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Damage on my 2018 Les Paul CH. How well can it be fixed?

Tor

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Aug 7, 2019
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Not the way I wanted too start of my first post, but..

After about 1,5 years of searching, I found my dream les paul. Nice top, sounding amazing good weight. I was stoked!
Unfortunately, I got some bad news.. There was an acident at home. My guitar got hit.

A part of me got really bombed out ..It's not like R9 grows on tree in my country. (Norway) And it gets much harder when ur trying to find something specific. (grains, top, etc..)
Its not the money part that get's me. (even doh that's kind of not awsm as well ) There's just not easy going out and find a new one.


Another part of me hopes that this maybe could be fixed to a degree that its 99% OK.

So, any real experience with repairs like this?
Damage.jpg
And i picture of the guitar it's self.
Pic1JPG.jpg
 

Zeppelinguy85

All Access/Backstage Pass
Joined
Dec 1, 2002
Messages
422
Not the way I wanted too start of my first post, but..

After about 1,5 years of searching, I found my dream les paul. Nice top, sounding amazing good weight. I was stoked!
Unfortunately, I got some bad news.. There was an acident at home. My guitar got hit.

A part of me got really bombed out ..It's not like R9 grows on tree in my country. (Norway) And it gets much harder when ur trying to find something specific. (grains, top, etc..)
Its not the money part that get's me. (even doh that's kind of not awsm as well ) There's just not easy going out and find a new one.


Another part of me hopes that this maybe could be fixed to a degree that its 99% OK.

So, any real experience with repairs like this?
View attachment 10079
And i picture of the guitar it's self.
View attachment 10080

Hi, good news is it can be fixed where you won't even see it. Your guitar is finished in lacquer which new lacquer will melt into the old. Looks like you might need to to a slight color fill, and then you'll drop fill with lacquer, drop by drop until it's filled. Then you'll sand out the spot and buff it back. If you want to do this yourself, google "drop fills" for guitar. If this isn't something you feel comfortable doing yourself, any good repairman will be able to sort you out. Good luck.
 

Tor

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Aug 7, 2019
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Hi, good news is it can be fixed where you won't even see it. Your guitar is finished in lacquer which new lacquer will melt into the old. Looks like you might need to to a slight color fill, and then you'll drop fill with lacquer, drop by drop until it's filled. Then you'll sand out the spot and buff it back. If you want to do this yourself, google "drop fills" for guitar. If this isn't something you feel comfortable doing yourself, any good repairman will be able to sort you out. Good luck.

Sure hope so, since it seems to me like the actual wood it self is compressed underneath the damage area. Thanks for a uplifting comment :)
 

KR1

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Sep 11, 2016
Messages
266
A slightly different opinion but it’s just one way to approach this:

First, the wood is compressed - yes. A lacquer fill, alone, is not going to make that ding disappear. A complete repair would involve re-shooting a fair amount of finish and then blending the entire area.

However, If a steam repair is applied directly to the ding it will very likely bring the mahogany back up quite a bit. From that point, a lacquer fill will help to level the surface. Even with a color fill and then a clear drop-fill, a small “fish-eye” will be visible as the drop-fill will reconstitute the color fill somewhat.

I would approach the repair this way and live with that small visual anomaly rather than trying to blend a much larger area of color after filling and deeply sanding the cut-away. It’s an option.
 

Gold Tone

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Super easy fix by a qualified luthier!!!dont worry, you won’t ever see it once fixed and should be fairly cheap to fix
 

jimeh77

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Mar 5, 2017
Messages
119
Nothing to fix, u just got it reliced.

if you become rock star someday, someone would pay few grand to get exactly the same ding :rofl
 

KR1

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Sep 11, 2016
Messages
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What are you asking?

What method of fixing that ding would be super easy, super cheap, and invisible?

What I described above has produced good results over many repairs but with lacquer, “invisible” with any sort of spot repair is unobtanium. Opaque black lacquer is pretty easy, yes, but clear reconstituted over red has always produced some visual evidence. So, I’m curious-
 
Last edited:

ourmaninthenorth

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Mar 28, 2009
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7,119
Tor, also a slightly different take on this.

I personally wouldn't touch it up at all, it's now part and parcel of your guitar, and no less beautiful for it.

Play the bloody paint off it Pal.

:salude
 

Gold Tone

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What method of fixing that ding would be super easy, super cheap, and invisible?

What I described above has produced good results over many repairs but with lacquer, “invisible” with any sort of spot repair is unobtanium. Opaque black lacquer is pretty easy, yes, but clear reconstituted over red has always produced some visual evidence. So, I’m curious-

I’ve had a few such dings repaired over the decades from accidents here and there, usually gigs. Luthier filled with lacquer (steam rose wood 1st if necessary) cut polish, repeat. Takes several weeks of petience while lacquer shrinks. Sometimes repeat if lacquer shrinks.

The damage is within the cutaway and is dyed red so very easy to repair with no evidence of damage. There is no missing colour so no need for any colour matching or blending. This is a very simple fix.

Lacquer can in fact be repaired to invisible as the old and new will “melt” together as witnessed on my own repaired finish on a few guitars

Of course if you pull out a microscope you could probably see the repair.
 

KR1

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I’ve had a few such dings repaired over the decades from accidents here and there, usually gigs. Luthier filled with lacquer (steam rose wood 1st if necessary) cut polish, repeat. Takes several weeks of petience while lacquer shrinks. Sometimes repeat if lacquer shrinks.

The damage is within the cutaway and is dyed red so very easy to repair with no evidence of damage. There is no missing colour so no need for any colour matching or blending. This is a very simple fix.

Lacquer can in fact be repaired to invisible as the old and new will “melt” together as witnessed on my own repaired finish on a few guitars

Of course if you pull out a microscope you could probably see the repair.

Yep; understood.

The “lens” effect that occurs with new clear or tinted lacquer is the bugger. That’s the issue that I’ve had mixed results with over the years and would be interested to know if anyone’s discovered a remedy beyond color-fill or an outright refinish/blend. This is much more of an issue on tops for those so focused, absolutely.

How are things in beautiful Vancouver?

BR,
 

Gold Tone

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Yep; understood.

The “lens” effect that occurs with new clear or tinted lacquer is the bugger. That’s the issue that I’ve had mixed results with over the years and would be interested to know if anyone’s discovered a remedy beyond color-fill or an outright refinish/blend. This is much more of an issue on tops for those so focused, absolutely.

How are things in beautiful Vancouver?

BR,

The lens effect is pretty hard to reduce or eliminate for sure. Depending on lighting and type of damage it can be a bigger.

Things are great in Vancouver...I’m so lucky to live in paradise. A bit “smokey” since the legalization in October though!
 

KR1

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The lens effect is pretty hard to reduce or eliminate for sure. Depending on lighting and type of damage it can be a bigger.

Things are great in Vancouver...I’m so lucky to live in paradise. A bit “smokey” since the legalization in October though!

OT:

Vancouver and Sydney: THE TWO most amazing cities I've had the pleasure to visit over the last 42 years of flying.

Colorado is wonderful; Vancouver is amazing. :hank
 

Gold Tone

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Colorado is beautiful with the mountains and wilderness...a gem. Plus the ladies are gorgeous
 

Tor

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Thnx for answers so far.. Tried to reach out to two shops, but no answer so far. (Bumer)
But tomorrow i will make some calls. If its not 99% gone. I'am thinking of just leave it. And see if i can do such thing :p

I think most buyer in my country turnes away from damage on guitar, so I'am bit worried of the resales value.
 

thejaf

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Oct 27, 2006
Messages
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Take it a professional to fix if you're concerned about resale value. If the guitar is "the one" however, I would just leave it and consider the cosmetic dings part of the breaking in process.
 

AJCR

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May 2, 2018
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Just want to add that this sort 9f repair is not the 'cheap easy thing' that some (seemingly the completely inexperienced as they offer no details) suggest.

Having made a lot of guitars and had to do a lot of paint repairs due to various issues over the years, I'd agree it's something that should be able to be done if time and effort is thrown at it by someone with a lot of experience in tinting dropfill, plus steaming out dings in a tight location.
In short, it's not likely to be cheap or easy.
And listen to the people who offer the techniques in their posts. They are the ones who know what they are talking about.
 

Gold Tone

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...yet we continue to see responses that are patently incorrect suggesting this is a difficult or expensive repair based on self professed excellence in ability.

My own recommendation came from 40 years of playing and gigging where such hits were not uncommon. Each and every time lacquer fill, steam up wood (uncompressed) on rare occasion, cut polish, buff

If you’d have read my earlier post you’d have seen that...that which you paraphrased.

Takes time only for lacquer to cure / shrink over several weeks. Hell, you can bring it home and play it while that time is passing, then go back for less than 30min to cut and buff.

Maybe $100 -$150 depending on your guy. This is luthiery 101

But, I shouldn’t be telling you, you know how this works
 

colnago1

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Jan 10, 2008
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What sort of accident caused this at your home? I like to know so that I can avoid it.
 
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