Repair Expert: Jim Baggett

Jim Baggett, the owner of Mass Street Music, opened up the store (then called Michigan Street Music) back in 1978, and he's been doing repairs on every instrument imaginable since then. Currently, you can see Jim in action on PBS's Antiques Roadshow as one of the stringed instrument appraisers. (We like to call him Jim "Hollywood" Baggett, just to get his goat). Simply put, Jim knows as much about vintage guitar repair as anyone in the country. He also has an incredible collection of pre-war vintage Martins that he lets us play from time to time. Click on his picture to see his work on one of them!

Pre-War Martin Neck Clamp (image 2): Here's a picture of one of Jim's pre-war Martin restorations. Jim is gluing the fingerboard back onto the neck that he has been working on using the Maximum Amount of Clamps Per Inch, (or MAC PI). Jim has been working on this particular guitar for a quite a while now, but he swears that the end result will be worth the effort. ...And if this guitar ends up sounding like any of Jim's other pre-war Martins, it most certainly will be!