What Caused This? - Sudden Lacquer Cracking

[Hammertone]

Archtops are a Rolls Royce and a tele is a Ford. You do not see RR’s that are all dented and scratched up or even dirty for that matter. A Ford with a different color door and a dented bumper is not a uncommon site.

My favourite Derelict:

[Chazmo]

Very weird. Bend is not that extreme. It's not exactly the Yukon.

And your beautiful Triggs San Salvador is not some old, piece of crap, relic guitar. I was really envious of you, no disclaimer, when you got the guitar. I've had my eye on one of those for a long time. If you can afford it, my advice to is to bite the bullet, get it redone, by Jim Triggs if possible, move on, and start to enjoy it.

I'm sure it's a fabulous guitar, otherwise.

[p1p]

Builders like Triggs and Campellone still use old school nitro were Gibson now uses a nitro blend that is a little more checking resistant than original nitro.

A big piece of the puzzle is where did the guitar come from ? Those type of checks usually happen when a guitar is overly humidified and then subjected to too much heat. Those are expansion checks not shrinkage checks. Expansion checks are usually more horizontal and shrinkage or cold checks more vertical. Of course that is just a general rule.
Every piece of wood is different and can react against the rules.
My guess call is wet wood subjected to too much heat.

My opinion is it is worth the shipping to send it back to Triggs who made it. He knows exactly what type of lacquer he used and may take on some of the repair cost. It is his guitar. Triggs is a stand up guy also. He also will be able to color match it perfect while someone else will need to guess the color formula he used.

Sometimes these types of disasters in the end turn out to your benefit. My L5 sounds way better after Gibson refinished it. Go figure. LOL and hoping for a happy ending report.

For a guitar of that value, I would expect the builder to be responsible. I wouldn't be happy until I got it sorted out, either having it repaired completely, replacing the guitar or a full refund.

In the case that they proved the checking was your doing, and you had no luck with any of the above, I would live with it. Like someone else said, it adds a bit of character. If it's a player, no big deal. Maybe different if you're just a collector and want to look at it on the wall.

[goldenwave77]

Part of me says this is like a walnut with a crushed shell, but with perfectly good nut meat inside....doesn't affect playability or sound.

BUT....realistically people who buy these guitars have some sort of expectation about appearance: This has got to affect resale value if you ever go that route.

(Nitro, as opposed to poly...is easy to re-work, I think....repairs, touchups will "blend in" unlike a cracked poly finish which is like the M & M bag of candies that got stepped on.)

I suppose I'd look into getting this corrected...I think it's very do-able.

[vinlander]

I feel for the OP...and not because I am so much into shiny new things (no problem with that neither).
For me it is not so much the fact the archtop is checked but the fact it is too young to already express those kind of vintage marks...
I mean my 1959 125 is a bit checked but longitudinally and certainly not to that extent; more importantly has the age for it...
Even my '92 LP has no single check (that can be the elastic Nitro however) despite showing binding cracks caused by frets from humidity variation...
I would have that archtop fixed, it has nothing to do with wanting shiny new things

[Matt Cushman]

It sounds as if during transit the guitar was possibly exposed to temperature and humidity extremes. Nitro never stops shrinking as it ages. Nitro is popular for its ease of application. It does have its downside. It never stops shrinking and it is very toxic. Looking in my crystal ball I see more cracks in a crazed future for this finish.

[vinnyv1k]

Like I said Gibson fixed my L5 that had checks and dents without a refinish. Nitro can be repaired and at worst a little overspray. If you want it fixed perfect send it to Triggs for a perfect color match unless you plan on a complete refinish that will cost you a lot. IMO shipping costs will be worth it.

[Jonathan0996]

Steve is pretty good about responding to emails, so I expect you'll hear from him soon if you haven't already. I don't think you'll find anyone better than Steve to do this work, and he's a nice guy to work with. Please tell him Jonathan from Cleveland said hi when you speak to him.

[Uncle Vinnie]

Not actually right
Here is what Martin tells about Guitars care:
"Your guitar is made of thin wood which is easily affectedby temperature and humidity. This combination is the most
important single part of your guitar’s surroundings. Martin
keeps the factory at a constant 45-55 percent humidity and
72-77 degrees Fahrenheit. If either humidity or temperature
get far away from these factory conditions, your guitar is in
danger. A rapid change in temperature or exposure to cold
can cause small cracks in the finish. These are lacquer
checks. We recommend the use of a hygrometer/thermometer
to measure the relative humidity and temperature surrounding
your guitar"

https://www.martinguitar.com/media/6...e_intl_low.pdf

under 30% you risk drying out and cracks which is far worst than finish check
I would not keep my guitars under 30% or above 65% personally, laminated are more forgiving than solid top, but neck have frets and those don't expand or retract with humidity...

I'd dare say Martin knows a heck of a lot more about guitars than I, so I stand corrected ... 45%-55% still seems too high.