bronco restore

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most likely because it fckn rules

heck yes!

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I was wrong about the string tree. My Bronco has the spacer just like my two Mustangs.

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I saw a 1972 Bronco on Reverb that was black with pearloid pickguard and white competition stripes. Not sure about the guard but the stripes looked awesome.

http://reverb.com/item/59821862-fender- ... 1972-black

maybe w/o the pearloid in ^that case. i feel liberated to try a bunch of stuff with this one since someone's already altered it pretty heavily and likely more than once.

i'll probably end up getting a new string tree just to cannibalize the plastic ring.

[taylornutt]

The funny thing about that black Bronco on Reverb is really didn't like the Mustang/Jaguar knobs. I love Mustang/Jaguar knobs but they look weird on the Fender Bronco. They look great on every other Fender student model and the Jaguar. I am not a big fan of Strat knobs, but they look more correct to me than the Mustang knobs. It's probably just because the guitars never came them and I am not used to seeing them. Luckily, you have a good set of knobs for your Bronco.

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photo-bomb incoming.

i had some free time last night, and everything but the black comp stripe i'd ordered had arrived (that stripe was ordered almost 2 months ago). the red tort guard was sold by Paul C's in 'Frisco (they hate it when you call it that) which must be long defunct as i couldn't find it with some casual googling.

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bronco_pickguard_replacement (1).jpg (491.88 KiB) Viewed 4004 times

the pots and output jack could be original based on how aged they are, but i really couldn't say from looking at them.

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bronco_pickguard_replacement (2).jpg (807.65 KiB) Viewed 4004 times

the replaced pickup cover could either have been artificially aged or just picked up all that mojo from years of abuse since this thing was wearing a horse statue polaroid for ages. also can't tell whether the pickup is OG or not, but i can attest that it still sounds great.

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used the last of the copper tape to shield the actual wiring route while i was at it.

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the new guard from Chandler Music (cream color) has the bottom center screw the red guard lacked, so there's now a shiny screw among the rusted bunch.

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found the string tree i bought from All Parts way back when for the original (ill-fated) bronco project in aughts, so i pulled the spacer.

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added a reverb handle from amazon. it's looking much better now, so i can't wait to complete this look with the stripe whenever it arrives. love this guitar more the more i play it. there are several songs on the new record where it's featured, so fun to play!

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[taylornutt]

It's really coming together.

I love all the aesthetic choices you made, especially the pickguard and pickup covers.

Looks great next to the Comp-stang for sure.

[plopswagon]

Fantastic!

[Thom]

Looks really great

[sunshiner]

HAWT!!!

[Pens]

Oh fuck yeah, that looks sooooo much better now. I am so glad it's got a proper home now!

[dots]

Oh fuck yeah, that looks sooooo much better now. I am so glad it's got a proper home now!

it is definitely my go-to at the moment for just sitting on the couch and noodling, the tone is great unplugged. it also records pretty nice, too.


thanks for the kudos, gents. i may have walked myself back from the edge of going down the re-fin route. the body color is unique and cool enough that with the parts swaps the look really pops without being showy.

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last update in this thread unless/until i decide to do a refin.

the second comp stripe i ordered came in (the first never showed up 6 weeks on, so i cancelled), so i placed it over the weekend. the completed before/after for this guitar's journey:

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Bronco20230530a.jpg (8.48 MiB) Viewed 3908 times

sorry, didn't have a chance to resize!

it's also been a while since i've taken and posted any of my shortscales in that forum's thread, so i'll get on that this week when i get some "glamor" shots of the bronco.

[taylornutt]

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[plopswagon]

Exactly my reaction.

[MattK]

dangggggggg

[Thom]

Niiiiiice!

[sunshiner]

Eye candy, love it.

[taylornutt]

I love that the stripe goes right over the rough/relic spot.

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i thought about "relic'ing" the stripe but figured it's a $10 sticker essentially, and since i don't plan to put any clear coat over it, it's probably going to get its own wear over the years. i'm hoping it yellows a bit actually.