How to fix guitar top pulled up by acoustic bridge?

Question

I found this neat Sakura 12 String guitar, nearly complete with everything for next to nothing. The only problem is over the year the bridge has been pulling up on the top of the guitar. It is pretty dramatic slope 4 degree as seen in the photos.
Right now I have about 20 lbs of weights on the the bulge but I am not sure if it is working.

My question is, what is the best way to flatten the bulge so I can make it useable again? I am open to any suggestion, I got it for super cheap guitar so I am willing to use any suggestion, even drastic ones!

Thanks!

https://flic.kr/p/GoGeC2
https://flic.kr/p/GoGeNT

Answer 1

Sorry, this calls for major surgery. At least the bridge is already all the way off. Unfortunately, if you just clamp the top flat and glue the bridge back on, the top will quickly pull up again, making the guitar unplayable and possibly causing the bridge to pop off again. This is because the bridgeplate (a flat piece of wood glued to the underside of the top directly under the bridge) is too weak to brace the top properly. On many of these Japanese acoustics the bridgeplate was actually made of thin plywood! This piece needs to be extracted, working one-handed by feel through the soundhole, and a new bridgeplate needs to be made from thin quartersawn maple and glued in, with the top clamped flat. Only then can you flatten and reglue the bridge. Quite possibly it will need a new saddle and a complete setup after that.



A bridgeplate job is definitely not the thing to start with if you have never worked on a guitar. Trying half measures won't work (especially on a 12-string, with its enormous string tension) and will likely make it impossible to correctly repair it in future.There are a LOT more ins and outs than my brief description encompasses. You might consider unloading this thing onto some local semipro or aspiring guitar tech who wants practice doing this difficult repair.



P.S. Is that a hole in the top behind the bridge?? If so, this poor thing is in even more trouble. Looks like the bridge really tore up the plywood top. Might be possible to stabilize the area with a new oversize bridge and bridgeplate, but really this guitar is not worth it.

Answer 2

Sukura was another of the Gibson law suit casualties, Just another Japanese made knock off from the 70's, Only a few like Ibanez and ESP came out alive, In your case its not worth having a professional repair it, Its not rare or desirable by any means, Even if in perfect condition it wouldn't fetch more than $150 to a collector who wanted an obscure Japanese made brand name for his collection, And to repair this properly would cost far more than that, and somehow I have a feeling your not capable of doing it as your asking here.

Answer 3

The reason that you got it for next to nothing is that's about it's current playing value. Failure of a bridge to stay put is not uncommon, but a nearly complete lack of repair knowledge is also quite common. You can glue it back down, properly clamped (another subject), as that's the basic repair. Sometimes basics are quite hard. Please go with jcr's experienced advice, as you will get none better here.

Answer 4

http://www.fretnotguitarrepair.com/repair/acoustic-guitar/bridge.php



Here is a good article on how to reglue a bridge.

Answer 5

You can buy a gadget from Stewmac to hold it level, though you may need let is sit with weights or a clamp for a while to get nearer flat before installing it.



Info below:

http://www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools/Tools_by_Job/Tools_for_Bridges/JLD_Bridge_Doctor.html