The restoration of the 1960s Onnik Tsakirian bouzouki

And the unique Ideal 1st generation pick up!

On August 2019, (after an intense research), I published an article regarding the finds of a beautiful, unlabeled, four course bouzouki with superb craftsmanship on the fret-board, detailed and heavy use of mother of pearl decoration on pick-guard and capping strips, and with an old style (three course dimensions) ebony bowl.

Contacting the families of the famous luthiers Karolos Tsakirian, and Aram Tsakirian, the well known family of Anastasios Smyroglou (creators of custom bouzouki cases ), as also taking in consideration the opinion of master luthiers as Panagiotis Varlas, it became obvious that the mystery bouzouki was a creation of the famous Greek luthier Onnik Tsakirian, constructed between the years 1960-1964 

Proving the master craftsmanship of the luthier Onnik Tsakirian, almost sixty years later, the instrument needed mostly cosmetic restoration, and frets replacement.

Once again, master luthier and friend Chris G. Pantazelos who works at the Spartan Instruments shop (http://spartaninstruments.com/) , did an exceptional work bringing back to "perfect" condition the Onnik bouzouki.

The luthier kept all the original materials and parts during the restoration,

Chris re-glued (using the old technique with fish-glue ) all the loose decorative parts on the pick guard, the side capping strips, and the neck.  

The luthier also reset the neck and replaced the frets where was necessary

Chris cleaned the tuning machines, replaced few broken knobs with exact same age and shape as the originals, and added the missing decorative MOP endings on the bridge, by following exactly an older photo provided by the original owner.

At the end, the luthier revived the instrument's old varnish, with a new layer of Shellac application with muneca also called 'rubber (French polishing)

The instrument when found was carrying a highly collectible IDEAL pick up 1st  generation.
The first generation IDEAL pickups ( 1955-1970) constructed with individual coils under the 6 pins.
The later years IDEAL pickups carrying screws and not pins on the top (this is how someone can easily identify the 1st and 2nd generation), constructed with one main coil under the hood.
Accordingly to the music and acoustic experts, the individual coils produced a much better and crispier sound quality.

Following, the final photos which Chris Pantazelos sent me, after the completion of the excellent restoration he performed on the Onnik Tsakirian bouzouki.