OUCH! Tele dived off stand, dinged neck-what to do?

Hey gang!
Last night as I was setting up for our gig, my beloved tele "ol Red" took a dive off its stand and crashed into my amp (I almost crushed my Martin trying to save it-could've been a 2-for-1) Anyways, as the picture shows, the amp took a little chunk out of the bass side of the fretboard, at the 11th fret, exposing part of the fret. i tried to find the splinter, but had no luck.

Now the question I'm asking here is-how would you go about repairing something like this? Looks obviously are not that important, seeing as how most of the finish has worn away, but I want to fix this to last. I'm semi-handy with tools and woodworking, and am debating whether to try and make a new "splinter" from some maple to stick in place. Are there other materials-techniques that you would do? I'm all ears on this one, so let me hear your ideas...

Thanx in advance,
Franc Robert
Back Alley Blues Band

I would go back with a good flashlight and look for that splinter. Barring that, you could create a flat surface in the damaged area using a file. Cut a slightly oversized patch out of maple and glue it to the flat surface. Then sand it down to the contour of the neck and fingerboard.

Looks like the damage is too big to just sand smooth. I'd do what Jack says.

If left splinterless, and having put Bondo to use several times in the past, my first approach would be to fill it in and contour it to match the wood. The stuff is very strong and sticks to anything.

There's been times when I've had to use a hammer to get it off of old Harley fuel tanks and fenders. Even then it takes a lot of beating to loosen up. Then stain/dye/paint it for a similar match. There's guys a RimfireCentral that build gunstocks out of it. Here's one example. (http://www.rimfirecentral.com/photopost/data/524/2261stock_2.jpg)

That is a hell of a ding! There are 2 ways to “fix” this, the quick way and the right way.

The quick way – get some maple and a fine file. Make some maple saw-dust and mix it with either 2 part epoxy (heated in the micro-wave to thin it) or super glue to slowly rebuild the loss. Concentrate on the fret-end at first, building away from the towards the middle. This is a slow process and should be done over the course of 2-3 day, with another 2-3 days allowed for curing. Then use fine files and sandpaper to reshape the area. Touch up with clear lacquer.

The right way – first, measure the fret height, so it is easier to match later on. Using flush ground cutters and a soldering iron for heat (take care not to overheat, it will burn the maple) walk the 2 frets out. Now you can use a small chisel to create a ledge there. You want the new piece to fit in the ledge over the fret slots. Try to find some maple with similar grain and glue it in place with aliphatic resin glue. When set, use water thin super glue on the seams to penetrate the joint (for good measure). Now use files, scrapers (razor blades work great!) and abrasives to “rough in” the shape. Next, get a fine saw blade (like a razor saw) to re-cut the fret slot in the new piece. You can use the existing slot fro reference, as the slot you are making is no more the .250” long. Take care not to deepen your existing slot. The best way to replace old wire is (1) stop by a repair shop and find out if the have some use wire from refrets or (2) buy a smaller wire. In this case, matching the width is not as important as the height (the string’s note is determined by the center of the fret top.). Find one that is close (but not shorter), as it will make dressing much easier. Pre-radius and install new frets. Final shape and sand the wood. Finish the repair with clear lacquer. Dress and polish the new frets to match the old ones. You’re done.

In either case, the fix will look “healed” but will still be detectable. There is no way to fix this and have it be completely obscure, though the second method can be done quite invisibly, especially if stains and dirt are use on the new piece to replicate aging and much care is taken to find similar grain as well as the quality of the glue joint. Good luck!

If the frets are still OK, given the 'character' of that neck I'd just use epoxy to fill the gap.

What I'd do;

Using masking tape,tape off the good area so the epoxy won't adhere there,

tape of the bottom of the neck so it won't stick there,

in the cavity, drill a bunch of shallow 1/16" diameter holes at different angles so the epoxy has something to grip to,

mix the epoxy and apply to the area,

using an appropriate amount of masking tape (maybe need a couple pieces spliced at the back so as to form one wide piece for an even finish), fix one end to the tape protecting the fret board and then use the tape to press the epoxy into the shallow holes and at the same time use the tape to shape the contour and press the excess on the tape protecting the bottom of the neck.

It is possible to get the final finish using this method so no filing or sanding is required to finish.

Given the 'character' of the neck any 2 part epoxy would like do but personally I'm partial to Devcon steel or engine weld.

I would go back with a good flashlight and look for that splinter. Barring that, you could create a flat surface in the damaged area using a file. Cut a slightly oversized patch out of maple and glue it to the flat surface. Then sand it down to the contour of the neck and fingerboard.

Alas, we were playing on an outside wooden deck-as Murphy's Law is always the law in bands, I'm certain that the splinter fell between the boards... and the lighting was good onstage, no need for the flashlight, alas...

Methinks Jack your idea is the best for me, and I'm more comfortable doing a new splinter than messing with epoxy, etc. I'll post update pictures when it's all done...

Thanx,
Franc Robert
Back Alley Blues Band

at least you didnt have a binding and then it broke

I'd probably just sand/file it so there wouldn't be and sharp edges that could cut or splinter me and just live with it if it doesn't bother you while playing.