Headstock damage. What would you do?

[Humbled]

I emailed Dan Erlewine (closest luthier to me) today and got an estimate...

Dan Erlewine is one of the best, as far as I know.

 

[Smooth_bass88]

Folks, what's my best option here? I thought about: 1) using a dremel and sanding it out. 2) covering it with some type of sticker or doing an inlay of some sort. 3) leave it alone. I had the chipped out piece of wood...but somehow it came up missing.

You're not supposed to take bites out of your headstock. Wood generally is not easily digestible. Maybe try some almonds or other hard/crunchy legumes. Just a suggestion. Good luck!

 

[walterw]

Unfortunately I live in SE Ohio where the closest luthier is about 2hrs away. Anyone ever have any work done by Dan Erlwine?

really? you're asking us about probably the most well-known guitar repair guy in the world?

i vote option 2, it'll be well worth the investment when you consider resale value on that higher-end bass down the road. (hell, saying it was "fixed by dan erlewine" might even add a bit of value!)

as for sawdust as a fill, i'd expect that to look dark and really hideous, like a big ol' mole on your face.

 

[zontar]

I'm in the leave it alone camp--it hurts at first, but I get over it & move on--and it's part of the bass.

 

[lowfreq33]

There are two other options that haven't been mentioned, but both would be costly.

1: sand the headstock down to the depth of the damaged area and cap it with a veneer.

2: Fill the gap and paint the headstock to match the body color.