A great F100 find from Denmark - a little help

Hi guys

This is my first post on the forum and motivated by the fact that I have bought my first G&L recently. I have bought a ´81 F100 because I am fascinated by the history and heritage of G&L and Fender. So the F100 have joined my American Standard Strat on the wall.

The guitar is a one owner, sold to the brother of the seller in my home country of Denmark. I have checked neck, neck pocket and bridge serial number, and its all original. It even came with the original case with brown(!!!) lining.
I have a couple of questions and hope for a little help and knowledge.

1. How would you best clean rusty pickups on the F100? The poles and the seatings for poles are rusty. I know it might not make a difference to sound but I think it does to aesthetics.
2. Any suggestions on replacement knobs?
3. The biggest issue is a skewed neck ☹ It bends right a little. The guitar I certainly playable, but it’s an issue with the high E in 5 – 8 fret. Is it worth trying to get a tech to fix it? The frets needs replacement at some point due to wear, so perhaps in that process?

Appreciate any feedback

Rasmus

Congrats - You might be able to use some light grease to condition the pole pieces and clean off/prevent further rust; I’d make sure to use a plastic-safe grease.

G&L makes replacement metal knobs in the original style - I think earlier F100s used a knob that looked more like a knurled Telecaster - but is this what you want? Not sure if they would ship to Denmark, or if you’d need to go through a dealer.

https://g-l-online-store.myshopify.com/ ... rch-guitar

Do you mean the neck is twisted, or that it’s mis-aligned? It’s absolutely worth getting looked at either way. A twist might often be clamped/heated out, and the luthier can ensure the neck is seated correct in the pocket if there’s an issue with alignment. Good luck

1. How would you best clean rusty pickups on the F100? The poles and the seatings for poles are rusty. I know it might not make a difference to sound but I think it does to aesthetics.

If you can find one of these fiber tipped detail brushes...






(borrowed from this bassesbyleo post)
https://www.bassesbyleo.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=2062&sid=be676d567d4e0b357ae9987b6674e739#p2062

Congrats - You might be able to use some light grease to condition the pole pieces and clean off/prevent further rust; I’d make sure to use a plastic-safe grease.

G&L makes replacement metal knobs in the original style - I think earlier F100s used a knob that looked more like a knurled Telecaster - but is this what you want? Not sure if they would ship to Denmark, or if you’d need to go through a dealer.

https://g-l-online-store.myshopify.com/ ... rch-guitar

Do you mean the neck is twisted, or that it’s mis-aligned? It’s absolutely worth getting looked at either way. A twist might often be clamped/heated out, and the luthier can ensure the neck is seated correct in the pocket if there’s an issue with alignment. Good luck

Thank you

Those knobs look just right. I will contact G&L. The crome has come of and are crumbling on the the current ones. Think this could make a nice upgrade.

I´ll try the grease. Took the pieces out and tried with naphta. Didn´t do the trick.

The neck is not mis-aligned in the pocket. When you look at it down the lenght along the frets you see a slight bend to the right (not neckbow). The odd thing is I dont see any cracks or marks in the finish to indicate an accident. Newer seen it before on a guitar and its hard to find information online. Most posts are abought mis-alignment or neck bow.

1. How would you best clean rusty pickups on the F100? The poles and the seatings for poles are rusty. I know it might not make a difference to sound but I think it does to aesthetics.

If you can find one of these fiber tipped detail brushes...






(borrowed from this bassesbyleo post)
https://www.bassesbyleo.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=2062&sid=be676d567d4e0b357ae9987b6674e739#p2062

Thanks Elwood

Any idea where to buy it? Or the brand?

Rasmus

Thanks Elwood

Any idea where to buy it? Or the brand?

Rasmus

I found these on Amazon, (I just ordered one for myself, I have a few old F-100's
that could look shinier )


K-tool on Amazon

Fiberglass Scratch pen

1. How would you best clean rusty pickups on the F100? The poles and the seatings for poles are rusty. I know it might not make a difference to sound but I think it does to aesthetics.
Rasmus

I had good results cleaning rusty pole pieces in a pair of slanted MFD humbuckers (in a 1984 Cavalier) by removing the adjustable pieces, soaking them in WD-40 cleaner/lubricant overnight, then wiping the rust with a dry cloth. It's good to leave a little WD-40 on the cleaned pieces, because it inhibits future rusting. (The same method worked for rusty bridge saddles and springs.)

For the pickup cylinders that the pole pieces screw into, I wiped them with a cotton swab, lightly dipped in WD-40. It might not remove all the rust, but the improvement is there.

I hesitated to mention it by name because I’m not sure how it reacts to plastic - but white lithium grease sticks to metal better than WD40 . I use it to condition rusty bridge saddles etc. (it’s also good for trem pivots.) I would be VERY careful to check that whatever you use doesn’t get on the finish, or react with plastic.

I use a Miracle All Purpose Polishing Cloth to clean tarnish off my gold and chrome plated pickup covers. Should be helpful for your rusty pole pieces.