The Hub

1952 Gibson Southern Jumbo. I drilled 2 holes 1 cm from the edge through the 15th fret slot for the wire heaters. This one didn’t require any steam just a lot of boiling water. Be weary of the celluloid inlays and binding. They melt fairly easily. (Oops) It happened to a friend once! lol

This is my mid 50's LG-1. I had the back off to replace the bridge plate and one of the braces. I've got it all back together now but I'm lacking the knowledge to make my work disappear. I was using amber CA glue to color the binding but that didn't seem like the proper route so now I'm scraping, filing and sanding that back off and starting over. I watched Doug Proper's demonstration on liquid binding repair and that did have a lot…

Hey guys, I’ve got a crumbling binding issue on a 1977 Gibson F5 mandolin. After viewing the liquid binding repair video from Doug, I ordered the appropriate(I think?) chemicals to mix with my Gluboost Master Glu and attempt the repair. I mixed the titanium white with the Dioxane, and the Butoxyethanol, and then when I mixed in the Master Glu. As soon as I mixed in the glue, it got hot and smoked and turned into a solid mass pictured in…

Hello everybody, I have a 2001 Guild 12-string in my shop that I suspect got a little too hot in a car. The extent of the damage is what you see here, the two cracks in the top and some warped binding where it meets the neck. I don't see any loose or damaged bracing. After looking into it a little, I found Frank Ford's approach: http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Guitar/Structural/Cracks/D45FBTopCrack/d45fbtopcrack.html b…

Would love some advise on how to stabilize/repair this tortoiseoid binding on a 70's J-45... I'm thinking of wicking gluboost ultra thin into the cracks and then building up the missing areas with the thicker viscosity gluboost. Am I on the right track? Thanks in advance for any wisdom you all might be willing to share...

We had a Martin 1997 DM come in with all the binding falling off. Got that all glued back on and it needed some minor finish touchup down on the lower bout. This clouded like typical moisture blush does, but doesn't behave like typical blush. We can't sand it off, can't buff it off, thinner and butyl cellosolve (blush remover) both cause it do dissipate while it's wet, but as soon as it cures back out, the blush returns. Tem…

Someone came to me with an old Gretsch afflicted with binding rot. The cream binding was mostly intact, with some pitting and discoloration in various spots, and only a couple of pieces loose. The owner was aware that the only sure cure was the removal of the old binding, and then rebinding the guitar. They didn't want to invest that much money into a repair. I rediscovered a StewMac video from 2017 called "Guitar repair using kitchen…

I have dented the finish in the soundboard of one of my current builds while trying to clean up glue squeeze out after clamping on the bridge. I used a long piece of binding and I guess I held it at a bad angle and there you go. This is only my third guitar build and have steamed out countless dents already in unfinished wood, but I am unsure what to do to get out this dent in the finish other than sand it back at the dent and rebuild f…

I don’t know how many of you make your own binding and purfling, but the MacRostie Binding Trimmer from Stewmac is super helpful in a number of ways. 1. Allows you to make a lot of binding and purfling and have it all sized the same within a few thousandths. 2. I use vulcanized fiber and cut the strips using a utility knife which leaves a kind of burr on edge. Running the laminated fiber/wood or just fiber strips through the trimmer remov…

Hey guys, Trying my first bound headstocks and need some advice on how to approach it once I get to my nut area. I usually shape the headstock with a template and leave about 1/8” before the nut untouched so don’t roll the shape I to the nut slot area(aka a bad time). How do you all approach this process and specifically the nut slot area. I’ve attached some photos so you can see what I mean. Veneer on headstock is about 2mm. Neck is lig…

This is my second iteration of a gramil that can be used to fully cut the channels for binding and purfling as opposed to using an electric router. I am working on my first acoustic now but initial tests look promising. Features round beam so you can lightly scratch at first like a marking gauge. Depth control of the exacto hobby #11 blade. The edge for the beam is also shaped so it won't pop out like other wedges. Pretty quick to make…

So this one is a real doozy. Gorgeous Heritage hollowbody, destroyed in shipping. Owner got a full refund and they didn't want the guitar back, so he has no money in it currently. He's a collector and longtime friend/client/student of mine, which is the only reason I'm even considering it, he understands the potential nightmare this could be, and he builds very serious race cars for a living, so I can have in-depth and frank conversa…

Acoustic Vibes Music is looking for a lead tech that would primarily be working on Martin and Taylor warranty issues. We are a Martin and Taylor Warranty Service center. So everything from Setups, to making new nuts/Saddles, minor finish repair, refrets, binding repairs, cleating cracks in tops, Pickup installation, strap button installation, pickguard removal and installation, bridge removals and reglue, level crown/polish, and oc…

This guitar will have a piano black finish on most of it and translucent black over the red fabric areas. The client also wants the white binding to be aged. I will be sealing and grain filling with a polyester sealer. My thinking is to tint the first coal of sealer to age the binding , then seal over it with clear. Then tape off binding while spraying color coats. Anyone got an easier way? Suggestions?

Where Does everyone source their binding from? I really would like to cut down on my binding labor, so finding celluloid binding and purfling long enough to wrap around Dread bodies is ideal!!