Oh, here we are:

Not the sort of thing you'd likely find at a local hardware store, even a big one. A specialist tool supplier is what you need.

Or Ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/2-New-36-Aluminum-B ... 415abd6670

Frankly, that price should be beatable, but if not it won't exactly break the bank. Convince your guitar shop tech he needs a couple of those lightweight cramps - because he does! Let him buy them.

Cheers - C

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+1

What a cool thread!

Nice find TGS. I wish you all the very best with your repair efforts.

Andy

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Pending Greatness

If you can't find clamps try doing it "old style". Get a spool of twine ...hemp or thissle,cotton...natural fibre in other words. soak it in water till its good a nd wet and then bind it around the body of the guitar. Hang the guitar in a warm room. As it dries out the twine will draw the two sides of the crack together. This method takes a little longer but it does work very well. It's tried and true as I've used this method myself on the split top of an old Fender twelve string acoustic.

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Common sense and a sense of humor are the same thing, moving at different speeds. A sense of humor is just common sense, dancin'

Well, some good news. It's really coming together now, we could probably glue it now. But to be sure we get the tightest fit possibly we're going to keep it in the strap for a while longer and add the moist paper towels. Although honestly, it may not even need that.

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It's probably about time I updated this thread. It ended up not coming together tight enough to glue, although it came reasonably close. I'm probably going to have no choice but to splint it.

When I pick up my Lounge-O-Caster from the Luthier who's painting it, I'm going to bring the Levin along and get a second opinion on it. He builds high end acoustic guitars from the ground up, so he might have some insight into the problem and maybe some tips on how to go about fixing it. I might even be able to pick up some spare braces and a splint from him if he has any. I should know more within the next couple of weeks, I'll let you guys know what happens. I'm aiming to start work on it as soon as I can.

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Looks like a good plan Texas. It will be nice having a spare acoustic on hand. Keeping us posted is very cool indeed, thanks.

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.

Ah, this is very interesting. Thanks for the update, TGS. And good luck with it.

Cheers - C

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Ceri, did your Dad ever get that violin book in? Did it have anything in it about splinting or that parchment technique you mentioned earlier? Or could you point me in the direction of any other good books with information on the subject?

I have a couple of days off from work/gigs/school this week so I'm trying to round up some of the things I need for the project.

Also, since none of the craft/hardware stores I tried earlier were very helpful in finding the tools I need I found a woodworking store in my area. I think I've found things much closer to what I need just by browsing their website.

As far as the graver goes, is this like some you were talking about, Ceri?

http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2000294/2720/Irwin-Blue-Chip-Chisel-18.aspx

They have all different sizes though, I don't really know what size I would need.

Also, they have a decent selection of light duty bar clamps unlike the national chain hardware store I tried a few months ago.

Would something like this work?

http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2000328/1444/Cam-Clamp-24-Opening-412-Depth.aspx

Or would something like this be better?

http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2003963/9188/Bar-Clamp-24-Adjustable.aspx

The guitar is almost 16" at it's widest point and most clamps are either 12" or 24", so I think 24" is the best bet. Do you think I would just need one or would it be better to use two or three? I'm also going to double check for anything I could use at work before I buy anything. We might have some of the 12" clamps there which I could use across the area of the rosette.

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Hi. I'll take your post in sequence.


Not only has my dad got a copy, now I have too. Though modest sized it is the single most amazing book I've ever seen on instrument building and repair. Not a complete how-to, but a series of articles filled with tips from the very top violin builders in the world, illustrated with excellent step-by-step photos. Of course, not all of it is relevant to guitars, but plenty is, and all of it is fascinating.

The book is published by The Strad magazine and is called The Best of Trade Secrets (nothing to do with Stew-Mac's trade secrets series), here:

http://www.orpheusmusicshop.com/category-51/SL265.html

Trouble is, I've searched hard for you and I can't see it available in the US. It is published in London and as far as I can see from various forums all the American luthiers are ordering the book from here. Which makes it expensive and incovenient for you.

There are three different articles on closing cracks and patching and I think you'd find them extremely useful. There's far too much to explain it all here, but I'll PM you about it and see if we can set you up with the information you need. Meantime, The Strad's online free database does have one article you could look at, here:

http://www.thestrad.com/TradeSecrets.asp

Scroll down to the article dated July 2009, titled "Trade Secrets article by James Ham on fixing cracks on a double bass back". The bit about scraping the splint to size, rolling it and then using steam to get it fitted tightly is very applicable to your situation.

And in the meantime I shall send an email to Stew-Mac and suggest they stock the book, because it is a gap in their library.



No, that's not really what I was getting at - that's just a skinny chisel. I've had another long hunt and I must say I'm finding the American wood engravers' suppliers' websites amazingly unhelpful. However, I think this is probably what you need, and as these things go the price is not over the top:

http://www.eclyons.com/index.php?main_p ... cts_id=423

Click on the photo to enlarge it and you'll see what I'm talking about. However, they use the same photo for half the tools on this page and with little other information, so it is hard to be certain:

http://www.eclyons.com/index.php?main_p ... 20a&page=1

It's a bit crappy, isn't it? Best I could find, your side of the pond.



No, not that one. Cam clamps are fine for some things but not this. Not accurate enough - you need a screw you can turn.



Yes, that's much better. But the price is insane! This is a light weight sash cramp; it costs about $10 where I live. Wait a minute, let's do a bit more searching... [clicketty-clicketty-click] Here ya go, this is what you need, and somewhat more sensibly priced:

http://www.harborfreight.com/24-inch-al ... 38183.html

Howzat?



At least two, for starters. More is always good - you never have enough clamps. At the price I just found for you... I'd take a dozen.

Later - C

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I just tried a few websites that I know of that usually have everything, but no luck. I'll try a more in depth search tonight, as well as taking a look at that article you mentioned.



I see, that's what they meant in the Dan Erlewine book about it being "V" shaped. I might have to send these guys an email to inquire just which graver is pictured.



Wow, that's a way better price. With the other I was thinking that I'd probably just be able to get one for that price. But I can definitely get at least a couple at the lower price.
Thanks, Ceri.

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