doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DIY Gunsmithing @ doublegunshop.com Use of fabric in inletting repair

I've played bass for 40 years, acoustic bass for 30, and have done a good bit of the repair work on various basses I've had. When a crack starts, and taking the top of the instrument off is not done for repair with a cleat, the use of fabric is viable.

A fabric patch repair is done by taking raw linen and impregnating it with hide glue, applying it across the crack, and squeezing out the excess glue. Once it's dry, the repair prevents the crack from widening. The canvas acts like a staple, but over a large surface area.

This is probably not a new idea, but I think this might be viable for strengthening those ultra-thin vertical surfaces found in sidelock inletting.

How tight the inletting-to-action fit is would have to be a consideration, and how thin the material is would as well. Bed sheet material would be quite thin, with a lot of fibers. Hide glue would not be the choice in this application, but some other super-thin adhesive, such as water-thin superglue.

Just some thoughts. I think it might work, and I plan on trying it as part of an unfortunate stock head repair I am facing.

Same idea as fiberglass cloth used in auto body repair. If you have the room for it then it should work fine.

Yep, that's the idea.

I used fiberglass cloth and epoxy to repair the split forearm of a friend's Browning A5 once. There was plenty of room inside( they came with apiece of veneer glued perpendicular to the grain anyway).
Mike

I�ve done that as well, using fiberglass. For a double, I thought a less synthetic material might be more suitable, and something thinner.

I did the same with mine, years ago-- still intact--RWTF

How about silk? Would that be too tight a weave?

The strength would be the tops and certainly very thin? How about from a 1890's 1910's kerchief just for the nostalgia of it all.

I like that idea, Travis.

You can buy either carbon fiber or kevlar cloth, or a combination of the two materials for something even stronger than fiberglass. Most auto body or boat repair fiberglass cloth is a pretty thick and heavy weave that would build up too much for most inletting repairs where you couldn't remove wood to make room. Another option I have used to reinforce epoxy repairs is to use a small amount of fiberglass from insulation.

Years ago, thin fiberglass cloth was commonly used for drapes and curtains. My sisters' neighbor worked at a local Goodwill Store, and she used to bring me bags of donated fiberglass drapes that I used for fiberglass repairs with liquid epoxy. They still may show up occasionally. The thinner cloth was much easier to lay into tight spots, and multiple layers was probably stronger than the heavier woven stuff. Fiberglass drapes fell out of favor because washing them in your washing machine left fiberglass particles behind that would then get into your normal clothing and cause skin irritation.

Many hobby shops sell fiberglass cloths in various weights from 3/4 to 2 oz. per sq. ft.
Karl