Thought I'd share how much I enjoyed working on a resonator guitar. (bet ya'll be glad when I have to work 5 days a week again, next year LOL)
It was my first and don't know if others here mess with them.
 
A friend found one at a pawn shop. I think it was @3-4 hundred Fender, new, and it was modified to finger play rather than slide.
The mod was made by an employee at a music store that is no longer open so I'm glad I'll never know who hacked it up.
 
I had to replace the nut, bridge saddle, neck relief and repair the drum to spider adjustment.
I also had to create a bill as he insisted on paying me so I did and also talked with pro luthiers about it. They thought my charges were "for a friend" and I found out what I had suspected...luthiers cost. I've never paid one so I didn't realize.
 
So...the bridge saddle and the adjustment for tension - spider to drum - were of the most interest to me. The saddle- I removed a butchered piece of plastic and replaced with a Maple/Ebony cap- originally used on Dobro I'm thinking. The tension...loosen off until a note distorts and then adjust until it doesn't then a 1/4 or so turn tighter. Suppose to be about as loud as it will get from there.
Fitting the saddle correctly and getting string height as needed was the tricky part but all went well and it's a resonator now.
 
I don't mind repair jobs but no doubt I'd rather build. Mistakes and goofy stuff can be a hassle to correct...bad enough when they're your own lol.
 

Yep, luthiers (good ones) cost! Always been money well spent for me. The local guy here is about the crankiest dude I've ever met. Our phone calls pretty much always go like this,
Me: Hey Chuck, I need to bring my guitar in for a setup and I'm getting a little bit of pickup interference from the bridge pickup.
 
Chuck: (in a completely un-enthusiastic tone) Well that's just great...bring it in and I'll set in on the bench and get around to it when I damn well feel like it.
 
Upon arrival,
Me: Hey Chuck, how ya doin?
 
Chuck: (without looking up) I'm busier than a 1 legged man in a butt kickin contest. Set it over there and get out and don't call me.
 
Later the following week, a phone call from Chuck.
 
Me: Hello
 
Chuck: Come get this or I'm gonna start charging you storage! (hangs up)
 
Upon arrival to pick up my guitar
 
Me: Hey Chuck, how ya doin?
 
Chuck: I ain't got time for your chit chat ass ache, can't you see I've got guitars from every nose pickin degenerate barre chord playin punk in the county that thinks my setup is gonna make them not suck!
 
Me: Okay Chuck, what did you find on my guitar?
 
Chuck: It's fixed and do us both a favor will ya? Wash your hands before you play it and wipe it down when your done. It took me half a damn day to get the "smegma" (I had to look that word up the first time he said it) off the fret board!
 
Some times in life, you run across great characters. Chuck is one of them.
 
 

Wow...friggin' great Randy.
 
**** you not- "Chuck: Come get this or I'm gonna start charging you storage! (hangs up)"   - Resonator owner has heard this and many of the other lines from me. When he shows I have to get it from the loft. I chunk stuff in my way up there. :)
 
Maybe it's something that comes with repair work? 
 
Yeah, they told me I should be ( recommended 10% lower than the best around) at @ 80.00 per hour.
Part of their reasoning, IMO, is because they don't want folks like me underbidding. With that, I did make it clear I don't do repair work...just a friend favor and I don't have many of those.
 
As is I didn't make minimum wage...but I gained.
 

The joy of being self-employed...  I'd be fired and blacklisted if I spoke to my customers like that.  I'm apparently in the wrong business.

Slugbaby
The joy of being self-employed...  I'd be fired and blacklisted if I spoke to my customers like that.  I'm apparently in the wrong business.

*apparently, I'm in the wrong business.*  better.  If you start your sentences with the adverb it's more powerful.

I've found that resonators sound broken, particularly when they are set up perfectly. 

It didn't sound broken to me John but I didn't like correcting it with the low action. I thought, and recommended, that it be setup for slide. It's easy to hit the cover with a pick now with the low string height and not like he didn't have other guitars. His mistake to play with but it was a round neck so I didn't push.
 
I thought "what would Jerry Douglas want?" the whole time I was working on it lol
and the weird thing is; right after I finished with it I was having a conversation with the phone repair tech that knew I built guitars and was telling me about his relatives in the area that write songs and how cool Alison Krauss is...his cousin and her kick around and he ran into them at the dollar store lol. 
 
leaves wanting more?....at least an ending lol.

Man...

 
I'd get serious if I had one.

I'm guessing it might be one of those things where the cost - if you charged what you're worth - might not be worth it for an instrument that's not particularly expensive to begin with. IOW, it's good to have friends like Spacey!
 
I love these kinds of stories. Can't say I know much about resonators though.

drewfx1
I'm guessing it might be one of those things where the cost - if you charged what you're worth - might not be worth it for an instrument that's not particularly expensive to begin with. IOW, it's good to have friends like Spacey!
 
I love these kinds of stories. Can't say I know much about resonators though.

That was his problem Drew. He had little in it, it was not playable and he depended on me to get things right. I was honored to help him.
 
Years ago he asked me to help him buy an acoustic. We went to the local music store and I had him play every acoustic in the store while a walked around him listening. A Guild at $1,700.00 was the only guitar in the place, as far as I was concerned. He bought it.
A short time later he called me; it was to hard to play. I explained it was no problem and I'd set the nut action.
He left it with me and I set it. He wouldn't come get it. Said he didn't want it and wanted me to have it. It hung on my wall for over 2 years (waiting on him lol)  When he brought the Fender reso for mods he played it, freaked,  and ask if he could use it while I worked on the Fender...I told him it was his, he paid for it and I was glad it fit...just a wonderful guitar.
 
The funny thing is that he could purchase any guitar he wanted as money isn't really a deciding factor...he just loves going to pawn shops thinking he's getting something at a real good price LOL.
 
He gave me a cheap Fender acoustic he bought when he got the resonator...funny guy. I guess I could make it a resonator but I think I'm going to make it right and give it to some kid that would love it.