A More Challenging Restoration:

This restoration was a lot more challenging.  This 1967 Sg Jr. had been ridden hard.  A true player's guitar that had also been extensively modified and custom pained sometime before 1980.  Now I'm quite sure then when it was first customized many years ago . . . it was indeed a hot guitar.  Now up-front I have to say that this guitar (in my opinion)was somewhat misrepresented by the seller, and also claimed it to be a 1961.  Needless to say it came with a number of real issues and challenges.
(read my article on buying vintage guitars on eBay)

Finish: The reverse black and white burst paint job, while unusual, was actually a good quality job . . . it just got beat to hell over its many years of gigging. 

Body: The body also came with a good number of dings and dents, and a crack at the jack plate.  Probably from being dropped one too many times.

Headstock: The Gibson logo had been removed and the entire headstock painted black all the way around.  Pretty much obscured the embossed serial number. (Although under a bright light you could make out that it was a 60's era serial number.)

Tuners: Good quality Shaller tuners, but no originals available.

Bridge: A well worn and gunked up and corroded  "Badass" Wrap Around Bridge.

Electronics: A Carvin Humbucker with a split coil and a small tap switch which had been installed through the electronics cavity and positioned between and above the tone and volume knobs.  Only the Humbucker side of the pick-up was working.  

Neck & Frets: The neck was straight and solid, however, the finger board was heavily rutted and many of the frets had troughs cut into them.

Pickguard:  The mounting of the Carvin Humbucker was a 'butcher job' to the pickguard, with ragged edges and melted plastic where the pickup was cut in (or forced in rather).  I guess measuring and accurate, slow cutting was out of the sphere of consideration for the installer.  Sadly, this mutilated mess was the original "Bat Wing" style pickguard.

Shielding: The copper shielding pan was missing from the electronics compartment rout out.

The Stripping and Restoration Process

I operate with this basic work philosophy:
Always use the 'right' tool for the job if you expect good results.  Work slowly, work carefully, measure once and then measure again before ever cutting anything, never  guess  . . .

Tools and Supplies Used:

• Flat blade and Phillips head screwdrivers
• Allen wrenches (in sizes required)
• Slip-joint pliers (small strip of leather to pad)
• Small wire cutter and needle nose pliers
• Small wood files (fine cut)
• Small metal files (fine cut) never use a file for both metal and wood . . . more on that later.
   
• Chemical Paint Stripper (Klean Strip 15min.)
• Stripper After Wash (Klean Strip brand)
• Chemical proof rubber gloves
  (paint stripper 'WILL' burn your skin)
• Full-seal Lab Goggles to protect your eyes
  (paint stripping chemicals can blind you)
• Respirator - one that filters vapor and fumes
  (stripping chemical fumes can damage lungs)
• 3M paint stripper pads (fine)
• Finish grade Bronze Wool (do not steel wool)
• Good grade painters masking tape "Frog Tape" is the best I have found for this.

1.) Remove all hardware and electronics from the instrument.  Do this carefully and thoughtfully and you won't be making unnecessary repairs later.  Also store the parts you intend to reuse in plastic bags with your notes on where the part or wire goes.  Don't trust it to memory . . .
 

2.) Carefully and thoroughly mask the fretboard with frog tape.  Make sure your edges are straight along the side of the fretboard.  Make sure any tape overlap is pressed down and as smooth as possible.  You can not leave gaps that the stripper can leak into.
 

3.) CAUTION: Work in a well ventilated area - like out doors or an open, un-heated garage.  The fumes are toxic and flammable and will ignite explosively - never use chemical strippers or lacquers near anything that has a pilot light or flame source of any description.
 

4.) CAUTION: Always wear a good commercial grade respirator the fumes are very toxic and can cause serious damage to your lungs or even be fatal. Also wear 'full-seal' eye protection I use lab goggles over my glasses.  Wear heavy rubber gloves.  Make sure they are chemical resistant . . . you don't want them to melt onto your skin!
 

5.) CAUTION: Read all instructions on the Chemical Stripper carefully.  These cans sometimes have gaseous pressure inside so open cans slowly to avoid spray out.  This stuff will eat through the finish of anything with paint on it cars, bikes, lawnmowers etc..
  

1967 SG Jr. Stripped to bare wood and sanded moderately with the finish grade bronze wool. 

I put the pickguard on temporarily with tooth picks just to see how it would look on the naked SG.

6.) I pour a small amount of the Chemical Paint stripper into a clean metal can.  I then dip a 3M Stripping pad into the liquid and apply it to an area of the guitar in a light swirling motion.  I work quickly but work in one area of the guitar at a time.  For example cover the top face of the body with a thin coat of stripper . . . then wait 15 minutes.

CAUTION: Remember NOT to touch anything with your gloves now as they are coated with chemical stripper!  Take them off before leaving the work area . . . I ruined a wireless phone by ignoring this rule!
 

7.) After just a few minutes, the finish literally melts into a sticky goo.  At this phase I use a 'very dull' putty knife to carefully scrape off the large gobs of melted paint.  I wipe the blade after each pass on newspaper and drop it into an open metal bucket.
  

8.) After removing most of the finish from the guitar I make several passes with the Finish Grade Bronze Wool dipped in stripper to remove all remaining traces of the old finish.
 

9.) After all the finish has been removed I go over the entire guitar several times with the "After Wash" (made by Klean Strip) to remove the chemical residue from the paint stripper.
 

Take a look!

This is why it's important to wear a dust mask.  This is from just 20 minutes of hand sanding.

Remember, the finer the sand paper the finer the dust!

10.) Sanding, sanding and more sanding is the next step. This is the time to sand out minor dings and bumps (just don't change the contour of the guitar.)

CAUTION: Always wear a dust mask for any kind of sanding, you don't want to breathe in wood or chemical dust.

For bigger dings and dents, it is now time to use a good quality, stainable, non-shrinking wood filler.  I try to use a filler as close in color to the bare wood as possible.  You want your final stain job to be as consistent in color as possible.

If you're painting . . . it doesn't matter so much.

Next:  Plugging, filling, repair and sanding
Next:  Restoring the fingerboard and frets
Next:  Restoring or buffing out the pickguard
Next:  Refinishing or painting
Next: Making a new copper shield pan for the SG
Next:  Re-assembling the guitar