Stupidity at its best

[PatDie]

Well, weeks and months of deciding between several J-45s, finally finding the one, being happy all over the place and the first best thing I do is... dropping it! I mean, what on earth?! I attached a strap to play comfortable while standing and that strap decided to detach at the back end soon after. The guitar went down quicker than I could realize it, landed top-first on the edge of a table - just before I instinctively catched it, preventing it from landing on the ground. What a way to welcome it to the family. The nitrocellulose lacquer has a visible dent, but as far as I can tell the wood is fine. Sure, you could say a guitar gets so many scratches marks along its life, but I'm utterly angry at myself for this one. Should I get it fixed? Should I just get over it? I guess I don't even know where this thread is going, I just needed to vent my anger. Hopefully I can laugh about it in the future.

Pat

           

[Filbert]

I feel your pain. After my Dad died, I had a couple of his guitars in my room getting them photo'd and catalogued ready for appraisal and I didn't have enough stands. I foolishly thought that I could get away with leaning one against the wall whilst I was typing an email and of course, it tipped over and bashed my then new J15 with the tuning pegs; left a noticeable ding on the top that even though is not that visible, I can still see it and of course, once you know it's there, it doesn't go away!

Edit: That being said, I wouldn't stress too much; it's the accumulated battle damage over a lifetime of use that gives a guitar its character. I would take that over a pristine case queen any day. I have a '39 L30 that is beaten up to hell but it plays beautifully and that is what counts to my ears.

Edited June 22, 2020 by Filbert

[j45nick]

On boat joinerwork, we would use a hot iron on a damp rag to generate a bit of steam to raise the compressed grain. Not sure if that would work on a guitar or not, and that would be a "don't try this at home" scenario.

Most luthiers would probably tell you to live with it, since they would be reluctant to try to fix it.

I've had small dents drop-filled with lacquer and buffed down, but that doesn't raise the compressed grain.

[E-minor7]

Ouch, , , I can see why you call yourself a fool, but wait a minute. This isn't the badest ding on the earth - and luckily it didn't go through the lacquer'n'burst. 
I'd say it should be called a love mark - a "welcome here, nothing like it will ever happen again".

 

[kidblast]

oh man,  I feel your pain.  That's a tough pill to swallow. 

this might walk ya back off the ledge.

 

here's what an SM58 did to the top of my Taylor Grand Symphony when the mic stand toppled over..  

 

 

Edited June 22, 2020 by kidblast

[Leonard McCoy]

That hurts to look at for such a new guitar. An ably applied drop fill with super glue (or less so lacquer) would probably go a long way in disguising the ding. On the other hand it won't be your last.

[Sgt. Pepper]

You never forget your first ding.

[bobouz]

I would have it drop filled, leveled, & buffed out by a competent luthier.  I’ve done my own drop fills using nitro, and it has greatly helped with a couple of dings I caused.  For whatever reason, I can buy an instrument used & be fine with whatever imperfections exist - but when I cause it myself, it bugs the heck out of me.

So go ahead & get it done.  It won’t be nearly as noticeable & you’ll feel much better!

Edit:  The nature of that ding looks like it would be relatively easy to fill.  Just make sure your luthier has experience doing similar types of repairs.

Edited June 22, 2020 by bobouz

[slimt]

I did something similar to a New D45 I owned.   So your not alone.  

[uncle fester]

1 hour ago, bobouz said:

I would have it drop filled, leveled, & buffed out by a competent luthier.  

what he said.  It's not a bad one, can be fixed pretty easily...  by someone competent

[uncle fester]

1 hour ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

You never forget your first ding.

Lol, yep

[zombywoof]

 Over the decades every nick, ding and dried tabasco sauce stain becomes a memory.  So after the initial pain wears off it will become one of those brain farts you will laugh about..

[Dave F]

I’m afraid I couldn’t live with it. It would bring back too many painful memories. I say cut your losses and start the search process over and report back to us by Christmas. 😵

[75 Hummingbird]

Like all relationships there`s good times ,bad times ,bumps and bruises,tears and laughter ...chalk it up to a growing correlation . 

[QuestionMark]

Some of my guitars have dings, dents.  They are hurtful at first.  But, somehow over time they became battle scars , war stories, identifying marks of bring my guitars and I find myself feeling okay about the dings and dents.  And, somehow they seem smaller.  Almost unnoticeable.  Almost like my guitar wouldn’t be my guitar without them.  Strange how that happens and how I’m not sure at what point that change happened.  And, how/when I was able to put it in perspective that there are much more important things than focusing/worrying about a ding or a dent in one of my guitars.  But, it is upsetting at first.  (But, it gets better).
 

QM aka “Jazzman” Jeff

[Sacdubro]

First of many that come over the life of a well loved guitar .  Embrace the experience as part of the aging process and enjoy  the ride.

[BluesKing777]

 

I can be my worst enemy! Can't we play them with the case still on?

I often hover over beautiful guitars with a screwdriver to do various things, shouldn't be allowed. And mic stands are pure evil!

So measures need to be taken to counteract my own stupidness - clear pathway to the areas I sit and play normally, clear area where I unload a guitar from its case, a bumper bar made of bubble wrap and gaffa tape on my music stand edges, and the Hiscox case is generally my friend.

But..I moved 'row A stand and contents'  - 5 guitars each stand - the other day to clean/dust behind it and I notice I all but ruined the dry wall behind it, where the cases have hit the wall....and in a dog leg entrance way to the music room near the door, the corner dry wall looks like a fight happened! So I suppose that has saved the guitars, but if I sold the house 'as is' with all the gear gone, what a mystery the new owners would have looking at the damage! "What were they doing?" would be the comment....

 

BluesKing777.

 

 

Edited June 23, 2020 by BluesKing777

[MorrisrownSal]

I did the same on my J-45 Studio... I’d avoid the temptation to “fix” it.... every time I do that with one of my guitars, it makes it worse. I hate the feeling right after the offense though... 
 

 

[Lars68]

The countdown to the next ding is always running...

[ratherbwalkn]

I remember the first hit my first guitar took like it was yesterday,  its still one of my go to guitars 30 years later.

 Ive seen people on you tube  steam those dings out, I never did, but i guess it can be done.

[fortyearspickn]

I feel your pain.  Strap connections at the lower bout are always dicey when you have a p/u plug masking as an endpin. Don't know if that caused it.  but a poorly cut strap hole will do it too.   It's very hard trying to undo something like this.  Wait until you have 3 or 4 more - and maybe get a volume discount on the repair job !    

[RBSinTo]

My J45 standard came with an input jack but no pickup.

The jack's flange was useless for keeping the strap in place, and fearing a disaster, I used a large candle to make a mold, and 5-minute epoxy to cast a mushroom-shaped plug. Spray painted dark brown, and firmly pressure fitted in place, the plug now ensures that the strap is secure.

RBSinTo

[PrairieSchooner]

Hey, some folks are paying big bucks for new guitars made to look like they've had the crap beat out of them 😀!  Maybe just pretend you've started the process  of doing it yourself?  Seriously, I know how you feel.  A deer antler shed fell off a shelf and hit my Guild F212XL.  As I recall it actually punched a small hole.  It's on the lower rear bout so I never look at it 😁.

[PatDie]

It's certainly uplifting to hear that I'm not alone with this feeling. And man, it could certainly be worse after hearing what some of you guys have experienced. Thanks for sharing your stories! One day later and I can at least look at it again without wanting to punch myself instantly. I guess that is part of the journey. But I wouldn't have minded owning an all new and shiny guitar at least for a couple of weeks. Well, when playing it the tone makes (and always will) make up for it - and all the future dings and dongs to come. No more playing without a strap security lock though.

Regarding "fixing" it, besides a cosmetic factor, do you think that if left on its own that dent could get bigger (the lacquer does have very small cracks ) or that the wood underneath could be affected by its exposure through the cracks of the lacquer (e.g. talking about moisture)? I would certainly let scratches be scratches, but with this one I want to make sure that it's not getting any worse. Maybe go see a luthier after all?

Thanks again!

Pat

 

[MissouriPicker]

Consider it a battle scar......Seriously, we all understand your angst.  Personally, my style of playing is sitting down 99.9% of the time and a guitar strap is just to provide security from the guitar slipping-off of my lap.. .......My story, which I've told before------early 80's.  I think it was 81.  I played at The Missouri State Fair.  Just doing 45 minute sets in a big tent, rotating with a couple guys, where people were drinking and eating.  I finished a set, came off the stage, was met by some friends who came to the fair, sat my new Gibson Hummingbird on a chair (not a foot from me) as I talked with my friends, and some drunk guy trips over the chair and lands on the bird.......We "live and learn,"  I hope you can get your guitar exactly as you want and need it to be.  You're not the first to unintentionally be clumsy or careless and you won't be the last.  To varying degrees, we've all been there.