When is a crack a crack?

[AS193]

Looks like a glue joint to me.

[jzucker]

when you're selling, it's always "in the finish", when you receive it, it's usually a through-n-through

[Archie]

Looks like a lacquer crack to me. Perhaps from the pickup ring being screwed down too tightly, or the pickup taking a whack?

The crack is not straight and crosses grain. That centre seem is cut dead straight and the glue that is used (although I cannot speak on hide glue) will be as strong, if not stronger than the wood.
That is unless the glue is not very good, or the butt joining was not done properly.

I make 17” 1mm laminates that you can bend into a tube and the glued centre seem does not crack. In that case, the weak spot is the grain in the wood.

Is this the Campy?

[tomvwash]

Looks like a lacquer crack to me. Perhaps from the pickup ring being screwed down too tightly, or the pickup taking a whack?

The crack is not straight and crosses grain. That centre seem is cut dead straight and the glue that is used (although I cannot speak on hide glue) will be as strong, if not stronger than the wood.
That is unless the glue is not very good, or the butt joining was not done properly.

I make 17” 1mm laminates that you can bend into a tube and the glued centre seem does not crack. In that case, the weak spot is the grain in the wood.

Is this the Campy?

No, it's a blonde L-4 CES.

[Minor Seven Flat Five]

The chance of a lacquer crack running along a grain line is statistically zero unless the wood is also cracked. In addition, finish cracks very rarely if ever appear in isolation. Looks to me like the package was crushed at some point during transit.

[Jimmy blue note]

The chance of a lacquer crack running along a grain line is statistically zero unless the wood is also cracked. In addition, finish cracks very rarely if ever appear in isolation. Looks to me like the package was crushed at some point during transit.

It needn't even be crushed, but a non perfectly joined top can have an inherently weak lack of integrity that is the precursor for an immenent separation. Either way, it's academic, the finish is a tell tale of top flex along the centre seam. Any slight pressure trauma, even shipping jostle can push the top down enough to open up a flex crack and create that lacquer line.
Picture the binding of a book. The book is splayed open (bookmatched) and a thin foil cover is covering the book. Now a top is not supposed to flex like a book. It's supposed to be solid as a board. But if the glue line (binding) is NOT solid, it'll leave evidence on the foil cover. And IF the book binding can flex, it may not be split yet, but it certainly ain't solid. It needs to be addressed because if the glue line has become unglued, even though the top is still undetectably unified now, it's summer; come fall that top is going to dry out, the top is going to become smaller, the fault line will be revealed and it's way harder to put a top back together once two halves have gone their own way.

Or you can just leave it and go with those who say it's nothing. Your choice.

[Archie]

No, it's a blonde L-4 CES.

Makes more sense. I couldn't imagine a Campellone having a poor butt joined centre seam. I only mentioned a Campy as that's what you had recently purchased.