djpo1 Posted February 6, 2010 Share Posted February 6, 2010 Hi I bought an EJ 200 about a year and a half ago...I love it, it sounds great. But latley I notice the X bracing is showing throught the top.....If you look at straight on you can see the X just below the the sound hole and an across the whole top plain as day....is that normal ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted February 6, 2010 Share Posted February 6, 2010 Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyK Posted February 8, 2010 Share Posted February 8, 2010 Not sure I'm understanding you correctly... is there a crease on the outside of the guitar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted February 8, 2010 Share Posted February 8, 2010 Not sure I'm understanding you correctly... is there a crease on the outside of the guitar? Â That's a good question. I took your question to mean you could see the x brace through the soundhole, but may have misinterpreted. Could you clarify for us? Â Red 333 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peeper Posted February 8, 2010 Share Posted February 8, 2010 something sounds fishy about this. Pics please? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djpo1 Posted February 11, 2010 Author Share Posted February 11, 2010 Hi thanks for the responses what I see is the X it's like the top has become indented. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_edward Posted February 14, 2010 Share Posted February 14, 2010 The bracing stops the top of the guitar from expanding and contracting because it's glued across the grain, with changes in temperature and humidity the outline or location of the bracing may "telegraph" through the top - normal for any thin piece of wood... including guitar tops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peeper Posted February 14, 2010 Share Posted February 14, 2010 Well, it's not by any means "normal". That is a clear sign that the wood is in distress. I would suspect your guitar is severely dry and the top could very well split at any moment. You need to go out and buy a hydrometer, and place it right next to the guitar, if that's the case, fine, on the wall, fine, but do it where you keep the guitar. Give it a while to adjust. Then see what the humidity reading is. You are shooting for 45-50% humidity Anything below 45% is bad. 30% or lower is REAL BAD, if you get under 20%, expect to see cracks forming, if you get to the teens, game over. The X you see is where the wood is shrinking from being dry, but the glue on the braces holds it tight, somethings gonna give and it ain't the glue! Your guitar is also probably suffering from playability issues as well from being dry, I bet the top has sunk in. Â After you perform the experiment, let me know the humidity reading, I'll tell you how to fix it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djpo1 Posted February 15, 2010 Author Share Posted February 15, 2010 I live in the north east, very dry winter............I can tell you with out checkng its dry here. I Have three acoustics a Takamine 523, and a 531 dragon they are fine.....just the epiphone is a problem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peeper Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I promise your other guitars are not "fine", you just don't know it. If you are not humidifying your guitars you are asking for trouble. They may not be about to crack, or maybe they are, but if you are in the NE and are not doing anything to ensure the proper humidity of your guitars, you WILL be in for some expensive repairs on all of them soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peeper Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 ah Nashua, I spent some time in Wilmot... Please get a humidifier! Now I KNOW you need it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djpo1 Posted February 15, 2010 Author Share Posted February 15, 2010 Thank you it's great to talk to someone who knows their **** .....I'm going to get a humidifier now..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peeper Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 The cheapest and most assured way to keep proper humidity for your guitars is to get a small sponge, damp it and place it in an open sandwich baggie. Place that in the sound hole of the guitar and keep it in the case. You can also place it by the heel of the guitar, but since you are already severely dry, I suggest placing in the guitar to begin with. If the sponge gets dry,s o does the guitar. YOu can alos buy a damp-it or other stringed instrument humidifier to keep in the case for 10-20 dollars. Â If you want to keep your whole music room humidified, get a cool air humidifier, you don't want any of the ones that produce steam. Thats bad, creates bacteria and mold, as well as doesn't do much to actually humidify the air. If you go that route, get one that is over sized for your room by 20% for the best results. If you have a wood furnace, I would skip that and just stick with the case humidifiers. Good luck and your guitars will than you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peeper Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I would also pick up the small hydromoter I mentioned, I got mine at Target for $10. Runs off batteries and I can put it in the case for a few hours to get a reading of the guitar. You can also over humidify your guitar, though that is harder to do and normally doesn't cause the catastrophic failures that being over dry can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djpo1 Posted February 15, 2010 Author Share Posted February 15, 2010 thank you very much for all your help today I have a grover case humidifier It came with a hydrometer to put in the case.... Once again thank you for you help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peeper Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 No problem, don't forget your other guitars! You can always do the sponge/paper towel in a bag thing as a stop gap measure to keep them healthy. In a couple weeks you should tell a difference, then it'll be time to set the guitar up and it will be playing and sounding better than ever, as well as last a lifetime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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