look good, but not near as good as the real thing.
That abalone will look sick.
Looking forward to seeing yours when you are done.

[nolegsfngrpickn]

The GS Mini I just got already had ebony abalone bridge pins put on them (wasn't pictured when I bought it).

I have a brand new set that I just got from Taylor. If anyone wants them I'll do $10 + shipping which should be less than $3. I spent $15.99, I know I know....I'm taking a big hit on these They're factory sealed with the Taylor packaging.

[paulin]

I like a little bling on my gigging guitars:

[nolegsfngrpickn]

Just realized I never put a picture up of my GS Mini Koa Shaded Edge Burst. Here she is with abalone fret dots (It's kinda hard to capture the shimmer of the dots in a photo)

[euraquilo]

This seemed like the appropriate thread to post this, even though it's been dormant a while...

I recently purchased a GS Mini fixer-upper and I'm working on getting it back up to snuff... Mostly just cleanup. But it has one issue that's got me ruminating... See picture.

Looks like someone put two band-aids on it, maybe to give it an Ed Sheeren look? Anyway, I've cleaned off the glue residue but from the threads about tanlines on here I think the color difference might be insurmountable. I've looked through some of the inlaystickers.com stuff that looks like real inlay, but getting something to cover that amount of area is tricky.

Here's my thought... I ordered some super thin (1/32") sapele off eBay and I'm thinking I'd replace the pick guard with a wood one in the same shape. Then maybe come up with something for that top corner that is somehow reminiscent of the Taylor pickguard shape to cover the cross-shaped tanlines. Further, maybe some form of small stencil work (maybe a bird in flight?) tastefully done on both to further tie them together.

Does that sound appealing?
Any other possibilities/suggestions?

I don't really know if I'll keep the guitar or not, but if I sell it I'd like to not just dump it as a piece of junk.

Thanks in advance for any help,
Dan

[619TF]

The only thing I can think of is to have someone paint a small artwork right over that spot. It'd have to be something tasteful and more universal as not everyone's going to like that. Sorta like a tattoo for your guitar to cover up the scar maybe?

[euraquilo]

Good suggestion - I'd definitely pay an artist to put something really nice over that if I was sure I'd be keeping the guitar. But I'm not convinced it's a keeper yet so I'm looking at things I can do myself (I'm no artist).

Dan

[Ludere]

Favoring an approach of least intrusion (aka: “First do no harm”) ... if you leave it for a bit maybe the “cross” will at least start to catch up?
might give you an idea if its insurmountable or not ...
just spitballing, maybe someone with more knowledge will cone along ...

...

[steelvibe]

Originally Posted by euraquilo

This seemed like the appropriate thread to post this, even though it's been dormant a while...

I recently purchased a GS Mini fixer-upper and I'm working on getting it back up to snuff... Mostly just cleanup. But it has one issue that's got me ruminating... See picture.

Looks like someone put two band-aids on it, maybe to give it an Ed Sheeren look? Anyway, I've cleaned off the glue residue but from the threads about tanlines on here I think the color difference might be insurmountable. I've looked through some of the inlaystickers.com stuff that looks like real inlay, but getting something to cover that amount of area is tricky.

Here's my thought... I ordered some super thin (1/32") sapele off eBay and I'm thinking I'd replace the pick guard with a wood one in the same shape. Then maybe come up with something for that top corner that is somehow reminiscent of the Taylor pickguard shape to cover the cross-shaped tanlines. Further, maybe some form of small stencil work (maybe a bird in flight?) tastefully done on both to further tie them together.

Does that sound appealing?
Any other possibilities/suggestions?

I don't really know if I'll keep the guitar or not, but if I sell it I'd like to not just dump it as a piece of junk.

Thanks in advance for any help,
Dan

I wouldn't dump the mini as "junk", but I wouldn't put anything on that top that would compromise tone either. While the ghost "X" is unfortunate, you may be able to fix it with some patience.

- I would cut out some form of cardstock or cardboard that is the exact shape of the top

-cut out an "X" that is the exact location and dimension as the X on the guitar's top

-a sheet of fabric may even work better since it will contour over the bridge, strings and neck. If you could see the image under an old white shirt you could "draw" it on the fabric and then cut it out that way too.

-put it out in the sun (for a limited time of course to avoid it overheating or drying out) and let nature take it's course. Eventually the X will take on the same shade of the rest of the top. You could also place it next to a window but it may take longer

[euraquilo]

Ludere & Steelvibe,

Thanks for the feedback. I've actually considered the idea of cutting out a template to let the sun "bake in" the area where the band-aids were. Still might do that. I've also considered a very light rosewood veneer overlay with some artistically pleasing wooded or mountain scene over that area. I ordered some 1/42" indian rosewood that I'm potentially going to use to replace the pickguard.

I go back and forth on what I'd like to do. I do appreciate the "do no harm" approach, but I also like the idea of tastefully personalizing the instrument.

Still thinking it through... Thanks again for the feedback!

Dan

[Texasmph]

I know this thread has been semi dormant for a while, but it has given me plenty of ideas over the last couple years and I wanted to share my big mod. I have a 2017 Koa. After adding a bone saddle, zero fret nut, abalone inlay strap button, abalone fret markers, abalone pins, a Nichols custom Texas flag truss rod cover, and Gotoh 510 mini tuners, I ran out of mods other than the big one - replacing the crappy black plastic head plate. Being semi quarantined, I decided it was time to take a shot, but I didn't want to lose the Taylor logo (call me vain even though I'm exclusively a couch player).

I have no experience with inlay and only a little with woodworking but, given the time on my hand from the Corona quarantine, I gave it a shot. It cost me a couple hundred bucks in Dremel related tools, supplies, and finishing products and an unbelievable amount of hours but I finally finished. I cut the abalone, inlaid it into the wood, and cut and shaped the koa head stock plate. I also made and inlaid a truss rode cover out of rosewood. There are flaws in the head stock inlay that bug me, but my wife pointed out that NO ONE else will ever see it and starting from scratch might take longer than Corona-mania.... I also swapped out my Gotoh mini 510 chrome tuners for the aged gold version (thereby adding significantly to the cost of my project). If anyone's interested in tackling the head plate replacement, let me know and I'll share my tips and, more importantly, my mistakes.[IMG][/IMG]
https://www.flickr.com/photos/187792...h/49736932437/