Epiphone Blackstone Repair
This 1934 Epiphone Blackstone (owned by Joe Gaylord, of the Naked Blues Band) had a very large crack in the top (photos 1-5 show the instrument before repair). Due to the extent of the repair, the customer opted to have the instrument refinished. After stripping the top, it became apparent that the top was made of cedar, which is quite unusual. Photo #6 shows the top after repair, when the lighter, background color was being applied. (As is common for instruments of this vintage, it was originally finished not with lacquer, but with varnish. Proper restoration therefore required that the original varnish be duplicated, to the closest extent possible.) The instrument was re-fretted, and at the customer's request, a Fishman piezo-electric bridge pickup and new tailpiece were installed. The remaining five photos show the end result.
