Is my bridge lifting? Should I be worried?

[ColdEye]

So I noticed this last night. I installed elixir 12, a few weeks ago, and just noticed this now. It had flat top 12s before that and it didn't lift like his. Should I be worried? It now has extra light flat tops because I am worried. It only looks like th at on the bass side. Is this an easy fix? Thank you.

[ColdEye]

Guitar is a Martin drs1.

[redir]

I cannot really tell by those pics, can you slip a piece of paper under it? If so how far? Or maybe take a pic of that too in better light.

[runamuck]

The glare in the photos is making it difficult to see exactly what's going on. But is the back of the bridge up approx. a 1/16"? If so, slack the strings and get it to an expert before pulling up to pitch again.

[ColdEye]

I will retake better pictures in the afternoon. No I cannot fit a thin piece of paper, I tried it like how I check my double bass bridge to check for gaps. That white stuff I think is glue. It is currently detuned since last night.

[redir]

Well if its like 'strings' of glue that block hte paper from slipping in that owuld be bad and it would indicate that the guitar was under some serious heat stress like in a hot car or something.

The other thing to point out is that you have very little string break angle over the saddle. You might want to look into getting the bridge pin holes properly slotted and ramped.

[ColdEye]

Here are some pictures. I have not left the guitar in the car. Is regluing a bridge require high skills in guitar repair? Or is it the prep work is very time consuming.

[Rodger Knox]

I'd say that needs to be removed and reglued, and it looks heat related to me.
It's not something you get right the first time, so get a pro to do it.

[Shuksan]

If it was my guitar, I would take all string tension off right away. If the bridge comes completely off under tension, it might take some top wood with it which would complicate the repair some. Better to take it to a luthier who can remove the bridge cleanly and reglue it.

[bnjp]

I would say it has definitely lifted and needs to be removed and reglued.

[ColdEye]

Thank you all, confirmed my thoughts. The strings have been detuned since last night, and I will make some calls to ask around luthiers here in San Diego (any recommendations). I was thinking of tackling this myself but knowing me I do not have the most finesse in fixing things.

[redir]

That definitely has the melted look to it. Are you the original owner? You stated that after a string change you just noticed it. It could have been like that all along?

But anyway yes it needs to be reglued as others have mentioned. It's not generally a DIY type of job. Expect it to run you $50 - $100 bucks depending on the cost of living of your area.

Again, while you are at it, have your repair tech take a look at the string break angle and get his opinion on that as well.

[lar]

any luthiers here in San Diego (any recommendations)?

I asked the same question about a month ago - and got a few recommendations. You might want to lookup that thread.

[Simon Fay]

Yep, it definitely needs to be taken off and reglued. The good thing is that the task should be straightforward as it looks like the bridge is peeling up without damaging the wood underneath. A bridge reglue is pretty straightforward task that any repair shop can perform for a reasonable price. I would not recommend tackling the job yourself as many things can go wrong.

[mirwa]

Pop it off and put it back on, doubtful IMO that warranty would cover it, too much heat can make this happen and the manufacturer has no idea what conditions the guitar has been exposed to.

Steve