body cracked, what should I do?

TimmyGT · #1 12-03-2009, 10:59 PM

So I was given a squire bass for free that needs a lot of TLC. I started taking it apart when I noticed the body is cracked right down the middle just under the neck, it barley holding on.

should I;

a. try to use some wood glue to glue it back together

b. just try to buy a new body and consider this one dead

Benjamin Strange · #2 12-03-2009, 11:53 PM

Without seeing it, it's hard to say. But generally speaking, a glue bond can be stronger than the wood itself, so a fix is possible.

Craig_S · #3 12-04-2009, 12:02 AM

Glue it and clamp it up. See how it works.

godofthunder59 · #4 12-04-2009, 05:31 AM

Pictures would help but here is what I would do. First use Tite Bond wood glue. Gently open the crack and work the glue into the crack. Clamp up with pipe clamps, bar clamps or whatever you have on hand, make sure to pad the contact points on the clamps. Gently/firmly clamp up the two pieces. As you tighten the clamps make sure the two pieces stay lined up. Don't over tighten the clamps as you will starve the joint if you do. Once clamped up wipe off the excess glue with a damp rag. Let dry for 24 hours. Hope that helps.

202dy · #5 12-04-2009, 08:01 AM

Images would be helpful. A crack through the neck pocket is pretty unusual. Unless it's a two piece body, which is a virtual impossibility for a Squire. The comment, "barely holding on" implies that the crack goes the length of the body and the guitar is ready to fail.

The advice is somewhat different depending on the exact nature of the repair. Here are some general ideas.

Wood glue is the adhesive of choice. Either white or yellow will work fine. White glue has a longer open time, roughly seven minutes as opposed to five for yellow. Yellow is slightly stronger and releases at a marginally higher temperature. Both clean up with a damp rag. Wood glues set up in eight hours and cure in twenty four given a temperature seventy degrees and relative humidity in the mid range. It is unnecessary to leave the workpiece in the clamps any longer.

There are two basic ways to coax glue into a crack. You can open the crack or you can dilute the glue. Most often it is a combination of the two. Unless there is a lot of room to work a brush is not the way to go because there is the danger of leaving a bristle(s) in the crack. That will impede the proper mating of the two surfaces. Diluted glue can be injected into the crack using a syringe and a large gauge needle.

Clamps only work in one direction. The pads must be level and oppose one another. Strong clamps are important. If you do not have strong clamps, then many clamps will have to be employed. Using many clamps complicates the job because there are a lot of screws to turn. That is when the longer open time of white glue is an advantage. If using many clamps the bars should alternate on both sides of the body.

Clamps mean cauls. A caul is a stiff block that spreads the load of the clamp over a wide area. Cauls should be padded. A small block with parallel sides if great on flat surfaces. Curved surfaces require curved cauls. The curve in the cauls is a mirror image of the curves in the sides of the guitar body. The opposite side of the curve should have flat sides that are parallel to the center line of the body so the clamp feet will be parallel.

Your repair may not be complex. However, these basic ideas serve as a guide line to using glues and clamps. This is a job only for the seriously handy. If you have no experience with this type of repair and are hell bent on doing it yourself it is highly recommended that you practice on scrap. Of course, you can always take it to a pro.

TimmyGT · #6 12-04-2009, 08:20 AM

you want pictures, you got it! you can see the crack runs parallel to where the neck would go into the body. I have had wood shop before so I have glued wood together before but I just didn't know if it I should take the time to fix it or just move on. again I got the guitar for free, free, FREE so there is no way I would pay a shop to fix it for me. I have to look to see if my brother has any claps because I don't.

TimmyGT · #7 12-04-2009, 08:35 AM

p.s. on closer inspection it looks like the crack goes all the way through the body but it still holding together. should I just pull it apart and glue the two peaces together to make sure I get good glue coverage?

202dy · #8 12-04-2009, 08:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TimmyGT

you want pictures, you got it! you can see the crack runs parallel to where the neck would go into the body. I have had wood shop before so I have glued wood together before but I just didn't know if it I should take the time to fix it or just move on. again I got the guitar for free, free, FREE so there is no way I would pay a shop to fix it for me. I have to look to see if my brother has any claps because I don't.

You had woodshop? How unusual (and laudable) in this day and age!

You can either open the crack up or break the body and glue it together. Whether or not you choose to break it apart, it is important to make sure that all the fibers align on either side of the crack. This is much easier to do when there are two pieces. Also, a brush can be used because you can pick out stray bristles.

You'll need between six and ten bar clamps, depending on the strength of the clamp. Also, the aforementioned custom cauls.

It looks like the body is stripped and in poor condition. You may want to refinish it when done. If your glue work is good and your sanding work better you will end up with a good base for paint.

As far as paying a shop to do it for you goes, the fact that you got the guitar for free should actually encourage you to use a pro. Your cost becomes the cost of the repair. This is especially true when you consider the time and money it takes to make the cauls and acquire the clamps. Don't forget to include your time and the cost of driving around to collect things together when making your comparison. A pro is probably cheaper.

If you like doing this kind of work then go for it. It seems you have the knowledge and skill, if not the tools, to perform this task.

Rickett Customs · #9 12-04-2009, 08:52 AM

Yeah, if the crack goes most of the way through the body, this is what i'd do:

Strip the body of electronics, pickguard...etc, remove the neck and run the cracked portion through my bandsaw to cut it right down the crack ( I usually keep my resaw blade in it, so the crack looks just about the right width of the blade). I'd saw a thin piece of maple (2mm or so) to the thickness of the body. Run each side of the body cuts through a jointer to square it up and then re glue it back together with the thin piece of maple in between, to make up for the loss on the jointer, vise it up, thoroughly sand the area smooth and then paint, finish, etc. Fortunately I have the tools/facilities, But that's just me right?

TimmyGT · #10 12-04-2009, 09:34 AM

I already have the guitar completely disassembled and ready for the next step. it was the owner that gave the bass to me that had already sanded the body down and stained it black. I think if I fix this body I will paint it black and sand down the main part of the body for a vintage look to it but not completely sure yet.

TimmyGT · #11 12-04-2009, 10:46 AM

how much would I expect to pay a shop to fix it?

202dy · #12 12-04-2009, 11:01 AM

Hard to say without seeing the crack on the bench.

A very rough guess is fifty to a hundred and fifty dollars. It depends on your area (rural, small town, of major metropolis), the experience of the luthier, his methods and tooling, and your expectations for the finished product. A busy shop may already have made the cauls for another repair. That will save an hour. They will have large clamps and a lot of them. They may have apprentices or other employees that can handle the task for less. A new guy in the business may take on the job for a bargain price just to add the pictures to his scrap book or web site. Another guy may be happy to do it just to break up the monotony of doing setups and fret work. Other shops may view this job as a pain in the tail and charge accordingly.

Always remember this: The more demanding you are for perfection the more demanding they will be for pricing. If you tell them you want it ready to shoot primer it will be more expensive than if you tell them you're prepared to sand with 80 grit.

TimmyGT · #13 12-04-2009, 11:55 AM

yeah before I have a shop do the work I would just buy a new body off ebay for $50-$100. I think I would rather take on the task on myself since it is a squire and not worth more then $100-$200 for the complete guitar used.

here is another dumb noob question, what would happen if I just clamped the body instead of putting it in a caul? also what do the cauls look like?

ChrisBowsman · #14 12-04-2009, 12:42 PM

This would probably be a fairly expensive job for a repair shop, but it's gonna be stupid easy to do yourself.

If you can borrow clamps, you'll only be out the cost of glue

Pilgrim · #15 12-04-2009, 02:15 PM

If you get the body fixed, DO NOT start sanding on it. You will alter the contours of the body. I'd go over it once with paint stripper (just to get off as much as possible of that unknown black stain), then do a normal refin - in black if that's your preference.

TimmyGT · #16 12-04-2009, 02:54 PM

I don't want to have it finished a solid color black but want it to have that old warn out look to it. it has already been sanded once because it was originally blue that was sanded down and stained the black color by the original owner.