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The local Guitar Center had a used Epiphone ES-175 Premium which sounds and plays great so I bought it. The only thing to be possibly bothered about is the neck joint which seems to be flaky.
I'm wondering if it had some kind of neck repair in the past or if this is just some kind of finish problem. The neck and setup feel just great so I have no complaints about playability. Is this something that happens sometimes when the different kinds of wood come together? Or is this the result of previous damage?
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02-06-2024 05:00 PM
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Mine looked like that too. It seems to me it's really a problem just with the finish, not with the integrity of the neck joint.
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Thanks professor. It's good to hear that another is like this. The guitar is otherwise great.
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So much for "Premium"
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I would be very annoyed if mine did that, but I haven't seen any finish issues at all, other than the visual difference between the general matte finish and the neck and some other locations where it has worn slightly glossy. That doesn't concern me in the slightest, it's only to be expected. But finish cracking off is in a different league. I don't see any other evidence of damage, although the photo doesn't show a very large area. It appears to be perhaps caused by the difference in the woods of the neck and sides, but I wouldn't bet one way or the other without seeing more.
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I strongly doubt that it’s because of the interface between different woods. The thermal expansion coefficients of most woods used in guitars are pretty close. I’ve owned and seen many, many guitars with mahogany necks and maple bodies and never seen this. Gibson 175s are the classic example.
Originally Posted by sgosnell
If it is peculiar to Epiphone 175s, it's almost certainly something they do that Gibson does not.
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My particular guitar had been shipped in winter and had some finish checking along with the slight crackling of the finish like yours. But if you aren't seeing space between the neck and body, I suspect you're good. Originally Posted by WilliamScott
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If that is polyester finish, I think it will be difficult to blend in a new finish. Maybe need to strip the whole area and re-finish.
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The Epi ES-175 should have a thin matte nitro finish, but that does look more like poly. Perhaps they changed somewhere along the line.
I wasn't thinking of thermal expansion, just that different woods may accept the finish a little differently, adhering more to one species than another due to the slightly different chemical composition. That may not be reasonable with nitro, though. I haven't really seen that ever happen. It looks more like poly finish cracking off. But again, not nearly enough evidence for me to make any definitive judgement.
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They were advertised as having satin nitro finishes, but I agree the OP's looks thicker and glossier than that. Until Lawson said his had the same finish issue, I was guessing that it was a gloss overspray of some kind on top of the the original finish that was de-laminating. Originally Posted by sgosnell
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Maybe it's just the natural finishes that have poly, or maybe they changed all of them, I have no idea, but the finish on my specimen is much thinner than that, and I'm pretty sure it's nitrocellulose. I could try wiping somewhere with acetone, but I'm not that motivated.
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What happens when you wipe with acetone?
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Acetone dissolves nitrocellous. Originally Posted by WilliamScott
It would remove the finish.
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Yeah, acetone dissolves nitrocellulose, but won't touch polyester finishes. Acetone should be kept far away from instruments with nitro finishes. I'm not about to use it on my guitar just to settle a question on the internet.
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I'll take a guess from experience and say it was either the guitar took a wack on the heel butt where it is also chipped, and the neck joint is glued internally well, but not completely glued "out" on all the upper/outer wood mating surfaces- just internally, so that impact created a shift between the two mating wood surfaces cracking the finish, or the guitar was subjected to extreme cold and then warmed too quickly, as in maybe purchased in winter cold and not allowed to acclimate for at least 24 hours prior to opening the case/packaging.
I have seen Poly on a Telecaster do the same on a neck after going on a winter gig being stowed under the RV sofa and did some overnights there in single digits. Not my idea of good relicing.
That neck joint looks like the guitar fell on its back and the neck was stressed. It has a strange white look from halfway down the side of the joint.
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Bring it to a good luthier for him to check the integrity of the neck joint.
That chipping at that location of the guitar, which is the maybe the most sensible on a acoustic guitar design, isn't there for nothing.
I understand you have bought the guitar already ?
I would do this very quickly, it will be better than any answer on a forum. Even if jazzguitar.de is the greatest guitar forum on earth for sure
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