Members nylon rock Posted November 24, 2005 Members Posted November 24, 2005 Noticed it the other day. I'm sure it wasn't there when I bought it a year ago. EIR back. The crack is 2.4-cm long, along a grain line. It really is nothing. It looks like it stems from the upper lateral brace of the lower bout heading up between the lower brace of the upper bout (the two middle braces of the four braces), so it may be stabilized. My feeling on it is that this is normal wear and tear, associated with not going completely nuts about humidity and temperature. And besides, cracks can happen no matter what you do. If it keeps growing I'll have a luthier look at it. On a better note, my guitar opened up the other day. Really sounds sweet. I thought it had opened up sometime last January, which it may have, but have noticed now that the humidity of the sumer is gone and the bulge behind the bridge has dropped down considerably, that the guitar suddenly is ringing like a bell. (and the strings are a month old) I'm delighted to say the least. Still do not have a ding on the guitar, so it is breaking in as hoped for. Lots of fingernail scratches that have missed the pickguard, though, slowly becoming a satin appearance area. Just wonderful. Martin OM-21 Englemann Custom Cutaway.
Members kwakatak Posted November 24, 2005 Members Posted November 24, 2005 Whoa! Your guitar has had a belly on the bridge and a crack in the back and you say that it's just now "opening up"? I don't want to offend you, but those signs have my warning bells ringing. How old is this guitar?
Members nylon rock Posted November 25, 2005 Author Members Posted November 25, 2005 It's a year old. What warning bells are you referring to? When I had a luthier set it up a couple of months ago, and he used to work for Martin, everything seemed fine to him, and that was when the belly behind the bridge was at it's highest. I don't know if I would say it was extreme, but it was higher than it is now.
Members kwakatak Posted November 25, 2005 Members Posted November 25, 2005 Nothing - I'd just watch the humidity a little closer so that the guitar isn't exposed to RH below 40%. I think that's what caused your crack and I've heard that they do tend to grow if left unchecked. It may also explain the reduction in your guitar's hump. Just a suggestion. My guitar's laminated so I don't have to wory about cracking, but I have had a hump develop and I went down to light guage strings as a precaution. BTW - I have noticed that my guitars sound better in lower humidity. I humidify my home office and if the RH gets over 50% the acoustics of the room seem to be very dull. On the plus side, I don't have to worry about chapped skin and dry sinuses. Man, don't winters suck? EDIT: you may also want to check your warranty. Usually there's a clause that says that damage caused by lack of proper humidification is not normal wear and tear - probably because it is preventable.
Members SteveKrasnow Posted November 25, 2005 Members Posted November 25, 2005 My feeling on it is that this is normal wear and tear, associated with not going completely nuts about humidity and temperature. And besides, cracks can happen no matter what you do. Hey guess what, you cracked your guitar because you didn't go nuts about humidity! Your top is moving on you because your humidity is changing and your not aware of it.
Members nylon rock Posted November 26, 2005 Author Members Posted November 26, 2005 I humidify it in the winter with two planet waves humidifiers; the sound hole one, and the small violin one up by the headstock. But during the summer the humidity goes up and in Martin's brochure they only mention to guard against "rapid changes," and leave the wording specifically vague with respect to exceeding their factory maintained specs in that they never mention a RH or temperature "value" extreme to avoid. They only mention "far away," which is dubious and open to interpretation. The guitar has always been in my house so it's not like it's been kept in the trunk of a car or left in the rain. It's easily accessible and gets played constantly. That's how I treat a guitar. One of the reasons I got an OM-21 was because it was the low-end no-frills model that sounded good to me, and this one had a cutaway that I wanted. The Englemann top was part of the package, but I wouldn't have minded a Sitka top either. I've sent an e-mail off to my Authorized Martin Luthier, will end up having him look at it most likely next week, and see what he says. If he puts a cleat or two in, then I start collecting cleats as souvenirs. I hear they can be round, diamond, rectangular... probably look kind of cool, once you accept them as responsible care after the fact. kwakatak, I too have a laminate guitar, but with a solid top, and have never humidified it or anything, and it has absolutely no cracks anywhere and it is five years old.
Members kwakatak Posted November 26, 2005 Members Posted November 26, 2005 Well, it sounds like you know what to look for. The folks on the UMGF would probably have all had heart-attacks by now! I'm watching the RH inside my house and it's plummeted from around 45% RH down to 27%. I'm sure that if I had a Martin OM-21 or the Larrivee OM-03R I've been lusting after, it would probably be in much worse shape. Mainly because I can't seem to keep my guitar in its case either and my 21 month-old has a fascination with banging away at my guitar. The low maintenance of the laminated top has me spoiled so I may not be one to talk about diligence when it comes to guitar care!
Members nylon rock Posted November 29, 2005 Author Members Posted November 29, 2005 Took the guitar to the luthier and showed him the crack. Even he had trouble seeing it at first. "How'd you find it there?""I was cleaning my guitar." He couldn't believe its location right up near a brace. He'd never seen anything like it. A definite crack with no trace of an impact in the finish whatsoever. "Is that caused by humidity or temperature?""No, nooooo, nooooo." The only explanation is that there was an impact that was too slight to leave a mark--like a soft concentrated impact--or some fault in the manufacturing. A lacquer check it was not. Since there was no evidence of abuse to the guitar, a diamond shape cleat was created, glue was worked into the crack from the outside and what seeped through to the inside marked the spot for the cleat, and it was glued in place on the inside. The glue was wiped away on the outside, a little water sprayed on, then wiped away, and the back was wiped and buffed to a gloss again. No cosmetic effect other than the crack itself, now perfectly level on the outside and cleated within the guitar. Covered under the Martin Warranty--no charge. He did point out that my guitar needs a lot of humidity treatment for some washboard on the top and a bowing in the center around the soundhole area, which humidity will cure, he thinks. Recommended an Ontec soundhole humidifier, which he was out of.
Members kwakatak Posted November 30, 2005 Members Posted November 30, 2005 Man, I wish I had such a rapport with auto mechanics! I got lucky with the tech I went to as well, though. Ain't luthiers nice people? As for your guitar, it sounds like you're in it for the long haul so any dink, chinks and scratches are to be expected. Here's to hoping that it lasts you at least 30 years!
Members nylon rock Posted November 30, 2005 Author Members Posted November 30, 2005 I hope I last 30 years!
Members kwakatak Posted December 1, 2005 Members Posted December 1, 2005 Same here. My lineage isn't long-lived and I suspect my gene pool is rather shallow. I never expected to hit 35 but now I'm hoping I last at least another 20 to see my kid get married so I can yell at him!
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