Crack fillers - old soundboards

[Ron Nossaman]

>And you said the analogy between the AMA and the PTG 
>was invalid? Comparing a plate to a soundboard seems
>like a coconuts to cows comparison. A crack in the plate
>would seem a little more severe a problem than a soundboard
>split. If I remember correctly S&S cut "splits" in soundboards
>to prove it made little difference in the quality of sound.
>
>Mark Ritchie RPT

It's not anywhere near an exact analogy, but an old soundboard with a bunch
of "naturally" occurring cracks, and a new one with "splits" cut in it are
nowhere near the same either. The cracks aren't the problem in an old board
any more than the artificially produced ones in the new one. In the old
board, however, they are an indication of the general condition of the
panel. That's the problem that shimming doesn't address. Cracks in the
plate wouldn't be a problem either if they could be finished over and
hidden with no lessening of the plate's capacity to do it's job. In both
cases, cracks are an indication of performance degradation. In both cases,
they are symptoms, not causes. 

That was the point, and I think I'll choose the coconuts and leave the cows
for others. 

To err is human; to moo, bovine.
    ------  Ersatz  ------


Ron N