Crack repair advise..?

[DouginKy]

I'm not if was existing or not, but nonetheless I have a crack that's all the way thru the top. It's about 1 1/2 " long. The finish has already been stripped while adding the new binding, so it's exposed for a good repair.
I may have been a little too frisky in my stripping
Not sure the best plan of action.
Should I use wood glue or CA. Should I use a patch on the inside for strength?
It's Engelmann.
Thanks

[joeguam]

Doug, others here on AGF were so kind to help me with this same issue, so I'm paying it forward.

Here's my thread where I used CA glue to fix a repair in the side of one of my ukes: Repair: Fixing Lower Bout & Waist Cracks (Ukulele)

In this thread, Ned Milburn and Charles Tauber provide some guidance on this type of repair, and recommend Titebond wood glue instead of CA glue.

If the width of crack is small enough, I'd say just use Titebond, dress it, re-seat it, then wipe off the excess. If it's pretty wide open, you might need to fill it with a piece of spruce. Check out this stewmac video where Dan Erlewine does this exact procedure: A shrinking pickguard cracks the guitar top!

I'm in the process of repairing another uke that was victim to a very severe and sudden humidity change (matter of 60 seconds) that swelled the top and cracked it pretty bad.



Taking Ned's advice, I used a toothpick and laid some titebond in the crack. Because this crack re-seated very nicely, there wasn't much more for me to do but line it up. I didn't add a reinforcement cleat underneath because this crack is right alongside a brace, so I wouldn't be able to glue it across both sides of the crack. Here's a shot of the finished repair with some light sanding.



Hope this helps, feel free to ask any questions and I'll respond with whatever little knowledge I have.

Cheers.

...
Joe

[Ned Milburn]

Originally Posted by DouginKy

I'm not if was existing or not, but nonetheless I have a crack that's all the way thru the top. It's about 1 1/2 " long. The finish has already been stripped while adding the new binding, so it's exposed for a good repair.
I may have been a little too frisky in my stripping
Not sure the best plan of action.
Should I use wood glue or CA. Should I use a patch on the inside for strength?
It's Engelmann.
Thanks

Top cracks can usually be repaired easily and cleanly by massaging titebond or similar glue into the crack from the top, then wiping off the excess glue when dry with a damp cotton ball.

To repair the crack with finish removed will be more difficult to keep glue from permeating the surface of the surrounding wood.

You likely won't need a cleat on the inside, but no harm if you feel like adding one or two.

[John Arnold]

I would not use CA. It will darken the spruce and turn it an awful shade of greenish yellow. Titebond or hot hide glue are my preferences. CA is fine for darker hardwoods.

I have a crack that's all the way thru the top

I have never seen one that wasn't.

[DouginKy]

Thanks a bunch guys.

[redir]

Yeah definitely not a CA repair. I would use fish glue but HHG and TB will work just as well. If it's tight just message the glue in there and let it dry, if it's loose then humidify the guitar so the crack closes.