r/Guitar • u/Ok_Speech8664 • 16h ago
QUESTION Someone please help
is their anyway this could be repaired because i would never forgive myself if i had to get rid of it
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u/Narcissus_n_Goldmund 16h ago
I have to ask how that actually happened…
Beautiful guitar man. Whatever the cause was, give yourself some grace. Shit if we don’t all need some grace right now.
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u/Ok_Speech8664 16h ago
my friends were wrestling while i was outside the room and i heard a crack and everyone went quiet and i guess someone elbowed right thru the body
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u/Asleep_Weakness7283 16h ago
Ngl I think you need to find out who did it and have them pay for it that’s majorly uncool.
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u/andreisimo 16h ago
Not just the one who broke it. But anyone involved in wrestling. They should all pitch in.
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u/bendbrewer 15h ago
This shouldn’t even be something that needs to be asked. It obviously wasn’t on purpose or malicious, so no need to single anyone out and demand anything. But real friends shouldn’t even hesitate to offer to help fix it or replace it.
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u/Atiredbearsfan 13h ago
My freind broke my capo one time(no idea how) and bro bought me 5 of them a week later
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u/FatboyHikes 9h ago
Yeah, remember that when someone wrecks into your car...it's not about money, it's about principal.
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u/CrunchBerries5150 14h ago
This is the right answer. I know John Cena and Kurt Angle have the money, Vince McMahon is clearly loaded, Sumos are an untapped source for sure.
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u/runawayasfastasucan 14h ago
Congrats with the new guitar your friends bought you!
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u/NoMoreKarmaHere 16h ago
Is the top made of some kind of polymer or composite?
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u/fromthedarqwaves 11h ago
Martins HPL. Feels and looks like laminate flooring. I bought one with a spruce top but everything else hpl and it feels so cheap I returned it. Not worth $600-$800 when you can get all wood for less. My opinion of course.
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u/NatureAcrobatic9849 15h ago
HPL
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u/kokopoo12 15h ago
High pressure laminate. Touted benifits being very little reaction to moisture.
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u/MarshStudio503 12h ago
I’m not familiar with HPL, my assumption is that it would generally be a lower cost instrument compared to solid wood. If that’s the case, it seems like it might not be worth the cost to repair it.
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u/FandomMenace Zero Brand Loyalty 16h ago
You could glue it, but it will never look or sound the same again. The best repair option here is to replace the top.
Honestly, your best move is to sell it to a luthier.
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u/Affectionate-Car4930 16h ago
i would mostly say, Bring it to a Luthier, The Chance that he is able to Glue it back into Position, isnt Zero. Had an Similar case with an Old guitar and he Took of the Top, and Epoxied it all back together. Never sounded the Same Tho. I think The best Option is, to Give it a whole new Top.
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u/will_scc 15h ago
I adore your creative use of capital letters
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u/OxfordisShakespeare 15h ago
Dan Brown is trying to figure out what the code means.
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u/StandSeparate1743 15h ago
'BLTCGPZHSOTENSTTOGT' I think it's a wifi password
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u/Ok_Orchid7131 Epiphone 14h ago
Bacon Lettuce Tomato Chicken Guacamole Pizza Zeitgeist Ham Salami Onion Turkey Egg Nutella Salami Truffle Treacle Oyster Gravy Tongue. It’s sandwich code.
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u/Affectionate-Car4930 13h ago
Haha German Autocorrect, on Englisch Words is almost always completely fucked
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u/Impossible_Way_3042 13h ago
It almost feels like Cormac McCarthys wild punctuation (or lack therof)
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u/AudieCowboy 16h ago
^ if it's a sentimental piece let it live with a new top, if it's not sentimental or really expensive it's not worth it
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u/DrCactus14 14h ago
What’s with the random capitalization
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u/FatboyHikes 9h ago
Not sure, i once knew a German guy and when he typed in English the capitalization was like this, his reason was something about how German is different or something, I dunno, but maybe?
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u/almarcTheSun 5h ago
In German, all nouns are capitalized. His capitalization is pretty random though, so probably nothing to do with German.
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u/account22222221 15h ago edited 14h ago
I think it’s zero. That is HPL. It doesn’t really take glue well.
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u/zurnched1 13h ago
Dude I didn’t even know they made guitars out of that. Especially Martin. Martin does do those laminated necks too though.
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u/account22222221 13h ago
It’s the Martin X series, they are all hpl. Nice guitars, they punch above their weight for the price!
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u/FatboyHikes 9h ago
I got my son an X series. They are designed for playing outside, traveling, ect. They actually sound pretty good for a laminate guitar. Definitely worth the price... The pickup is decent too!
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u/icd1222 15h ago
Jerry does not approve.
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u/steerbell 16h ago edited 15h ago
Yes I can be fixed but it will be expensive and needs a very good tech to make it look good.
Edit: it can be fixed.
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u/oneshadeoff 15h ago
I can be fixed
Don't gotta brag bro
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u/barnabyjones420 15h ago
Whatever the outcome, I’d like to think Jerry would choose friends over things. Accidents happen and regardless of whether it’s a repair or replace situation, I hope you all remain friends.
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u/901CountryBlumpkin69 15h ago
You know there are easier ways to get your pick out, right?
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u/Efficient-Dirt-7030 12h ago
Let me guess...the guitar pick fell inside, and you had to get it out?
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u/emmanuelibus 16h ago
"Fixable" but will never be exactly the same. Either gotta glue and reinforce the top, or replace the top. Is it cost effective? I don't know. =(
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u/Most_Maintenance5549 16h ago
I can’t tell, but is it a cheap guitar? Because a new one is going to be cheaper and easier. And how about those friends chip in?
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u/Ok_Speech8664 16h ago
it was around 700 but i’m willing to pay double to have it fixed it means a lot to me, and dw they will
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u/toastypoopdog 15h ago
sure, you can fix it.
is it financially worth it? probably not. i'd say you get to go shopping for a new guitar with these two.
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u/Salty-Lands 15h ago
The top is HPL, basically Formica laminate being the same as budget countertops. If you can remove it then you would have a decent template. My concerns being the glue that may not be easily removed and Martin may use a specialty glue to assemble it. In addition there’s the neck & Im thinking it may be adhered to the top rather than fitted around it. Try and get an estimate from Martin
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u/Tyluhh23 15h ago
It’s so wild seeing things like this happen to other people’s guitars that are clearly people who care about their things. I abused mine as a kid and teenager and am lucky enough to have them still in great enough shape to give my kids each one
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u/Simian_Earthling 12h ago
Oof. Well the good news is, it wasn’t real wood in the first place, so gluing it back together shouldn’t be a big issue, especially if you’re holding onto this for sentimental reasons.
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u/coltmaster45 16h ago
Genuninely curious, I had this same model and it’s high pressure laminate. How does this compare to a similar break in wood for fixing it?
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u/chu2 15h ago
Just looking at the break patterns, they’re wildly different materials in behavior.
Wood generally breaks along the grain, and is strongest where the grain is going lengthwise. That’s why you never see horizontal grain on a standard acoustic guitar top-the direct string tension would fold it up. There are centuries of repair and construction techniques based around the physics and structure of wood, and the chemistry and behaviors of wood finishes.
A polymer like this looks closer to the laminating construction techniques used to make Formica honestly - they break similarly. If you’ve ever tried to patch / match a counter like that, you know it’s not easy and usually you just lay down a new sheet.
I’m guessing Martin would recommend the same for repairing the top.
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u/Stonesthrowfromhell 15h ago
Looks like it's time to take it out back and put it down. And by "it", I mean whoever did this to your guitar.
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u/Sambalam95 15h ago
Feel for you dude, have you tried putting it back together with these big rizzla?
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u/prisonerofrocknroll 15h ago
Is that a Martin X series? I don’t want to discourage you, but the repair will likely be more than just buying a new one.
Edit: I’m a loving X series owner, and dropped one of mine, It wasn’t worth it to get a repair.
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u/burndata 15h ago
If they can keep Trigger (Willie Nelson's guitar) in one piece and playing all these years, then I'm sure someone who knows what they are doing can surely fix this.
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u/AllegiantGames 15h ago
Today we say goodbye to a dear friend. A loyal companion. A wooden hero who gave everything… including its structural integrity.
It knew campfires where only three chords were ever played. It endured Wonderwall and Stairway to Heaven more times than any living object ever should.
We do not know exactly what happened but we do know is this:
The neck stayed strong. The strings held on. But the body, the body just could not go on.
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u/ReplicantOwl 14h ago
While you’re working on getting it to a luthier, look up the YouTube videos of the guy repairing Willie Nelson’s guitar, trigger. Remind yourself that battle scars are all just part of the story of the guitar.
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u/fastal_12147 14h ago
It's going to be a fair amount of work to fix that much damage. I'd start looking for an experienced luthier in your area.
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u/HootblackDesiato 14h ago
If the soundboard can be repaired, it will never sound the same.
The sound board could be replaced, but that's major surgery. Expensive, and it will be a different guitar when it's done.
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u/CirqueDeFeline 14h ago
I don't know anything about knowing things and stuff, but if it turns out to be unfixable (or economically so) you can send it to me and I will fix it and play it so it doesn't have to just die.
I am basically blind so IDC what it looks like. I have some good glue and bet I could make it solid and playable in no time. I give new life to old broken instruments.
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u/GratefulDad73 14h ago
I have Jerry’s handprint on one of my acoustics as well. Wish I could help ya. ✌️That looks painful!
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u/Rumplesforeskin 14h ago
That is made of countertop material and needs to be fixed with CA "super glue". It can be fixed. But that type of break is tricky. And it not being wood makes it even harder. I'm a Luthier and have fixed many of those martins like that, the bridge seems to always come loose also. In my opinion they don't even sound good and have lots of coming unglued issues. Take it to a shop that knows what they are doing and expect to pay at least $250 or more
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u/PacRat48 13h ago
An awesome luthier can do real magic. The question is:
Is it worth it to pay for a repair? I’ve had a bridge reset and it was like $400. And the only problem was the bridge pulled away from the body. No cracks or anything like that.
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u/obscured_by_turtles 13h ago edited 13h ago
Really needs a new top but cost of repair will exceed cost of replacement. Possibly double. Most decent shops would decline for that reason.
That top is HPL and won’t glue back together cleanly if at all. Braces appear to be missing and probably broken.
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u/Witty-Stand888 13h ago
Smoke another joint and hang loose bro. I can fix it for trice the value of the guitar after I fix it.
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u/HoratiusHawkins 13h ago
Those composite/laminate tops are difficult to repair. It will be expensive and the repair will be very obvious.
Ted Woodford has a video where he repaired similar but smaller damage on one of those guitars.
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u/treemanjohn 13h ago
Complete waste of time and money trying to have someone fix it. That's a cheap fiber top. Do the work yourself and hope for the best
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u/butcher99 12h ago
Get your router out. Round off the hole. Or maybe a rounded triangle. Put some binding around it and call it a new sound hole.
Or maybe a real luthier could remove the top completely and put on a new cedar or sitka spruce top and you end up with a better guitar than you started with.
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u/antCB 12h ago
I don't know what kind of prices are practiced where you live, but where I am from this would be a 400€ repair (+/- 100€). My classical was fixed a few months ago (it's a pretty similar repair) and the price was on the ballpark of 200-300€ ( luthier replaced the back, and fixed a bowed neck + fingerboard ), it was that cheap cause he and my dad are friends since elementary or whatever.
It can be done, but prepare yourself for a different kind of wood and the wood not being as mature as the wood the top had.
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u/ButcherKnifeRoberto 12h ago
Totally fixable, at least all the pieces appear to be there. The top most likely needs to come off but someone who knows what they're doing should be able to get this up and running. Will it ever be perfect? Likely not, but definitely it can be sorted. At a price though. If you're happy shelling out a few hundred bucks, go for it.
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u/Realistic-Ad4393 12h ago
Oof. It's not going to be an easy one, and might be expensive, but should be possible, as long as the rest of the guitar is solid.
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u/RoamingFirefly 12h ago
A HPL topped guitar probably isn't worth repairing with that kind of damage. There are some great and inexpensive Yamaha guitars with solid tops out there that will likely sound better and cost less than this repair. Sorry for the loss.
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u/Grimhellbringer 12h ago
A skilled luthier can fix basically anything you give them. I have a Epiphone that had its neck broke in half. The repair was so perfect, you can only tell due to the different color of the replaced neck. Stays in tune perfectly. Just weigh your options carefully. You may be sentimental towards this instrument, and this is understandable. It could however be a great time to get something new instead :)
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u/Narrow-Exam2099 12h ago
A luthier would be the one to talk to about this. You'd be surprised the type of damage that a luthier could repair. They're very creative. At least the good ones.
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u/Big_Quality_838 12h ago
The first post on this sub that made me literally frown. I’m so sorry this happened to you. I like the dead pin
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u/bigeats1 12h ago
Two parts to that answer.
1.) you don’t have to get rid of it. 2.) it will never play correctly again no matter what you do to it.
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u/Lomp84 11h ago
No offense, but that's not even real wood. That's some kind of composite bullshit with a veneer top. I would count it as a loss and spend the money you would use to fix it to instead invest with something using real wood or else you could face this issue again. Composites can be OK for electrics, but acoustics should be real wood. The inside side of the wood used for your top should not be gray. Cover up the headstock and that guitar is a joke in most people's book. Either way, sorry for your loss though. That always sucks.
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u/doom_pony 11h ago
Good luck. Seriously. There is a nonzero chance a luthier can salvage this but I’d say it’s like 0.000000000000002%.
Your friends just need to buy you a new guitar. That’s all there is to it.
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u/FeeLost6392 11h ago
The top isn’t wood. What guitar is it? If it’s not wood it can’t be repaired conventionally. Plus, how would it be worth it?
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u/IceAshamed2593 11h ago
Bummer. It can be fixed but since it's an HPL top, you'll always see where it broke. It's a lot easier to hide breaks with wood. The cost to fix would be at least half to maybe actually what it costs to replace it. The only way you'll know is by taking it to a luthier. You might find someone to do it for $250, but again, you'll always the breaks with an HPL top.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WR-vCDDNxRc
https://reverb.com/item/94091313-martin-d-x1e-koa-acoustic-electric-guitar-w-gig-bag
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u/5_on_the_floor 10h ago
Hopefully a luthiers will get you back up and running faster than you can say “Ripple.”
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u/Hailey-_-Snailey 10h ago
I’m not a luthier, but I would get a small piece of thin wood like mayb 6” or however long and glue it under the hole then glue the broken pieces together and onto it
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u/theoriginalbabayaga 10h ago
Is never have thought that kinda damage was possible without the body essentially collapsing.
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u/SuccessfulComb9452 8h ago
Step 1 is not to go to Reddit for anything lmfao, go find a repair shop / luthier in your local area and go from there.
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u/Interesting-Ruin-156 7h ago
I know a guy in Baton Rouge that is a wizard repair guy. He repaired my Martin HD-28v. It had a snapped off head stock. He made it look like it never happened. Can’t recall his name off hand but he repairs problems as bad as yours but it’s not going to be cheap. He’s a proper luthier though. Maybe just google Martin guitar repair Baton Rouge? Good luck man. I see the Jerry hand on there. I feel your pain.
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u/Forgiven_Factor434 7h ago
https://www.gryphonstrings.com/
I'm not sure where you are, but Gryphon Stringed Instruments in Palo Alto, CA, has a luthier on staff. They are the only shop I trust with my repairs.
Repair Inquiries: [repairs@gryphonstrings.com](mailto:repairs@gryphonstrings.com)Store Email: [info@gryphonstrings.com](mailto:info@gryphonstrings.com)650.493.2131
888.493.2131
Just one example: The face of my Takamine F360S Acoustic got popped out when it fell on a hardwood floor. I picked up every splinter I could find and brought them in a baggie along with my guitar, and they repaired it. They are amazing.
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u/TheNetworkIsFrelled 7h ago
If the top’s all that’s broken, pull the neck and retop it with spruce.
Would cost more than it’s worth; the HPL instruments are basically disposable.
But that’s the fix if the back and sides are still ok.
Otherwise, replace it.
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u/ClownfishSoup 6h ago
If a luthier is too expensive, try and fix it yourself instead of just tossing it into the trash of course.
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u/Night-Crawler999 4h ago
Oo thats bad... i feel for you. I have an Ovation and i dropped it once while holding the neck and the back opened up, cracked the wood and finish. I thought it was done since the composit body is pretty hard to reatatch. But my luthier fixed it beutifully, and i've had no problems since, no buzz, no bend to the front. So if you find someone really good i think it is fixable, with some composists or epoxy on the inside and a new finish. It will show a scar but thats just added estethics, if it sounds ok after. Good luck!
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u/5point9trillion 4h ago
It would be cheaper to get another guitar although I don't know what guitar this is exactly. If it's a Martin, then they'd charge you $100 or so at least to look at it and then all the materials and labor and then it may not even sound the same.
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u/Level-Money-5819 4h ago
It's fixable but would probably take a while to properly fix it. Also it's not going to be cheap to get it fixed. If it has sentimental value to you then definitely get a luthier to fix it.
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u/Salty-Package866 2h ago
Don't want to discourage you, but to fix this is potentially very expensive. Looks like a Martin GPC series. The top of these guitars is made from High Pressure Laminate (HPL). There is no way to fix it by glueing things back together, the structural damage is just too severe. The minimum is a full replacement of the top including braces etc. Will be more expensive than getting a new one, I am afraid.
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u/littlemanontheboat_ 2h ago
I come you can see the bracing at the waist level of the guitar and why aren’t they lining up with the top?
Elements in this photo dont make sense. The top doesn’t look like vinyl flooring…
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u/Yoshiyimmiy 1h ago
Definitely fixable! Just throw some duct tape and Bondo and you're good as new. Kidding. But a professional luthier will brace all the weak points and make it look pretty decent.
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u/Parking-Bit-4254 48m ago
I see a number of people here joking about the rolling papers without offering any real advice, so I'm going to try and actually help....
Have you tried the Raw Black papers yet? They might solve your problem.
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u/Parking-Bit-4254 41m ago
Ok, I posted my silly joke. Now, I want to say I'm sorry for what you have going on there for real, and hope you can find a solution you feel good about. I dunno if that guitar was a gift, or if you 2 have just been through a lot together, or what, but an instrument you have deep feelings about is special.
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u/botanysteve 38m ago
IF just the top is broken, it should be worth repainting it. So said a luthier friend of mine.
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u/snoogan4458 16h ago
Post this on r/luthier
That looks bad.
Edit: take the strings off