What do to with this cracked neck? (not bass)

[reverendrally]

This guitar belongs to a mate of mine. It's an ovation celebrity and it's pretty good nic... except for the crack in the neck that was sustained through air travel. I'm wondering if some of you repairers have an insight as to what to do with this guitar.

With the strings attached...

Bass side of neck


Back of neck


Treble side of neck


Headstock angle (should be angled back)

And then with the strings off....

As you can see, some of the angle comes back.

I suspected it was the tension of the strings that was stopping the headstock coming off but I was wrong on that count. The neck is still quite stable despite the myriad of cracks. Of these cracks there are two main ones. One runs the same direction as a scarf joint while the other (because of the shape of the grain) has cracked in exactly the opposite direction. I tried to pull the headstock off, but a lot of the timber is still together.

As I see it I have two options.
1. Glue it, clamp it and call it done;
By this I mean get hold of a hypodermic needle and use it to get titebond into the cracks and then clamp it up as best possible and live with it. I personally think it is a reasonable option as the headstock is still firmly attached to the guitar and the headstock is stable with all the strings under tension. The only real issue with this is I know it's going to be impossible get glue into ALL the cracks and it is a compromise of sorts.

2. Complete the break to the neck and then glue it all back together;
I know this is a much bigger job and that what ever comes off as I break it will be like a nasty jigsaw puzzle to try and put back together along with gluing it. I also assume it would need some reinforcing bars glued and possibly the fingerboard removing at the same time. With the level of work needed to do this, a new neck is a real consideration (as it's possible with ovations) but I'd really rather not go there.

What do you think? :shrug:

[bassbenj]

Originally Posted by reverendrally

This guitar belongs to a mate of mine. It's an ovation celebrity and it's pretty good nic... except for the crack in the neck that was sustained through air travel. I'm wondering if some of you repairers have an insight as to what to do with this guitar.

As I see it I have two options.
1. Glue it, clamp it and call it done;
By this I mean get hold of a hypodermic needle and use it to get titebond into the cracks and then clamp it up as best possible and live with it. I personally think it is a reasonable option as the headstock is still firmly attached to the guitar and the headstock is stable with all the strings under tension. The only real issue with this is I know it's going to be impossible get glue into ALL the cracks and it is a compromise of sorts.

2. Complete the break to the neck and then glue it all back together;
I know this is a much bigger job and that what ever comes off as I break it will be like a nasty jigsaw puzzle to try and put back together along with gluing it. I also assume it would need some reinforcing bars glued and possibly the fingerboard removing at the same time. With the level of work needed to do this, a new neck is a real consideration (as it's possible with ovations) but I'd really rather not go there.

What do you think? :shrug:

I've had to do a few repairs like this including drums and a guitar neck that was like this (and I might add I'm still playing years after the fix).

My method (don't know if it's best but works for me) is to go with 1.

I used to use epoxy but now I use Gorilla glue. Either will work but with epoxy you run the risk of an improper mix and the glue never setting right. That is a MAJOR disaster!

The key is to force glue into the cracks and then force all the parts exactly back into how they were originally. When the neck is not cracked clear through this is usually not too hard, but if it's cracked off it can be quite a struggle to get pieces matched together!

To get glue in the cracks you need to spring the pieces apart a bit and then work the glue down into the split with a wire and/or thin blades of various sorts. With epoxy you can heat it to make it runny which helps but also sets it up faster! use caution! I've never had any luck getting thick epoxy or gorilla glue through a hypodermic needle! Hence the wire and blade poke thing. Clamps usually help squeeze glue down in the places you couldn't reach.

Once the glue is in there apply as MANY clamps as you can to force the neck back as close to original as you can. (wipe excess glue that squeezes out). It can pay to do a trial clamping before you apply glue to get test the fit of all the broken parts and even remove some splinters or trim a bit if necessary.

You don't want instrument glue here because you NEVER want this joint to EVER come apart again. You want the glue stronger than the wood. Once glue is set up (overnight) take all clamps off and sand neck back into shape using whatever filler/finishes etc. are needed to get it passable again.

Good luck.