Double Bass Minor scroll repair: DIY or bring it in?

[davehertzberg]

This little bit of my scroll broke off and I have the piece that came off. Can I repair this myself and have it not look terrible? I’d prefer not to take it in for something so small but I also want it to look ok.

 

[Ggaa]

It's not structural, so you could do it. Make sure you can get a good flush fit first, clean the contact area and have clamps available. If it's an inexpensive plywood bass you could use Titebond or equivalent. If you have access to hide glue, that part could be removed later if desired, and if it's an expensive/carved top bass you'd really want to use hide glue.

 

[RSBBass]

You should be able to do it yourself. Do a few practice runs first before you glue it as the clamping could get tricky. If you can find a bottle of FRESH bottled hide glue you can use that but it really has to be fresh.

 

[dperrott]

yea glue it on. Do a practice clamping run. Don't clamp it too tight and squeeze out all the glue. Since I use hot hide glue I would use it but you could get away with bottled hide glue (I'm not crazy about the stuff), kremer bottled fish glue (better then bottled hide), or original titebond.

 

[notabene]

learn to use hide glue, not from a bottle. Initial investment (at most) is small (hide glue flakes, a babybottle heater, a thermometer et al...You will end up being able to fix many issues your basses may come up with in times to come. For me, bottled hide glue is very inferior to hide glue from "scratch". Oh... and a clamp ( or set of... clamps.

 

[davehertzberg]

Thanks all! I am going to try with bottled hide glue. I'm not too interested in learning to do any other repairs in the future and it seems like this should be a relatively simple job. How much glue will it take? Like a few dabs on each side? I get that I don't want to squeeze the glue out by clamping it too tight.

Question: If I mess this up, can a luthier remove the piece and redo it?

 

[dperrott]

Thanks all! I am going to try with bottled hide glue. I'm not too interested in learning to do any other repairs in the future and it seems like this should be a relatively simple job. How much glue will it take? Like a few dabs on each side? I get that I don't want to squeeze the glue out by clamping it too tight.

Question: If I mess this up, can a luthier remove the piece and redo it?

Just brush the glue onto loose piece and clamp it. Yes if you eff it up, can redo. Just don't mess it up! Its pretty simple to see where it lines up

 

[Ggaa]

Thanks all! I am going to try with bottled hide glue. I'm not too interested in learning to do any other repairs in the future and it seems like this should be a relatively simple job. How much glue will it take? Like a few dabs on each side? I get that I don't want to squeeze the glue out by clamping it too tight.

Question: If I mess this up, can a luthier remove the piece and redo it?

You can undo hide glue with steam, like a teakettle.

 

[KUNGfuSHERIFF]

Bottled hide glue includes formaldehyde as a preservative, which is a carcinogen. Hide glue flakes are edible.

Also, there’s a good chance that the bottled glue will liquify sometime next summer. Don’t waste your time.