Case repair

[s1m0n]

I have an old instrument which came with the original case. The case is sound but has obviously taken a beating over the years.

The fabric covering has been almost completely worn away. Apart from the held-together-with-duct-tape handle, that's really all that's wrong with the case.

Has anyone tried recovering a vintage hard case? What was involved? How did it turn out?

[Rroyd]

I have an old banjo case the second owner had recovered. He did not remove any hardware, but trimmed and pushed the covering beneath the edges of the hardware, under the edges of the lining, and so on. My first reaction was that it had never been out of the closet, it looked so perfect.
He said it was easier to do it that way than to try to remove and then reattach the hardware without having to use less-than-original style rivets.

[s1m0n]

That's exactly the sort of thing I want to know. I've been looking askance at those rivets.

What kind of cloth did he use? Was it mainly just glued down?

[craigw]

Check out Stewart-MacDonald. They have black vinyl case covering material that sells for less than $12/yd.

[Rroyd]

He used the same type of material that it had been covered with originally, a pebble-grain vinyl with a very lightweight fabric backing.# The Stew-Mac product sounds similar, but if it is heavier, it might be hard to get it pushed in behind the hardware. He just glued it on, but I don't know if he used a contact cement or something like Elmers. #Since it is so smooth and tight, I would guess that at least the major portion was contact cement, but it would be a lot easier gluing around the hardware with a white glue.

[mandroid]

The old cases were woven fabric covers, glued down, and then lacqured for surface texture. Shellac or acrylic glazing ought to do well as a brush on.
tweed is available too for old amps and another color for case covers.
some years ago[dialing the way-back machine] I tidyed up and decorated an old guitar case with clear acrylic and colored newsprint pictures.
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[s1m0n]

The old cases were woven fabric covers, glued down, and then lacqured for surface texture. Shellac or acrylic glazing ought to do well as a brush on.

That's the route I'm planning to take. Does anyone want to recommend/not recommend a glue?

[Rroyd]

How about epoxy like what is used to fiberglass boats? You could paint it on, and then put the fabric on it, letting it soak through the fabric. Then you can touch up any place where the epoxy hadn't soaked completely through. Not very original, but very durable.

[TommyK]

If you're going to brush something over the fabric, why not use it as the 'adhesive'? Brush it on the case and lay the fabric in the wet / tacky coating. THen coat over the top. No worries about the top coat and the glue having a bad interaction.
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[TommyK]

With respect to hardware,
Frank Ford at Fret.com (there he is again!) has an article on case repair for the luthier who doesn't really repair cases but does anyway because nobody else does. #He uses a nifty rivet that curls on the back side. #I think he mentions where he got it. #On the other hand, rivets are a manufacturing expedient used to cut factory costs. #When I do any repair that removes a rivet, I replace it with an appropriately sized screw / bolt, nut and washers. #I feel that nuts and bolts are just more secure. #Be sure to put a big back-up washer, a.k.a. fender washer, on the inside to spread the stress. #Also make sure the hardware doesn't intrude far enough into the case to contact the instrument. #Use a screw that is just long enough to be able to get the nut fully threaded. #Use a medium strength loc-tite to keep the nut from backing off. #Then to be really safe, cover the exposed hardware (instrument side of case) with foam held down by duct tape. #Duct tape does come in various colors if silver doesn't grab ya. #You could even use the outside fabric to hide / protect the hardware. #Just be sure your tape or covering adheres to the solid part of the case. #Tape doesn't stick good to crushed velour. #You may need to pull the velour away from the case to get at the hardware.
#
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[MANDOLINMYSTER]

I had to repair a lock on a old Gibson case, and a little bolt and #nut would not work due to clearance, so I went to my faviorte hardware store and found tiny split rivots, worked like a charm http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif