Hide glue or Crazy Glue

[gstring]

I have a guitar that has a new crack in the bridge parallel to the saddle slot. It runs from the saddle slot to the edge of the bridge. (Rosewood.)

It was suggested to file the crack, insert a thin rosewood wedge (splinter) mix some Rosewood sawdust and glue everything together.

One expert says to use hide glue and the other says to use Crazy Glue.

Is one better than the other ?

daniel

[Bruce Sexauer]

I say replace the bridge.

[charles Tauber]

Without photographs it is difficult to provide much in the way of meaningful input other than to say that the advice to file the crack and fill with a strip of wood is not the usual approach for a split in a bridge.

It is probably helpful to understand why the bridge cracked. If the condition that caused the crack still exists, the repair isn't likely to be long lasting.

Hide glue has relatively poor gap-filling properties and doesn't seem like a good choice for such a repair, particularly since you'll likely never want to reverse the repair, one reason for wanting to use hide glue.

[gstring]

Upon closer inspection I noticed that the crack only runs from the saddle slot out parallel about a half inch and not to the edge. ( hairline crack ) The guitar was not humidified enough.

Bruce, does this change your recommendation ? Try the repair and see if it holds over time ? I can always change the bridge if the repair does not hold up.

Charles, are you suggesting Crazy Glue and wood dust ? The crack is just a crack and not a gap.

Appreciate your opinions.

Thanks
daniel

[nikpearson]

I’d definitely try this first as it easy to do and should be invisible. If the crack opens up again over time then you could look into bridge replacement.

Depending on how deep the crack is you may be able to simply drop some superglue on the area and sand with abrasive paper. The glue will form a slurry with the wood dust and fill small cracks easily. You can stop sanding once the glue dries, usually a matter of seconds. Would suggest 240 grit or 129 grit if the finer paper doesn’t work and use gloves so you don’t end up with fingers stuck together or covered in glue and dust!

Before attempting this make sure you mask off the surrounding area and be careful when applying the glue; you really don’t want to get it anywhere other than the repair area.

My best guess would be that this will give you an invisible repair and will probably not open up again.

[redir]

My advice should you try and fix it is to use CA glue and clamp it shut. I don't think CA or any glue for that matter has any strength merely as a filler and the saddle will be putting a lot of stress there. And like Charles said, without knowing why the bridge cracked it's almost worthless to chose a repair method. Is the saddle too tall for the bridge? For example... If so then take Bruce's advice and get a new bridge. But if for example the saddle was too thick and forced into the slot then it can be repaired... And so on.

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by gstring

Charles, are you suggesting Crazy Glue and wood dust ?

I don't mean to be argumentative, but nowhere in what I wrote did I suggest any particular glue. I did not mention wood dust.

The crack is just a crack and not a gap.

Then why would someone suggest that you file to create a gap sufficient to fill with a sliver of rosewood? I'm confused.

The guitar was not humidified enough.

Bridges aren't usually the place that cracks first as a result of low humidity. That's one of the reasons that photos are a useful diagnostic tool.

[fitness1]

pics for Daniel...

[charles Tauber]

The most likely cause of the bridge splitting at the front face of the saddle slot is the amount of saddle projecting from the bridge and/or the fit of the saddle. Pictures showing the projection of the saddle from the top of the bridge, how the saddle sits in the slot and and the string break angle over the saddle would provide insight into that geometry and how likely it is that any of those are the cause of the split.

As has been previously stated, if those are the cause, simply gluing the split isn't likely to last long.

The photos provided show the split, but provide insufficient information to determine a likely cause. Most likely, it is either a leaning saddle or too much saddle projection. Sure, it is possible that it's just a flaw in the wood, or humidity related, but those aren't the usual causes.

Just squeezing glue in the open crack isn't likely to accomplish much. Clamping across that area will likely require some shaped gluing cauls to close the crack.

[gstring]

The guitar dried out. There was a centre seam separation, sharp frets and buzzing.

Saddle height and break angle are good.

daniel

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by gstring

The guitar dried out. There was a centre seam separation, sharp frets and buzzing.

Saddle height and break angle are good.

daniel

Then squeeze glue of your choice in crack, clamp as best you can to close crack. If it doesn't hold, do as Bruce suggested.

[gstring]

I will do as you say. I will go with a good quality Crazy Glue, clamp as best I can and take it from there. Thanks Bruce , Charles , Nik , redir and fitness1



Thanks

[Bruce Sexauer]

Practice your clamping till you get it down without fumbling. Do not reposition the clamp once it’s tight.

I have never succeeded at fixing a bridge cracked at the treble end of the slot. Good luck.

[Alan Carruth]

Bruce Sexauer wrote:
"have never succeeded at fixing a bridge cracked at the treble end of the slot. Good luck."

Me either.

Judging from the proximity of the pin holes to the saddle slot, I'd say that if the saddle projects 'the usual' amount you've still got a pretty steep break angle. The steeper the angle the higher the tipping load on the bridge top, and the greater the stress on the front of the slot. In this case it also looks as though there is not much wood in front of the slot to resist splitting, and the grain angle in the bridge is pretty much right along the line of the slot, which doesn't help. You'll need a lot of luck to get that repair to hold.