ACOUSTIC GUITAR BELLY BULGE REPAIR

[@chryslercartography9024]

You got rid of the bridge warp with the heated cauls. How did you get rid of the belly bulge beyond the bridge and bridge plate area? In my opinion that heated caul system has limited application for use only where the bridge is glued down. You never showed how the belly bulge was fixed using your steel straight edge after the bridge reglue.

[@artistsofampilatwatja5352]

I'd have to seen more detail on fixing the excess bowing or bellying of the flat top ,

[@joq702]

Neat video, great work. The seagull guitars are really well made.

[@boparker4578]

Excellent video/tutorial. Very helpful. I appreciate your time - both of you. Nice git-fiddle playing too.

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

Thank you very much for the positive feedback.

[@joq702]

Mr. Langton is excellent in how he carefully handles the customer’s guitar as he works. The work bench is clean and he moves carefully as he works on the instrument. His tools and choices of how he works are also noticeably better than the one person I have used. I watch luthier videos all the time, and you do an excellent job, taking it slow and having tools that look like they will not scratch the guitar finish. I enjoyed it. I have the same issue going on belly bulge which has lifted the bridge higher than it was resulting in super high action on the middle of the fret board. The fret board is straight, even under tension. So I am going to give this a try on my 1980 Yamaha Fg331. Otherwise it is so uncomfortable to play. Beyond my skills to play.

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

Thank you . I appreciate the good review.

[@TheTubeDude]

I missed the part where the weak top-bracing that allows belly-bulge was "fixed" . Steaming might last for a few days, but is not a fix. Other than that, very nice video.

[@charlespatt]

Your video has given me some motivation. I just pulled an acoustic 6-string out a neighbors trash. I saw the head sticking out of his bin and couldn't resist trying to save it. They must have left the guitar in a basement or attic with the strings fully tight. The strings were still on it and the neck had completely separated, bent forward from the top of the body and the fret board peeled off there too. I've taken the pieces apart and getting ready to sand and re-glue. It looks quite salvageable.

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

Im glad it motivated you. Good luck to you.

[@danstune]

Wish you were in So Cal! Thanks the great demo!

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

Me too. Thank you

[@KabihugMedic]

Very professional 🎸

[@skyll4141]

does this method also stick separated top braces back to the soundboard?.

[@MrFadicuz]

Hello my friend, thank you for your effort. My question is, I opened the bridge and took it out of its place, but I have a problem. I cannot remove the bridge and separate it from the guitar because there is a wire attached. When I put my hand inside the guitar and felt that the wire is connected to the electrical system, I do not know what to do. Please, can you teach me with a video how to separate the bridge from the guitar? So that I can clean the guitar from the surface of the guitar face so that I can return it to its correct place. Thank you

[@CasPark]

thanks for this! how much does a repair like this cost?

[@davidledford3522]

Ive never seen the inside of one of these guitars ive had a similar idea in my head for a while now

[@KaptainCanuck]

Great woodworkers know to leave a half inch or so of bare wood so there is no spill from compressing two pieces together. It makes for less cleaning and no residue

[@jamescassidy4045]

Hey, I’ve got a 1960’s Ibanez (Martin) Lawsuit Acoustic, and it’s a beautiful guitar, but it’s got slight belly rise, and essentially the intonation on it is also quite off, but mostly just on the big E . It (the E) goes very sharp, and more sharp as you start fretting towards the twelfth fret. Other than the belly rise, which isn’t even very bad, not exactly sure what it would need, but it’s in overall really really nice condition. The nut was cracked in half when I got it, so I glued it together, but I presume it would probably benefit from a new one. Tuners are all perfect, frets almost look new(but are OG I think), and may need a new bridge saddle thingy I dunno. I believe this guitar likely sat around a lot of its life. Anyway, I was wondering if you’d maybe be into helping me restore it? I wanted to use it for recording, as it has really nice wood, and resonance, and has this nice midrangey, but dark kinda tone going on, and I really want someone to get it playing well again. I’ve never seen one like this from Ibanez, and I just feel like it’s a bit of a rare gem worth putting some love into. Hope to hear back.

[@FredQuann-vs1qh]

Nice work. What glue was used here?

[@iNomNomNomYou00]

I need someone to explain to me how removing the bridge and just regluing it again would solve the belly bulge. As far as I can see from the aftermath of his work, the action was still high. I'm sure the belly bulge problem would not be solved just by that "repair".

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

The Seagull guitar came to me with a high action. The measurements were 4.5/32 on the low E and 3.5/32 on the high E. The neck was dead straight and the nut height was to spec. If I would of sanded the bottom of the saddle there would have been no break angle and there would of been loss of tone. I put a straight edge across and noticed a hump (bulge). I also checked to see if it needed a neck reset which was not needed. So the next step I felt that was needed was to use the Thompson Belly Reducer with heat and clamping pressure. The results were a success. The action was 3/32 on the low E and 2/32 on the high E which is acceptable limits. The customer was very happy with the results. Hope I answered your question. Thank you

[@iNomNomNomYou00]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 i see.. thank you. Would the belly bulge return again after some time?

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

@@iNomNomNomYou00 I recommended to the customer to use lighter gauge strings, humidity control (40-50 percent), and keep the guitar in the case tuned down a full step when not playing will keep the hump from coming back. In the Seagull manual it recommends a specific size gauge string so there isn’t too much string tension for the particular wood for that guitar.

[@7thfrettin163]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 Hey sir I have a 59 j50 i need some work done on. How much typically is this type of repair? Mine i believe is worse however the wood itself that the bridge sits on has lifted higher than the wood of the guitar itself and down below the bridge the body has swelled. Bridge also trash i ordered a new one but to keep it original with the adjustable bridge it would need route work and two counter sinked holes by the strings. Thanks. Mark.

[@humancentered3447]

The bridge has nothing to do with it other than it was likely lifting from the radius of the belly. All he’s doing is softening the glue between the wood lam top pieces and also the braces. The clamps just help smash that area back flat with the bits sliding on the softened glue. When it hardens again the bits are back where they should be and the bridge can be put back into place and now lay flat. You can achieve the same effect of the heated metal pieces by putting the body of the guitar into an oven. That is less precise and you’ll need a whole body jig to keep everything in place and you can then clamp the entire top down into place. And obviously careful with any plastic pieces etc.

[@markochomba8755]

Great your video, tell me after you glue the bridge back on, how long do you have to wait to put the strings back on, is it a day or two?

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

24 hours

[@markochomba8755]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 Thank you very much for your answer

[@stephencastro1437]

Was the neck originally glued in? I ask because it is a bolt on neck, and if the factory wanted to glue irt in they would have and not made it a bolt on. Also, you are not able to clean up the glue squeeze out in the truss rod channel which may cause issues in the future. Like a frozen truss rod. Also, where is the belly bump repair? Was that taken care of with the bridge re-glue?

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

The neck was originally glued in and there wasn’t much glue squeeze out to cause any problems in the future. Truss rod works fine after repair. The belly bulge was heated using Thompson belly reducer at a controlled temperature and clamping pressure. The bridge was glued on after. Thank you

[@karffiol]

2:25 you call that a hump? As far as I know this is pretty standard for all "flat" tops

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

I did call it a hump but not anymore. The hump is gone and action is low for the customer’s playing style. Thank you

[@karffiol]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 so did you measure a difference in the hump before and after? I am interested, thank you.

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

@@karffiol I did measure before and after. Before was 4.5/32 bridge height bass side, 3.5/32 treble side. After 3/32 bass side, 2/32 treble side.

[@karffiol]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 OK that sounds like an improvement, did you measure with strings on? Also what is the "factory spec" for this, as I know there must be some radius, but I dont know what are the desired values... like for example dreadnoughts

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

@@karffiol Yes strings on , straight neck. Factory specs in the manual that came with that guitar are the exact same as my measurements. Thank you

[@BrunoCastonguay007]

Did you glued the bolt on neck? Why?

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

I did glue the bolt on neck because that is factory specs for that guitar.

[@Raul-ef2ie]

Shoule be NO bulge at all? Completely flat? I just bought a j200 and it looks like that, but the action is super nice

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

If the guitar plays good and your happy with it you can leave the bulge. Make sure you use a humidifier during the dry months of winter, monitor the bulge, loosen string tension ( a full step) when your not playing it, and install lighter gauge strings.

[@emdiar6588]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 I destroyed a beloved 1980s Hohner 12 string acoustic by leaving it fully tuned in a centrally heated room for years. The action got slowly higher each year until it is now virtually unplayable. As a bassist I have strong fingers, but the intonation is now so off that every note above the 5th fret is sharp. I still have it for sentimental reasons (I realise it's no collectors piece), but it is little more than an ornament at this point. I fear I've left it too long to put right. :(

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

@@emdiar6588 It’s hard to say without looking at your guitar. It might need a heat press, neck reset or there is a belly bulge. All of these repairs are pricy and might not be worth it to you. You could try an open tuning and use it as a slide guitar. Ive never tried that with a 12 string. If you do try it let me know how it works out for you.

[@emdiar6588]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 That is actually a superb idea! Thx. Don't know why I didn't think of that. It will definitely work if I add something to raise the nut a couple of mil, too. I have a 6 string acoustic, permanently in open D which has a ridiculously low action, making it all but useless for slide. Of course, I am going to have to get a new 12 string for non slide stuff.

[@rakentrail]

The tops are not perfectly flat. Most manufacturers use a 30 foot radius. It gives the top somewhere to go with expansion and contraction. The belly comes mostly from the bridge rolling towards the sound hole. the top dips in front of the bridge and raises behind the bridge giving your guitar that two months pregnant look.

[@robmiller3464]

Isn’t a belly bulge caused by too much or too little humidity? I sometimes take a straight edge to the lower bout to chk and depending on humidity factors it varies. Please explain what is ideal. Thanks for your videos!

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

@robmiller3464 Yes and string gauge is a factor. Large gauge strings will cause too much string tension, especially if you don’t check humidity and tuning. I do weekly checkups on my guitars too make sure everything is where it should be.

[@philahundro2524]

Dumb question: what is that reflective material you used when you put the lamp over the bridge? Reflective sheet metal?

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

I used tinfoil

[@philahundro2524]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 thanks. I can't believe I couldn't figure that lol

[@ivanfuchs9068]

I like pin removal tool made out of teaspoon :)

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

Thank you I made that out of a martini spoon. It works great.

[@staleyexplores]

seems like every acoustic has this issue, should I just buy this tool if I have the means? I'm not even to the point of making money yet though is the thing...hoping bridge doctors do the trick currently...

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

The best option is use lighter gauge strings and keep acoustic guitars in their case keeping humidity at around 45 to 55 percent.

[@sotirzvanidjubre4109]

Doesn't guitars of this kind have factory made arch or as they call it a dome where the bridge is and on its back? Like Taylors or Takamine dreadnoughts for example.

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

Ya there is some arch but when this guitar came to me there was a hump. The action was 4.5/32 on the low e and 3.5/32 on the high e. The neck was dead straight and nut measurements to spec, a neck reset wasn’t needed, the only thing left to do was to fix the hump ( belly bulge). Action after job done 3/32 low e, 2/32 high e. Success

[@stanwest3529]

why did you glue on a bolt on neck

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

@@stanwest3529 factory spec

[@theartofloving]

i cannot believe you had the neck mounted before the bridge!! You've lost any chance to correct the angle of the neck considering the action.

[@Nate-gh1hy]

How many minutes you heat up the bridge before removing it?

[@langtonguitarrepair3975]

I don’t use a specific time when heating a bridge. I check every 30 minutes roughly with my palette knife and go by feel.

[@Nate-gh1hy]

@@langtonguitarrepair3975 Thanks, I will try that trick.

[@Onemoretake01]

That's a great question and answer! I'm always so affraid of over heating. I'm fixing to restore a 40's model K short scale guitar, and things like this are great to know.

[@obelros1948]

👌👌👌👌👏👏👏👏

[@illegallystalked3119]

Much easier method i stumbled apon. Beat the hell out of it with a ball pin hammer, then glue the pieces back together. Takes a couple hours, done.

[@Jeremya74]

You didnt tell how you were doing anything..TALK NOT MUSIC

[@JoelBiger]

Buy a Martin...

[@ryankeith9173]

Dealing with the same issue with my brand new martin. Makes my stomach turn, spent way too much money on this thing for the action to double in hight since ive bought it. Low E has lost a ton of tone too. Kept in case with humidifier from martin, kept custom lights like it calls for from the manufacturer. 🤮 no clue what to do.

[@trevorallen7611]

Not everyone can afford a Martin Mr Moneybags besides which Martins can suffer from same issues.

[@kowal767]

This is not belly bulge fix.

[@edyue1]

Skip the annoying loop guitar strumming, would rather hear you talk and tell us what you’re doing

[@bananaclub69]

Why is not sand papering a good idea