# Cracked Ferrule



## Miles (Apr 6, 2013)

I have a wa handle which has developed a hairline crack in the ferrule. It's not major enough to justify replacing the handle, but I wanted to check to see if anyone has experience repairing this kind of thing. Flashing back to my guitar repair days, I thought I might try to wick some thin CA glue into the crack to stabilize it, then just sand it smooth and buff it. Any thoughts or suggestions???


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## Dream Burls (Apr 6, 2013)

That should do it as long as the crack is not too deep. Check on how the CA enters the space. If it continues to seep in you might have a deep crack that may continue to spread internally, particularly if the wood is not hardwood or stabilized. Good luck.


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## Dave Martell (Apr 6, 2013)

If it's not too wide of a crack, and I think you'll know if it is, then I'd use CA glue like you're thinking of doing. I have two favorites by the same company that is perfect for these situations....

Zap-A-Gap CA+ = this is what is best for almost everything 

Zap-A-Gap CA = this stuff is SUPER THIN and will run like no other liquid you've ever seen. You've got to be squared away before dealing with this - A-game required. Great for deep crack penetration and for filling soft woods.


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## Twistington (Apr 6, 2013)

Dave Martell said:


> [...]
> Zap-A-Gap CA = this stuff is SUPER THIN and will run like no other liquid you've ever seen. You've got to be squared away before dealing with this - A-game required. Great for deep crack penetration and for filling soft woods.



Also great for tacking your fingers to each other, your hand to the dog or cat and yourself to random objects around the house, the 1 cent of painters tape required to mask it off really pays for itself instantly.


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## Miles (Apr 7, 2013)

Fortunately, the crack seems more like a minor artifact in the buffalo horn. It goes all the way through, but I'm pretty sure the CA glue will stabilize it. Unfortunately, I don't still have the powdered dyes I used when touching up the finishes on guitars. I'd love to mix a little black into it so it will completely disappear. It's pretty small so I'm sure it will be okay. I'll take care of it later tonight and will report back on my success or lack thereof.


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## Miles (Apr 9, 2013)

I used ultra thin CA glue. I masked the ferrule and handle with blue painters tape. I decided just to go with glue and skip the black dye since a small jar of powdered dye ran about thirty dollars. I pooled a little bit of glue in a bottle cap and used a toothpick to gently fill the crack. I gave it three layers of fill and let it sit for about four hours to fully cure. I unmasked it and found the tape did the job and kept the glue where I wanted it. I re-masked the wood portion of the handle and set about sanding and buffing. I started with a little 150 grit paper with the foam block from a micromesh kit and a little bit of applied fingertip backing to level the glue. I then followed it with the micromesh up through a 12K grit. While I can detect very slight imperfections in the right light, I don't think it would be noticeable to the average person unless they knew to look for it. The ferrule is stabilized and the repair is virtually invisible which is what I set out to do. Given the roughly ten dollar cost for ultra thin CA glue and a little bit of time, it was a modest investment. All said, I'm pretty happy with the results.


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## Dave Martell (Apr 9, 2013)

Good to hear Mike :thumbsup:


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