According to Richard Fleischer, the man behind Budget Harp Rentals, it’s about 20 years old and built around 1990. I’ll have to consult the guys at Venus Harps to determine the exact age and birth date of the harp.

Last night, I did the task of cleaning much of the dirt, grime, and scuff marks as best I can without ruining the finish of the harp. But the most tedious of all, what I thought to be huge scuff marks on the bottom part of the back soundboard turned out to be black permanent marker drawn to cover up some scratches. I would up removing a small spot of the finish in the process. So I had to stop before I do any more damage on the harp with I don’t want. I learned that The Harp Connection has harp touch up pens. That’s really Mohawk Pen Mark II pens.

http://www.harpconnection.com/store/index.php?cat=15

However, what they have are only limited choices in the kind of colors that would camouflage the markings on the harp. Even the Natural color can’t blend in well with the color of my harp, so I went to other sites to find the right color that will blend in with the finish and found Oak Natural Light, a yellowish color I believed to match that with the finish of my harp.

http://www.woodworkingshop.com/cgi-bin/8D7F2147/mac/additmdtl.mac/showItemDetail?loadItem=M2670321

I’m going to order it from a store on ebay and see if this marker will really work covering up the permanent marker blemishes on the harp. The scratches, dings, bumps, bruises, and the messy distorted decals is the only issue the harp has. But, the sound and the mechanics are completely flawless.

My other concern is the distorted decal. Look closely at the last photo and you’ll see what I’m talking about. The previous owners must have done something to mess up the decals bad. Anyway to get an professional to come over the restore the decal?

Flawless! That’s what I think about the sound. Although he has issues with the finish, it can never compare with the clear beautiful sound Gilligan has. The actions and the mechanisms all work fantastically! No flaws.

Today I got the touch up pen I ordered from ebay and used it to make Gilligan look better. I only colored all the back of the soundboard, which has most of the scratches and dings, and the front top side of the base which has glued cracks on it.

Somehow, the previous owners must have done something that caused the base and the bottom part of the pillar to break apart. Thus, Gilligan had to go to a repair shop and get the pillar and the base fixed. All this really leads me to lament, “I wish the previous owners treat the harp better.” He would’ve been in a much better shape if it weren’t for the previous owners. As for the smeared painted decal, I’m saving the decal restoration for the experts at Venus Harps. Once the office is open Monday, I’ll ask them how much will it cost to really spruce up Gilligan and restore everything on that harp from getting a new base and soundboard that perfectly match Gilligan’s finish to restoring the decals.