Fretboard crack WR1 help!

[Digitised]

Ill post here first before taking it round to my local guitar tech.

I bought a WR1 from Fullers Vintage Guitars, which is a fantastic instrument but seemed to have gotten out there shop fully DHL'd to the UK without them noticing a crack running 18th fret upwards.





Ive had the guitar for less than 2 days and already contacted fullers to let them know about the problem. They suggest sending it back to Jackson (which means losing the guitar for 'x' amount of time)

I just want to know if anyone has experience from this what is likely to happen in the long run.
Will it spread with truss rod adjustment and seasonal changes?
Can it be fixed easily?

Some options and advice would be great, thanks!

[shreddermon]

Unfortunately, cracks like this are very common with ebony fretboards. I've had this happen on some Jacksons of mine, although on a smaller magnitude. It's an easy enough job to fill the cracks with some ebony dust and superglue. And, if done properly, you won't be able to notice the repair much, if at all.

Ordinarily, I'd say no biggee and just do the fix. But the size of that crack - extending through 6-plus frets - would give me pause. I'd probably just send it back and ask for a full refund.

[Digitised]

Ok i guess all i need to really know, is if there are any chances this will spread or affect the instrument. I have been googling about and it seems that cracks are common and easy to hide with glue and ebony dust. Many claim if done properly you cannot even see the repair job, im confident of my DIY skills to do this, but i just want some clarification that it will get the job done rather than mask a possibly bigger problem.

If i do the fix, then it will no doubt make it impossible to return the instrument for warranty purposes or a refund. I love the guitar but this is one of those decisions where i need to hear the worst case experiences.

Is this cosmetic or potentially structural?

[Grandturk]

Unless you don't want the guitar - bring it to a Jackson dealer for warranty work - don't ham-fist it yourself or let a "tech" do it. Have it repaired under warranty - so you lose the guitar for a couple of months - you already waited for it for over a year.

[atdguitars]

I have to agree here. Send it back. It's not a hard repair to do but since its brand new I'd let Jackson take care of it.
Even if repaired properly it could spread the length of the fretboard over time. With it being such a long split its probably splitting the full depth of the board and not just on the surface. A surface split will usually stop where the board is slotted and not spread any further.

[sully]

I'd fix it myself, but that's me. We've all said it's an easy fix, so why bother with sending it out for warranty? It's most likely gonna go to a warranty tech (does Fuller's have a tech? I'd assume so) who will do the same thing you would.

I guess it's up to you: how handy are you? If you can use CA glue (super glue - get some and a bottle of accelerator at a hobby shop) without making a tremendous mess and you can keep a razor blade perpendicular to a fretboard as you GENTLY scrape the glue flush, buff the scrapings out of the wood with steel wool, and oil the board up, you can fix it in a short amount of time.

Also consider that it may crack on its way back to you, and you'd be in the same boat.

As far as it opening back up with climate change, it won't go anywhere.

Seriously dude, you can fix it. We can help.

Sully

[Chad]

Maybe I'm weird, but knowing that was wrong with the guitar from the get-go.....it would affect its mojo with me. I'd send it back and get a full refund.

[triplehold]

Don't be overly concerned about it. Fix it yourself and don't let your fret board dry out. Oil it up every month or so.

[warlok]

I'd send it back if it were me. No question about it. Otherwise it'd be something that I'd worry about all the time.

[Newc]

Easy repair until you think where the ebony dust is going to come from, and how much of it you'll need.


Send it back. I had a neck that was cracked and repaired like that. It looked like shit and was done AT the Jackson Ft Worth facility, and it was a USA Roswell neck. It wasn't something that was "if you hold it a certain way", it was "holy shit wtf happened here?" from across the room.







Send the guitar back.

[sully]

you can get the ebony dust from the fretboard itself: scrape some up around the cracked area, fill it, glue it and you're good.

[GuerillaPete]

I got the same situation on a restoration job I'm 'slooowly' doing on a 'stone' soloist I dug up. Not sure if I should fill the cracks in myself or just get the entire board replaced. Tough call.

[lynchfan6]

Don't be overly concerned about it. Fix it yourself and don't let your fret board dry out. Oil it up every month or so.

+1 I've read quite a bit about the dangers of ebony drying and cracking, so I make it a point to use lemon oil on my ebony and rosewood fretboard guitars several times a year. Makes em look real nice , too. I've noticed that a lot of new guitars come with very dry fretboards, whether ebony or rosewood. I assume that the manufacturer doesn't bother to oil them, and then they sit around, often in a warehouse, for indefinite periods of time before being sold.