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Martin DC 1 E - Crack on the side near the electronics
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Aby on -
Hi all Im new to the forum and glad to be a part of it.
I had my Martin DC 1 E since 2010 and love the guitar. Believe they have discontinued the model. Not sure why !
Last week while tapping the side of the guitar cracked and that really surprised me. I wonder if there was some tension
inside that just 'gave away' while tapping. Unfortunately Martin wont cover this under warranty.
...but Im still wondering if this was a fault in the manufacturing !
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Permalink Reply by Jud Hair on -
Just throwing this idea out after looking at your profile. What sort of humidity has your guitar been exposed to in Kuwait? Did your guitar get too dry?
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Permalink Reply by Aby on
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Thnx for your reply.
The humidity level is about 30-40%. I know it should be about 45%, but will this cause this kind of crack. Would some kind of tension cause of the bracing or during the manufacture be an issue?
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Permalink Reply by Jud Hair on
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No, that humidity level should not cause the problem if it were consistent. That was all I had ... sorry that this has happened to your Martin. Being in the side, I would think it could be repaired without a lot of hassle and I'd bet you wouldn't notice any significant difference in the sound. Good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Chris Moore on -
Sorry to see that.
Reason I'm replying to this is that recently I was investigating adding a soundport to my Martin OMC-15E and before going ahead (which I didn't in the end) I made sure I examined the side more closely where I was going to make the cutout.
I found that the wood was only 1/16 inch thick. Which surprised me because I thought it would me much thicker. I abandoned the idea because of possible splitting along the grain or bowing. I just play with Fishman pre-amp panel flipped open - which has nearly same effect as a 'proper' soundport.
I'm now more aware of the fragility of the sides of the guitar. Maybe on your guitar there was a weak spot already there.
Good luck with getting it repaired.
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Permalink Reply by Aby on
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I agree that there could have been a 'weak spot', but surprised that martin would'nt cover that under warranty.
Thank for the reply
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Permalink Reply by Jud Hair on
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Did you tell the Martin warranty people that it happened while you were "tapping" the side?? If so, I suspect that would tend to incriminate you in their eyes as being the source of the damage versus a weak spot. "Tapping" to some is ppoundin to others :-)
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Permalink Reply by Phil Manuel on
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Well, surprising as it is, 'cracks' are specifically excluded from coverage by Martin's warranty, unless you can get them to admit it was due to a structural integrity issue. When I read the warranty information, I was kinda rattled by that exclusion, given the many tops of guitars I've seen 'grow' cracks. I guess it makes some sense, as not all cracks are due to structural integrity issues, but some other 'user' issue. Though, I don't really know what the warranty really covers in all honesty. It just seems like any manufacturer stacks the deck in their favor.
I mean, did you ever see Michael Hedges play his guitar? I've seen him really slap his guitar, and it did not seem to be any worse for that treatment.
Just sayin'...
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Permalink Reply by Jud Hair on
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LOL ... My Martin dealer was pretty honest with me when I asked him to tell me what the lifetime warranty specifically covered. He chuckled and said "Basically, it covers everything that won't happen and excludes everything that will." He was making a joke of course, but you're absolutely correct when you say that maufacturers want to hedge their bets on things like cracks. It would probably be worth Aby's effort to try an appeal, but honestly there are so many ways that cracks can occur through no fault of the manufacturer, it's probably going to be a tough sell. The crack in Aby's Martin could have happened from dropping it, hitting it on the corner of a countertop, sitting on the case, or a dozen other ways that Martin could legimately construe as owner abuse. Sadly, after telling them that she was "tapping" on it when it broke, they will probably hang tough on it being user-inflicted.
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Permalink Reply by Aby on
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Well I did say that it happened while I was 'softly tapping' on the side and like you said they did incriminate me and not even consider an inherent flaw.
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Yeah, prolly better to go with plausible deniable...
"Umm, what the... happened here! Look at this guitar. I paid for quality craftsmanship. Otherwise, I could have bought a Seagull cracked guitar for $150!".
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