Bridge lifting - fixes and costs?

[gwandsh]

I have a line on a certain guitar model I have been interested in for some time. The seller indicates that the bridge appears to be lifting very slightly in one corner, claims it doesn't affect playability. The guitar is a cedar top dread, if that matters.

Wondering what the cost/risk is when buying a guitar with known issue like this? Would like to understand repair and cost to factor in any offer. I won't have a chance to see the guitar in person before buying.

Tnx

[sachi]

It's not hard to fix a lifting bridge. Heat the glue, lift off the bridge, clean it all nicely, and then reglue. It doesn't cost that much either - I seem to recall seeing prices like 75 bucks or so.

[Zigeuner]

What Sachi said is fine. If necessary to remove the bridge, I would shield the top and use a heat lamp before attemting to lift it up.

One it's off, it's straightforward to clean off the excess glue and reglue. I use hide glue, but aliphatic with some good clamps will do the job.

For the record, about a year after I bought my new 1962 D-28, the bridge began to lift slightly at the rear. I loosened the strings and got some hide glue in the opening and clamped it. That was more than 40 years ago and it's still there. LOL.

[gwandsh]

Just the info I was looking for. Not likely I would attempt it myself, but I can use the cost guesstimates to make an offer on it.

Much appreciated!

[BeeMan]

The risk, of course, is that there are other things wrong with the guitar inside, that you can't see. Loose braces, loose bridge plate. Is the top bellying or bulging at all?

[rhancox]

Not to hijack this thread, but I have an old Hohner 12-string with a lifting bridge and have been wondering the same thing. Here's a pic:



I haven't determined if any of the bellying has resulted in any bracing issues, but does the sight of this make anyone believe that this might be more than a simple re-glue job?

I'd really like to replace the adjustable saddle bridge with a fixed one. Could this involve more work, like repositioning the bridge pin holes? I know the contact point of the saddle needs to be in pretty much the same position but since the slot in the existing bridge is much wider than it would be for a fixed saddle bridge, I'm thinking the overall bridged depth (front to back) might be shorter, slightly, possibly resulting in the bridge pin holes not being in the exact same place.

[Tony_in_NYC]

Here are a couple of reasons a bridge can lift:
1) lousy glue job when it was initially installed. I would hope this is why the bridge is lifting because then it will only be the bridge you need be concerned with.

2) the owner left the guitar in a hot car repeatedly. The temp inside a car can easily reach 150 degrees F, which will cause most glues to begin releasing. If this is the case, you could easily have other issues with loose braces. Hot cars kill guitars.

Just some food for thought.