Round TWO of the Petillo Aluminum Double “L” Neck made in 1988 for Jersey Shore music veteran Chris Spiwak. This is after the time when my Dad (Dr. Phil Petillo) designed the Kramer Aluminum Tuning Fork neck and consulted for Travis Bean with the layout/construction of their models as well. This Bass neck my Dad […]
This was such a pleasure to save the original bridge on this vintage Epiphone for my friend Robert Murphy. My Dad (Dr. Phil Petillo) who had 30 patents in musical instruments, fuel cells, hydrogen generators, spinal surgical devices and classified military technology invented so many glues for applications like this crack to secure it and […]
Take a look at at this Schecter Stratocaster style guitar thumb ring gash removal for my friend Franklin Elliot! This is truly an art to delicately sand and blend out the deep gashes in the neck. I was careful not to sand through the sealer finish coat on the neck. Check out all the pics […]
Take a look at this Violin fingerboard leveling and micropolishing. This is truly an art form to be consistent by hand sanding the string marks out of the fingerboard without changing the angle or sanding dips into the ebony fingerboard which would throw off the intonation. I love when ebony is polished to look like […]
Take a look at bassist Adam Troshane fretless Warwick bass fingerboard restoration! I micropolished the ebony fingerboard removing the deep string coil marks. Adam plays bass for the band FRAGILE HOMES out of Hazlet, New Jersey. Leveling the ebony fingerboard is an art. The same technique of fingerboard sanding is done to the bowed instrument […]
Take a look at our longtime friend musician Alan Warshak‘s vintage Martin D-35 acoustic guitar finish restoration. Overtime the old lacquer on vintage instruments admits gases and causes the finish to melt or in this case soften. The case fabric plays a role in this chemical reaction as well. In the before and after pics […]
Check out Earl Hooker’s vintage UNIVOX guitar fret micropolishing restoration for my friend Oliver Kostrinsky! Earl Hooker was an awe-inspiring slide guitarist and one of the architects of Chicago Blues. He is considered one of the most important Blues guitarist in history.The process of micropolishing involes leveling off a business card worth of thickness off […]
Thanks to The Met Museum for the recommendation to restore this vintage 1939 D’ANGELICO Excel. The original frets were corroded green and dented. I worked hard to remove the corrosion to save the original frets and did our micropolishing process of the frets/fingerboard. The procedure of micropolishing involves the frets being polished from 400 grit […]
Check out this finish restoration on Michael Post’s gold top Les Paul. The finish had pick scratches in it and they were deep to the touch. I hand buffed the lacquer to remove the marks. Nitrocellulose lacquer is very delicate and the majority of it has been the dominant finish used by U.S. musical instrument […]
Check out my friend Ray Chera’s Taylor guitar micropolishing of the frets, fingerboard cleaning and neck heel fracture gap restoration! The process of micropolishing involes leveling off a business card worth of thickness off the tops of the frets to get the deep string coil dents out and the corrosion, then I reshaped the frets […]
It was an honor to get to restore this Bartolini Alvaro model guitar owned by the legendary Hubert Sumlin, guitarist for Howling Wolf working again! Hubert was ranked number 43 in Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time”. The guitar is owned by guitar player/musician Dean Shot! It was such a challenge to work […]
Jerry Topinka’s T. W. Doyle (Tommy Thomas Doyle) archtop guitar original fret restoration. A lot of repair guys/techs would recommend a refret due to the deep string dents in the frets. A technique my Father (Dr. Phil Petillo) invented is to reshape the edges with his patented file and bring a flat fret back to […]
Check out this vintage Martin guitar restoration for singer/songwriter Joe Iantosca. The bridge came up on the Low E side and also caused the bridge to distort. I then secured it back flush with my family glue recipe invented by my Dad (Dr. Phil Petillo). The next step was the lacquer fill on the both […]
Gerald Edward, a singer/songwriter who studied music at Berklee and a good friend asked me to restore this antique Gibson A4. I was so excited to bring something back from death’s door in a way. All mandolins have a very high amount of string pressure, which called for a high strength military grade waterproof epoxy […]
Check out my friend Bettina Forbes’ German violin restoration! This violin has been in her family for a long time. Also, Bettina is an instructor at the Monmouth Conservatory of Music in Red Bank New Jersey. This restoration was a very cautious one. I had to measure the fingerboard angle and make sure when the […]
I worked all night till 3am getting this guitar ready for the 2012 Grammy Awards. Rick “Chainsaw” Lapointe brought it in the night before leaving for the west coast. Rick is a sweetheart and a veteran in the music business. I was so happy Patti enjoyed the guitar after my restoration for the Grammys. I’m […]
This was a long project because I have never used Sterling Silver foil in such large pieces. The reason Sterling Silver foil was used is because I wanted to give the guitar a feminine, passionate look, but not too girly cute. In the ever-changing world we live in, getting sea shells and scarce exotic materials […]
Steve Forbert’s 1949 SJ Gibson restoration. Steve has been a longtime dear friend of my Father (Dr. Phil Petillo). This guitar has been through hell in a good way. So many shows and also travelled the world. The frets needed some attention. A lot of repair guys/techs would recommend a refret in its present state […]
HAPPY EASTER to all! To celebrate the day I’m posting some religious Judeo-Christian artwork I have done through the years. The Last Supper plaque is made of all wood veneer inlay with a parkay sycamore wood floor design. The hand of Adam almost touching the hand of God is from Michangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling painting […]
