Les Rankin - Guitar Repairs

07/09/2026

Hi all, I'm keen to part with my Ledford amp. Having heard the great Rex Goh using one roughly 15 years ago, I asked Duane Ledford to build me one. So there are 2 in existence. Sadly, Duane shuffled off the coil before he could provide us with fancy faceplates, so little stickers on galvanised plate it is. Before yesterday, I hadn't plugged it in since maybe 2019. It's merely been a piece of furniture, ensconced under its custom covers (made by the unfortunately defunct TLC, and used keenly by Punklet as a scratching post, so they're a bit tatty but still 100% protective). Anyway, it fired up without a glitch, and it sounded as glorious and neighbour-troubling as ever. It's completely hand-wired with military grade components and determination (Duane was pretty full-on about making things bulletproof). It's 50 watts, sits atop a 2 x 12" Greenbacks cab, and I added Fender tilt-back hardware. I quickly discovered that it was just too much amp for the Frenzy, which used up to 36 live mics on stage. 15 watts was pushing things with those kids 😕 It's loud, clean and mighty. Rex reckons it has a Hi Watt vibe. From memory, I paid about $2200 for the head and box. It's done probably twenty gigs and fifty rehearsals. PM me and make an offer if you're interested..

30/04/2026

Creative post-relicing? Not a problem..

17/03/2026

Zuckers is telling me it's been a while and I should therefore post something to keep my page breathing, so here we go: Last year, I was handed a Ricky with what was probably the most atrocious soldering job I've seen in my 23 years at the bench. Resurrection seemed futile, so I chucked in all-new components. For the purpose of hilarity, here's the before and after 👉

13/10/2024

Just dropping in with a confession: Despite 52 years playing and 22 years fixing, the "front-back" pickup identification method continues to elude and perplex me. I have to pause and search my memory banks every time. Logic is of no assistance. There are surely others like me, eternally wondering about the rationale of describing pickups thusly. Or am I it? (Photo of very hip Mojo "Jetsons" Charlie Christian pickup, which probably belongs on the front of a Tele, just for fun..)

18/03/2024

Hello! I like to drop in once every six months or so, just to make sure things are nice and tidy, and to leave a sublime morsel for edification purposes. The gift of Bill is rich and rare..

Provided to YouTube by Universal Music GroupThroughout (Live/Brussels Philharmonic) · Bill Frisell · Alexander Hanson · Brussels Philharmonic · Rudy Royston ...

05/01/2024

Just dropping in to point out that I rarely venture out to see a "tribute act" (you know how I feel about them 🙄) but this is bound to be a cracker: To honour the first anniversary of the death of the great Jeff Beck, my mate Paul Mason has booked the upstairs room at Factory Theatre Marrickville and assembled a sublime combo to present, in spectacular fashion, an evening of the music of. Besides young Pauly - who nails the Beck thing with more grace and finesse than anyone I've heard, then garnishes it with his Special Mason Sauce (don't ask, don't tell), too many guitars will be wielded by a smorgasbord of legends and a killer band. The poster tells the story. Might see you there..

https://ticketsearch.queue-fair.net/augenricqueue?target=https%3A%2F%2Faucentury.sales.ticketsearch.com%2Fsales%2Fsalesevent%2F114759%3Futm_source%3Dwww.factorytheatre.com.au%26utm_medium%3DCV_site&qfuid=659665a3

22/05/2023

Spot the Precision repair, punks..

22/06/2022

Finally, something worth posting:

19/11/2021

Hi folks, a mate has had 4 guitars stolen from his Katoomba home. Please let me know if any of these ring a bell. Thanks..

Parker Fly, black in soft case
Gibson L12 in hard case:
National resonator in hard case
Fender USA Deluxe Stratocaster with paisley scratch plate in plastic hard case

30/06/2021

Hi friends, I'm just popping in to say that if anyone decides to frivolously acquire one of these, can I borrow it for a coupla years? Cheers..

All of your personality disorders are welcome.0:34 - Overview1:11 - Mode two 2:00 - Mode three2:30 - Mode one3:19 - Overdubs4:15 - Cool random settings4:48 -...