This is more than impressive. Your vision to bring this back to life can't be expressed any better than by all the others below. I'm sure the owner broke out in tears of joy to see a life disaster bring something back to life.Thanks Doug for taking all of us through this journey. Fred
Wow, wow wow! I would never have thought of doing that, and even if I had I couldn't have done it. With all that sanding and filling, you have the patience of a Saint. Outstanding result, well done mate!
What a story of tragedy and loss combined with the labour of love of an incredible talented and empathetic master luthier! Given and considering what you had to work with the result is amazing and a big thank you for posting this story with your neighbor's own words interwoven within it! Good people still exist on this planet!
I feel this hard. I am finally at the end of repairing guitars that were in a house fire I had last year. Was very close to burning everything. Including taking the cases out and everything inside them. Every guitar that was not in a case was damaged. Ruined ALL the metal on all of those. I'm talking knocked the plating off the tuners, and ruined all the hardware. Whether it was chrome, gold or black.. It was all wasted. Down to every screw. I JUST got away with polishing the frets, I got lucky none of them lifted or anything. It was close. 6 guitars. 2 were "store bought" .. The rest I built, and had already put all the work on, and they were done. So I put all projects on the back burner... To now get these guitars back to how they were. Finally I'm on the last 2 guitars.. an electric, finally down to just installing a bridge and tailpiece, and bolting on the hardware, new screws, etc, and that's done. And then just have to put the hardware on the acoustic that I had just bought, a few months before the fire. Tuners on that, and that's done. I had been busy at work and it was hard to actually work on them and finish them diligently. But I didn't care... I lost my two cats, my mama and baby cat, who were exceptional. They were my family. I pulled them out of there right after the fire department put out the fire... They didn't know any animals were in there. At first they didn't want to let me in. One by one, I got them to the sidewalk and fell to my knees and lost it.... LOST IT. I'd gladly watch every guitar burn, and lose them all, and every material thing in that place....just to have them back. But I know I can't. And it never stops hurting. I can't get any peace.
I am sure that guitar provokes lots of questions whenever the owner plays it around others. You did a non-conventional repair and it looks very nice. What a huge challenge!
Doug, you da man! This was EXACTLY the right way to repair this guitar as it's so much more than just another repaired guitar now, its become a peice of art as well as a functional instrument again. Your repair choices, problem solving skills & PATIENCE is all this guitar needed. Hats off to you my good man (and im not even wearing one). PLEASE post a follow up video with your friends reaction and thoughts as that would be brilliant to see, im sure there would be tears! Brilliant! 🙌
"Dr Doug " is the master. So many times over the years I have seen him resurrect an instrument that was given a death sentence. The former DJM repair team was (and is) the gold standard for amazing service and repair anywhere. I was proud to have known and worked with them.
Nice job, Doug you have manifested an icon to an important event in a woman's life. I, too, have been working on acousic instruments since the 80s and you are right that most of those hours were spent sanding.
This man let the owner share their story on their own terms and refused to sell her situation for clickbait. This is a level of integrity that is just not seen today.
A sad and then happy story, guitars are very personal IMO, I have a 1980 built Fender acoustic that I bought from money earned from 2 newspaper rounds, I had a friend who was learning guitar but had a terrible instrument, I was going travelling around India for a year and so asked him if he would like to use my Fender while I was away and he agreed, when I returned the guitar had a hole in the bottom curve from him kicking the guitar when angry, this act broke my friendship. I am thinking of paying for the guitar to be repaired, I 3d printed some bracing to keep the structure of the guitar safe that I glued but I want it repaired professionally, I have other acoustics but this guitar is like an extension of my body! That was a great repair, and showed the results of the fire damage while at the same time improving the structure of the guitar!
Wow!! This excels a road-worn guitar. I was wondering how you would repair the guitar. Very creative, and you didn't have to tear the guitar apart to fix it! Well done!
cool project! quick tip for those clear windows, if you spray a little 2k on the interior side of the windows before you install them they won't take on that slightly hazy quality.
I thought of that but I was afraid of stirring up too much dust even though I vacuumed/ air gunned it thoroughly. I was thinking of maybe pouring a little resin instead and spreading it with gravity.
with a damage like that i was always curious if it is possible to safely disasemble the instrument in this condition, replace mechanical parts that needs to be structurally sound but replace missing wood pieces with clear epoxy resin , kind of making ghost parts, presercing every chared surface also under epoxy , making entire instrument whole but still kind of incomplete
My daughter and I both struggle with mental health. Luckily, my husband is made of tougher stuff. We are all really hurting right now and I am just plain scared. I have thought of volunteering with some kind of homeless charity for some time, or some sort of volunteer work. Right now, I need to be there for my daughter and get some home projects done. But when I am over the hump (we will get thru this, we have to) maybe I will look into some kind of volunteer work. This video reminds me there are good, compassionate people out there, lots of them. I need to keep focused on that positive when it would be so easy to slip into anger and paranoia.
I am so sorry to hear that you and your daughter are struggling. I pray that you both are able to find the support you need, and that your husband is there for you as well. Volunteering would be very good medicine. A win for you and a win for those in need. God bless!
He explains several times that he is preserving the damage as much as possible and simply making it playable/functional. The completely rational choice here for a guitar of this one’s modest monetary value would be to take the insurance money and buy a new one. This is not a rare, pricey or hard-to-find instrument. But there is seemingly a deeper connection to the owner, and Doug is doing what he can to honor that.
This is more than impressive. Your vision to bring this back to life can't be expressed any better than by all the others below. I'm sure the owner broke out in tears of joy to see a life disaster bring something back to life.Thanks Doug for taking all of us through this journey. Fred
Thank you Fred, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Wow, wow wow! I would never have thought of doing that, and even if I had I couldn't have done it. With all that sanding and filling, you have the patience of a Saint. Outstanding result, well done mate!
Thanks so much! Yes I've been acused of that before... :)
What a story of tragedy and loss combined with the labour of love of an incredible talented and empathetic master luthier!
Given and considering what you had to work with the result is amazing and a big thank you for posting this story with your neighbor's own words interwoven within it! Good people still exist on this planet!
Thanks so much! I hope I did it justice.
Beautiful! I wasn’t sure of your vision when you started but I turned out great! Well done!
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Glad that you turned out great.
This was an amazing restoration! The owners must have been really pleased to have their instrument back. Doug, you are a good man.
They were thrilled with the results!
I feel this hard. I am finally at the end of repairing guitars that were in a house fire I had last year. Was very close to burning everything. Including taking the cases out and everything inside them. Every guitar that was not in a case was damaged. Ruined ALL the metal on all of those. I'm talking knocked the plating off the tuners, and ruined all the hardware. Whether it was chrome, gold or black.. It was all wasted. Down to every screw. I JUST got away with polishing the frets, I got lucky none of them lifted or anything. It was close. 6 guitars. 2 were "store bought" .. The rest I built, and had already put all the work on, and they were done. So I put all projects on the back burner... To now get these guitars back to how they were. Finally I'm on the last 2 guitars.. an electric, finally down to just installing a bridge and tailpiece, and bolting on the hardware, new screws, etc, and that's done. And then just have to put the hardware on the acoustic that I had just bought, a few months before the fire. Tuners on that, and that's done. I had been busy at work and it was hard to actually work on them and finish them diligently.
But I didn't care...
I lost my two cats, my mama and baby cat, who were exceptional. They were my family. I pulled them out of there right after the fire department put out the fire... They didn't know any animals were in there. At first they didn't want to let me in.
One by one, I got them to the sidewalk and fell to my knees and lost it.... LOST IT.
I'd gladly watch every guitar burn, and lose them all, and every material thing in that place....just to have them back.
But I know I can't. And it never stops hurting. I can't get any peace.
I am sure that guitar provokes lots of questions whenever the owner plays it around others. You did a non-conventional repair and it looks very nice. What a huge challenge!
Yes, it's certainly a conversation starter!
Doug, you da man! This was EXACTLY the right way to repair this guitar as it's so much more than just another repaired guitar now, its become a peice of art as well as a functional instrument again. Your repair choices, problem solving skills & PATIENCE is all this guitar needed. Hats off to you my good man (and im not even wearing one). PLEASE post a follow up video with your friends reaction and thoughts as that would be brilliant to see, im sure there would be tears! Brilliant! 🙌
I'll definitely try to get a video of his reaction when she gets it back! Great idea! Thanks!
"Dr Doug " is the master. So many times over the years I have seen him resurrect an instrument that was given a death sentence. The former DJM repair team was (and is) the gold standard for amazing service and repair anywhere. I was proud to have known and worked with them.
could you please elaborate on DJM repair team? Is DJM a guitar making company?
@ stands for Daddy's Junky Music stores, a former instrument dealer based in NH. They closed their doors over ten years ago.
@ thank you.
Doug is simply amazing!
Joey!
Your technical knowledge and skill looks like you're able to respond like a real artist. Beautifully creative.
It’s a fun challenge to have to think outside of the box!
As always, Doug, you do amazing things! It was such a pleasure working with you in the DJM service department back in the day.
@yachtwire1 Thanks Mark! Back at cha!
Nice job, Doug you have manifested an icon to an important event in a woman's life. I, too, have been working on acousic instruments since the 80s and you are right that most of those hours were spent sanding.
Sanding, sanding sanding......
Stunning work man an a beautiful story 🥲
Thanks Brett!
Fantastic workmanship beautiful
Thank you very much!
This is one of the best repairs I've every seen. Wonderful skill from Doug.
Thanks Kevin!
Amazing work as always! Fun to watch the process!
I really enjoyed putting this one together!
A testimony of hope, love and brotherhood. God bless you Doug!
Wow, I did not expect that. It's very interesting, and a great way to preserve the guitar's story. You certainly seem to get the unique jobs!
It’s not every day you get to work on a guitar that’s been through a fire!
This is truly one of a kind. Most people would have written this off. Amazing work.
Thank you good sir!
This man let the owner share their story on their own terms and refused to sell her situation for clickbait. This is a level of integrity that is just not seen today.
She's a freind and the thought never entered my mind. I hate those click bait stories that go on and on and on......
Thanks for posting. Nicely thought out good-works! Sounds and looks fantastic. Congrats!
Thanks! I really enjoyed this one!
Such an innovative idea!
Thanks Jimmie. It sounds better than I thought it would too!
Remarkable work sir !
Thank you😁
Very good repair with very good ideas. It's cool man! 🎉
Thanks! 👍
Great work!
Thank you Joseph!
A sad and then happy story, guitars are very personal IMO, I have a 1980 built Fender acoustic that I bought from money earned from 2 newspaper rounds, I had a friend who was learning guitar but had a terrible instrument, I was going travelling around India for a year and so asked him if he would like to use my Fender while I was away and he agreed, when I returned the guitar had a hole in the bottom curve from him kicking the guitar when angry, this act broke my friendship.
I am thinking of paying for the guitar to be repaired, I 3d printed some bracing to keep the structure of the guitar safe that I glued but I want it repaired professionally, I have other acoustics but this guitar is like an extension of my body!
That was a great repair, and showed the results of the fire damage while at the same time improving the structure of the guitar!
Oh my, that was a sad story. Unfortunately some people have no honor. I hope you find a skilled luthier to fix it!
Incredible!
Thanks John!
Wow! Just, wow!
:)
Excellent, Labor of Love, work of Art.
Thanks Goomer! Nice to see you back!
Wow!! This excels a road-worn guitar. I was wondering how you would repair the guitar. Very creative, and you didn't have to tear the guitar apart to fix it! Well done!
Thanks so much, I'm glad you liked it!
Great stuff. Reminds me of "kintsugi", the japanese art of accentuating repairs in pottery.
I've heard about that. Your right. It is very much in the same spirit!
That is awesome!!
Thanks SupaFuzzzzz!
Beautiful
Thank you kindly!
What a great job...
Thanks Barry!
beautiful
Thank you!
cool project! quick tip for those clear windows, if you spray a little 2k on the interior side of the windows before you install them they won't take on that slightly hazy quality.
I thought of that but I was afraid of stirring up too much dust even though I vacuumed/ air gunned it thoroughly. I was thinking of maybe pouring a little resin instead and spreading it with gravity.
congratulations.👏👏👏
Thank you! 😃
with a damage like that i was always curious if it is possible to safely disasemble the instrument in this condition, replace mechanical parts that needs to be structurally sound but replace missing wood pieces with clear epoxy resin , kind of making ghost parts, presercing every chared surface also under epoxy , making entire instrument whole but still kind of incomplete
It was different for sure!
Great work! I don’t like the plastic window though. I would have preferred wood.
The customer wanted it.
My daughter and I both struggle with mental health. Luckily, my husband is made of tougher stuff. We are all really hurting right now and I am just plain scared. I have thought of volunteering with some kind of homeless charity for some time, or some sort of volunteer work. Right now, I need to be there for my daughter and get some home projects done. But when I am over the hump (we will get thru this, we have to) maybe I will look into some kind of volunteer work. This video reminds me there are good, compassionate people out there, lots of them. I need to keep focused on that positive when it would be so easy to slip into anger and paranoia.
I am so sorry to hear that you and your daughter are struggling. I pray that you both are able to find the support you need, and that your husband is there for you as well. Volunteering would be very good medicine. A win for you and a win for those in need. God bless!
Oh man this is going to a good one !
Hey Brett! Hope you enjoy it!
Labor of love. Amazing.
Thanks Mike!
Pretty cool
It looks cool and sounds better than I thought it would!
Sei un grande
Sei gentile a dirlo. Grazie!
WOW!!!!!!
Mikey! Thanks!
👍respect
Thanks! I'm really just a regular bloke who likes to experiment! ;)
Phantom of the Opera guitar.
th-cam.com/video/FKHMRGMkQHU/w-d-xo.htmlsi=DpKWP6xtvhSDlEH2
But that woman's voice
Yes, that's my wife standing in for the ownwer.
I don't understand why wood couldn't have been used.
He explains several times that he is preserving the damage as much as possible and simply making it playable/functional.
The completely rational choice here for a guitar of this one’s modest monetary value would be to take the insurance money and buy a new one. This is not a rare, pricey or hard-to-find instrument. But there is seemingly a deeper connection to the owner, and Doug is doing what he can to honor that.
You are missing the point to this video.
Hi Lindsay, Yes I could have and I did offer that as an option but the customer really liked the idea of the tranpearent windows.
it looks cool....
Definately different!
What a wonderful and strange guitar.
Definately unique!