• Guys, we've spent considerable money converting the Les Paul Forum to this new XenForo platform, and we have ongoing monthly operating expenses. THE "DONATIONS" TAB IS NOW WORKING, AND WE WOULD APPRECIATE ANY DONATIONS YOU CAN MAKE TO KEEP THE LES PAUL FORUM GOING! Thank you!

Neck overspray and possible headstock break advice

guitartsar

Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2010
Messages
85
Hi I wanted to see if I can could get some advice on the attached pics. I'm pretty sure this guitar has had a headstock break repaired or at the very least the back of the neck has been blown over/oversprayed as I can see what look like masking lines around the volute and on the sides of the headstock. The finish on the back of the neck has a slight dimpled/orange peel quality that doesn't match the rest of the guitar.

Nothing shows up under blacklight other than a very slight different shade of green on the back of the headstock so maybe it was done a while ago? (I have some blacklight pics if anyone wants to see them) I just saw the masking lines and it raised my suspicions.

Thanks

 
Last edited:

rick c

Active member
Joined
May 28, 2016
Messages
282
I was waiting to see who would respond with what. It is not obvious that there has been a break. How far does the new paint go down the neck? It may be that the guitar was well played at the cowboy end and the original lacquer was worn through and the previous owner simply repainted the worn section. The nut detail looks odd but the binding does not look like there has been a break. The nut looks like its been displaced to the Low E end and hanging out a little. This is an oddball; break repairs either look perfect or bad; this just looks like a crappy paint repair.
 

guitartsar

Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2010
Messages
85
I was waiting to see who would respond with what. It is not obvious that there has been a break. How far does the new paint go down the neck? It may be that the guitar was well played at the cowboy end and the original lacquer was worn through and the previous owner simply repainted the worn section. The nut detail looks odd but the binding does not look like there has been a break. The nut looks like its been displaced to the Low E end and hanging out a little. This is an oddball; break repairs either look perfect or bad; this just looks like a crappy paint repair.
Thanks for your reply Nick. Yes it is an oddball for sure. I can't really see where the overspray ends but the neck joint seems most obvious place? but I can't see any sign of a paint join or change in finish. The nut has been packed up probably when it was refretted and the nut slot is a bit rough.

There's a pretty big gouge on the neck down to the mahogany and what looks like a touch in so I'm guessing the overspray was done quite a long time ago. I suppose there could have been a crack or some other reason to paint the neck or just wear as you say.

It's odd as it baclkights pretty well also pointing to an older repair? Or is there a way to make newer lacquer glow green? Only slight sign is the headstock appears a very slightly different shade of green. The neck and the rest of the guitar seem the same shade. I know blacklight is not the be all as some of my newer guitars glow green too!

It's a little worrying as it was sold as all original with no breaks/repairs etc and the owner bought it around 5 years from a well known dealer as a no issues guitar apart from a refret. The seller says he knows nothing about the issues and seems genuine. But who knows the true story. It also has a few other things that make me think it's been messed with so I'm returning it.

Here's some other pics:
 
Last edited:

troyad

Active member
Joined
Dec 26, 2007
Messages
370
I'm not seeing any indication of any kind of repair/overspray.
 

J.D.

Well-known member
Joined
May 24, 2006
Messages
10,030
Looks oversprayed. Unless you can see (under magnification) where the finish has revealed a crack seam, probably won't know for sure about a crack repair unless you remove the opaque paint (of course that means refinishing).
 

rick c

Active member
Joined
May 28, 2016
Messages
282
One of the issues is that headstock cracks can be really obvious or not so much so. I've seen pictures that show just a hairline crack along, or close to, the line of the volute; the headstock is still attached and everything on the playing side looks good. My guess would be that to repair a fine crack would probably involve opening it up as far as possible, injecting glue and then clamping. In a case like this, it would be possible that all that would be left as evidence would be a fine crack along the curve of the volute, or close to it. A little paint and who would know? The black light pics don't show anything.
 

troyad

Active member
Joined
Dec 26, 2007
Messages
370
I definitely see what you're talking about. You're thinking it might have been over sprayed because of the finish wear? I just can't imagine why, if someone did that, they would mask it that way to leave something so obvious. I'm guessing this isn't something you've been able to see in person yet.
 

guitartsar

Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2010
Messages
85
I definitely see what you're talking about. You're thinking it might have been over sprayed because of the finish wear? I just can't imagine why, if someone did that, they would mask it that way to leave something so obvious. I'm guessing this isn't something you've been able to see in person yet.
Yes I've seen in person and I can feel that there's a paint line where the masking lines are especially along the volute. I have another LPC and other Gibsons with volutes to compare to and the finish should be smooth and uninterrupted from neck to headstock. It's even more obvious in person than in the photos
 

troyad

Active member
Joined
Dec 26, 2007
Messages
370
That's really odd. I hope you get to the bottom of it because now I want to know all the details lol
 

guitartsar

Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2010
Messages
85
Someone suggested it could have been oversprayed with clearcoat and that's why it looks ok under blacklight? But why you would do that is another question. Maybe the finish on the neck lost it's shine through years of playing around the cowboy chord area? It's definitely a puzzle for sure.
 

sws1

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 4, 2001
Messages
2,846
It's odd as it baclkights pretty well also pointing to an older repair? Or is there a way to make newer lacquer glow green?

Yes - There are people that know how to make new lacquer glow.
 

brandtkronholm

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 3, 2006
Messages
2,737
I see it.
It looks like something happened and it was dealt with by overspray or some other means.
I think that returning it is the right thing to do.
 
Top