Guitar repair with X-Ray and Laser Welding?!

Quick disclaimer on how any why this repair was done:
1. Q: Why didn't you just buy a new neck?
A: Buying a new neck would be really expensive as this is a signature model guitar and a new neck from the factory + shipping to the country we live in would cost you upwards of a thousand dollars.
2. Q: Why didn't you replace the truss rod with a new one?
A: Easier said than done! Replacing the truss rod would mean that we would need to remove the original fretboard and replace it with a new one, refret the neck, relacquer the neck, install the new truss rod + the cost of a new truss rod and fingerboard and not to mention the biggest problem of the custom inlays on the neck. All that work if possible but the cost of the repair would be pretty high for the customer, so we looked at another option.
3. Q: So, can we save this neck with minimal costs and still keep the functionallity?
A: Well yes, there is a another option.
And that's how this repair came to be!
/ tonguitarworkshop - If you want to get in depth answers to any questions you might have regarding guitar repair and support me as well
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And if you want to send in your guitar for a repair or for business inquiries write me on: [e-mail]
Thank you,
Jaka

[@Heroesworkshop]

Narrating is nice because your accent is unique. It has character.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Well that’s a first! All though I think my accent bothers some people but I was born with it so it is what it is! 😁

[@SeattleMartin]

@TON-guitarworkshop Very enjoyable to watch this. You are a master craftsman!

[@daehank]

Nice work! Thanks for sharing. I like your talking, not too fast not too slow. Just right amount of info.

[@Abduzzah_Abd_al-Muṭṭalib]

Came here to say the exact same.

[@MGC-1977]

I agree 😁

[@chuckwn]

Please keep narrating.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Will do! Thanks for the feedback!

[@lyricbread]

Yes!

[@lloydblakley1923]

Talking through the process works well.

[@MadNoisy]

Adding me on the list. Yes absolutely keep talking so we can keep track of what's going on. 🤘🤘 I had no problems at all.

[@mariolafontaine5853]

You made this video more human, keep it that way!! Very pleasant to listen👍🇨🇦

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Will do! Thanks!

[@steevkelly]

talking is best - with tanya shpachuk's vids i often find myself saying "why the heck is she doing that?". plus i'm a big fan of todd woodford too and love his dialog.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

I was thinking the exact same thing! Thanks for the input.

[@jamesbuton4261]

Absolutely brilliant work! You make us guitar tech's lives harder as you have set the bar so high! Genius idea instead of pulling the truss rod put and replacing with a new rod. I like it when you talk over the videos!

[@2bikemikesguitartopics145]

I didn't know something like that could actually be done. Brilliant work of course you need all the specialized equipment but still brilliant

[@luismiguelperezr]

I have never seen a repair as crazy as this one, congratulations

[@Arwndr]

I like both also. But with talking much easier to look on process itself, without running eyes to text on screen and then return back to process itself. Great Job! Thx for filming it! )

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Yea I was thinking the same thing, thanks for the input!

[@daverice2426]

Definitely appreciate narration for something as unorthodox as this repair; for routine stuff I can use my imagination. Killer job, by the way

[@dcaffran]

When you said you were going to carve the fretboard I thought you were a savage, but holy shit the repair is 99'99999% invisible. Very high level of tech too, with x-rays and everything. I understand that removing the whole fretboard is very risky as it can break, and with that guitar being a signature model with inlays and stuff it would be a pain in the ass. I really thought it would still be preferable to making a hole in the fretboard. I was wrong.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Yea the removal of the fretboard would be a hassle and the inlays would be practically impossible to replicate or carve out!

[@glass.hammer]

For these repairs, narration is so useful. I don’t necessarily need or want narration during standard maintenance (frets, nuts, paint touch up, replacing electronics), but probably bc I know how to do maintenance. I just like to see good workmanship. But something so unique does benefit a little explanation.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

That’s a great point! Thanks!

[@vmx23]

You current format has the best combo of ASMR and narrative information. Keep it up!

[@jakebruun7726]

This is incredible! Kinda surprised though, that such an expensive guitar had a truss rod break. Also, the narration was really well done, I say, keep it up.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks Jake!

[@symonf1966]

Fantastic work. Thank you for posting. I think this video with commentary was better than it would have been without.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks! Appreciate the input!

[@pallecla]

Nice job. Now I need to go out and buy an x-ray machine and a laser welder for my shop....

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Indeed and the return on investment will be done in 100 years! 😬

[@ShannonFerguson]

Thank you for answering the question of why you were doing this vs replacement.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Yea and still people don’t read the description before commenting 🤦🏻

[@luislanga]

Great inlaying and grain matching on that rosewood, looks flawless in the last clips.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks! Yea I really think it worked great, if you don’t know where the repair was done there is no way you can see it!

[@solarismoon3046]

I prefer talking. It's much better to see without having to keep glancing down at the bottom of the screen to see the description of what's happening. I wouldn't have fixed a truss rod this way but honestly it was much easier to remove a tiny part of the fretboard than to remove the whole thing. i would've cut the fret slots through the depth of the fretboard then steamed it off. It would be much easier to hide the repair this way and not have to worry about mismatching grain. But remember: Musicman doesn't use lacquer - they only use polyester for their finishes. But all in all you did a stellar job! Thank you for sharing this with us to enjoy.

[@glenngardin3561]

Great repair! I agree that it's better to save something then buying a replacement. We are such a 'throw away' society! Keep up the great video's!

[@lostinpa-dadenduro7555]

Narrating is good. Amazing work

[@philipc7273]

Epic repair, thanks for letting us watch

[@stevenkelkey3412]

Great repair on the guitar neck! Perfect 👍🎸

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thank you Steven!

[@Lemonhead0014]

I thought for sure I'd be able to see the repair as soon as i saw him cutting out a fret like that!!! I'm amazed you can't even see it, even though you know exactly where it is!!! .....Great work!!!

[@michaelmaia1978]

Wow! This is surgeon work. Very well done. 👌

[@JonDeth]

I must make the point that when the truss rod is that tight, the neck needs to be reshaped with a heat press. The wood should provide 70-80% of the counter force to the strings and truss rods are reinforcement, they are not intended to be load bearing. *Before it getting so far gone, the neck needed to be heat pressed and reshaped to avoid this entirely.* Truss rod nuts should turn with very little force to make significant shifts in angle. When they are tight, *it means the neck needs heat pressed.* The truss rod nut should always have slack and plenty of threads to spare if the wood is shaped the way it needs to be to provide the majority of counter force.

[@graysaw]

Pretty ballsy repair! Fantastic job!

[@DarkVelizar]

Really enjoyed your video. Keep em up and the good work.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks mate!

[@Old-Skull.]

Taking out of the picture that your job is exquisite , well done , amazing job. After saying that I put myself in the position of the owner and I don't get how much cheaper it can be to take the neck to get an X ray , do the laser welding , plus hours for just doing that plus to sand and refret the whole neck ? IDK 200$ cheaper ? I don't think so , but even if it's 200$ cheaper always you'll have to deal with a broken truss rod that with time and humidity can be a problem it's a repair so it's not new and we don't know for sure if it will be a permanent fix, just the fear of having that truss road broken again cost much more than those 200$ I dont know if that neck from Music Man cost more than 600$ but I don't think that job cost less than 400$. But more important is that as an owner of that guitar the first thing I would do is to contact the company because that truss rod should never have broken, in any case of exerting a force such that this could happen, the normal thing is for the thread to give way, I believe that this is a problem with the steel of that specific truss rod, therefore Music Man must be responsible for it and give a new neck free of charge or half priced or something. If I were the person in charge at Music Man of attending this case I would send a new neck free of charge, and of course with my apologies for the problems created by my product. I think you did a great job but the story doesn't make sense.

[@jasonsapp792]

I like both talking and no talking ... You brought up one of my favorite KZbinrs WoodFord Guitars ... He is entertaining and such a great luther But I also watch Andyguitar from Japan and his videos are also enjoyable.... Your accent is cool , I'm in USA so it adds something to your narrative Good job on the EBMM JP

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Yup nice channels to watch! Thank you!

[@DeathMetalGuitar]

insanely GREAT work!! thank you for posting this😎😎😎 talking through is PREFERRED.

[@NurulAini]

Sound quality never be a same again

[@GabrielShaid]

Beautiful work!!!

[@SWRoyalFlush]

I just found this channel on my suggested. Was curious if you could give a rundown video on the most important tools to focus on purchasing to start this work. I used to work in a repair shop and would love to continue that work at home for friends. But I don’t even know where to start as far as inexpensive or starter tools.

[@Zombie_13x33]

great job man. bravo! lol. i would have never thought to do this.

[@rustyaxelrod]

I prefer narration over text. You did a good job with that and the repair, never seen that done before. 👍

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks!

Never thought I'd see a surgery being made in a guitar neck lol.

[@CraigRice-r3j]

fantastic job and the comentary was awesome. 😀

[@dorukhankaracaofficial]

Amazing work man! 10/10 💥

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thank you mate!

[@droppinlikefliesBand]

I appreciate the commentating. It’s very interesting and helpful. 10:11

[@johndunham2237]

You can always use both this was great

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Yea I was thinking the same but it was also thinking asmr background sounds with talking and subtitles would be a bit of an overkill.

[@1man1guitarletsgo]

Laser welding's a relatively new process, and I doubt the in-situ repair would have been possible with any other welding method. Welding always affects the structure of the steel in the surrounding area though, so while the repair was tested, I wouldn't be surprised if it failed again. The truss rod's brittle fracture in the first place suggests that the steel had a defect (maybe a tiny nick/notch that acted as a stress raiser), and even with the weld, the underside won't be perfectly smooth. Nevertheless, the repair was superb and I do hope it lasts the life of the guitar.

[@steveroberts]

Very nice repair

[@TheGeoff]

wish we could have seen a close up of the weld result. good video i vote for narration

[@gerrykavanagh]

Great video. Amazing craftsmanship. Personality, talking for me. Subscribed

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks Gerry!

[@clutch2827]

Beautiful repair. Format is perfect.

[@ThomasSchlimm]

This was really cheaper than buying a new neck? Unbelievable! Well done.

[@potato9832]

The current Petrucci models retail for $3500 to $4000, so I can see why a neck costs 1/4 the retail price. Also, the labeling is different, so matching the original model would require custom work. I guess that's why it's so expensive. If the repair "damage" is internal thus invisible, I guess it doesn't really matter as long as the outside looks good.

[@Old-Skull.]

That's BS

[@Old-Skull.]

@@potato9832 Just think for a moment you spend nearly 4000$ on a guitar and you let this to happen , of course not the first thing you do is to call music man bc that is a faillure of the steel in the truss rod , as soon as they see the images they have to send you a new neck or at least to take some responsibility for it and send it to you at a very low cost , we are not talking about cheap guitars , probably they made that and this video is done with a neck that would be in the rubbish bin but makes great content . Just ask yoursel you paid 4000$ for a guitar just to have it with a repair in such critical point ? listen that repair can be there forever or it can break tomorrow , its a repair , so nobody knows , the only thing the luthier can do is to guarantee his job , but would you go through the same problem againg ? I don't thinbk so , that reapir is expensive and a neck is no more than 600$ .

[@potato9832]

@ Whut? Sending a free neck for reasons of doing the right thing? That is woke commie talk. Buyer beware. The new economy is you are on your own, unless you have the inclination to sue. Empathy is sin. Compassion is illegal. And honor is dead.

[@MadNoisy]

My goodness. I've never seen a thing like this man. Subbed 🤘🤘 What a blasting video.... I love it.

[@thehuskyrocks]

Awesome video and great luthier here!

[@stevenrichardgore]

Wow! Amazing work.

[@Don_Kinho]

Awesome repair! Congrats! I just have one question, why didn’t you just replace the fretboard? Was it because the inlays or something like that?

[@WutipongWongsakuldej]

To be honest, at first I thought ... why woudn't you just remove the fingerboard and the truss should be right under it. However when you remove that section ont the forth fret, I was surprised it's just a solid chuck of Maple there. I went on to check and obviously the JP does not have skunk strip either. I even checked some of the MM factory tour and I didn't see how they put on a truss rod on a guitar. This is actually quite suprising. This is the first time I see a truss rod get fixed by welding in place. Usually it would be replaced with a new rod. Quite amazed and a little concerned. Stll this guitar is not mine so I shouldn't be too worried. It's probably strong enough to withstand a few decades, I don't know...

[@ricardofreitas6973]

Giant job, man!

[@marctamtonthat]

Very impressive. Bravo !

[@juanocybe]

sick work dude !!!!!👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@JoshNotJohn0]

Love the video, and I thought I would have a question about just removing the entire fretboard, but it seems that the truss rod in music man guitars is a lot deeper than fender style guitars, so that's probably why you didn't end up doing it. cool use of the x-ray, too!

[@zacknorton650]

super smart and a beautiful repair! narration all the way!

[@vinniesworld459]

Amazing work - this is basically surgery on a guitar (literally)!! I really like having the voiceover/ narration. One question - you said that it would cost more to replace the neck than to perform this type of repair, but does that factor in the cost of the x-ray and welding? Or is this unique to this guitar because ErnieBall won't sell replacement necks? It almost seems like in most circumstances, the cost for this amount of work would far exceed a new neck if all expenses are included (of course, setting aside sentimental value etc)?

[@rodolfoamaralguitar]

Excellent work, I really enjoyed watching it! Considering that you made a refret, I wonder if it wouldn’t have been better to remove the entire fretboard and replace the truss rod. I’ve heard that MM truss rods are weak and often break. Who knows if it will break again.

[@carlosmirandaplaza]

Amazing work

[@hobertgordon7465]

Very cool repair, why not remove the fretboard and replace the truss rod? Does the Music Man have a glue that makes that hard to do

[@EdUdremmurd]

Wonderfully done! Love the narration.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks Ed! Appreciate the feedback!

[@Lomni]

Fantastic video, very informative!

[@shepherdguitarsoficial-tra6243]

Amigo você fez pelo caminho mais difícil. Não seria melhor ter tirado a escala e trocado todo o tensor?

[@KingTabor]

How do you fix the large portion of maple carved from the neck?

[@daverice2426]

He glued a piece of maple in there. Probably more important to have something bearing against the truss rod there than to have a super-tight, invisible patch. The wood patch on the fingerboard is immaculate, though

[@princekenjisunga367]

Very clear

[@peterjames2580]

Talking is my vote! Nice repair!

[@mikehb2526]

Was a little sketchy at first...butvit c turned out great!! Nice job

[@fernandomoyanomunar1825]

Increíble reparación, fantástico.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks!

[@eventideaccanove2945]

Great Work Man!

[@xzerr]

Really really great work, wow

[@user-nu7xx7pc1d]

amazing job!

[@AG-cg7lk]

If it's a steel truss rod, could you not have attached a strong magnet to the tip of the piece of rod you removed and used that to extract the broken piece inside the neck?

[@BrunodeSouzaLino]

Truss rods are essentially very long screws, so the other end is fastened to a captive nut.

[@valerylashinsky]

I like your talking through the video!

[@keef69]

Well done !

[@potato9832]

You'd have to be inches away to see that replaced fret board piece. And then putting on the strings conceal that. Also, I didn't know laser welders were a thing.

[@elizabethgarrison8928]

Talking is best. Great job. ❤ Your Work Keep it up. Masterful work.

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Thanks!

[@izzysantiago978]

Impressively done. Never seen a truss rod repair with a laser. 🤔also I like your New York accent so talk away. 😊

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

I am from a slavic country (Slovenia) so I’ll take that as a compliment if it was meant as one! 😁 Hard to hide the accent! Thanks!

[@izzysantiago978]

@TON-guitarworkshop I say that to everyone because here in NYC we all kinds of great ethnicity people from all over the world!

[@6WireBender]

Fantastic job bro, thanks for making this vid!

[@manuellacheta8874]

Nice work!! why not replacing the truss rod instead of welding it?

[@bassyey]

I'm glad I stick to

[@thomascelentano433]

This is amazing.

[@andersonxavier7662]

Friend, why not remove the guitar's scale and replace the truss rod? It would be less invasive. With so much technology to weld a truss rod that would probably last much less time than a new one. I thought the work was sensational, but if the instrument were mine, it would be a service I would never do again. If this guitar falls, I'm afraid that even though you filled the loose area, the wood could crack or even crack with the truss rod adjustment itself over time. But visually, the work was sensational.

[@thehuskyrocks]

And keep narrating 👍🏻👍🏻

[@QwikVidz]

Great video. Thank you

[@NintenDub]

Polishing,polishing,polishing......ibe heard that somewhere before... 🤔

[@garry7263]

Why did you dig into the fretboard instead of pulling the fretboard off?

[@danpena7922]

Awesome

[@gitarbangsatchanel8036]

Genius

[@gomesguitar1752]

Wouldn't it be less work to remove the scale, change the truss rod and glue the string back on?

[@MrGul]

Remove the "scale"? Glue the string? What...?

[@gomesguitar1752]

remove the scale and replace the tensioner

[@MrGul]

@ What scale? The E minor pentatonic scale or the kitchen scale? And why should the string (and which one?) be glued? And which tensioner are you talking about? It's like were speaking completely different languages with totally different vocabularies.

[@erickoliveira7039]

Wow 👀😱 Fantastic 😃🙋🏻‍♂️🎸❤️🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@EmanuelChords]

i like it more when you narrate

[@EpIcHoBoGuY]

I personally like the narration, but I don't see why you couldn't use the multi language track function to have narration and ASMR in one video

[@HaywoodJablomey-l3s]

How much was the bill?

[@samizdat113]

Good stuff

[@pagl3120]

Nice job!!

[@ShannonFerguson]

A Ted Woodford reference!

[@TON-guitarworkshop]

Yep, love watching his videos!

[@revzone3544]

Well done..and please continue to narrate...

[@MykiDiBono]

Awesome! But i would prefer a new neck...however...broken truss rod, tremolo bar...i wonder why!!!! Hulk!!!! Playin the guitar with the hammer!

[@kainagami]

Polishing polishing polishing