J-50 Deluxe binding.

[Ben III]

I have a 1973 Gibson J-50 Deluxe I bought brand new.  It has rarely been played. I looked at it the other day and the binding is cracking. Can this be fixed and is it expensive?

 

[anzafrank]

Pics?

[zombywoof]

Pictures are not necessary.  The answer is nope.  I have always ended up having to replace it.   The only guitars I  own that had  binding issues  though were two 1950s NYC-made Epiphones due  to shrinking and off gassing.  

Edited December 7, 2019 by zombywoof

[j45nick]

As ZW says, you can't really "fix" it. However, if it is  white plastic (not dark celluloid, which could be out-gassing), you can sometimes glue any pieces that fall out back into place with a bit of super glue. I think Stewmac even sells some type of glue particularly good for binding installation.

If the binding is crumbling as well as cracking, you either have to live with it or replace it. If it is deteriorating celluloid, it will damage everything it touches over time.

[Boyd]

I have a 1974 J-50 Deluxe that I also bought new. The binding is still in pretty good shape, and I really did not take care of this guitar, it spent many years in the original POS chipboard case in various closets and basements. My son in law loved it so much, I gave it to him a few years ago, but here's picture

 

 

This shows the binding from the front, don't have any closeups from the side. But IIRC, there are some damaged and cracking spots but it's generally intact. 

I spent about $350 a few years ago to have my J-50 Deluxe repaired, it became un-playable over the years. The luthier was able to avoid a neck reset by planing down the fretboard and doing a re-fret. He did a really nice job and after he was done it sounded better than it ever had. So that was definitely worthwhile, and it got be back into the habit of playing everyday. OTOH, I would not spend anything on purely cosmetic work for this guitar. Last I checked, these 70's J-50's are readily available in much better shape than mine in the $1000-$1500 range.

[zombywoof]

4 hours ago, j45nick said:

As ZW says, you can't really "fix" it. However, if it is  white plastic (not dark celluloid, which could be out-gassing), you can sometimes glue any pieces that fall out back into place with a bit of super glue. I think Stewmac even sells some type of glue particularly good for binding installation.

If the binding is crumbling as well as cracking, you either have to live with it or replace it. If it is deteriorating celluloid, it will damage everything it touches over time.

 

I spent a whole lot of time gluing binding both back down and missing pieces back in place on those Epiphones.  It was like the equivalent of basket weaving.  No superglue though.  Went with a water soluble glue and then used those big industrial rubber bands to hold things in place.  My major mistake was I had to soften  some of the biding a bit to be able to work it back in place and found that those rubber bands left indents.  Lesson learned. 

Edited December 7, 2019 by zombywoof

[Leonard McCoy]

Whether cracking in the binding can be fixed and how expensive it is going to be depends on the extent of the damage. If all else fails, the entire binding can be completely replaced if your pocket is big enough.

[fortyearspickn]

Yes and Yes.    It can be fixed.  And would be 'expensive'  in relationship to the value you place on it.   Here's an article from StewMac - everything you didn't want to know about installing binding.  Much more complicated than you would think. And, the question arises if you have binding on your neck and headstock.  If you are workshop - enabled, this id doable. But if you're like the other 95% of us - you could make it worse.  

https://www.stewmac.com/How-To/Online_Resources/How_to_Install_and_Repair_Instrument_Binding_and_Pur/How_to_Install_Bindings.html