jhatzi Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 Hello to the forum. New user here, although I am a Les Paul owner since 1999. I own a Gibson Les Paul Standard guitar, s/n 91778438. I live in Thessaloniki , Greece .A year ago, it fell from a floor guitar stand and the neck broke, behind the nut, as shown in photo 1. I took it to a local repairman and when he first assessed the damage he said that he would have to add a small piece of wood in order for the gluing to hold and maybe replace the entire plastic piece with the logo on the headstock (because it was out of place too). When I took the guitar back, he said he didn’t add the piece because as it turned out it wasn’t needed and he managed to glue the guitar without it and without replacing the logo too. After the first repair the guitar looked as in photo 2. The crack was barely visible and not noticeable when touching it.I played the guitar for a while (for about a month), and then glue started coming out and the crack was getting bigger and you could easily feel it when touching it. I took the guitar back to the repairman and he said that it was very likely he would have to add the small piece of wood after all, if the crack continues to grow.After summer (and probably because of the heat) the crack was clearly visible, no glue could be seen, so I took the guitar to the repairman again. He told me again that he would have to add the piece of wood but I told him not too (because I didn’t want it in the first place) and to try to glue it again if he could. He used another kind of glue, glued the crack again and the guitar now looks as in photo 3. The crack is still visible, you can feel it with your hand and it seems to get bigger as I play (in a period of two weeks). The repairman said that the only way he can guarantee that it won’t crack again is by adding the piece of wood.Does anybody think that this is the right course of action?Is there anything else that you can suggest, so the repair can hold? I sent the same message (via e-mail) at repairrequest@gibson.com a week ago but didn't ger an answer. I haven't contacted support before, so I don't know how long it takes for them to reply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 Was it possible that this left in a very hot environment for a duration of time? (like a car trunk or car back seat during summer?) That would definitely be a cause for the glue to soften, and start to separate. otherwise, not sure why it would be failing like it is... I don't think it's the absence of a piece of wood especially since at first, it seemed that there was a pretty solid adhesion. I'd be inclined to keep trying to see if someone from Gibson Customer Service can advise on how to move forward. All that glue that was originally used, all needs to be removed so it can be done over again. I would definitely want the guys at Gibson doing this. probably be costly, but most likely it'd be done right. what a bummer! Good luck Jhatzi! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhatzi Posted October 30, 2014 Author Share Posted October 30, 2014 Hi kidblast, thanks for the reply. The guitar was mostly stored at home during summer, except for a couple of gigs when it was transported by car but not left inside. The separation of the glue started before summer (about a month after the repair) but became really obvious during summer. So far, I haven't got a reply from Gibson. I think that the cost would be pretty high just to send the guitar from Greece to the States. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted October 31, 2014 Share Posted October 31, 2014 yea the freight charges would suck for sure. Good luck,, let us know how this story ends.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjsinla Posted November 2, 2014 Share Posted November 2, 2014 You would think that any good woodworking glue would work and not pull apart. Also, having to put extra wood into a clean break does not sound right. Is there anybody else you can take your guitar to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinkjs Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 Welcome, jhatzi I have a 99 standard, but that's besides the point. My opinion is that you need a glue that can take a little heat. Temperature changes and the wood naturally expanding and flexing etc. will happen. If the glue was totally dry, it wouldn't seep out. Maybe this problem would have naturally run it's course, once the glue totally set. I wouldn't make any $$$ decisions just yet. I would research a proper glue on line and give it one more try before going drastic. Let the wood and glue do their thing until the glue is rock hard. It may need as much as a couple of weeks downtime before it's ready to be played. If it's your only guitar I can understand it being tough without it, but think how long an international voyage would take. Any way, that's my 2 cents and the decision is yours only. Good luck, by the way, I'd love a photo of the rest of it for sure. kevinkjs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L5Larry Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 Embedding a couple of wood splines has become the accepted method of repairing this kind of break, but.... I agree with everyone else, a good glue and clamp job should have stabilized a clean break of this nature. You pretty much get one chance at a glue job of this nature, as the best repairs are accomplished when working on a fresh clean break. The problem you face now is it having to be purposely re-broken to be reset, AND dealing with glue and residue from the previous repair attempts. I would say your repairman botched the job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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