Official Luthiers Forum!

A friend gave me his Gibson Les Paul Custom to fix... it seems the previous repairman used white glue or something, and did not wick the glue all the way into the crack and therefore the seam came off again. Then the owner took the guitar to a shop where they used WOOD SCREWS to hold the thing together! It holds together I suppose but now the back is a mess because now I got two holes from the wood screw (I was lucky the screws backed out without complaint... my previous encounter with wood screw fixes weren't so lucky) not to mention new cracks formed by the wood screw, not to mention the glue from the previous repair attempt that needs to come off before I can glue it and clamp it properly. I want to make the repair invisible if possible but this neck is clear tinted lacquer rather than black like normal (cheaper) Les Pauls... so if I tried to touch up the area after the repair is complete it will show and I will need to patch some wood where the screw used to be. I do not know the year of manufacture for this guitar... this guitar looks very old and I really do not want to ruin a piece of history. I could repair the neck, patch up the holes, and refinish the neck and no one will know that the neck ever broke, but that is a lot of work and I am afraid of killing its value.









I really want to do this one right because this guitar has sentimental value to its owner and not to mention, its a les paul custom!

_________________
Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

Tai Fu:

Based on the serial number and looking really quick, I'd say the guitar is from 1989. Take a look:

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Support/SerialNumberSearch/

In terms of the repair, and I'm not a professional, I would repair it as you described. Plug the holes, glue the neck back together with little evidence of it. You said you don't want to affect the value, well, I dare say it's worth a whole lot less broken than with a professionally fixed neck. I'm sure one of the pro repair guys will pipe in.

Wood screws....yikes!

_________________
Jamie M