Monday, April 21, 2008

Bad restoration. No cookies for you!

Thoughts on Restoration:

  1. If a press nut is broken, gluing it back into place is not the proper fix.

  2. You do not need to de-tarnish gold plated stuff, 'cause GOLD DOESN'T TARNISH!

  3. Tweezers are a more efficient way to remove bushings, especially if you don't have to take the keys off the keybed!

  4. Caig products and vintage synths don't mix.

  5. If your soldering iron doesn't get really hot, you should get a new one.

  6. Solder wick is better than using a plunger to remove solder. A power vacuum desolderer is best, but I know they can be pricey.

  7. Don't re-assemble a synth if you still need to replace caps, especially on the power supply. You're either going to have to take the thing apart again or replace said caps incorrectly.



Edited for accuracy, and a bunch of other things.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

You didn't need to mention him by name, it was pretty obvious who he is, to me anyway (i.e. someone who reads Matrixsynth regularly).

I know Kevin is very highly regarded in the synth community, and I have benefited from his (unsolicited) expertise myself, for which I was grateful.


Personally, I don't think this public "snarking" does the Synthfool name or your reputation as professionals any great service.

But then, perhaps I'm just having a sense of humour failure; wouldn't be the first time. It's your blog, and of course you can post what you like.

Cheers,

John :^P

Fountain of Filth said...

Hmm. Good point.

I've been in the synth "community" for nearly a dozen years.
Synth restoration is what keeps a roof over my head and food on my table. I've watched countless Minis, 2600's, Odys, Moog Modulars, Jupiter 8's, SEM's, and many many other synths fully restored.

Even though I know how to rebush a keyboard, own a good soldering iron, know how to replace components on a circuit board, and have assisted in the restoration and calibration of many synths, I lack the necessary knowledge and skills to properly restore a synth. Exposure does not equal experience, and I wish more people understood that.

With that in mind, I find it both amusing and annoying when others do a tenth of what is done to synths here and call it restoration, especially if this is the first (or second or third) time they've ever attempted such a task!

Anonymous said...

This "restoration" is typical of the ignorant amateurs posting advice on the internet these days who don't care to learn anything. They've pretty much taken over AH and like to hang out on Matrixsynth and VSE.

rick said...

its pretty frustrating as someone trying to support themselves by doing this kinda work to read all the crap on the net about one should (or shouldn't) do to old synths.. most of the time is crap either way.

if people could only see the botched "repair" attempts that I get handed on a daily basis.. often unnecessary stuff that ends up costing the owner hundreds of $s to repair properly if it can be undone....

leave it up to the people who know what they are doing if you care about your gear. if you can't afford to pay for proper maintenance then you can't afford to own the gear.. its that simple.

Anonymous said...

It is restoration, but like insecurity, it comes in varying depths. No-one doubts the wealth of experience and knowledge Kevin has, but a) His fees for restoration target professional musicians and b) Hasn’t he been turning work away for months anyway?

There’s no harm in ordinary folk attempting to improve their own gear both functionally and aesthetically. Yes, various aspects could have been improved but so what? The end result is a damn sight better than it started.

You really must fight the urge to embarrass yourselves online, I thought the Lightner vs Matrix fiasco would have taught you that.

Anonymous said...

I like your blog and you and your husband, but this post seems really not needed. We all know who you are talking about as you don't really try to hide it. You want others to not post links from your blog on theirs and not to link to your pictures, etc. But then basically attack this person and call him an asshole. When this repair on his own synth Gor his own purposes has NOTHING to do with you or your husband.

He's not planning on reselling it. He's doing it for his own enjoyment. If he finds it easier to replace bushings with a dental tool instead of tweezers it hardly seems to matter. As long as they are removed cleanly and new ones applied properly, etc. You at one point said to the blog that shall not be named that you can both coexist on the Internet without commenting on each other, but now you attack a random person for no real reason other than spite.

Again, I do respect you and your husband a lot. I just wanted to give my two cents.

Fountain of Filth said...

I might not have been so snarky about this particular restoration page had this person not insulted me and mine because his BFF got all offended and presumed things that simply weren't true.

I still take exception to someone doing a fraction of what is done here and call it "restoration." It lowers the standards of true restoration, which, as I've pointed out, is how bills are paid here.

Anonymous said...

That's pure class, that is.

Anonymous said...

This all smacks of bitterness.

If a person who likes synths wants to improve the appearance of one of his own, and does so in a way he sees fit, and drags nobody else into the process, why bother attacking it?

He may not be a professional restorer, but why do you care? No skin off your nose is it?

If a skilled woodworker sees a blog about someone 'restoring' a chair by smartening it up, replacing the webbing, stitching the cushion, whatever, and it obviously not imposing on their own professional restoration business, there is no point to be won by bitching about it.

I would have ignored this, and had the dignity and common sense to leave alone, except for the fact that this kind of petulant aggravation is unnecessary and saddening. Even if personal remarks are removed, or explicit links not made, the tone of the post remains, and it is an unpleasant one to be left with.

Leave people who mind their own business be, and get on with your own life. Which is what I shall now do, and never darken your webspace again.

Anonymous said...

I agree 100% with this comment:

"This all smacks of bitterness.

If a person who likes synths wants to improve the appearance of one of his own, and does so in a way he sees fit, and drags nobody else into the process, why bother attacking it?

He may not be a professional restorer, but why do you care? No skin off your nose is it?

If a skilled woodworker sees a blog about someone 'restoring' a chair by smartening it up, replacing the webbing, stitching the cushion, whatever, and it obviously not imposing on their own professional restoration business, there is no point to be won by bitching about it.

I would have ignored this, and had the dignity and common sense to leave alone, except for the fact that this kind of petulant aggravation is unnecessary and saddening. Even if personal remarks are removed, or explicit links not made, the tone of the post remains, and it is an unpleasant one to be left with.

Leave people who mind their own business be, and get on with your own life. Which is what I shall now do, and never darken your webspace again."

Fountain of Filth said...

Gee, is it any wonder why the cowards don't sign their name?

Anonymous said...

Why is everyone with a big mouth in the online vintage synth community so hateful?

I wish you guys would stop. It's so childish and tired and has no positive purpose.