new back?

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Ken McKay

You can prevent future cracking by proper cross grain gluing, done at proper relative humidity, when glued with overly dried back wood, with a dome shape. Plus, you have to know your wood! Live and sleep with it is best.

Here are some links of the Backs of some of the Basses that I have, have come and gone or are in restoration as we speak that have had Back Repairs/Restorations due to the reasons stated above. Depending on the Bass and the situation, the Bracing system was either done as before, modified to a different style or was modified already and just left as-is. Still, the repair history of every bass shown indicates that in the Northeast, a Flatback can be hazardous to its own health.

Here they are in no particular order.
one , two , three , four , five , six , seven , eight , nine , ten

A Bass can be 200 years old or brand new. Once it goes thru a Northeast Winter or two and has never been repaired or modified you will see what things are possible. Roundbacks do a little better but they move as well.

With all of that said, some of my favorite Basses are Flatbacks and I continue to buy them regardless.