Abalone dot upgrade to my GS-Mini

[fazool]

Photobucket ruined my post but I edited out the broken links and direct posted some pics




I don't like plastic.

I previously made a custom body matching TRC, then replaced plastic bridge pins with Abalone dot ebony pins.

I followed this set of two Youtube videos and replaced the white plastic fret marker dots with real abalone.

(notes and commentary at the end)

Removed the dots per the video:

New abalone dots installed:

Hard to see in this workshop picture but they match the bridge pins


Nice quality results


I'll take pictures as soon as I get a sunny day and restring it up. Was anxious to show this off and share my experience.

Some quick notes:

The video series was good but missing some important points.

The plastic dots left more glue residue behind and the holes took more cleanup than implied.

Putting glue in the bottom of the hole was a little unhelpful since it wicks up and forms a big meniscus.

I was fortunate and had a scrap 5mm diamond core drill (for machining precision ceramics but it will take a little more cleanup by hand.

Leveling the dots was much harder than shown in the video. Patience is the key.

The video avoided touching the ebony but thats silly - its so hard and it cleans right up. I filed the dots down, then sanded then fret lightly, then scotch-brited them, then scraped, then burnished them with a razor blade.

The dots were $5 on eBay so the whole upgrade including glue and razor blades is well under $10.

[nate clark]

Nice, looks really good.

You can use a dremel to speed things up:

http://fingerlakesguitarrepair.com/w...ition-markers/

By the way, this is an old article so I should mention that I do the layout differently now. I prefer drawing a small "X" with a pencil guided by a ruler diagonally from one fret end to the other. It's a much faster way to find the center of the position, which is obviously not a concern in a case like fazool's.

[fazool]

I took the night break so I wouldn't impatiently rush it (which is my downfall of projects). I see I still need a little more finish filing sanding to level out the little "hump" where the new dots are.

Really impressed with how nice the dots look, and I enjoy the benchwork so looking forward to tonight.

I'm going to rig up a 15" radius sanding block to help.

On another note - I know this takes more labor but the dots were only another $5. If I was Taylor, I would offer an abalone version for a few extra bucks. I would gladly have paid an extra $25 for non-plastic bridge pins and dot markers.

[fazool]

I do like the Finger Lakes web page better. The Youtube videos I found first were "OK". The one thing that the video showed nicely was how to remove an existing plastic dot which did work well, although there was more resideu left behind than suggested.

[ouimetnick]

Nice job. I wouldn't have the courage to try it to my guitars though.

[fazool]

Originally Posted by ouimetnick

Nice job. I wouldn't have the courage to try it to my guitars though.

Yes that was a concern. Doing so on my GS-Mini was not as intimidating as on my other guitars. Its a project I would definitely do again and recommend if anyone wants a nice simple upgrade.

Liker I said it cost about $10 total but it took some time and patience (I'm not quite done yet).

When doing a string change and if feeling a little handy (and courageous) its a nice upgrade.

I'm considering doing something similar to my Les Paul. I really hate plastic.

[fazool]

I finished smoothing down the "humps" created by sanding/scraping the new dots.

These pictures show the nice abalone figure

[bwstl01]

Nice job! Very professional looking.

[hpeeler]

Thats awesome. Think I'm going to have to try that myself. Do you remember what size dots you ordered?

[fazool]

I was sitting at my work bench, watching the paint dry....no, literally.....I was watchnig the paint dry on my Gibson electric renovation.

Anyway I was noodling around with my GS-Mini and was playing a Bm my fingertip started glowing green. Not a little. I mean enough to notice it.

It was sitting just right under my shop light and the abalone was reflecting this bright green up my fingernail.

Looked down, remembered I now had abalone dots and smiled

[fazool]

Added an ebony truss rod cover - I really hate the cheap plastic stock one.

I had made a mahogany one but wasn't thrilled with it after a while.

This one matches the ebony bridge pins so there is a whole theme goin' on:

Ebony pins with abalone dots
Abalone dots on the ebony fretboard
Ebony TRC

[joeguam]

Where did you get your ebony pins?

[leatherguy]

Ever think of doing an Abalone inlay on the truss rod cover?

[fazool]

Originally Posted by leatherguy

Ever think of doing an Abalone inlay on the truss rod cover?

Yes, I actually had a spare TRC I was going to try it out on

[Dru Edwards]

Fazool, you do some amazing work, with your GS-Mini and your other repair endeavors. I like the capo on the 1st fret so you can keep the strings on the tuners. Have you been working on your guitars for long (i.e. years)?