Members kwakatak Posted October 22, 2014 Members Share Posted October 22, 2014 My autistic 10 yo autistic/mentally retarded son had a meltdown, picked up my Larriivee OM-03R and threw it like a javelin end pin first against the oak post at the bottom of the stairs. I can't be mad at him since he's also mentally retarded and even though it's my favorite guitar it's just a thing but I'm feeling sick right now. I'm telling myself that the guitar is not a total loss.There are two parallel cracks that run about 8" along the curve of the lower bout on the treble side. There are sections where the poly finish has separated from the wood but the breaks are mostly clean. The most noticeable part of the damage is that the area between the cracks is sunken in as this was the point of impact. I've visually inspected the neck joint and the dovetail joint appears to be secure and IMO is a testament to Larrivee's build quality. I've also removed the strings and felt around inside for evidence of any cracked or separated braces and could not detect any at that time. I'm lax to perform any other checks for structural integrity but prior to removing the strings I'd dare say that the guitar was hardly even out of tune. The thing is a real trooper! Looking forward, I want badly to have the guitar restored. Even though I own two other guitars this one is my favorite. As a few here might still recall I received it as a surprise gift from a giveaway on this forum and it is precious to me. Prior to that I'd determined that this guitar fits me like a glove, both physically and tonally. In addition to playing it at home I've also equipped it with a K&K Pure Western mini pickup so that I can play it in church during services once a month. The issue therein lies in how do I even go about getting it restored? I am the original owner and IIRC I did register the guitar with Larrivee but this type of damage is not something I'd expect to be covered under warranty. Also, where would I be able to get the work done? I know that Martin has a dedicated shop for repairing these types of damage but also has authorized repair people in its network to cover warranty issues. I'm going to pose this question over at the Larrivee Forum to see if the work can be completed locally or if I have to transport it back to their (remaining) factory in Oxnard, California. I'd provide pics but again I'm sick over this. I'm having bad luck with guitars. My Martin suffered a similar though less severe impact at my own hands but I've been living with it. I also really botched an attempt at repairing my old Takamine rendering it an unplayable corpse and Guinea pig for my inadequate repair skills. As it stands, the only undamaged guitar I now own is the one I recently completed building - and it's staying in its case! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted October 22, 2014 Members Share Posted October 22, 2014 That is a shame, but I encourage you to have it fixed if possible. Key cracks (so called because they happen in the treble side where the guitar sits on your lap, and thus the keys in your pocket) are fairly common in old martins, that is why they put those little strips of cloth reinforcement in there. If it were mine I would go straight to Larrivee and see what they say. I'm sure that it is not covered under warranty but if you explain the situation they might be wiling to do something. Also, please do post some pictures - there might be something we can do here locally - I have fixed some side cracks and might be able to advise you. I was a very small part of that original gifting - it was the first of several HCAG "capers" that I think were characteristic of the forum and people who hung here at that time. Take your time, lets do some research and it will turn out just fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted October 22, 2014 Members Share Posted October 22, 2014 Sorry to hear about your guitar. Kids, even "normal" ones, can be both a blessing and a pain. Our daughter is not autistic but she's had several meltdowns she blamed (falsely) on being ADHD. At one point, we decided she was spending too much time online and I put a password on the computer. She picked it up and slammed it down on the floor. It was a small miracle it still worked.That said, please do post pics. We have some talented people like Freeman on the Forum and someone will have an idea or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Idunno Posted October 22, 2014 Members Share Posted October 22, 2014 Well, get it fixed and then double the guard (cases locked). I know being on constant alert must be draining. Hell, look at it like an opportunity to learn something about making repairs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kwakatak Posted October 23, 2014 Author Members Share Posted October 23, 2014 pics: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jamesp Posted October 23, 2014 Members Share Posted October 23, 2014 Mojo Kwak. I've seen my wife make damage much worse that this disappear on a violin. You've just gotta find the right guy in your area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted October 23, 2014 Members Share Posted October 23, 2014 Ouch! Painful to see but it looks fixable. I'm sure we'll all feel better once Freeman has a chance to reply. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tall Posted October 23, 2014 Members Share Posted October 23, 2014 That looks fixable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted October 23, 2014 Members Share Posted October 23, 2014 Neil, this might give you some ideas. I fixed a Yamie 12 string that had been in a car accident - the back to side seam was blown apart and it had a couple of holes in the upper bout. I made a small curved piece that fit inside and glued it in using a couple of very strong magnets as clamps - one outside, one in. I was able to piece some rosewood into the holes and refinish the are with some lacquer - it came out looking OK Looking at your pictures I would be tempted to bend some wood into the same curve as your side - use the mold for your new guitar and glue that to the inside of the broken area. If your guitar has the little wooden side reinforcements you'll have to cut the splice piece and butt it up against the braces. It will be a PITA to do this all thru the sound hole but I think you can probably manage it and it will be really messy trying to get the pieces in with glue on them. Once you get the side reinforced you can work some superglue into the cracks and try to hold them in place while it dries - put waxed paper on the outside, then sand it back and refinish. I'd check with Larrivee about what kind of finish - if its lacquer it will be a piece of cake, with poly you can put a coat of shellac on it and then lacquer will stick. Here is a similar repair done by the Master http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Guitar/Structural/Cracks/Taylor355Cracks/355cracks.html Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarcapo Posted October 23, 2014 Members Share Posted October 23, 2014 Neil, this might give you some ideas. I fixed a Yamie 12 string that had been in a car accident - the back to side seam was blown apart and it had a couple of holes in the upper bout. I made a small curved piece that fit inside and glued it in using a couple of very strong magnets as clamps - one outside, one in. I was able to piece some rosewood into the holes and refinish the are with some lacquer - it came out looking OK Looking at your pictures I would be tempted to bend some wood into the same curve as your side - use the mold for your new guitar and glue that to the inside of the broken area. If your guitar has the little wooden side reinforcements you'll have to cut the splice piece and butt it up against the braces. It will be a PITA to do this all thru the sound hole but I think you can probably manage it and it will be really messy trying to get the pieces in with glue on them. Once you get the side reinforced you can work some superglue into the cracks and try to hold them in place while it dries - put waxed paper on the outside, then sand it back and refinish. I'd check with Larrivee about what kind of finish - if its lacquer it will be a piece of cake, with poly you can put a coat of shellac on it and then lacquer will stick. Here is a similar repair done by the Master http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Guitar/Structural/Cracks/Taylor355Cracks/355cracks.html Good luck That seems a little overkill to me for just linear cracks. Puncture holes with lots of wood missing, maybe. But I would probably line everything up and wick in CA glue to make it stable. Maybe cleat a bit on the inside and refinish the overlying area. The refinish would be in my opinion the most difficult part to make invisible. After making a stable repair to the wood itself, I would remove as much of the poly flaking as possible. Then I would lightly sand the overlying area and French polish over everything. The satin finish would be hard to match. Probably more so than gloss which could be buffed over. I'd probably just use fine steel wool after the French polish and play the thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted October 23, 2014 Members Share Posted October 23, 2014 IIRC, recordingtrack1 had a similar repair done on a Taylor. He might have some idea what was done. If he doesn't reply to this thread soon, you might want to send him a PM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kwakatak Posted November 28, 2014 Author Members Share Posted November 28, 2014 I spent a good hour or so the other night sanding away at the chipped finish. Things don't look quite so bad though I'm wondering how I'll repair the finish afterwards. For now there's still a section that is "sunk" in about 1/32" between the two cracks. It looks to be the point of impact. The problem here is how to get everything flush again? With a little pressure I can get the extraneous cracks closed so thin CA should do the job. Even the worst part seems to fit together well. I just don't want to knock fibers out doing it. Also, part of me is tempted to just sand the whole thing down and gloss it with poly and Maguires as former forumite orsino did a decade ago on his satin guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kwakatak Posted November 28, 2014 Author Members Share Posted November 28, 2014 PS: I bought some magnets to use as clamps and (as you can see) I pulled out the jack on the K&K. That's a trick I took from a video from luthier John Hall who "resides" over at the kit guitar forum. That sunken section is still being stubborn though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members thankyou Posted November 28, 2014 Members Share Posted November 28, 2014 Look on the bright side - if this was an electric guitar, you might now have to pay extra to make it look worn and broken. Seriously, this is a sad event, but probably repairable. Don't expect perfection, it's what comes out of the instrument, not how it looks. If you live in the midwest, Steve Mason is an excellent luthier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.