Need Serious Help!!

[VelvetoneStudios]

My 1967 Hummingbird was recently STOMPED on!!!!!! Tho top and part of the side near the upper bout are destroyed. This guitar is special to me, so I really want to revive it. As a Gibson endorsee, I'm able to get a new top from the custom shop, but first I need to remove all of the binding and old glue. So basically question 1 is : how do I break the 41 year old glue joints that I need gone without damaging the (perfect) neck, back, and other bout?? I've heard steam, de-ionized water, heat, denatured alcohol, and Acetone. This page came highly reccomended, and I really need some advice from you pro's out there. If anyone ca help please drop a line to
[e-mail]
Thanks,
Tony Cesternino.
Hudson NY

[Frank Ford]

The first job will be to remove the neck as though you're resetting it. That's a matter of steam injection, and a fairly serious effort in itself. Once the neck is out you can turn to the other parts of the repair. Because of the side damage, you may have to resign yourself to refinishing the sides once the reconstruction is done, and, considering the difficulty in matching colors, it might be well to consider the possibility of refinishing the entire body. Removing the top can be fairly destructive because you're not trying to save it. Along with the top, the binding will go, too, of course.

Now, some luthiers use a router to remove the top without disturbing the binding and then replace the top, working inside the binding without touching the sides. Because of your description of side damage, I presume that's not possible in this case.

Regardless, you have a very large project ahead, one that is beyond the scope of any number of repairers. . .

[VelvetoneStudios]

Thanks Frank!! I've already taken a Roto-Zip to the top. I'm tryig to find a way to remove the old hide glue residue as well as the perfectly aged inding without hurting the good parts. The neck, back and about 3 quartrs of the sides are still all right. I'd love to find a way to remove the top binding and the old glue without steaming or heating the good parts into warped lumps. How do you dissolve 1967 hide glue????

[Jim Bancroft]

How do you dissolve 1967 hide glue????

Apply some hot water, to the glue, with a rag or sponge, next scrape it off with a sharp chisel or razor blade.

Jim