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Location: closely held secret | I'm looking at pictures of a Classical O that purportedly had a book dropped on it at the bridge. It now has cracks in the bridge area. If these cracks do not particularly follow the grain, is that a hopeful sign that they're just finish cracks?
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Location: SoCal | that's what it looks like... |
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Location: Upper Left USA | Send it up to me so I can get a better look at it! |
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Location: closely held secret | ... I haven't bought it yet, Woodster. That's why I'm looking for educated opinions.
Know anybody who might have one? :rolleyes: |
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Location: Rocky River, Ohio | I would say that is a reasonable hypothesis..
Any wood crack I've ever seen always followed the grain exclusively..
Good luck, Ernie |
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Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | Looks like a finish crack. They can be stabilized using thin stew mac glue. If they are very young they can be buffed till they disappear. If you wait too long they won't disappear.
Or you can do nothing. Finish cracks won't hurt your guitar. Some people, myself included, think that they show that a guitar has been used by someone who really plays and has developed character (both the guitar and the guitarist), so don't worry. You're hip if you play such a guitar.
Do a search here on finish crack repair, there was a previous thread on it. |
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Location: closely held secret | Thanks to all for your wisdom.
Woodman, you know I was kidding. You are loaded with good advise when it comes to finishes.
An, I'm not worried if it's finish cracks, those don't bother me on an older guitar. I just wanted some opinions on whether or not it would be wood cracks. Seems to be the prevailing opinion that since they're not following the grain, they're probably just in the finish.
Thanks again, everyone! |
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Posts: 13987
Location: Upper Left USA | Got to handle Pat Donahue's (A Finger Picker) guitar last weekend. It is covered with finish cracks! He played the heck out of it!
A they say on eBay - does not effect the playability...
Good advise on finishes... LMFAO:rolleyes:
Paint it black until they invent a darker color! |
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Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | One thing I'd ask him is, can you feel the crack on the inside of the guitar? If he can, then it's a crack in the wood. If not, probably in the finish. |
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Location: 6 String Ranch | finish crack only, go for it! |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | The lacquer cracks are known to "loosen up" the soundboard and really bring out the richest sound. The more cracks the better it will sound. Trust me. Dave |
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Posts: 12755
Location: Boise, Idaho | It sure looks like finish cracks to me. I think I saw the same guitar and if it's a 1763 or 1713, go for it if you can get it cheap enough. I got mine for $375 in May without any finish cracks, but I hope I got a good deal. The little crack by the bridge looks more recent than the others. I think they look older because the wood is starting to discolor. They might just show up more on the cedar top. I have a couple cracks similar to the little one by the bridge on my Balladeer. Seem to radiate from the bridge pins. Still sounds great. |
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Location: closely held secret | Seller says it happened 25 years ago. I'll see what happens with it.
Thanks again for all the input! |
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Location: Waurika OK | They look like the finish cracks on my 1613 classical. It has two finish cracks that have been there so long there is dirt or sweat or whatever under them so no use to try and cover it up.
It also has a crack through the top, and yes it does follow the grain. I had it patched from the bottom, (three small pieces of thin wood) sound is still fine. |
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June 2004
Posts: 271
Location: Ft. Lauderdale, Florida | To confirm a finish or sound board "Crack":
Steal your old ladies compact mirror she has in her purse
Slide the mirror between the strings and lay it on the bottom of the guitar under the questionable area...
Shine a light over the area, from the outside...
Look for a thin bright line, on the image from the mirror... on the inside
No bright image, no soundboard crack...
You also will "see" the area from the other side and know for sure, what's going on up there...
Ab
PS
Best to return the compact to your "significant other", or she'll likely kick your ass... Bribe your youngest child to stick their hands between the strings to recover it... Make sure the powder stuff doesn't spill all over the place... (makes the guitar smell better though...) |
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Location: Massachusetts | Geez, I learn so much just by hanging around this forum.... lesseee where's my compact??
Seriously, you guys are great to just listen to... A little bit gassy, though.
Talk about gas. I took my Bauxite Bro (thanks Cliff. Let me know where to send the checks... ) to GC during their recent Labor Day sale. They had actually marked down everything. We played guitars with little holes in them for about an hour. Wanted to knock off a convenience store or two for a down payment! They sounded awesome and played like butter. I know what I want when I grow up!!! |
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Location: Minden, Nebraska | Reprise of a story I have told here before:
I had a garage sale #1867 Legend I got for $175 with a couple of ugly finish cracks that played and sounded great. It was my main stage guitar for several years. When I finally decided I was willing to invest the substantial cost of having it repaired with a new top -- ca. $400 -- I sent it to Kim, because it also needed a neck reset and that is automatically done as part of the process. That made the top replacement a more justifiable choice.
The guitar came back beautifully done, and looked great. People thought I had a new guitar. But everyone in my band noticed that it didn't sound anywhere near as good as it had before. Time being played and seasoned would improve the tone, or putting a couple of cracks in the finish....lol. I just didn't want to mess with any so I sold it.
Now my main squeeze is an #1869 Custom Legend with a crack.... :D |
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Posts: 12755
Location: Boise, Idaho | And I think I have one of Paul's old Balladeers. It's got some cracks, too, but sounds great, especially for a shallow bowl. I also had a Celebrity Deluxe with a big finish crack, that I thought sounded great. Maybe the cracks make them sound better. I wonder what my Matrix would sound like with with a big crack in it. |
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February 2005
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Location: closely held secret | Sometimes I wonder what they would sound like with no lacquer on them at all.
Woody? Have you tried that? |
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December 2003
Posts: 13987
Location: Upper Left USA | On the 1624, now under new management, I took off the finish and replaced it with Tung oil. Can't say it made the sound any different. Hard to A/B.
CWK2 probably knows the answer here!
Unprotected wood can be a dangerous thing. It will pick up more junk and issues! |
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Cracking question
