The Hub

Okay gang I have a doozy of a crack repair. Young guy brought in a Epiphone LP Limited Ed. He had picked up the case while it was unlatched at the guitar took a nasty tumble. Severe finish damage, and the wood has a shear split in it as well. The undercoat is thick with a thin layer of nitro color on top. Spoke with a sweetwater rep and they said that the finish was nitro. Here's the guitar specs via Zsounds: Epiphone Inspired by Gibson…

I have a red-label Yamaha FG-180 that’s in overall nice condition, but the neck angle is poor and the heel is already cracked. I’d like to attempt a neck reset, but I’m unsure how to proceed given the existing crack. Should I approach the reset as usual, or plan an alternate method because of the damage? Has anyone here tackled a reset on a guitar with a pre-existing heel crack? I know a crack can develop during the reset process, but I…

Im going to attach some photos of a 000-style guitar from Potomac(I believe an Eastman product) that has some top cracks and deformation around the neck block from what I assume to be a shift of the neck block. How do you all approach repairs like this. Im thinking that pulling the neck and somehow pushing the block back into place from the inside is about the right course of action, but if anyone has some advice, Id appreciate it! In th…

1966 Jose Ramirez 2A Flamenco with a split/cracked fingerboard. It's been cracked for years, and is in stable condition at humidity. Spans from 11/12th fret to the sound hole. I've filled smaller splits/cracks with ebony dust and superglue, or black superglue in the past, and had great results. Do any of you ever use ebony shavings to spline these? (likely need to pull frets for that) I'd love to hear how you approach these, and when you d…

I need some advice on replacing some saddles. I have been restoring a "dumpster dive" 1972 Gibson SB-400 bass, with a Multiplex bridge. It has nylon saddles, one of which has a crack. The screws upon which the saddles ride are not removable, as the end has an enlarged cap (see picture). How do I replace the saddles without destroying the screws? I repaired the cracking nylon saddle by supergluing two layers of fiberglass wrap (used for f…

It was only a matter of time before one of these arrived on my bench. The neck on this 71 SG Deluxe is caving through to the neck pickup cavity— In a similar fashion to what happens on old jr’s. Both sides of the cutaway have cracks that extend through to the pickup route and I can flex them easily. Problem is that the cracks are not straight and wander all over. I worry about being able to get enough glue in there because of this. Thin…

In the process of evaluating the repairs needed on this guitar I checked to see if the truss rod was working. There is hole in the transverse brace where you would normally insert a truss rod, but all I see is the end of a metal bar with a smallish hole in the center. I tried several allen wrenches that would fit in the hole, but nothing seems to grab. Did they really eliminate the adjustable truss rod on this vintage reproduction? Here'…

Hey y'all, Got another interesting job I'd like some advice on. It's a 70s yamaha classical the current owner inherited from his father. At some point it developed a rather nasty top crack, to the point that I'm thinking the job would involve fresh spruce being applied in there. That's routine enough at least, albeit uncommon for New Zealand's climate in my experience so far. (Also open to suggestions on cleaning out the crack to accept…

G'day...I have a nice old Burny LP in that is showing some rot in the fingerboard binding, with some on the body binding as well... I'm looking to stabilise things for now (I understand that eventually, it will all turn to dust)...thinking about: acetone applied sparingly to cracks, Duco cement (not really sure here...maybe try to just adhere crack edges), or CA (ultra thin, wicked into cracks)... Very grateful for any suggestions.... Stev…

The neck on this Epiphone Les Paul was repaired by the local Guitar Center, but they left it ragged and the customer asked me to fix the finish. It appears to be very thick poly (not lacquer) and the crack has some glue left over from the repair. I would love to be able to just fill and finish the cracks, but I'm afraid it will be near impossible to match, so I'm inclined to strip and refinish the whole neck. Advice??

hello looths - i'm building my first guitar. generally following (and enjoying) the gore/gilet books. after 3 tries, i've yet to get a crack free bend around the nose of a venetian cutaway with a mahogany side. i made a version of the fox bender - using clamps on hand for the waist and cutaway, and a pid temp controller (verified accuracy), and am using a stew mac blanket and three straps. the recipe for my last attempt was: sapelle (fo…

Hello good people, My shop’s in Quebec City, so I get to repair an ungodly amount of cracks thanks to our brutal winter and customers being largely unaware of the requirements of maintaining proper RH. Now for the first time (call me lucky) I have two very good guitars in the shop whose cracks won't close up after having been rehumidified for a few weeks. I have tried over-humidifying and it does it, but once returned to proper RH (50%)…

Hi there looths, Hoping you guys can help me identify what uv resin or other compatible finish can be used to finish this crack? I'm comfortable true-ing up the material and gluing, however I've only really done nitro or polyurethane finish touch up. Thanks, Aleks

So this 46' J-45 came to me at a very very low price as it needs extensive repair. Much that I am confident in, cracks, bridge/bridge plate issues, loose braces and the like. There are however a few points that id like the groups opinions on. The neck angle is pretty great and theres a good amount of fret, however, at some point in its past, someone shaved down the neck to a dangerous point, and the back of the neck has toms cracks along…

Hi everyone, I was hoping to get some advice on training opportunities. My background and situation (briefly), I’m a self-taught guitar tech and electric luthier with 3 years experience (after 20yrs office work). I have a job in a high volume guitar shop doing setups and quality checks on outgoing/sold guitars. The store does repair work but I have not been included in this, despite many requests. I do not believe this is due to skill le…

Hey Everyone! I got a text message from someone today asking about a crack in their 2019 Collings. They sent this video showing the crack. I am confident in my abilities to glue it back well but was curious as to how everyone else would go about repairing the finish. Hoping to get an idea before I even accept it. Thanks!

I have a Gibson Chet Atkins in the shop with a nasty headstock re-break. The headstock was broken off previously and repaired (at another shop). The repair to the front of the headstock has held, but the main break opened back up along the same line. Since the headstock is hanging on by the headstock veneer I can't really open up the crack enough to clean out the old glue residue that's deep inside the break. I'm looking for advise as t…

Hey all. I've got the above-mentioned guitar on my bench. It had a neck reset and what appears to be a new bridge pad put in 14 years ago. It's a crack-free guitar except for a couple of little hairlines running from the back of the bridge to the upper tone bar. I thought that was a bit weird. Inside, everything looks okay until I turn off the inspection light, at which point I can see the rosy glow of daylight through the top - this…