Disappointing NGD 1986 Pre-Standard

[DISTORT6]

Just noticed...
Is it a refinish?

That red in there is odd.
TWSS

 

[RC Mike]

Just noticed...
Is it a refinish?

Pretty unlikely. The red you see is the base coat that was used back then. Black Pearl was one of the original colors for PRS Guitars (both that name and pre-Standard feel awkward to me).

 

[Prina]

I've bought 5 guitars from GC, none vintage, and kept four of them. The returned one had a bad fretboard but as @RC Mike stated GC is a grab bag so you don't really know what you're getting till it's in hand. The other four were easy keepers including these two shown: an excellent P245 for $2200 and one home run SE245 Soapbar for $550.

Once in the house I think most guitars will tend to grow on someone and I felt a little bad even when returning the one with the bad fretboard but in retrospect it was easily the right call. Given all the issues that this one has I'd probably return it after giving it a set-up and overall best shot if by then it doesn't really speak to you, especially since GC often keeps the returns locally so if you change your mind you could buy it again later.

 

[DreamTheaterRules]

It's a Guitar Center find.

Nuff said. :-( I hope you end up happy with it OR can move it on without a loss. But yes, buying used from GC is always a crap shoot. My guy there just says "If you see something you want on the web site, buy it but have it shipped here for pickup. When it gets here if it's not what you thought, we'll ship it back." So far, I'm 2 for 3. 2 items were great prices and largely what was described. 1 wasn't close and got sent back.

 

[DreamTheaterRules]

I've bought 5 guitars from GC, none vintage, and kept four of them. The returned one had a bad fretboard but as @RC Mike stated GC is a grab bag so you don't really know what you're getting till it's in hand. The other four were easy keepers including these two shown: an excellent P245 for $2200 and one home run SE245 Soapbar for $550.

Once in the house I think most guitars will tend to grow on someone and I felt a little bad even when returning the one with the bad fretboard but in retrospect it was easily the right call. Given all the issues that this one has I'd probably return it after giving it a set-up and overall best shot if by then it doesn't really speak to you, especially since GC often keeps the returns locally so if you change your mind you could buy it again later.

Dang!!! I'd take both of those right now!

 

[DISTORT6]

Pretty unlikely. The red you see is the base coat that was used back then. Black Pearl was one of the original colors for PRS Guitars (both that name and pre-Standard feel awkward to me).

I hope you’re right about the red base coat. I haven’t seen ALL of the 85/86 guitars, but…

 

[gush]

The length of the pickup legs. Rather than modify the pickups, they went for the wood. The channel by the neck looks like they wanted the wiring to run through it. They made it far deeper than it would have to be, too.

It looks like it was recently done, as the pickups look very new. Not a bit of wear or tarnish. It does look like the T&Bs had been taken out previously and put back in, as the bridge pickup has had a new lead attached to it. That leads me to think it had been pulled and then reinstalled at some point.

My guess is that someone inherited it or came into the guitar cheap enough to have no clue what they had. It’s a bit baffling, as it wouldn’t have been more than a moment’s research to find out a ballpark value.

I did shed a tear or two when I saw your pics. Ugh

If you need pics of wiring let me know. I can take detailed pics of my 86 and send to you.

 

[Jazzedout]

I'd keep it... Won't loose value even with what is done to it, but looks like a great player.
Honestly those BK pickups should sound better than that t an b set. Never liked those... But in any case you have those too.
Did you ask John Mann about fixing the timer issue?

 

[RC Mike]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate everyone’s thoughts.

I spoke with the operations manager at the GC store. I’ve bought one other one from that location. The first was packed so well that I called to compliment them. This one was like that, too. He’s going to talk with his store manager and said they’ll likely take it to their district manager to see what they can do for me. I’ve always had good experiences with GC employees and used guitars. I find a little kindness goes a long way towards really good outcomes.

Tomorrow I’ll take the guitar over to Willie’s American Guitars here in St. Paul. They’re going to take a look at it for me and see if they think there are any structural issues and what a repair might look like.

@Jazzedout, I did think about talking with John Mann about the tuner. I suspect he’d be able to get that fixed pretty easily, given that he’ll drill and tap existing tuners to turn them into lockers. I do have a set of small screw extractors on the way that I may try myself, too.

@Alnus Rubra, thanks for getting me thinking about repair. If what I hear tomorrow is promising, I think I’ll go that way. I won’t realistically have another opportunity to own another early PRS like this, so I might as well enjoy it for what it is. It is a very nice feeling guitar.

 

[bodia]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate everyone’s thoughts.

I spoke with the operations manager at the GC store. I’ve bought one other one from that location. The first was packed so well that I called to compliment them. This one was like that, too. He’s going to talk with his store manager and said they’ll likely take it to their district manager to see what they can do for me. I’ve always had good experiences with GC employees and used guitars. I find a little kindness goes a long way towards really good outcomes.

Tomorrow I’ll take the guitar over to Willie’s American Guitars here in St. Paul. They’re going to take a look at it for me and see if they think there are any structural issues and what a repair might look like.

@Jazzedout, I did think about talking with John Mann about the tuner. I suspect he’d be able to get that fixed pretty easily, given that he’ll drill and tap existing tuners to turn them into lockers. I do have a set of small screw extractors on the way that I may try myself, too.

@Alnus Rubra, thanks for getting me thinking about repair. If what I hear tomorrow is promising, I think I’ll go that way. I won’t realistically have another opportunity to own another early PRS like this, so I might as well enjoy it for what it is. It is a very nice feeling guitar.

Fingers crossed for good news from Willie's!

 

[Alnus Rubra]

Fingers crossed for good news from Willie's!

^this^

 

[dogrocketp]

I hope Willie’s can set you straight. Personally, I’d want to keep that if there are no real structural compromises. And I would restore it.

 

[bodia]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate everyone’s thoughts.

I spoke with the operations manager at the GC store. I’ve bought one other one from that location. The first was packed so well that I called to compliment them. This one was like that, too. He’s going to talk with his store manager and said they’ll likely take it to their district manager to see what they can do for me. I’ve always had good experiences with GC employees and used guitars. I find a little kindness goes a long way towards really good outcomes.

Tomorrow I’ll take the guitar over to Willie’s American Guitars here in St. Paul. They’re going to take a look at it for me and see if they think there are any structural issues and what a repair might look like.

@Jazzedout, I did think about talking with John Mann about the tuner. I suspect he’d be able to get that fixed pretty easily, given that he’ll drill and tap existing tuners to turn them into lockers. I do have a set of small screw extractors on the way that I may try myself, too.

@Alnus Rubra, thanks for getting me thinking about repair. If what I hear tomorrow is promising, I think I’ll go that way. I won’t realistically have another opportunity to own another early PRS like this, so I might as well enjoy it for what it is. It is a very nice feeling guitar.

I’ve got a rotary from ‘94.i don’t think I’m going to restore my CE-22 with it. PM me if you want it.

 

[Mike Duncan]

Those are some MASSIVE frets!

 

[thewesdavis]

It's three days for something they class as Vintage, which this is. 45 days for everything else.

I did find some fun things in the case. The T on the treble pickup is rotated 90 degrees.

I saw this once on their website and was very tempted to pull the trigger.
I agree with the overwhelming sentiment here - it's a cool guitar at a great price for the age (especially when you factor in that the T and B pups were also included...

Have fun playing her and making her yours (maybe while also bringing her closer to her former/original glory)

 

[RC Mike]

Yeesh...
The compromised neck joint would be a no-go for me.

In the end, that’s where I found myself. The cut into the neck tenon was about half and inch or so deep, which didn’t leave much of it there. I took it back tonight.

I’d taken it over to Willie’s Guitars to have a look at it. Steve there is both awesome and generous. Very knowledgeable guy and a big PRS fan himself. It was a hoot talking for a while. He went through it with me.

Turns out it was a respray on the finish, which Steve said was what they’d do when they’d sand through finish by accident. He found a repair between the fingerboard and neck on the treble side that I didn’t notice. He thought it was ok structurally, but said he’d watch for paint cracks near the neck.

All in all, a bummer. It’s a nice guitar, but I didn’t think I’d move on from my disappointment. A project guitar is a fine thing, but not what I was looking for.

 

[Deft Tungsman]

I've been following this thread, wondering how it would end.

A 1986 PRS for $2500? Seems like a no-brainer. The tuner problem? Fixable. The pickups? The originals are in the case. Rotary and sweet switch? Sourceable, with generous offers of assistance already being made here. And the finish? Only cosmetic, baby.

What is neither fixable nor cosmetic is the hack job someone did in the neck pickup cavity !! As soon as I saw that picture, my heart sank.

Fortunately, there are tons of guitars out there, even from the early years at PRS, that may need a bit of work, after which they can and will work better than ever.

Now that the OP has journeyed this far, I'd say the adventure has ended wisely. Kudos.

 

[DISTORT6]

Turns out it was a respray on the finish...

Yup. That red in the routes isn't normal.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

I've been following this thread, wondering how it would end.

A 1986 PRS for $2500? Seems like a no-brainer. The tuner problem? Fixable. The pickups? The originals are in the case. Rotary and sweet switch? Sourceable, with generous offers of assistance already being made here. And the finish? Only cosmetic, baby.

What is neither fixable nor cosmetic is the hack job someone did in the neck pickup cavity !! As soon as I saw that picture, my heart sank.

Fortunately, there are tons of guitars out there, even from the early years at PRS, that may need a bit of work, after which they can and will work better than ever.

Now that the OP has journeyed this far, I'd say the adventure has ended wisely. Kudos.

Exactly this!^^^^

 

[SinSir]

I've been following this thread, wondering how it would end.

A 1986 PRS for $2500? Seems like a no-brainer. The tuner problem? Fixable. The pickups? The originals are in the case. Rotary and sweet switch? Sourceable, with generous offers of assistance already being made here. And the finish? Only cosmetic, baby.

What is neither fixable nor cosmetic is the hack job someone did in the neck pickup cavity !! As soon as I saw that picture, my heart sank.

Fortunately, there are tons of guitars out there, even from the early years at PRS, that may need a bit of work, after which they can and will work better than ever.

Now that the OP has journeyed this far, I'd say the adventure has ended wisely. Kudos.

I gotta agree! When the thread first started I was on board to keep but as it's unfolded with the neck hack it's gotta go back. Damn butchers