No artisans left........

[goldtop0]

Got my M2M ES 335 from Gibson CS in June '22, since then I've endeavoured to find a luthier in NZ that can do a partial refinish, they way I originally would have liked it(nothing's perfect unfortunately), but no takers, and it's not a big job at all. Gordon Zettwitz would have done this in his sleep years ago, however sadly, he's gone. I think this craft has been lost in our country now, no real guitar aficionados that can do the work necessary.

[robthemac]

Got my M2M ES 335 from Gibson CS in June '22, since then I've endeavoured to find a luthier in NZ that can do a partial refinish, they way I originally would have liked it(nothing's perfect unfortunately), but no takers, and it's not a big job at all. Gordon Zettwitz would have done this in his sleep years ago, however sadly, he's gone. I think this craft has been lost in our country now, no real guitar aficionados that can do the work necessary.

I presume there's colour-matching and binding involved?

If you don't mind shipping, Copacetic Customs does incredible work. Mostly Fenders, but the odd set-neck too.

[Slowy]

flgd.JPG (24.25 KiB) Viewed 2403 times

On that site I found this. It would appear to be an old Fender preserved in a Stasis Field.

Very futuristic. I like it!

[jeremyb]

Want!

[Bg]

Got my M2M ES 335 from Gibson CS in June '22, since then I've endeavoured to find a luthier in NZ that can do a partial refinish, they way I originally would have liked it(nothing's perfect unfortunately), but no takers, and it's not a big job at all. Gordon Zettwitz would have done this in his sleep years ago, however sadly, he's gone. I think this craft has been lost in our country now, no real guitar aficionados that can do the work necessary.

Who have you tried? And why is it a partial refinish? Maybe that’s why people are reluctant?

[GrantB]

I feel the need to confirm that we have the skill in NZ. Time, money and meeting expectation are the challenges.

[ChAoZ]

Maybe it's because of your attitude
Should have sent it back when you got it if you were not happy with it

[NZTone.e]

Contact Nikau guitars, Nick’s a good dude and will discuss it with you…

[olegmcnoleg]

Got my M2M ES 335 from Gibson CS in June '22, since then I've endeavoured to find a luthier in NZ that can do a partial refinish, they way I originally would have liked it(nothing's perfect unfortunately), but no takers, and it's not a big job at all. Gordon Zettwitz would have done this in his sleep years ago, however sadly, he's gone. I think this craft has been lost in our country now, no real guitar aficionados that can do the work necessary.

Yes, there are not many people in NZ who can make a living from refinishing guitars. It is very time-consuming and I expect that most folks would not be willing to pay what it costs to do the work. That's why several folks on here have learned to do these kinds of things for themselves. This community is where many of the guitar artesans in Aotearoa hang out.

And the good news is that they offer a good deal of advice and support to anyone who wants to start doing this for themselves.

[NippleWrestler]

Andries at the fret shop does (re) finishing. He's one of the few guys I know with a dedicated spray booth.

[robthemac]

Andries at the fret shop does (re) finishing. He's one of the few guys I know with a dedicated spray booth.

And by all accounts a good guy / good luthier. But his inaccessibility has always (and probably will always) prevent me from contacting him.

[Danger Mouse]

there are not many people in NZ who can make a living from refinishing guitars. It is very time-consuming and I expect that most folks would not be willing to pay what it costs to do the work.

I have a memory* of Adrian/Ash calling time on his refinishing work because there just wasn't any way to make it work financially for him and the customer.

*accepting that I'm old and can't even remember my kids names

[Litterick]

What is a partial refinish? You have this valuable thing that is only a few years old, and you want an artisan to modify it. If anything goes wrong in the modification process, the artisan will be liable for the damage and the loss of value. If I were the artisan, I would not take the risk.