Cracked binding!

[alanamh]

Anyone know any reason why the binding on the bottom of my guitar has started to crack? I have took it to a authorized gibson repairer to have a look and he couldn't fix it, when he tried it kept cracked more!!! What the hell has happened? It's been kept in it's case since new and never knocked or dropped, I've looked online and someone mention about it being soaked in something too long before it was applied? God knows.

I've emailed gibson and waiting for a reply, just wondering if anyone on here has experienced it or know whats caused it?

For a £2000 guitar I expect it to have decent binding!

Thanks in advance guys...

[denka]

[cooljuk]

Please provide some clear photos and the year/model of the guitar.

[alanamh]

It's a 2008 Standard...these are the best photos i could get...

[Pinkie]

Nitro paint expands and contracts due to temp changes but that doesn't look like the problem in this case but I may be wrong.Looks like the binding has cracked and the nitro paint has not.Has your fretboard binding cracked too?
Gibson has had this problem before on new guitars.
I myself wouldn't worry too much I like how your guitar looks.

[alanamh]

Originally Posted by Pinkie

Nitro paint expands and contracts due to temp changes but that doesn't look like the problem in this case but I may be wrong.Looks like the binding has cracked and the nitro paint has not.
Gibson has had this problem before on new guitars.
I myself wouldn't worry too much I like how your guitar looks.

It's an awesome guitar and it sounds amazing. I wouldn't get rid of it just because of the cracks it's just annoying that you spend so much money on a guitar and crap like this happens. I've had cheap guitars and the binding hasn't cracked!!

EDIT: No the fret board binding hasn't cracked.

[brokenarrow5]

it's mojo-- make up a story about how you opened up for Page/Coverdale and Jimmy asked you to play it and he dropped it after a few songs--- but he did say it was a heavenly LP and wishes it was his

That's how i would deal with the cracks!

[alanamh]

Originally Posted by brokenarrow5

it's mojo-- make up a story about how you opened up for Page/Coverdale and Jimmy asked you to play it and he dropped it after a few songs--- but he did say it was a heavenly LP and wishes it was his

That's how i would deal with the cracks!

haha nice one!

[Pinkie]

I have had the same experience too as far as binding goes even had it crack putting in on a guitar could have been a bad batch of binding material.
I love cracks and dings but thats just me.

[alanamh]

Originally Posted by Pinkie

I have had the same experience too as far as binding goes even had it crack putting in on a guitar could have been a bad batch of binding material.
I love cracks and dings but thats just me.

Yeah I must have a dodgy one too lol

[Archtop 13]

It's a problem with the plastic. Most white plastics are made from virgin materials, tough to make it white otherwise, & should be pliable longer(at least that what I learned working in plastics many moons ago). If the plastic is cracking it's obviously poor grade of plastic or something went wrong in mfg of it. The factory producing this stuff should catch a bad batch & scrap it. Manufacturing being manufacturing, sometimes QC doesn't catch it. Short story, it's Gibson's problem to fix & get re-imbursed from the source of the poor material, if they choose to do so.
Personally, if I like my guitar, I'm not taking my chances of having them fix it. I'd love it, play it & send off an email letting them know of the problem so they can make note of it.

[alanamh]

Originally Posted by Archtop 13

It's a problem with the plastic. Most white plastics are made from virgin materials, tough to make it white otherwise, & should be pliable longer(at least that what I learned working in plastics many moons ago). If the plastic is cracking it's obviously poor grade of plastic or something went wrong in mfg of it. The factory producing this stuff should catch a bad batch & scrap it. Manufacturing being manufacturing, sometimes QC doesn't catch it. Short story, it's Gibson's problem to fix & get re-imbursed from the source of the poor material, if they choose to do so.
Personally, if I like my guitar, I'm not taking my chances of having them fix it. I'd love it, play it & send off an email letting them know of the problem so they can make note of it.

Sounds about right, although I don't think the binding is white...more a cream

[Archtop 13]

Recycled materials (plastics) are generally more brittle. If they mixed in some light colored recycled materials this could be the cause of the problem. Where I worked, we had a recycling dept. We would grind up the plastics that didn't pass QC, or were scraps. These would be mixed back into other products at a certain percentage & the products constantly tested for durability. When they didn't pass, they'd drop the percentage of recycled material in the mix.

[Pinkie]

The binding I was using came form Stew Mac and they had me return a piece of it so they could send it back to the manufacturer.
They sent me out a replacement order the next day and said to keep what I had and only use the bad stuff for areas that weren't curved.

[ARandall]

The plastic eventually shrinks with age, plus the wood around it is moving, the lacquer on top shrinks and expands etc.

You could pay a the GDP of a small african nation* for a guitar and it would still not be immune to the forces of nature. Lacquer checking and paint fading/yellowing are the same.


*this is the accepted lingo for a sh%tload of money

[kelv_w]

Had the same problem in less than a year when I had my 2008 LP standard. The plastic basically started cracking at the bottom and at the horn. Gibson Europe promptly replaced the guitar...

I saw a few with similar issue some time back on the forum.

[onlypadog]

nothing to worry about here I don't think just natural ageing

Nitro lacquer breathes, wood expands and contracts with temperature and humidity changes, and the binding shrinks over time too. The result is this cheking and it will probably happen all over the guitar and turn it into one of those beautifully aged and played in mojo machines!

The binding on my '96 Honey has shrunk too, but instead of cracking it has separated from the body inside the curve of the horn. Ageing is awesome!

[onlypadog]

In fact, here is a pic:

[Eddie]

Just chalk it up to the fact that the nitro couldn't contain that much awesomeness and something had to give!

[budg]

I would contact Gibson and see if they can either repair it or replace it.You are just asking for trouble down the road.Flawed workmanship ,plain and simple.

[GibsonMarshallGuy]

Originally Posted by alanamh

Anyone know any reason why the binding on the bottom of my guitar has started to crack? I have took it to a authorized gibson repairer to have a look and he couldn't fix it, when he tried it kept cracked more!!! What the hell has happened? It's been kept in it's case since new and never knocked or dropped, I've looked online and someone mention about it being soaked in something too long before it was applied? God knows.

I've emailed gibson and waiting for a reply, just wondering if anyone on here has experienced it or know whats caused it?

For a £2000 guitar I expect it to have decent binding!

Thanks in advance guys...

You took it to an authorized Gibson repair center, and they couldn't fix it? Hmm, honestly I don't think it looks so bad at all, I mean it wouldn't bother me, but that shouldn't be a problem for a luthier to fix. Hell, it might mean replacing all the binding completely, but it could be done....

[GibsonMarshallGuy]

Originally Posted by budg

I would contact Gibson and see if they can either repair it or replace it.You are just asking for trouble down the road.Flawed workmanship ,plain and simple.

How is it flawed workmanship? I mean it happened years after he owned it...

[budg]

Originally Posted by GibsonMarshallGuy

How is it flawed workmanship? I mean it happened years after he owned it...

Unless you are seeing something I am not , the OP doesnt say how old it is.Its a 2008 Standard . It could be fairly new , but could be 3.5 years old.Even if it is say 3.5 years I would expect the binding to hold up better than that. Its not "years" as in really old, but "years " as in fairly new.

[GibsonMarshallGuy]

Originally Posted by budg

Unless you are seeing something I am not , the OP doesnt say how old it is.Its a 2008 Standard . It could be fairly new , but could be 3.5 years old.Even if it is say 3.5 years I would expect the binding to hold up better than that. Its not "years" as in really old, but "years " as in fairly new.

?? The OP is not saying how old it is, I mean is it or is it not a 2008 ??

lol, the life of the guitar doesn't start after it is purchased, it starts after it's created, right?? It's not like the guitar doesn't age until it's payed for, come on man...

It is newish though (regardless of when it was purchased), but (not that I'm blaming the guy) who really knows with kind of environment it was kept in. Just because it was kept in it's case doesn't mean it can't be effected by the environment. That's why I find it funny when dudes don't play their guitars, because it's going to "relic" no matter what...

[DanL]

I agree that it's not a huge deal, but I don't think the guitar is quite old enough to pull the "this is a natural process" response. Honestly, I think Gibson needs a boot in the a$$ with their QC so that things like this don't happen. Sure, it doesn't actually affect anything, but if we were buying for tone alone, a lot of us would choose studios over standards because most of the differences are aesthetics.

Sure, some people like the look of worn guitars, but that's over-hyped too, I think. It's just the new "fad" for guitars, the "vintage look". If the finish looks new, the binding should too. Might be a minute detail, but we're paying about a thousand dollars extra (studio vs standard) for these minute details so how can anyone excuse bad QC on behalf of their personal preference? Regardless if you like worn guitars, a 2008's binding should not be cracked if it has truly been a case queen all it's life.

On the other hand, if you leave your guitars out all the time and play them all day everyday, expect some aging/wearing even if the guitar isn't that old.

[GibsonMarshallGuy]

Still fail to see how this is a "QC" issue, it's annoying really. Four years out the factory, and it's gotta be a QC issue, wtf? So, the guy inspecting the guitars should have been able to tell that in 2012 the binding will crack?

[DanL]

Originally Posted by GibsonMarshallGuy

Still fail to see how this is a "QC" issue, it's annoying really. Four years out the factory, and it's gotta be a QC issue, wtf? So, the guy inspecting the guitars should have been able to tell that in 2012 the binding will crack?

I'm sure they can test the durability of the binding before it's applied in more ways than one. If the consistency (quality) of the binding was always the same, this wouldn't happen. I don't understand the confusion.

If the leather in your car started cracking after only 4 years, I think you would be disgruntled, especially if you had babied it (i.e. kept it in a case) the whole time.

[GibsonMarshallGuy]

I have a 2008 Gibson Les Paul and my binding isn't cracking. It's plastic man, do you really think the "quality" of the plastic used for binding varies that much lmao!

Oh and if the leather in my car was cracking after 4 years I would probably blame the sun??? Let's keep this about Gibson, bro....

[budg]

Originally Posted by GibsonMarshallGuy

Still fail to see how this is a "QC" issue, it's annoying really. Four years out the factory, and it's gotta be a QC issue, wtf? So, the guy inspecting the guitars should have been able to tell that in 2012 the binding will crack?

I didnt say it was a QC issue, I said it was flawed workmanship.A QC issue could have been caught before it was sent out, but some issues cannot.It could have been inferior material used for the binding or the process itself.If I bought a car and the paint started peeling after 4 years I would be pissed.I agree with DanL, too many people settle for poor workmanship with guitars , and we wonder why they continue to crank out crap like that.

[GibsonMarshallGuy]

Originally Posted by budg

I didnt say it was a QC issue, I said it was flawed workmanship.A QC issue could have been caught before it was sent out, but some issues cannot.It could have been inferior material used for the binding or the process itself.If I bought a car and the paint started peeling after 4 years I would be pissed.I agree with DanL, too many people settle for poor workmanship with guitars , and we wonder why they continue to crank out crap like that.

I didn't say you did, I was writing to DanL...


That's funny shit though, so if the paint on your car started peeling after FOUR YEARS you'd be pissed?? At who?

I just love the "Gibson QC sucks" guys, because whenever they see dents, blemishes, or poor setups they go right away and blame "QC". Nevermind the fact that any of these issues could have begun at a warehouse or someone's home, but no it' Gibson QC. Give me a break, it's getting old.

Now, is Gibson perfect? I personally think not. Check out the BFG are crap thread. I mean, those are 2012 models, and they look in rough shape. I could see that being an issue at Gibson for sure... But like I said it's kind of crazy blaming "Gibson QC" for this issue, particularly when you all don't even know what has happened to it since it left the factory FOUR YEARS AGO!

It must be the cool thing to say "Gibson QC sucks". I should make T-shirts...