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Historic 57 Gold top is this Normal ..?


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I have only seen cracks in the nitrocellulose like that but rarely.

 

Interesting how those anomalous cracks are on or near the volume and tone knobs.

 

Tell me;

Is is particularly dry where you live (as in the desert southwestern US), or is it seasonally humid?

:mellow:

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Hello Blackzeppelin, and welcome here.

 

Sorry for your bad luck with the finish of your new Gibson. :(

 

Those cracks in the top coat appear sometimes but are definitely not normal after such a short period under environmental conditions appropriate for guitars. To my experiences metallic finishes seem more prone to this. Perhaps the period-correct historic gold-top layer is more critical than the current poly coats they use for other gold tops.

 

My guess is that the shrinkage of the finish layers didn't match, probably due to improper contents or blends of solvents. Thus inner tension built up and later released at the most critical spots, around the holes with the pots mounted to them.

 

My suggestion is contacting the dealer you bought her. My favoured solution would be a repair free of charge by Gibson.

 

Hope this helps.

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... Especially, around the points of stress.

 

This is a good example for discussion of "cause and effect".

 

The "effect" is finish cracks, but the "cause" is not paint failure or climate extremes, or the entire guitar would look like this. The "cause" is stress, or structural movement in the weak spot of the thin area of the control cavity routing.

 

So what caused the "cause? The first thing I would check would be the case lid to see if simply closing the case is putting undue pressure on the knobs. Another thing that would cause this would be trauma, as if the knobs got banged on something at some time (the damage might not show up until much later).

 

Short of damage or trauma caused by use or neglect, a 6 month old guitar should NOT show finish damage of this nature, but.....

 

If you're happy with the guitar in all other respects, I would just live with it. You never know what a "replacement" guitar is going to look/play/sound like, as all instruments are a little different. Many people even like the "checked" look on LP tops, and even pay premium for the "aged" look.

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re: stress cracks, exactly what I thought when I saw them too, like if the tone controls got loose and tightened too much would cause something like this, especially on a newer model where the nitro has not fully cured.

 

but that would not explain the check marks that we see below the tone controls closer to the edge/binding.

 

again, it doesn't seem right, I know Gibson does not warranty the finish, but for this to happen after not even a year? somethings up.. I would make some inquiries.

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re: stress cracks, exactly what I thought when I saw them too, like if the tone controls got loose and tightened too much would cause something like this, especially on a newer model where the nitro has not fully cured.

 

but that would not explain the check marks that we see below the tone controls closer to the edge/binding.

 

again, it doesn't seem right, I know Gibson does not warranty the finish, but for this to happen after not even a year? somethings up.. I would make some inquiries.

I Have emailed Gibson service 3 days ago with pictures ..and the dealer i brought it from , but have yet to hear any reply from them ..

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This is a good example for discussion of "cause and effect".

 

The "effect" is finish cracks, but the "cause" is not paint failure or climate extremes, or the entire guitar would look like this. The "cause" is stress, or structural movement in the weak spot of the thin area of the control cavity routing.

 

 

I agree with this, but my guess is more movement due to the thinner wood there and more holes.

 

I am not sure that even though the guitar is weaker there, it's weak enough to flex from outside forces to the point it would cause finish damage. It's still failrly strong maple.

 

I don't know the cause, but I'm thinking it's finish and wood movement of some sort.

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ok just had a Reply from Gibson .......Gibson guitars have all the characteristics of guitars that are still produced in the classic American way, like guitars were made many decades ago. They are still handmade, using exactly the same materials and ways that they always been famous for. While other manufacturers apply more modern lacquers that will seal the wood off like in an air tight shell, Gibson has never moved away from traditional nitro lacquer. Nitro finish slowly absorbs into the wood over the years which ensures that the guitar ages and the wood ‘breathes’ during its life-time. Over time the finish will start to crack slightly, called finish checking. A Gibson guitar is regarded as being at its best once the wood has shifted and settled which actually ensures great tone and playability years later.

 

What we see on the photos looks like the typical signs of aging and playing in the wood, which appear on many nitro cellulose guitars after some years. Usually you do not need to worry about such things which are regarded by many players as marks of a high quality guitar.

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Well, after only 6 months, that's a bit surprising. :-k I have several Gibson's that are 30 years old, and older,

that don't have any "finish cracks," or "checking!" While I do take good care of them, they get played, a lot!

Outside, inside, bars, clubs, theaters, etc. So far, no checking. But, if they do, I'll live with it, and even

enjoy the "mojo." [biggrin]

 

CB

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....its best once the wood has shifted and settled which actually ensures great tone and playability years later.

 

What we see on the photos looks like the typical signs of aging and playing in the wood, which appear on many nitro cellulose guitars after some years. Usually you do not need to worry.....

It's a BS answer and a waste of time.

 

Want to point out, in the answer it says "years" and "usually", which means basically the whole answer means nothing as there is no determination on their part, and it hasn't been years, it's been months.

 

Also, the part I find to be utter total BS is the wood "settling and shifting". No, sorry, the wood should be cured before it's used, and Gibson knows that and does that. Sure the wood will move because it's wood, but to imply the wood still needs to move and "settle" into something else after it's built certainly implies something else to most who would read this.

 

It kinda leaves the door open to someone saying, "Could you take this back and give me a guitar that is made of wood that is cured?" Which also, I believe they would do.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hey Blackzeppelin. Thanks for the link to this thread (I missed it somehow before). It seems you have had a similar experience to me with my L5 neck lacquer cracks. I have to say, I have never seen cracks like that on the top of a relatively new LP before. It seems strange some guitars seem more prone to this than others. I have one Reissue Les Paul (a '57 Custom made in 2009) and it hasn't developed any checking/ cracks. Like you, all my guitars live in the same room and I look after them all in the same manner, yet only my L5 and ES 5 have these small cracks appearing on the back of the neck/ heel area. The odd thing is, my ES 5 is from 2010 and I bought it in 2011 and it has only developed these cracks in the last couple of years. I don't know what changed in my house to make this happen. I have never actually gigged with my L5 or ES 5, yet the Gibson's I do gig with (my old LP Classic being one) have never developed these cracks and these are the ones that have been through all kind of temp/ humidity changes, alongside having sweat dripping on them in live situations. All very bizarre IMO.

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  • 3 years later...

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