Members Sandcassle Posted April 26, 2015 Members Share Posted April 26, 2015 Hello all...I was fortune enough to inherit this guitar... However, the string action is very high and I assume this is why...is this a DIY home repair or is it time to take it to a repair shop...I am pretty handy, but I want a good repair...Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted April 26, 2015 Members Share Posted April 26, 2015 Hi Sandcassie and welcome to HCAG. If the complete model name of your guitar is Custom D Classic, then it has the M&T neck joint instead of the dovetail used on most Martins. It is a glued joint that has a screw in it to hold it together while the glue sets (the screw is not structural). The procedure is basically the same as resetting a dovetail - the screw is removed and 15th fret is pulled, steam is injected into the joint to soften the glue, then it is put back together at the correct angle. Most repair people charge roughly the same amount for either joint ($300 is common). It is not a DIY project. That is the reason your action is high and there isn't much you can do to lower it until the neck is fixed. Please don't try any half way fixes like squirting some sort of glue into the joint - have it done correctly. You say you inherited the guitar - it will be under warranty to the original owner if they happen to still be alive. Otherwise take it to a Martin repair guy, have it done right and enjoy your guitar. Here is a little bit of information about different Martin neck joints http://onemanz.com/guitar/articles-2/martins-simple-dovetail/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sandcassle Posted April 26, 2015 Author Members Share Posted April 26, 2015 Unfortunately, my friend passed and left his guitar for me. He had the notion he wanted to learn how to play. He asked me to find a guitar within his budger of 1000.00...this one fit the bill at 999.00...He tried a little to learn to play, but didn't get too far. Anyway, I'll start putting money away to get his guitar repaired. Any good Luthiers out there to ship it to? Or, any good Luthiers within the Delaware / Philadelphia vicinity?... Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted April 26, 2015 Members Share Posted April 26, 2015 Here are several that I have dealt with - all highly recommended http://www.bryankimsey.com/ http://www.bluescreekguitars.com/ http://www.guitar-repair.com/ but there are many more - if you have a local Martin shop they should be able to help. There is often a waiting list so you might contact them first. Shipping is fairly straight forward - Kimsey's page has a good tab on how to package your guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted April 26, 2015 Members Share Posted April 26, 2015 Here's a link to the Martin Dealer Locator: http://www.martinguitar.com/find-a-dealer/us-dealers.html. Offhand, I'd try Vintage Instruments in Philadelphia http://www.vintage-instruments.com/ but bear in mind I've never dealt with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members FretFiend. Posted April 26, 2015 Members Share Posted April 26, 2015 Something to consider. The glue joint has obviously already separated. Steaming that joint apart may not be required. That would make for a considerably simpler/cheaper repair. It still requires someone with some skill to put it back together right. It's worth doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted April 26, 2015 Members Share Posted April 26, 2015 Something to consider. The glue joint has obviously already separated. Steaming that joint apart may not be required. That would make for a considerably simpler/cheaper repair. It still requires someone with some skill to put it back together right. It's worth doing. It's also possible that the reason that glue joint has separated is that the guitar has been subjected to heat - possibly left in a car trunk or something like that. In that case other glue joints have probably also separated - bridge to top, possibly some braces. Martin uses AR (yellow Titebond) for that joint - repair should involve removing all the old glue and resetting it at the proper angle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sandcassle Posted April 26, 2015 Author Members Share Posted April 26, 2015 It's been stored in I the basement... in it's case...I know this didn't happen as a result of excessive heat...Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarcapo Posted April 27, 2015 Members Share Posted April 27, 2015 The repair would probably involve heating the "tongue" of fretboard glued to the guitar's face and sliding a knife under that portion to remove the neck. Then simply gluing the neck back in after cleaning the mating surfaces of old glue and checking for neck angle. A fairly simple procedure for a luthier. I'd use a clothes iron set on the highest setting set right on the frets to heat the tongue if I was doing the procedure myself. It would be tempting to simply inject glue into the joint and use a long clamp to hold it. The problem is that you are adding new glue on top of old, and the joint might not hold. But it might be worth a try since a glue failure would simply bring you right back to this starting point all over again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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