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Todd,

Paul Hostetter has this interesting photo-documentary on replacing the "heavy metal" bricge on a 60's Gibson B25 if that is of any use.

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

unless the bridge plate is totally shot, e.g., cracked right through, i prefer to use the great little bridge saver tool that s-m offers. it is easy, very effective, and also keeps the price, as well as the weight of the repair, down. it can also be used to fill the bolt holes as well.

rather than measuring the pinholes, when i have the option i use the old bridge as a routing and drilling template. to make it even neater, use a bit of tape on the bearing to route the bridge slightly over sized and route a tiny rebate to sit over the edge of the finish.

i've never tried one of the rockers for finish removal. i'm going to get one of those and try it soonest.

oh for an edit button! i inadvertently hit the post button.

given the age and condition of the instrument, it is going to be very difficult to stay much under the $600 mark if the neck needs resetting as you suspect. have you put the straight edge on it yet?

0.020 fret height says a refret is necessary. what is the action like?

assuming your figures are for the 12th fret, i consider that very high. is that with the neck straight, beacause straightening the neck will lower it marginally? if not, what is the relief? i believe erlewire quotes gibson factory specs to be 4/64" & 6/64"(0.062" & 0.093"). my set ups are usually lower unless the client specifically asks for or requires a high action to avoid fret buzz in heavy or inept strumming.

if you plan to sand out the fb divots, the action will get higher. sometimes it is better, and almost as quick, to repair the divots.

you haven't mentioned how the neck lines up with the bridge top using the straightedge. i think you will find the straight edge to be well below the top of the bridge. if so it sounds like neck reset time to me.

whilst a thinner bridge will allow a lower saddle, and thus action, with better break angle, it also becomes more prone to spliting, particularly on the pinhole line if it is a reverse belly style because the pins are so close to the rear edge of the bridge, as well as on the saddle line. on those type bridges it is very important to select your stock carefully for grain angle longitudinally to ensure neither the pinholes nor the saddle line up with the grain.

if the bridge plate is ok, no eroded pin holes, etc., i would just plug the bolt holes with dowel and forget about plating it altogether.

Todd, I take it you are not asking about repair technique, but about how to balance keeping the cost down against doing it right. This is one of the hardest issues in repair. I think the answer depends on how you want to be known. If you do the quick and cheap job, you may help out someone who can't afford to do it right, and that is a good thing to do for someone. But it is unavoidable that people will see that repair and they will not know that it was never intended to show your best work. Other people will hear that the job was done cheaply and come to you for similar help. If you want the reputation for high end work, don't do it. If you don't care about getting the elite reputation and don't mind being known as someone who will make it play OK inexpensively, then do. But I have found (I started in repair about 35 years ago) that you can't have it both ways.

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Howard Klepper
http://www.klepperguitars.com

When all else fails, clean the shop.

todd, pawn shops these days are onto what guitar prices are. they have the blue books and keep up.

i don't think these gibsons have any great cachet. their faults are all too well known, and any repair person can tell you what he thinks of gibson's quality control during that era. corporate ownership changes and bean counters gutted a well respected factory maker.

along with howard, i would never advocate a shortcut driven approach. but given that the owner is a "build" client, and if kept happy offers the opportunity for repeat build business, as well as word of mouth referrals, you might wish to eat some of the cost, via an on invoice discount, to keep the price reasonable, but still make him aware of the value you are putting into the instrument. and properly done repairs such as neck resets, refrets, etc., do not significantly devalue even a classic instrument, unless you are comparing it to one which is totally mint, and never needed repair.

all to often i have folks bring me instruments which are low value which need high value repairs, e.g., refrets and neck resets, major body damage, etc., and simply have to explain the economics of the situation. they usually understand, even if they are disappointed.