NGD: H555 Midnight Blue Burst returns

[MartyGrass]

I got this baby back just now and shot some pix before the sun set. It's a little dusty but in beautiful condition. I know it hasn't been used much because Rhoads told me that and because it has the same strings on it that I installed over a year ago. No one else uses Half Rounds 11s so I can tell, and they are getting rusty.

 

I don't remember the whole story, but here's my best shot at it. The guitar was made for SkyDog52 in 2009. A year or so later it decided to see the world. It spent some time in New York with a friend of mine. It decided to move back home to Kalamazoo for a while (I bought it). I then did some trade with RhoadsScholar about a year ago. I did another trade just now and got it back.

 

If I missed a step or got it wrong, chime in.

 

This is an interesting H555. It is lighter than the others I've had, possibly due to its mahogany neck. Somehow it feels like the center block is lighter, but I don't see how that could be.

 

The most interesting thing about it is the finish. I'm sure Floyd did it because this finish is very challenging, and Floyd was the "go to" guy in 2009 for finishes. The finish is midnight blue, a burst variant. The front and back are translucent blue in the center with a gradual transition toward black on the edges. However pure black is not achieved until you get to the rim, and that's essential to get it right.

 

The neck and rims are opaque black. This works very well for two reasons. First, the rims are in contact with the neck, so the black is seamless there. Second, opaque black eliminates the obvious maple-mahogany stain uptake differences, giving more uniformity.

 

There a couple of other little things to mention. The tuning keys are ebony and the pickguard maple has a lot of character.

 

The neck is medium-large. It's not a '59 but is slightly plump and is more a C than D. The HRWs can be split with push-pull tone knobs.

 

You can see my other blue Heritage in my signature. A straight transparent blue works well on that archtop because there is no maple-mahogany junction that would stain differently, and there is no reason to cover the tiger striping on the neck.

 

I'm going to restring it, dust it off, and clean the ebony board. BTW, even with the rust the Half Rounds don't sound Half Bad!

 

For some reason all of the photos come out in landscape view, so you may have to twist your neck.

 

 

 

 

 

[MartyGrass]

Other shots:

 

[SouthpawGuy]

Extra fine

[Houston535]

That's THE one I've been looking for! Very nice!

[skydog52]

This one has seen the whole country. It did a brief stint in California before your friend had it in New York.

She has been handled well on all it's trips!

I missed her so much I had her sister made with a fun bar and different hardware.

[RhoadsScholar]

Great guitar, I am going to miss it but i can't play 'em all ... I am glad we worked something out Mark. When you trade a Heritage for a Heritage everybody wins.

 

sometimes i would just stare at the woodgrain as the blue looks like water.

 

Thanks again Mark. Believe it or not, they are always out of those half round strings when i went to buy them a couple of times so i just left them on.... they seem like the right string for a 335 style guitar....

[PrairieDude]

That is a seriously beautiful guitar.

[Schroerg]

I really don't like blue guitars, but this one. Wow!!!

[MartyGrass]

Changed the strings, cleaned the fretboard, dusted it off and buffed the finish. Looks and sounds great. The action is surprisingly low.

 

HRWs have always been a challenge for me to get the sought after tones, especially since I play clean mostly. I'm surprised at how good they sound through a Henriksen, which has 5 equalizer pots. It's easy to dial.

 

Another nice option is to coil split one of the pups and turn the volume up on it. That way you can get a single coil sound with equal volume to the humbucking pup. For example, I can crank up the volume on the bridge pup, put it on single coil, roll off some treble, and toggle between the bridge and neck pups without much volume change but with dramatic sound contrast.

 

It's all fun.

 

Here are the original pix in the appropriate orientation, portrait and landscape. http://s796.photobucket.com/user/mgoetting/library/H555%20Midnight%20Blue?sort=3&page=1

 

I will correct my earlier post be stating the strings are GHS Brite Flats 11s, not Half Rounds. They do work well in semihollows.

[Kuz]

You know Mark what I love about guitars you own (then trade/sell and get back again...) is that you always have interesting gorgeous pieces. I feel I am like that too, to go for something that is a little different than everyone else has. I have seen this finish on other guitars, but it definitely is an eye turner on this guitar.

 

GREAT recapture!!!

[bobmeyrick]

A beautiful guitar - that finish is like looking into the Mediterranean, somewhere in the Greek islands...

 

 

The ebony buttons on the tuners are a nice touch too.

[greatmutah]

That is gorgeous. That is the exact style of finish I want to do to a LP style guitar.

[GASguy]

I have always loved the look of this particular 555; having the split coil HRWs only adds to the versatility of an already versatile Heritage model.

[Gitfiddler]

Was the push-pull tone pot coil tap an aftermarket upgrade, or done at the factory?

 

I'd like to have that done to my HRW loaded 555 based on your comments on the tones.

[MartyGrass]

Was the push-pull tone pot coil tap an aftermarket upgrade, or done at the factory?

 

I'd like to have that done to my HRW loaded 555 based on your comments on the tones.

Pete Moreno did the upgrade.

 

The biggest expense of making that change is pulling the harness out. So I'd suggest deciding whether you also want other caps, phase reversal, etc. before you start. You could have Triple Shots installed, too.

[koula901]

Very nice!

[2bornot2bop]

That's a pair of blues for you. Nice!!!

[bolero]

that is a spectacular guitar!!

[proxmax]

nice - congrats!