Official Luthiers Forum!

I am on #1 and it is going okay. While I am loving the building of the guitar, I am also frustrated with the bindings. I have attempted to bend two sets of bindings and they either break, or the won't fit tightly in the waist area. Anyway, I am following the Kinkade book and plans. Would LMI be able to bend bindings for me that would fit the Kinkade model? I called LMI, and the lady didn't know the answer, and didn't know who to ask for sure. I think it is basically an OM shape. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

James

_________________
Always remember you are unique......just like everyone else.

Hi James;
Do you have a bending iron? With a bit of spritzing & a hot bending iron, (Not so hot is scorches the wood) maple (even highly figured stuff) should bend quite easily. Just don't try to form the bend until you feel the binding yield easily under the pressure of your thumbs.

With my first build, getting bindings to fit tightly (especially at the waist) caused me some trouble also. I built a fox-style bender and I run my binding through to get the basic shape. I then make adjustments to the individual strips on a hot pipe so I can get the best fit possible. For me I don't think that just the bender or just the hot pipe works well. But using the combination of the two gets me good results. But like Daniel said, just be careful not to burn them. And go slowly on the pipe! It really is frustrating burning or breaking a binding strip... Good luck to you.

Perhaps you should soaked them for 25 minutes and then go slowly on the bending pipe.

Thinner bends easier....!!

_________________
A person who has never made a mistake has never made anything!!!

Bending binding is that hard. We need to know a few things , 1st what method of bending did you use 2nd what wood. I bend a lot of wood and binding. Not that big of a deal once you know the process. Let us know what you are doing and we can see if it is your method or a wood problem.

_________________
John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

James, you don't need to get a pipe set up for tweaking your binds, a larger barreled curling iron will work. Less than 20 new, couple of bucks from Goodwill.

_________________
Aoibeann

This has been an issue for me, too, and I think it's just one of those things you have to work through. If you're not already bending on a pipe, now's a good time to start. Don't get scared of the pipe, keep at it. My mistake was giving up on the pipe after breaking a couple pieces of binding when I was just trying to do a little touchup after bending on a Fox bender. I thought I could make up for it with better technique in taping and applying more force at the waist, which has not worked out well. I haven't really had a chance to bind anything since I figured out a better pipe bending technique, so I'm still working through it as well. It'll be worth the trouble to not have to deal with gaps later on.

_________________
______________________________
Jonathan Kendall, Siloam Springs AR

Bending bindings can be a bit of a pain when bending by hand. A couple of tips (one for next time).

If using a pipe, put a piece of wet cloth on the pipe, spritz it when it gets dry. The steam and moisture will help soften the wood as it heats up.

Tape the bindings to the sides when bending the sides, just 3-4 pieces of tape is fine. This way the binding is bent to the same shape as the side and will fit much easier when you go to install them.

If bending the bindings alone, tape all 4 together then bend them, the wider offering will be easier and less likly to break.

Also, get some aluminum flashing and use it to "back the binding" when bending. This puts pressure on the outside of the bend and helps so you don't break the bindings. Stew Mac sells one or just go to home depot and buy some flashing material (use gloves so you don't cut your hands)

This is the flashing idea.


And honestly, sometimes binding just doesn't wand to bend....and it breaks

_________________
My Facebook Guitar Page

"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

Tell me about it. I have broken 4 sticks of Lacewood binding, so far, for my #5, bending on a pipe. I thought I had them all bent fine, when I bent them initially, taped together with some purfling strips. Then, when I was touching up on the iron, for a closer fit, SNAP! Now it seems that I can't get the replacement strip bent without breaking. Anger Management is the priority in my shop these days. Too many issues with this build!

_________________
Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

James,

What works for me is to bend bindings just the way I bend sides: over a form, with a sandwich of slats and a blanket from John Hall. I think the support given by the slats goes a long way towards preventing breakage, especially on curly grain.

Pat

_________________
formerly known around here as burbank
_________________

http://www.patfosterguitars.com

I bend the bindings in the same sandwich, at the same time as the sides (2 bindings taped together, along with the side, repeated for the other side).

Glenn

If you have a fair bit of arch on your guitar back (or top), the binding has to bend in 'two dimensions', so the straight-bent binding that you bent with the sides may need some 'touch-up'.
This is easier to see than to talk about! Take a scrap with a bend in it , and flex the ends 'down' and you'll see the binding flex/twist at the bend.
Before I figured this out, I was puzzled why gaps seemed to 'appear' after the glue was set, when the bindings seemed to fit properly at the waist when I was 'working my way around the body' , taping as I went.

Good tips above about the wet rag and also the strip of aluminum flashing, BTW. Flashing is cheap ($20 for a roll) and can be cut with a utility knife and straightedge. Run scrap sandpaper along the edge. It's good for bending jobs as well as making protective strips when you are shaping braces, working on the fingerboard/bridge near the top, etc etc..

Cheers
John