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Hi all,

I wondered whether I could pick your brains about this topic...

A guitar I made recently had the bridge peel off. It was originally glued with titebond original; I have a feeling the reason for the failure was the oily nature of this wood (the fretboard extension had also come unglued).

It's now got to be glued back on. Having done a dry run, clamping the bridge down, I noticed there is a considerable gap under the bridge, even under clamping pressure. I've attached a photo: the gap seems to extend from the back of the main body of the bridge (i.e. excluding the wings) inwards for a distance of about 1cm. I estimate the width to be around 0.2mm (0.008").

I think titebond is out of the question for this job, due to the gap. My thoughts then turned to Hot Hide Glue: I've read that it has reasonable gap-filling properties...

Having not used HHG before, I have a few questions:

Do you think Hide Glue would be an appropriate choice here?

What would be the best way to prep the glueing surfaces (after having removed the old glue)? (I was thinking simply sand the cocobolo to a fresh surface and glue from there...)

I reckon I can get the clamp on and tightened in about 60 sec. Would the open time be long enough, or would I have to work ore quickly?!

(Obviously, once I get my hands on some glue and some kind of gadget to heat it in I'll do a few practice runs on scrap, to get the feel of it).

Any advice or suggestions would be very much appreciated!

Tags: Bridge, Glue, Hide, Hot, cocobolo, re-glue, repair

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I don't know, Ned - that could have been a "tone burrito" not making any noise until about 45 minutes after it's consumed....:)

I thought that this burrito would really stick to your ribs but your comment makes me think it would be more accurate to say that it would really stick around.  

This is from a long ago memory so I may have some details incorrect.

Canadian Luthier Mario Proulx uses squeeze bottles with a nozzle (like some ACC bottles) filled with dry HG.   When he needs to use one he heats the bottle in the microwave or a hot bath and then uses the applicator tip to direct it to where he wants it to go.  When he's done he lets the bottle cool and it's ready for the next time.  No glue pot, no decomposition, no problem.

Larry

Edit: Mario Proulx's web site has pictures of his setup.  Self explanatory and a lot of good ideas.  That's true of the rest of the site, too.  Here's the page with the glue setup, lower right corner:

http://www.proulxguitars.com/buildup/build5.htm

Larry

Good website!

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