03
Looks
One person’s beautiful guitar is another person’s ugly duck. Some people prefer a guitar with lots of bling like a D-45, while others prefer the get down to work looks of a D-18. They both do the same thing, they just look different getting there. I tend to fall in the middle of the pack. One of the fun things about what I do is turning an ugly duck into a swan. This doesn’t mean I add more bling, although I do that on occasion. It often means I’m repairing cosmetic issues that don’t necessarily affect the guitar’s tone or playability.
Some of the more common repairs in this area are: Nicks, scrapes, cracks, and finish issues, Loose, broken, or missing hardware, Peeling or cracked pickguards, and General cleaning. I am still surprised at how little care some people give to their instruments.
I will also buy guitars that are desperate to have their looks improved by some customization. Again this is a personal thing, but guitars listed on this site that are “Doc Specials” are ones that I’ve spent some effort to add things to improve the guitar’s looks. It could be something simple like replacing the pickguard or tuners, or more significant like refinishing part of the guitar.
Again, I attempt to provide full disclosure of any modifications I’ve done to guitars up for sale.