there would appear to be two pieces under the body in this place - one is the backplate, and the second seems to be a brace for it. they're both relatively thick pieces of wood.

besides the repeated bad bridge repairs, the guitar is in good shape, and i don't have reason to think it's weak under there:

those grooves are where the wood came off, and what i'm trying to figure out is if i want to scrape that layer off (to keep the action low) or try to keep it as close to how it is as possible.

the wood fibers are still on the bridge, and i've been careful not to remove then.

you can see the extra hole for the action.

ok, so i posted the pictures in a few places, and the consensus is that the top is plywood, which runs counter to the information on the internet about the model. i guess you've got three options, then:

1) the information is wrong

2) the top was replaced

3) it's some kind of weird hybrid

the usual markers for a solid body guitar hold, but...if you rip the top off and it's plywood, then it's plywood, whatever the documentation says.

so, is this worth fixing? well, i couldn't get it in tune, and when i tried the action was very high.

so, let me check the neck as best i can. if the neck looks good, i'll bother. if not, i'll just keep the case. maybe i'll put it up on ebay or something...

i don't know what it's going to sound like, but i know it's not worth bothering with if i can't play it.

so, i'm looking at the part of the guitar i sanded down closely and there's something rather amiss about it.

this is a solid spruce top with the wood grain running parallel to the strings. but, the wood underneath the bridge appears to be running in the other direction. further, if you look closely at the region that ripped off, it seems like there is wood underneath it - and it seems like it's running in the right direction.

i strongly suspect that somebody placed some kind of particle board underneath the bridge.

but, it opens up the question - why?

the most obvious reason is that it needed some support, because there was a crack under it. the less obvious reason would be to raise the action, or otherwise "protect" the finish.

so, this is a difficult choice. if i want to do this right, i want to rip the particle board out. but, i risk exposing whatever the particle board was intended to support.

i want to see if i can find an example. but, the wood looks weird...

the flip side is that if there is a particle board underneath, and it was there to protect the original finish, i guess it did it's job, right? it would mean the wood i pulled up was meant to be damaged.

but, that's only important if the glue job is shoddy, and we're not making that mistake again. if i can get to the actual wood, and it doesn't need the support, i'd rather do that.

i just don't know how to prove it's an addition - and i fear the consequences of my intuition being wrong.

i should also make sure the neck is straight before i do anything else to it.

i need to eat first.

ok, so i wanted to make sure i could get the bridge back on flush before i went and bought some c-clamps.

i actually carved out a slightly larger than necessary space with an exacto knife, at the expense of the finish, because the finish doesn't matter if i can't get it in tune. hey, it's worthless as it is, and if this works, i'm never selling it. it's just a little evidence i spent some time on it - i'll wear the break on the finish as a badge of honour. it's minor...and, there's no use in being dishonest about it.

the bridge has been a little more stubborn, but i was able to get enough glue off of it with a nail filer that i'm confident i should be able to get it flush.

i'll work at it a little more after i eat.

the c-clamps are going to cost me about $30 but i should be able to get them tomorrow at home depot. we'll have to see if they have the right kind of glue.

this is this guitar's last chance - it's been reglued repeatedly, so i'm going to do it right and if it fails i'll just keep the case for something else. i can use clamps and glue for something else, too - those aren't throwaway items.