Vintage Larrivee value?

Started by serge77, April 07, 2017, 08:24:49 PM

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Luthier assessment complete.

The bracings on the back are loose. Need to be glued and clamped. His little glue spatula went right underneath the braces and the back.

The top crack needs to have some clean and fill work as well as standard glue and clamp work. I told him I want the crack to disappear as completely as possible.

Top has a very minor dip in it in front of the bridge. When the crack is repaired this might right itself but there might be a brace that needs to be glued as well.

The guitar definitely had a trauma event which caused the crack. The kerfing all looks good but may need some attention, right where the impact happened.

Looking at an estimated $400-$500 in repairs. I scheduled it for next month. Bill was booked solid until then.

So I brought it home. 0000 Steel wool cleaned up the frets and fretboard very nicely. Also use boiled linseed oil to clean and re-hydrate the fretboard. Cleaned the body with a damp microfiber cloth. It's all clean and shiny.

Installed a brand new set of D'Adarrio Pro Arte Normal Tension strings. They are still in the process of stretching and need to be retuned often. I have gone through two 20 minute "tuning sessions" and it is sounding very very sweet. Even with the items that need to be repaired, it sounds very nice.

As soon as the strings stabilize, I will get a recording or two with it.

It's a keeper!  :beer
1977 Classical
2015 OO-40
2017 LV-10 50th Annniversary #2/50
2021 LSV-03 Forum VI
2023 Hatfield BJG Strong Tenor low G Ukulele #003

A recording of Francisco Terrega's Estudio in Em. It's recorded at a very low level to try to avoid a muddy sound. I am having issues with my recording setup and need  to figure out what is causing it. Best to listen to it with headphones and a good amount of volume.

https://soundcloud.com/marks-recordings/estudio-in-em-1

This guitar, even with the cracks, and bracing pieces that have let loose from the back, has such a sweet tone. I fully expect it to just get better when it comes back from restoration.

We discovered a small very minute crack in the lower bout side, where we think it took an impact which then resulted in the separated back braces and the crack in the top. It must have hit a relatively soft surface such as carpet as there are no scuff marks at what we again, perceive as the point of impact trauma.

All very much repairable. Afterwards which, this beauty should be singing with her full voice.

I can't stop playing it. The action is better than my Cordoba C9. It's actually 2mm wider at the nut than the C9. We measured the scale length right at 650. The trebles are very distinct yet much warmer than the C9. The entire tonal pallet has more overtones and warmth. Not sure I will get rid of the C9. The tonal quality of the C9 is something that I might actually miss. lol  It is a surprisingly good classical even though it is made in China. The build quality is not in the same camp as the Larrivee. I don't think it will holdup up as well over 40 years. Maybe I will get to find out if I keep it, and if I live to be 100.  lol

The 50th Anniversary LV-10 is going to have some serious competition for my time.

This is a forever guitar for sure. My children will have to fight over it when I am gone. ;)
1977 Classical
2015 OO-40
2017 LV-10 50th Annniversary #2/50
2021 LSV-03 Forum VI
2023 Hatfield BJG Strong Tenor low G Ukulele #003

That sounded great Mark!  Thanks for posting that recording, I thought the quality was very good.  It really does bring me some joy to know you're not only getting it properly taken care of but that it has a sound you enjoy as well.  When you talk about the specifics of the piece about half of it goes over my head haha, but I know it means you're liking the guitar.  That Larrivee hasn't been touched by anyone who knew what they were doing for probably over 15 years at least.  Just listening to your recording brings back a ton of memories of my dad playing it and knowing you are actually using the same guitar I heard when I was a kid gets me a bit choked up.  I'm sure you love the guitar but since I don't know how to play it it has always represented a range of thoughts and emotions for me.  Hence why I held onto it for so long and didn't sell it right away.  Who my dad was,  did I want to be like him? And a bunch of other existential questions basically.  Maybe it's all at the forefront of my mind not only because I let it go but because the guitar like myself will both be turning 40 this year.  Who knows. Ok ok,  I will cut the sappy stuff but if your want to post more recordings before or after it gets repaired I would definitely like to listen to it a bit more. Thanks Serge
Donuts for everyone!

Thank you for the kinds words and letting us know more of what this guitar means to you. I play it every day and I am probably logging more than 2 hours every day on it. I need to do a string change on the Cordoba and will be installing the same brand and tension as I have on the Larrivee. I was actually in the middle of a string experiment with the Cordoba. I went from Normal to Hard to Extra Hard tension strings and now I am about to return to Normal all the way from Extra Hard tension. I need to know if I can feel and hear a difference.

So, comparing the two guitars, might be a little skewed at this time due to different tension strings being installed on them. But I do it anyway.  :laughin:

I am working on my recording techniques as well. I hope to have some additional recordings in the next week or so.
1977 Classical
2015 OO-40
2017 LV-10 50th Annniversary #2/50
2021 LSV-03 Forum VI
2023 Hatfield BJG Strong Tenor low G Ukulele #003

Great thread documenting a successful transaction.  Thanks for taking the time to provide some insight.
"Badges?  We don't need no stinkin' badges."

Became a Shooting Star when I got my 1st guitar.
Back in '66, I was 13 and that was my fix.
Still shooting for stardom after all this time.
If I never make it, I'll still be fine.


:guitar

She's back from the repair shop! No more brace rattle when you tap the back or play aggressively in the bass.  Sounds and plays beautifully. Such a nice rich bass without being boomy. Excellence balance.

OK, here are some photos of the front crack and finish repair. I will post the before photos first of course.

The first two are crops from Serge's original photos he sent me. The first one really shows how much lighter looking the finish was in the area around the crack. Maybe a not so good previous attempt at fixing it.



This second photo shows the chuck of wood missing from the top and also shows the extent of the crack. It does not show the extent of the separation which was not huge or anything but still, worse than this photo reveals.



The third photo is a full frontal shot showing how noticable the crack and bad finish are really looked.



Here is a closer image scale which should show the crack more prominently than the previous photo, but wait! Something is different! 



And another...



And a close up crop of the repaired crack and finish.



Hatfield's actually filled the "hole" where the chuck of wood was missing with another piece of wood. There is nothing to feel. It's as smooth as glass. They also did a pretty sizable drop fill just below the bridge. I will get photos of it (if I can!) later. It is also undetectable as you rub a finger over it. Very good work Mr. Hatfield!
1977 Classical
2015 OO-40
2017 LV-10 50th Annniversary #2/50
2021 LSV-03 Forum VI
2023 Hatfield BJG Strong Tenor low G Ukulele #003

Nice work and very nice guitar. Thanks for show n tell  :guitar
A Hebrew, under the Spell
Pain is a good thing

 :nice guitar: And a nice little story, to boot!
Larrivee LS-03WL Forum VI Limited
Larrivee OM-40M
Larrivee O-01W
Martin 000-16
Washburn C80S
Espana Classical (made in Finland)
Eastman MD 504 Mandolin
Epiphone Olympic Solid Body Electric (1967)
Larrivee F-33 Mandolin (8/1/2008)
Soliver Pancake Mandolin
Larrivee A-33 (8/21/2009)

Quote from: markj on April 13, 2017, 12:35:45 PM
It arrived safe and sound.

It took a while to get that awesome box apart that's for sure.

Here's a quick photo of it hanging around with the 2014 L-03 Custom.



The nut is 52mm. The neck is straight and I did tune it up and played it. Even with the old and rather corroded strings it sounds great and the intonation is right on from top to 12th anyway. Off to see my luthier to have him give it the "once over" before I install new strings...

Thanks again Serge!


Congrats on the new nylon string! Enjoy!
1975 Larrivee L style
2006 Larrivee OM-03 MQ
1967 Ovation Josh White signature, 12 fret, shiny bowl
yamaha fg450sa
washburn mg-70
line6 variax 300
Parker pm20 quilted bubinga
epi Thunderbird IV bass

 Thanks for sharing the pix and repair story. It looks like top shelf repair work and a fine guitar.

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