The Steel Guitar Forum

Hi everyone,I had my psg in its case this morning ajusting the pedals (Dekley d-10 8&4)when i noticed the soundboard? was cracked on each end about four inches long.It's a shame,the guitar sounds and plays great,but I suspect it won't last long this way.I can't afford to send it away to have the soundboard replaced and its the only psg i have to play.I was wondering if there is any kind of repair I could do to keep the bottom from spliting any futher? I not maybe I could trade it for a single neck or something.Please let me know what ya'll think.Thanks in advance.Jim

Sorry to hear about that, Jim. I was the plant manager and one of the designers of Dekley. This is the first Dekley I've ever heard this happening on. I've had mine for over 20 years and it's still going strong.

Since you say you noticed it in the case, I assume it's only on the bottom. As you are in Canada, it's possible that rapid temperature changes from inside and outside may have caused it. When I lived in New England, I always opened the case slightly for a while to let the guitar acclimate itself slowly.

The good news is, there is a U-shaped aluminum channel all around the top of the guitar, so even if the guitar split all the way, it probably won't affect the playability of the guitar.

I'll leave it to the woodworking experts to give you advice on how to stop the splits from spreading.

Jim, if you can see for sure where the ends of the split are you could drill about a 1/4" hole at each end of the split and that should stop it from continuing to split as it would have no place to start splitting again. If the hole would be under the neck you would not have to be careful to not drill thru but if it is possible to come out the top side of the guitar you need to some how avoid drilling all the way thru. After the holes are drilled then you can cut a few 1/4 inch dowels about 5/8 long and drill several holes centered in the crack but don't go all the way thru, fill the holes with Elmers carpenter glue and drive a down in the hole and the glue will be pressured into the crack hydraulic action. This will work but you need to be very careful not the drill thru the top of the guitar.
Jerry

Thanks Jim for the info.We have had a long cold winter,I suspect this has taken a toll on my poor old Dekley

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If you don't have a PSG tech nearby, you might at least consult a good piano repairman. They fix cracked sound boards that are used at high tensions all the time. They do know wood and soundboards, and they are usually local to most places

Thanks everyone for your concern and great ideas.I am going to take Jerry Roller's advice and try those little dowel plugs,sounds like a fairly easy repair. (JERRY!!! stand and take bow):D

Yep, follow Jerry's advice IF it has a maple top. Many of the earliest Dekleys had Pakkawood tops, but I've never heard of Pakkawood splitting. In fact one of it's uses is for dishwasher-proof knife handles.

Jim, I might have not made it clear that you do not want to drive a dowel in the holes at each end of the crack. You could sand a dowel down and put just enough glue on it to glue it in the holes to fill them but no wedge tight fit. These holes are to stop the crack and you don't want to start another crack from pressure in these two holes.
Jerry
Jerry

Well Jim,
I had an old Sho-Bud that did the same thing and I bought the best E-Poxy Glue I could find and took a tooth pick and filled the crack with the epoxy glue. Has never split any farther , that stuff is stronger than the wood itself, just a thought.
Gene

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If You Keep Pickin That Thing, It'll Never Heal!