# F*#%!!!!!!! - Broken headstock content



## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

So I was leaving the house this morning and leaned my LP against the wall while I fished in my pocket for keys to lock the deadbolt when the case fell over flat onto its face. I hoped it was no big deal, but when I opened the case...yup...broken headstock. ARGH!!!!

Ok, so where in Toronto is the best place to do this type of repair? Is it 12th Fret? Cost is not an issue, really. I have a bunch of cash saved up that I was going to use for a new Tele, but I'd gladly dump it into a quality repair on my LP.

I'm hoping to get it to a tech/luthier tomorrow, cuz I want it repaired ASAP as it's my #1, so speedy replies are hugely, immensely, monstrously appreciated!!!


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## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

Is it broken right off? I dropped my Gary Moore a few years back and put a pretty good crack in the neck. I took that one to the 12th fret and they repaired it perfectly and it was not even that expensive, at least a lot less than I thought it would be. I would take it there and at least let them have a look at it. I share your pain


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

GuitarsCanada said:


> Is it broken right off? I dropped my Gary Moore a few years back and put a pretty good crack in the neck. I took that one to the 12th fret and they repaired it perfectly and it was not even that expensive, at least a lot less than I thought it would be. I would take it there and at least let them have a look at it. I share your pain


Not right, off, but pretty close. I remember pics of your Gary Moore. Mine is a big more broken, I think. If you don't mind my asking, how much did it run you?


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## Hamstrung (Sep 21, 2007)

You can also talk to Mike McConville in Stratford. He does these kind of repairs all the time. 

... lots of guitar hospital porn on his blog!
McConville Guitars [email protected]


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

Hollowbody....Sorry to hear about this.....hope you can get it repaired quickly.

Cheers

Dave


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## Stratin2traynor (Sep 27, 2006)

Sorry to hear about that. That sucks. You should be able to get a quality job done quickly and for relatively cheap. I broke a head stock off a guitar about 15 years ago and repaired it myself with common wood glue and a clamp. It wasn't a pretty job but it lasted until just recently when my kids had a sleep over and someone knocked it over. Guess what, the head stock broke off again.

I'm sure a pro can fix yours in no time. Good luck


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

Stratin2traynor said:


> Sorry to hear about that. That sucks. You should be able to get a quality job done quickly and for relatively cheap. I broke a head stock off a guitar about 15 years ago and repaired it myself with common wood glue and a clamp. It wasn't a pretty job but it lasted until just recently when my kids had a sleep over and someone knocked it over. Guess what, the head stock broke off again.
> 
> I'm sure a pro can fix yours in no time. Good luck


Yeah, if I had access to a place I could leave it (and clamps), I'd try it myself, but I'll be going to a pro for this. The pieces look like they line up really well, so a good slathering of wood or hide glue should do the trick. It's just really annoying.


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## Alain Moisan (Jan 16, 2010)

Try contacting Tony Karol: Karol Custom Guitars

Although I'm not sure how far from Toronto he is. (Probably not too far, his area code is 905...)


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

Alain Moisan said:


> Try contacting Tony Karol: Karol Custom Guitars
> 
> Although I'm not sure how far from Toronto he is. (Probably not too far, his area code is 905...)


Seems like it should be Mississauga. I'll try him. Thanks!


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## al3d (Oct 3, 2007)

OUCH..that sucks..but the LP was'nt IN the case right?


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

> So I was leaving the house this morning and leaned my LP against the wall while I fished in my pocket for keys to lock the deadbolt when the case fell over flat onto its face. I hoped it was no big deal, but when I opened the case...yup...broken headstock. ARGH!!!!


it would appear so alain-
this is why ive never messed with gibson types- i drop things all the time
imagine the long, expensive and very sad tale of woe id have to tell had i gone that way lol.
hollowbody, its not as big a deal as it may seem, happens all the time. lots of guys base a career on fixing this stuff-


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## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

hollowbody said:


> Not right, off, but pretty close. I remember pics of your Gary Moore. Mine is a big more broken, I think. If you don't mind my asking, how much did it run you?


I think the bill was something like $200 which I thought was reasonable


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## Kenmac (Jan 24, 2007)

Ouch! Sorry to hear about that accident Hollowbody. That must be a sickening feeling when that happens. Yeah, I'd try either the 12th Fret or Gene at Encore Music in Scarborough @416-691-2686 They're open from 11:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. on Saturday.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

al3d said:


> OUCH..that sucks..but the LP was'nt IN the case right?


The guitar was in the case. Which is why at first I thought it was no big deal, but yeah, it got smashed pretty good. I think it was because it fell right on the face of the case (string side down) which caused the damage. If it had fallen over onto the back or side, I'm sure it would have been fine.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

Here's some broken headstock porn.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

As you can see, the headstock didn't come right off, but it's pretty damned close.

One more.


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## zontar (Oct 25, 2007)

I broke the headstock on my classical slipping on ice--a friend fixed it and did a great job--but I knew his work from seeing it on his own guitars.
It was in a case--but a cheap fiberboard case--I got a good one after that.

So far my other guitars have been spared, but I feel sympathy- I felt crushed when it happened to my Classical.

Most of my guitars have volutes--which should help--but wouldn't be a guarantee against headstock breakage.


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## Guest (Jun 12, 2010)

Judging by the pic's, it looks like a clean break. That'll glue together no 
problem. You'll be ok. I recently picked up a Washburn Cumberland 
with almost the identical break. Glued/clamped for 24hrs and holds strong. 
It's been sitting for a week now and I haven't had to retune anything yet. 

She don't look pretty, but, it plays great!


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## StevieMac (Mar 4, 2006)

Glue should certainly do the trick but I've known folks who also had a dowel inserted to prevent the problem from happeneing again....


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## mrmatt1972 (Apr 3, 2008)

The trick with fixing one of these is to make it look and feel as if it wasn't broken. That might involve filler and refinishing - hence the 200 dollar price tag. With carpenter's glue and a 5 dollar clamp or two you can easily fix it yourself so that it's structurally sound, but it'll be much like laristote's example. To get it to feel and look right is a little more difficult.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

Fortunately (if you're a "cup is half full" type of person) this type of damage happens to Gibsons so often that the methods for repairing them have developed through the years.

They can be repaired very effectively and if you have a good repairman, invisibly or close to it.

I even did one myself and it has held perfectly for several years now with no signs of failure. The glued joint is said to be stronger than the surrounding wood.

It sucks, but with a couple of hundred bucks it can easily be made whole again.


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## TubeStack (Jul 16, 2009)

Man, sorry to hear that, that's awful. 

If you don't mind me asking, how was the case positioned? Was it horizontal on the floor, or vertical, leaning against the wall? (Would like to know for my own LP care...)

I have an SG with a repaired headstock and it's been fine for going on 20 years now (since the break/repair job), so there is hope.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

Milkman said:


> Fortunately (if you're a "cup is half full" type of person) this type of damage happens to Gibsons so often that the methods for repairing them have developed through the years.
> 
> They can be repaired very effectively and if you have a good repairman, invisibly or close to it.
> 
> ...


Yeah, I've heard the same thing too. In all honesty, I don't care much about there being a visible seam as long as she plays as nicely as she did before. I'm just more irritated with myself than anything for letting this happen.



TubeStack said:


> Man, sorry to hear that, that's awful.
> 
> If you don't mind me asking, how was the case positioned? Was it horizontal on the floor, or vertical, leaning against the wall? (Would like to know for my own LP care...)
> 
> I have an SG with a repaired headstock and it's been fine for going on 20 years now (since the break/repair job), so there is hope.


It was leaning against the wall standing upright with the top of the case resting in the corner of where two walls meet. I honestly can't say how it managed to fall. Maybe it wasn't as securely in the corner as I had thought.


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## al3d (Oct 3, 2007)

I realy don't understand how a LP. IN A CASE, can end-up with a broken headstock..those case hold the LP extremely tight, and the headstock is basicaly not touching anything in the case almost kinda like floating!....i mean mine has fallen from it's place so many time, but in the case i never even worried!


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## dwagar (Mar 6, 2006)

not all cases offer the same protection.

I recently bought one of the brown Lifton reissue cases for my Historic. While it does have the cool vintage vibe, it isn't even close to the protection of the black case.


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## ne1roc (Mar 4, 2006)

My co-guitarist had the exact same break happen to his LP, just the black laminate holding it together. I highly recommend the Twelth Fret. Apparently they get about two of these types a breaks in a week. Cost is about $200.00 and more if you want them to hide the crack and repaint the neck.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

al3d said:


> I realy don't understand how a LP. IN A CASE, can end-up with a broken headstock..those case hold the LP extremely tight, and the headstock is basicaly not touching anything in the case almost kinda like floating!....i mean mine has fallen from it's place so many time, but in the case i never even worried!


I can't understand it either, Alain. And we're not talking some flimsy case either, this is the Gibson faux-snakeskin LP case, which is a very heavy and solid 5-ply wooden case.

I think what did it is that it fell flush on it's face, so the force of the impact along with the tension put on the neck by the strings just created too much pressure on the headstock and it snapped.



dwagar said:


> not all cases offer the same protection.
> 
> I recently bought one of the brown Lifton reissue cases for my Historic. While it does have the cool vintage vibe, it isn't even close to the protection of the black case.


Yeah, those Liftons definitely wouldn't stop any damage from happening. They're mighty sweet looking and great to add value on the resale market, but definitely not for lugging your axe around in.


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## Alain Moisan (Jan 16, 2010)

So hollowbody, what's the status on your problem? Have you been able to find someone to fix it in the time frame you had?

I sure hope so!


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

Alain Moisan said:


> So hollowbody, what's the status on your problem? Have you been able to find someone to fix it in the time frame you had?
> 
> I sure hope so!


Right now, my guitar is in Kingston waiting for the Kingston Guitar Shoppe to open tomorrow. Gord, the owner/luthier there came highly regarded to me by a couple people and it helps that I have family in Kingston. He's going to take a look at it and give me an estimate. I figured it would be best to try him before something like 12th Fret, because I know their turnaround is long. If he can't do it for a reasonable price or something else comes up, I'll check out 12th Fret or potentially some local guys.

A buddy's guitar tech who has a lot of experience with LPs referred me to Dowd Musical Instruments, so I might give them a go as well.


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## vasthorizon (Aug 10, 2008)

al3d said:


> I realy don't understand how a LP. IN A CASE, can end-up with a broken headstock..those case hold the LP extremely tight, and the headstock is basicaly not touching anything in the case almost kinda like floating!....i mean mine has fallen from it's place so many time, but in the case i never even worried!


The combination of the angled headstock and the wood-grain running almost parallel to the body of a Les Paul are the culprits.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

Another update:

Gord Mylks, luthier and proprietor of The Kingston Guitar Shop, has taken an initial peek at my LP and says that the repair should only run me in the $200 neighbourhood, give or take a little. He says the break isn't too short (in his opinion), though a couple other people I showed it too said it was and thought the only way to fix it was to do a neck splice (which would have cost me a LOT of $$$). Of course, he'll have to see how things go once he gets started. He said he should have it done in just over a week's time, so it should be ready by the weekend after this coming one.

This all sounds pretty reassuring, and I'm glad the turnaround isn't ridiculous. Hopefully nothing comes up in the meantime to make him change his estimate.

I'll let you all know about how it turns out, though from what I hear, Gord does excellent work.


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## simescan (May 15, 2007)

I hope she comes back to you just like she used to be,...keep positive thoughts..


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## zontar (Oct 25, 2007)

I hope it comes back on time, and near estimate )or lower).

I remember waiting for my classical to be fixed--the part that took the longest was the refinish of the headstock's front--as the rosewood veneer that was there was destroyed, and the new one was apparently tough to re-finish.

It was great to get it back--

Hopefully you'll feel the same elation.


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## YJMUJRSRV (Jul 17, 2007)

gone fishing


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

YJMUJRSRV said:


> Coming in late on this one.
> 
> Thats a nice clean break. I bet you're going to get a nice clean repair
> 
> ...


Yeah, 9 times out of 10, that break wouldn't have happened. It just fell the exact wrong way 

The tension of the strings, along with the impact is what cause it to snap, but yeah, my tech said it looks like it should be a nice clean repair once done.

I'm hoping to pick it up this weekend, but I haven't heard if it will be ready yet. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, though. It's been a tough couple weeks without my #1.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

So I got my LP back today. Seems like it's playing great and the repair job looks pretty solid. Also, Gord was able to do he repair below his initial estimate! Haven't plugged it in yet and can't take pics yet, but I'll follow-up when I can.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

Here's some follow-up pics. The refinishing lacquer was a lot more similar in colour to the rest of the neck before, but I guess sweat and stuff has changed the hue. Again, it doesn't look very pretty, but the work is solid and it feels great. Besides, I had asked for it to be as cheap as possible. I'm sure if I paid double what I did, I could have gotten it refinished exactly the same.


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## prodigal_son (Apr 23, 2009)

Gord seems to be the guy around here (K-Town) that everyone goes to for this sort of thing. I have yet to get him to do anything for me but I know but his prices are fair considering how skilled he is. 

Now you really have to love her forever, eh?

Here's a link to his store:

coolguitars.ca - cool guitars @ the Kingston Guitar Shop


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

prodigal_son said:


> Gord seems to be the guy around here (K-Town) that everyone goes to for this sort of thing. I have yet to get him to do anything for me but I know but his prices are fair considering how skilled he is.
> 
> Now you really have to love her forever, eh?
> 
> ...


Haha, yeah, she's pretty much mine til I'm dead now. Which works out fine with me, since she plays very well.

I hear great things about Gord's set-ups, so I'm thinking of getting him to do some work on a couple of my guitars next time I'm in Kingston for an extended time. But yeah, from everything I've heard and all I've experienced first-hand, Gord is a great guy and very skilled.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

It does look rough, but these types of repairs are pretty effective and durable when glued and clamped properly.

This is one I did a year or two ago.

Before (obviously)









After


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

Milkman said:


> It does look rough, but these types of repairs are pretty effective and durable when glued and clamped properly.
> 
> This is one I did a year or two ago.
> 
> ...


Funny thing is that it looked a lot more like the pics you posted before I took it to practice with me. I'm guessing the sweat from playing reacted weirdly with the lacquer used to finish it, which gave the orangey streaks.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

This one was a Washburn acoustic and is probably a poly finish. It definitely gets a lot of sweat but who knows. Nitro finishes aren't as durable.


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## Guitar-n00b (Jul 17, 2010)

I got the same problem on one of my Epiphone SG's, I'll put some pics up on this thread in several minutes, it worked surprisingly well to use wood filler, glue, sand it down and repaint over it, I understand that repainting the neck of an LP makes you feel sick, but it`s the best you can do for free. PS: You might wanna use extra light strings just so if the headstock does come flying off, it won`t hit you as hard  But I feel really sorry for ya bud.


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## Guitar-n00b (Jul 17, 2010)

Here was my problem, still not finished actually....lol


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## 6string_rodder (Aug 13, 2010)

*Six String Garage*

Try me... if I do say so myself... 
The Six String Garage


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## 6string_rodder (Aug 13, 2010)

*The Six String Garage*

May i suggest my new shop? (if I do say so myself)
The Six String Garage


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

6string_rodder said:


> Try me... if I do say so myself...
> The Six String Garage





6string_rodder said:


> May i suggest my new shop? (if I do say so myself)
> The Six String Garage


Once wasn't enough?


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

War wounds are cool, if you ask me. 

As long as you still love her, Hollowbody, it's all good.


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