Dan Armstrong - The Man and his Guitars

Often times Email comes in that isn't about Dan or the history of his instruments. Instead I am asked how to find replacement parts for, or conjure up parts that will work in place of the original parts no longer available. My first word of advice to everyone is this. If it's a 'mod' you are working on, or even thinking of, don't do it. Nothing ruins the value of any guitar quite like a mod. With that being said - there are numerous things that one can do to find and even make into useful parts for your Dan Armstrong · Ampeg instrument without making any alterations. These are a few of the most common ones that have passed through my desk and I have been happy to have helped others with.

Pickups for the Dan Armstrong · Ampeg guitar remain as the most common subject. Many readers wish to know where one can obtain original vintage pickups. Unfortunately the only way to acquire them today is through the online auctions on the Internet.

An alternative to online auctions is to contact Kent Armstrong who has all the specs and schematics for the original pickups and can build one that sounds exactly like the original. Seen here, his replacement rock treble, or RT pickup is inserted into the body of my original 1969 model Dan Armstrong guitar. The original RT pickup is lying nearby for reference.

As the bass pickup on my 1970 Dan Armstrong · Ampeg bass went out, I placed a call to Kent Armstrong who built me a replacement pickup built just like the original. In addition, he also built me a humbucking bass pickup which can be seen here at upper left in my bass. At upper right, notice how well the pickup fits, and in particular, notice how the 3 rings match up to the threaded holes in the acrylic body. These holes are the original holes tapped for the screws that make the connection to the rest of the guitar's circuitry. All of which can be better seen in the enlarged view.

Second only to pickups are replacement bridge saddles. The Dan Armstrong instruments often came with more than one rosewood saddle, so don't forget to check your case compartment. If you have more than one Dan Armstrong instrument, look in the compartments of all the cases to see if an extra saddle may be lying in one. This happened to me on one occasion where I found an extra saddle in my bass case.
Alas, if none is to be found you still have a few options. One option that many people choose is to have the bridge saddles custom made out of rosewood or other materials at a local specialty shop.
An alternative is to purchase a Danelectro^® rosewood saddle and trim it down in size for your needs &/or playing style. It's a $10.00 item that you can shape to your liking and use or, once shaped - you can then take it to a local specialty shop to have either more made up, or some made up from different materials. I picked one up from danguitars.com for as of this writing it is listed on their parts web page but almost any Danelectro dealer will stock them.

Strap Buttons are another fairly common replacement need it seems. Many people put some brand of Straplock^® system on their instruments, but later - when it comes time to replace the Straplocks - the original Strap Buttons are often lost. Danelectro Strap Buttons are remarkably similar to those used on the Dan Armstrong · Ampeg instruments as they feature a wider flare to them. They can also be bought from danguitars.com or your local Danelectro dealer in packets of two.

Replacement scratchplate screws are another item that's somewhat up there on everyone's list. After many years of playing on a Dan Armstrong instrument such screws can either get rusted or lost altogether. While Ampeg is once again producing the Dan Armstrong instruments it is widely known that they are using different types of screws on the reissues.
As such, I've been using Gibson^® style scratchplate screws part #4387 from Stewart McDonald supply company and which is the screw seen at the far left. The screw at the far right is the original Dan Armstrong · Ampeg scratchplate screw.

The screw in the middle is the Stewart McDonald part #4387 Gibson style screw that has been altered. Notice again the Gibson style screw at the left and how it comes to a point - for turning into a wooden body. Now notice the original scratchplate screw that I removed from my 1970 Dan Armstrong · Ampeg bass guitar at the right. Notice how it has a flattened end on it - for turning into the pre-threaded holes in the acrylic body. Seen better in enlarged view, the screws have the same type of threads, so I took a pair of pliers (I used Lineman type pliers) to grip the head of the screw as I grinded the pointed end of the screw flat using a bench grinder. Care must be taken to get the screw ground down the proper length, and one must proceed slowly when inserting the screw into the holes on the acrylic body but if you've done it correctly, the screws will easily turn in without even so much as disturbing the original tapped threads on the acrylic body.

At upper left, a photo of my Dan Armstrong bass with the original screw securing the scratchplate to the body. At upper right, the Stewart McDonald #4387 Gibson style screw that has been altered now resides in place of the original screw. Notice the extra shine to it, mostly because it is new, but also because I made the mistake of ordering mine in chrome. I believe they are now only available in nickel which is more like the original screws anyway.

The actual screw head of the Stewart McDonald Gibson style screw is a bit larger than the original Ampeg screw head, but ironically that's a good thing, for as can be seen here, when comparing the two side by side, the replacement screw actually fits and fills the flared screw hole of the scratchplate better than the original screw does.