daddymack

Thanks for the offer, but I'll pass. There are other/better ways to say you disagree with my comment. Unfortunately, you felt that this was the best presentation of your knowledge and opinion? Since this post violates our TOS, you are now permabanned. I hope it was worth it....

Sadly, much....

I think, had it been me [y'know, the repair guy...], I would have just replaced all the tuners when I bought it, rather than epoxying parts together...but still, you are way ahead on that axe!

Better up yer ante..."Willie Nelsonʼs guitar, Trigger, holds immense sentimental and historical value, making it an iconic instrument in the world of music. Its estimated net worth of $30 million in 2023 reflects its significance and the impact it has had on Nelson's career." Just a tad beyond my range....

Phantosmia is also called a phantom smell or an olfactory hallucination. Phantosmia may be caused by a head injury or upper respiratory infection. It can also be caused by aging, trauma, temporal lobe seizures, inflamed sinuses, brain tumors, certain medications and Parkinson's disease. Phantosmia can also result from COVID-19 infection.

I will go out on a limb here and ask: What are you trying to accomplish? More 'dirt'...yes, you will get it, but there are tradeoffs. Typically, I would suggest not doing it, but it won't necessarily damage your amp to try defeating it. There is a reason for NFB, in tube amps, mainly to stabilize the gain. But it also reduces output impedance, while increasing input impedance, and lessens distortion, oscillations...so ... consider that the amp's designer put it in the circuit for a reason.

but these were 'virgin' dings.......first cut is the deepest

Check the battery contacts ...and check the ground wiring on the output jack. Both are typical failure points on Takamines.

This footswitch? Standard 1/4" phono jack. No ring, early '70s tech. Never owned one, never had to repair a footswitch, but I have serviced a few and Gemini and Reverbrockets,...all used the same footswitch....much as Fender did with their Vibrato/Reverb amps, although they used RCA-style jacks

is the sound a hum or a crackle? Taks are known to have a battery contact issue. What are you plugging into?

be careful...in those days, there really was lead in those pencils....

Ah, mon ami, je suis le moderateur....I can see where you are, who your ISP is, your email, etc...but rest assured, no once else can. Your English is quite good, btw! You paid ~$500 for your ax new... but once you tuned it up at home, it became a used instrument, which is the valuation I referenced. Sad, but true.

original price....

I doubt the 'C' was for 'circa'. More likely a builder or final inspector's mark.

hmmm...okay, yeah, you are on your own on that. That guitar, used, is worth at best, what? €275 [$300]? A repair for those dings by a qualified repairman will run you about half the value. If you brought that to me, I would tell you it was not worth the cost. and people wonder why I have mainly black guitars....[but that is not the reason]😉 Okay, well, I've given you the guidelines, mon ami...all I can say is be patient, think every step through, take your time and be willing to settle for 'less than perfect'.[moins de parfait]..eh, bien, bon chance! And above all...be more careful with your gear!

Well, yes, all the cracked finish has to be removed. Typically I use a fine tip dental tool to remove the loose material, examine the amount of damage/compression to the wood, then sand it clean with 600 grit. You may not have 'lost' much wood, but until you get all the old damaged finish chips and 'splinters' off, you won't be able to tell. Before we go too far...what kind of guitar is it [make/model] and how experienced are you with this kind of repair? I ask for several reasons...one being if this is an expensive ax, I suggest you take it to a qualified repair tech. The other is that some of what I am going to suggest is fairly 'pains-taking' and requires time, skill and patience. To do a proper repair for that kind of damage is not as simple you may assume; you will need to match the stain after sanding, on the second damage/back edge [that is the much simpler one], but on the first damage, near the output jack, you may have damaged the body wood, binding, and the top, and that is a 'multi-stain' fix, requiring steady hands, detailed masking, and which, unless done properly, will look like $#!+. [resembler merdre] Once all that touch-up is done and cured, the final finish should be clear polyurethane, applied lightly, sanded smooth, applied, sanded...repeat until it looks good. There are other techniques, but considering the size and areas of the dings, this is, IMHO, the more prudent approach. Some owners will opt to leave it be and accept it as part of the 'mojo' they are infusing into their guitar.

strip, sand, check for wood and/or binding damage, refin. I'm not even going to ask how you got those dings.... btw, love the moniker!

who were you in the halcyon days?

It does sound like you dodged a nasty bullet on the bridge separation, so yeah, a good sanding [of both contact surfaces, obviously] would be in order. If you are going to go ahead with the bridge re-glue, leave the clamps on longer than usual, just to be sure it is fully cured.. Hard water is the bane of humidifiers, AC units, shower heads, faucets....I am studying up on putting a 'whole-house filtration system' in Casa Mack this year.

pics and a serial number would be extremely helpful Several companies built guitars for Sears under the Silvertone logo.

We never say people are stupid if they come to get advice before they try something! I will say, though, you are going to be throwing away a lot of money 'hogging out' the body like that. Better to make the two sides separately from smaller pieces of wood. If you have never built or repaired acoustic instruments, it might be better to follow Panhandler's suggestion and learn on a kit build first. Tooling and material costs will typically out-price just buying a good acoustic...but if you are determined, feel free to come here and bounce ideas. BTW, we have a number of luthiers/builders here, and several active build threads from which you may garner some advantageous insight, tricks and tooling shortcuts.

I see you are in the UK, so it may not be helpful for us Yanks to rattle off brand names that are not easily accessible. I would likely start with Yamaha, since they make good guitars at reasonable prices across a broad range of prices, and are available all over the world. Takamine would be another brand to look at, and although not common here, LAG makes some decent kit in that price range. Guild and Epiphone are still in business, too. Ibanez, Recording King, Ovation....just 'spitballing' brands that may be available [maybe through Thomann?] on your side of the pond. Do you need to plug yours in? I'm assuming, based on your opening sentence, that acoustic/electric is not critical.

big digital shoes to fill....

Congrats! Happy NGD! I would suggest a pick-up upgrade, since Squier p-ups are typically low end versions of their Fender parents. JazzMaster p-ups are also kind of 'unique' sounding, and although they physically resemble P90s, they are a different critter altogether. Fralin, Lollar, SD and even Fender offer 'replacement' versions of the JazzMaster pickup...most cost close to about half what your guitar probably cost.... !2 string guitars are kind of a limited application, particularly electrics*. If you cover the Byrds, or Tom Petty...then yeah, gotta have it... *I owned a '63 Fender XII for a while in the early 70s and then had the use of an almost identical one in the late 80s. I got back into 12 strings over the past three years, and now have a Danelectro and a Martin. There is a sonic beauty to them that is undeniable, but there is a definite but limited 'space' for them in a band mix, not to be exceeded, IMHO.