Water damaged 69 SG

[Sad Salli]

Hey guitar lovers. I joined this forum to see if I could get some advice. People were keeping my guitar unknowing to me in their basement. It flooded. It was not submerged but when I picked it up I saw signs of water damage on the case. Hinges and buckles had signs of rust and my heart dropped. Upon opening I immediately saw the cracks in my finish on the body. Everything was a dry already so I don't know the extent of the humidity damage. Without a word I left and never spoke to them again. I got home and Tenderly plugged it in and the notes crackled. I loosened my strings put it in my closet and have not looked at it since for over 3 years now. Hey live in a small town and don't trust anybody with it and I need to know what to do. I can drive hours away where there is a Guitar Center I do trust.
My question. Is there anything I can personally do to help her or should I make the drive to a larger town?
What took me so long? The sickness never left. Now it is just time to heal both of us. Thank you for listening.

 

[An Abiding Dude]

Hey guitar lovers. I joined this forum to see if I could get some advice. People were keeping my guitar unknowing to me in their basement. It flooded. It was not submerged but when I picked it up I saw signs of water damage on the case. Hinges and buckles had signs of rust and my heart dropped. Upon opening I immediately saw the cracks in my finish on the body. Everything was a dry already so I don't know the extent of the humidity damage. Without a word I left and never spoke to them again. I got home and Tenderly plugged it in and the notes crackled. I loosened my strings put it in my closet and have not looked at it since for over 3 years now. Hey live in a small town and don't trust anybody with it and I need to know what to do. I can drive hours away where there is a Guitar Center I do trust.
My question. Is there anything I can personally do to help her or should I make the drive to a larger town?
What took me so long? The sickness never left. Now it is just time to heal both of us. Thank you for listening.

Photos will help us formulate some advice for you, Salli. Just remember to resize them to 1 MB or less or the site tends to reject them.

 

[Decadent Dan]

If the neck isn’t warped and the joint is still good, clean the pots with contact cleaner like Caig Deoxit and test the outer lugs of the pots. If you’re good there, test the pickups, I highly recommend Tom Brantley Rewinds for inspection and possible rewind, if needed.
http://tombrantleyrewinds.com
He can restore them for a reasonable price and preserve the value.
Pics would be good. We all like those.

There’s also Gibson Repair & Restoration…

Gibson Brands Inc Repair and Restoration

www.gibson.com

 

[MR D]

Hey guitar lovers. I joined this forum to see if I could get some advice. People were keeping my guitar unknowing to me in their basement. It flooded. It was not submerged but when I picked it up I saw signs of water damage on the case. Hinges and buckles had signs of rust and my heart dropped. Upon opening I immediately saw the cracks in my finish on the body. Everything was a dry already so I don't know the extent of the humidity damage. Without a word I left and never spoke to them again. I got home and Tenderly plugged it in and the notes crackled. I loosened my strings put it in my closet and have not looked at it since for over 3 years now. Hey live in a small town and don't trust anybody with it and I need to know what to do. I can drive hours away where there is a Guitar Center I do trust.
My question. Is there anything I can personally do to help her or should I make the drive to a larger town?
What took me so long? The sickness never left. Now it is just time to heal both of us. Thank you for listening.

WOW, my condolences, the people did not do you any favours but there may not have been any malice involved and they might feel badly about it, IDK...but hatred and a grudge is a waste of energy...move on and get the guitar back in playing shape, if at all possible, BY:
Get some electronics contact cleaner spray($10) open the control cavity and see if the connections are all good, yes? IF SO, spray the ECC onto the electronics, DONT BLAST the spray and destroy the connections, keep the nozzle 12" away and just make sure the cleaner gets on all the parts. take the knobs off of the pots on front of the guitar and spray them too. Wipe away the excess, if any...dont go wild with the spraying, turning the control stems back and forth completely a hundred times each, quickly as possible,if possible, until the crackling stops !
Then:
Get a notched straightedge and check the fret-board for warping/warpage, check the neck relief as well...this is NOT a difficult procedure, if you need help go to Dan Erlewinew video's on the subject on YOO TUBE dot com...The truss rod may have rusted or ,worse, frozen, too. so spray a li'l, very little, a half second spray, of WD-40 on the screw head under the truss rod cover, wipe away any excess. Then check the neck relief, and then looking from the headstock down to the tail-piece, turn the truss rod to the left to loosen it (Lefty Loosy-Righty Tighty, yes?) an 1/8th of a turn..check the neck relief again it should have moved maybe one to a few thousandths of an inch.....if so, try that again, loosening to the left again, an 1/8 turn, check the neck relief and if it has opened the relief at all or even more than the 1st turn....VIOLA ! The TRUSS ROD, even if it has rusted, it hasn't frozen...then set it to desired neck relief.
BRO:
There is a lot more to do, but that is a good start......

Leaving it laying for 3 years may not have been the best you could have done.....if I had been there I could have helped see what could be done to dry it out: RICE in the Control Cavity/pickup cavities etc etc....maybe even submerge the entire guitar in a box of rice, rice is cheap enough and absorbs water/humidity like a frikkin sponge, only better as rice doesn't let the moisture go back onto the guitar.

WOW, I am sure sorry for your loss and wish I could have been or could be there to see it and help you out, Imma pretty decent tech, not a luthier, around GIBSON electrics. MAYBE a FACETIME or SKYPE call could get something accomplished ?

 

[laza616]

Post some photos, closely inspect the guitar, what is damageb, measure the neck if its not warped or twisted or bowed
Write it down. Contact the local Gibson service and invest in the repair in the authorized Gibson service
If the case with the guitar wasnt submerged in the water, it could be OK
Cracks on the finish are fine, its 53 years old instrument. You can get hardware second hand too, maybe your biggest problem will be damaged case
Good luck
And keep us posted, i am curious how this will go. I also beg you for the pictures

 

[Bad Penguin]

Hey guitar lovers. I joined this forum to see if I could get some advice. People were keeping my guitar unknowing to me in their basement. It flooded. It was not submerged but when I picked it up I saw signs of water damage on the case. Hinges and buckles had signs of rust and my heart dropped. Upon opening I immediately saw the cracks in my finish on the body. Everything was a dry already so I don't know the extent of the humidity damage. Without a word I left and never spoke to them again. I got home and Tenderly plugged it in and the notes crackled. I loosened my strings put it in my closet and have not looked at it since for over 3 years now. Hey live in a small town and don't trust anybody with it and I need to know what to do. I can drive hours away where there is a Guitar Center I do trust.
My question. Is there anything I can personally do to help her or should I make the drive to a larger town?
What took me so long? The sickness never left. Now it is just time to heal both of us. Thank you for listening.

Like others have said, pictures please! This way, those with the knowledge can help you out. The finish cracks aren't much of a concern. the crackling of the electronics, believe it or not, not much of a concern. A little spray in the pots, and most likely, boom, fixed.

 

[Sad Salli]

Thank you SG Lovers soooo much for all the incredible information. Some a little over my head but a lot that I can go on. I'll get some Deoxit and start there. People who had the guitar said neck was warped but it was already like that which isn't true but I will check that out. I'll send pictures as well. I shouldn't have waited so long but I was in shock. I can't thank you all enough for the fast and informative responses. I do feel better about my situation. Thank you, Salli.

 

[Decadent Dan]

Don’t forget there is an adjustable truss rod in the neck. Do a little research on adjustment, if you’re not familiar with how they work.

 

[Col Mustard]

Welcome to ETSG!

I too am very sympathetic to you over what happened to your guitar.

A basement flood is a sickening thing for everyone, especially the people who have to live with it.
So if you can forgive the ones who neglected your instrument, all the better.

What to do about the fine old guitar? I recommend talking to pro musicians in your area and find out
where they take their instruments for service. This will likely be a luthier who has a good reputation and
works on instruments for knowledgeable professionals.

IMHO, the hardest part will be getting the neck straight and setting it up so it's playable.
That's why I recommend the best luthier you can find or afford. If you can get the neck straight
and get the frets level, you can probably play the instrument. I recommend Dave Collins in
Ann Arbor Michigan, or Dan Erlewine in Athens Ohio.

If you can't get the neck straight, then you'd do better with a different guitar. Just sell it
for whatever you can get and let it go.
Or turn it into wall art.

I've had guitars stolen, and had to move on. Fine vintage instruments get stolen too,
or burnt up in fires, or what. It's a dangerous world.