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  #16  
Old 03-11-2012, 01:55 PM
backdrifter backdrifter is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jimmy bookout View Post
I bet Bob will make a duplicate...
I hope you're right - that would certainly make me ecstatic. Unfortunately, he hasn't made this model in years (since being located at the Corona plant), and I wonder if he still has the plans/blueprints needed. I'd bet he probably does, but who knows. I just think with all of the custom abalone inlay, that's a lot of work for him to do for a guitar that is 7 years old and doesn't belong to the original owner anymore.

Still, here's to hoping!
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  #17  
Old 03-11-2012, 02:54 PM
Howard Klepper Howard Klepper is online now
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You had a failure of the glue joint between the ebony and the metal piece that attaches to the guitar. The wood failure was a consequence of that.

This was probably glued with epoxy. It's very hard to get a really secure wood to metal glue joint. The taper of the metal piece and its pocket in the ebony was intended to give mechanical backup to the glue joint, but didn't do much. I've found that some kind of screw or rivet arrangement is needed when putting a wood tailpiece on to a metal hinge. This can be entirely hidden on the underside of the tailpiece.
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  #18  
Old 03-11-2012, 02:57 PM
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backdrifter, sorry to hear and see what has happened. I guess, it's every guitar player's nightmare. I believe, any respected guitar maker will make good and repair it asap. Good luck in the future...
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  #19  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:08 PM
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Kitchen Guitars Kitchen Guitars is offline
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DID YOU PLAY FREEBIRD? Guitars have been known to be suicidal after a Lynyrd Skynyrd tune
Hows your Humidity? Did she change humidity dramatically?
Ebony is a great wood to cover missing splinters. Probably the best wood for it. It may be salvageable.
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  #20  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:12 PM
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Did I ever mention I think the Benedetto and especially the Eastman tailpieces are design disasters.

That Andrews tailpeice is a proper piece of functional art. Good design.
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  #21  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:14 PM
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Sorry about the issue.....not fun! I once had an old D-18 with a saddle which was a tad too high......the bridge cracked on me as I was playing it! The downward pressure was too much and had angled the saddle causing the bridge to split. Still can recall hearing this "sound"....cracking sound, but didn't know what was happening until it popped. Tough one!
Best of luck with the repair.
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  #22  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:19 PM
Bluemonk Bluemonk is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jimmy bookout View Post
I bet Bob will make a duplicate, I have never owned a Benedetto, but in the times I've talked to Bob at various shows, he seems to be a very nice, caring fellow. Again, I think this is a one in a million failure (sorry you had to be THE one).

Jimmy
I'm inclined to believe this also. Bob Benedetto is a truly stand up guy.

This isn't as freakish an occurrence as you may think. I've read several stories about wooden tailpieces exploding.
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  #23  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:23 PM
backdrifter backdrifter is offline
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Thanks again for all of the replies.

Howard Klepper - thanks for your assessment of the situation. I appreciate having a skilled luthier assess the failure, and I'm glad to know that it was a design/glue failure rather than something I specifically did.

Kitchen Guitars - I did not play Freebird, and now I'll be sure not to ever play it again - I didn't realize it had that effect on guitars!

The last things I remember playing, and not sure which was the absolute last, were "Nuages" and "Misty". I'll be afraid to play those two songs from now on!

Mr. Benedetto already emailed back and I sent him the photos. I'm awaiting a more detailed response from him.

More soon...
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  #24  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:23 PM
jimmy bookout jimmy bookout is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bohemian View Post
Did I ever mention I think the Benedetto and especially the Eastman tailpieces are design disasters.

That Andrews tailpeice is a proper piece of functional art. Good design.
Benedetto tail pieces and Eastman tail pieces are totally different. Most Benedettos are held on with violin gut (OP's guitar is the exception rather than the rule), most Eastman tailpieces are screwed on like the aformentioned Andrews (the Eastman Pagellis being the exception here). Now, if you're talking aesthetics, well, to each his own.

Jimmy
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  #25  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:30 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bluemonk View Post
I'm inclined to believe this also. Bob Benedetto is a truly stand up guy.

This isn't as freakish an occurrence as you may think. I've read several stories about wooden tailpieces exploding.
With all respect, there are MANY archtops out there with wood tailpieces, I am sure a few have failed, but I would still consider this a freak occurance (Say for every 1000 archtops and flat tops, I bet bridges flying off flat tops is MUCH more common than wood tailpieces failing on archtops).

Jimmy
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  #26  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:32 PM
jimmy bookout jimmy bookout is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by backdrifter View Post
Thanks again for all of the replies.

Howard Klepper - thanks for your assessment of the situation. I appreciate having a skilled luthier assess the failure, and I'm glad to know that it was a design/glue failure rather than something I specifically did.

Kitchen Guitars - I did not play Freebird, and now I'll be sure not to ever play it again - I didn't realize it had that effect on guitars!

The last things I remember playing, and not sure which was the absolute last, were "Nuages" and "Misty". I'll be afraid to play those two songs from now on!

Mr. Benedetto already emailed back and I sent him the photos. I'm awaiting a more detailed response from him.

More soon...
It's Sunday and Bob has already replied. I think you are in VERY good hands.

Jimmy
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  #27  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:33 PM
SuperB23 SuperB23 is offline
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I've owned some explosive guitars but not like this. Sorry to see what happened in all seriousness, pretty crazy stuff!! I'm sure Benedetto will get you back up and running. Those are fine guitars!
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  #28  
Old 03-11-2012, 03:37 PM
Bluemonk Bluemonk is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jimmy bookout View Post
With all respect, there are MANY archtops out there with wood tailpieces, I am sure a few have failed, but I would still consider this a freak occurance (Say for every 1000 archtops and flat tops, I bet bridges flying off flat tops is MUCH more common than wood tailpieces failing on archtops).

Jimmy
Of course. I didn't mean to diss wooden tailpieces. I love them aesthetically, and some people - Benedetto, for one - think they have a positive impact on tone. I just meant to say this isn't the first time it has happened.
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  #29  
Old 03-11-2012, 04:57 PM
backdrifter backdrifter is offline
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An update: I'm on my way to recovery.

After emailing back and forth with Mr. Benedetto himself (and sending photos), he has asked me to mail the entire tailpiece and bracket to him at his home address for repair. I have no doubt that he can make it whole again, and am grateful that he cared enough to take on this task himself.

In his first response, before I sent the photos, he mentioned that the guitar would be warranted by Fender and not Benedetto, since it was made at the Fender Custom Shop in Corona, CA. He also pointed out that the warranty would not be valid anyway since I was not the original owner. He offered to point me in the right direction to someone that would be able and willing to fix it.

I was a bit upset, but when I thought about it reasonably, I figured that has to be his standard response before knowing anything about the situation. And sure enough, once he saw the photos, he agreed that it was a bad break and said that he would feel better fixing it himself.

Just like last time I dealt with him, I'm very happy and impressed by the customer service. The tailpiece will be shipped out tomorrow, and with any luck, I'll be up and running again in a week and half or so.

Thanks to all for the comments and support!
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Last edited by backdrifter; 03-11-2012 at 05:14 PM.
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  #30  
Old 03-11-2012, 06:56 PM
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I believe that guitar needs to make a trip back to Savannah so that Mr. Benedetto can take a look and get you back up and running again.
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