Glueing a crack

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 10:33 am

I've searched and had trouble getting an answer, so let me just ask outright.

A blackwood whistle has a crack in the head piece (I managed to drop it) and I want to glue it (the alternatives
being very expensive). It's not a bad crack and it's not in a bad place.

Questions, superglue OK?

How do I get the glue IN the crack? People I've talked to are suggesting i buy a hypodermic syringe.
I'm interested in alternatives, if any.

Thanks

Mr.Gumby · Post by **Mr.Gumby** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 10:45 am

Superglue mixed with ebony dust will, once polished, make an invisible repair. When done properly ofcourse.

Denny · Post by **Denny** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 10:48 am

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=83855&p=1036385
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=66526&p=874386

Gabriel · Post by **Gabriel** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 10:49 am

You can carefully "work" the glue into the crack my expanding it slightly. You can of course wreck it completely the same way. Be careful. However superglue has the tendency to flow into small cracks by itself (capillary attraction), so "working" it in might not be necessary at all.

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 11:57 am

Thanks to all.

plunk111 · Post by **plunk111** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 12:30 pm

Jon Cornia gave me a tip once that works great - put a piece of tape on each side of the crack to act as a mask.

an seanduine · Post by **an seanduine** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 1:30 pm

Put a drop of superglue on a non-marring surface. Plastic or wax paper are fine. Pick up a smaller drop with the tip of a needle or paperclip and use this as your applicator.

Bob

Cathy Wilde · Post by **Cathy Wilde** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 2:50 pm

Things that don't work: air compressors, broom handles, and tub 'n' tile caulk.

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 6:10 pm

Rats. I had a broom handle and was ready to go.
By the way, the crack doesn't go all the way through.
Thanks again.

dcopley · Post by **dcopley** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 6:11 pm

I've had best success with the CA adhesives sold at hobby shops. What I've been using lately is labelled "super-gold" and came from HobbyTown USA. It costs 2 to 3 times as much as the standard hardware store product but on several occasions I've been able to get good permanent repairs in situations where the standard stuff has failed. If the crack is thin, you should not need any wood dust filler.

jemtheflute · Post by **jemtheflute** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 6:40 pm

Cyano-Acrylate Capillary Action, eh? !

(Acronym!!!)

Loren · Post by **Loren** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 7:57 pm

I've repaired well over 1000 cracks (hey, no cracks about that) and I'm with Dave C. (Long time, please say hi to everyone for me!): The water thin CA is what you want. Think the brand we used at the shop was Insta-Cure, but I have no doubt that what Dave is using works fine. The "normal" viscosity stuff doesn't wick very well into the wood of the flute and any wood dust you may use. It also takes a long time to cure.

Dave, not sure if I mentioned this before, but we also used a CA Accelerator right after applying the glue to the crack. I believe it was the Insta-Set brand. Comes in a spray bottle, but I would typically dip a pipe cleaner in the accelerator and then swab it over the top of the filled/glued crack. Or you can drip it on if you transfer it to a sweeze bottle with a REALLY small hole. On bigger cracks you might experiment with adding the accelerator to the wood dust packed crack before filling with thin CA, that way the the glue won't drip through the crack into the bore much.

Okay, enough trade secrets for one day. I'll be back in another year or so with more

paddler · Post by **paddler** » Tue Oct 04, 2011 12:43 am

I've been impressed with the performance of "INSTA-CURE SUPER GLUE / ULTRA THIN" for gluing cracks. It soaks into the wood, finds its own way into really fine cracks, and works well with wood dust as a filler for small cracks. I've used it with 100% success rate (so far) on blackwood and cocus. I've done a variety of head and barrel crack repairs on about a dozen flutes with it. You have to be careful not to glue your fingers to the flute though! You can buy it on line here:

http://www.votawtool.com/zcom.asp?pg=pr ... =jmrqlnmpo

dcopley · Post by **dcopley** » Tue Oct 04, 2011 5:57 am

Hi Loren! It looks like you, Paddler and I are all on the same page. Looking more closely at the label on the glue that I use, it is "Insta-cure odorless thin glue, super-gold". And I also use the accelerator when I'm not adding wood dust. If I use Blackwood dust as a filler, it seems to contain its own accelerator.

Feadoggie · Post by **Feadoggie** » Tue Oct 04, 2011 6:50 am

This is what you are looking for Jim. It is favored by many luthiers as well as Dave, Paddler and Loren.

Feadoggie

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