Framus Logo Issue

[Ginridge]

Today I got an unusual request for a repair on what I expect is a 60s to 70s Framus solid mahogany dreadnaught sized guitar. It has a couple splits that I'll be able to deal with easily, but the main challenge is the logo. The Framus logo on the headstock has come loose at the "ra" section of the name. All of it is still there.

It appears to be a metallic foil of some kind and I am hoping to re-glue back in it's original location somehow. I expect that this is very delicate and I will only get one chance at doing this right, so I thought I would ask the community for thoughts and advice before I plunge in!

Has anyone had any experience with something like this? Advise on the best adhesive to use?

Thanks!

[Jeff Mando]

It would be easy to make it look worse by overdoing it. Do not remove the logo. I would put a drop of superglue on a piece of plastic, then take a toothpick and just barely touch the drop with the tip of the toothpick. You don't want very much glue, just a whisper. About 1/100th of a drop, in my experience. If you put too much it will squeeze out and look worse. If you wipe it, it will look much worse, so use very little. Just start with one spot. Lightly apply glue to the underside, sparingly. Take something that won't stick like a plastic spoon or a piece cut from a credit card and use it to hold the logo down in that spot. Hold it by hand for 5 minutes. (yes, it will seem like an eternity!) The remove the spoon or credit card and see how it looks. If it is good, stop. If there is another section sticking up, do these steps on that spot. The idea is to get NO squeeze out. It is just a logo, it doesn't need much glue to lay flat. It won't look perfect, but better, IMHO. You have to know when to stop. Good luck.

[poul hansen]

Try carefully to flatten it first, then just try with classic Titebond as the squeeze out it removable with water and you have a 5-10 min. window to get the position right, while the gue thickens.

If it doesn't stick, all the glue is removable with water.

[HoGo]

Try carefully to flatten it first, then just try with classic Titebond as the squeeze out it removable with water and you have a 5-10 min. window to get the position right, while the gue thickens.

If it doesn't stick, all the glue is removable with water.

I would probably go for thin hide glue as it cleans much easier but in this case why not use product designed exactly for this like one of the gilding or gold-leaf glues? You can get one in nearly any art store and they are generally applied to one surface and they create self-sticky layer.
If the logo wants to go back in its original position with no need of nudging or side force I'd go for one of these. If you need to reposition the pieces more carefully I'd go for HHG or Titebond.
Use waxpaper or thin plastic wrap as separating material between flat clamping caul and the headstock but do good cleanup before clamping and remove very slowly and gently as the old metal foil logo may release in other spots if the separator gets stuck.

[Ginridge]

Excellent advice all around! Thanks everyone. I'll consider all three approaches and see what might work out best. I have noticed that the foil has been crumpled a bit and will need to be re-worked carefully to get the original location right. I'll report back with results.

[jim simpson]

That's quite a bridge on that Framus! I always found them interesting as they used the zero fret.

[Ginridge]

Thanks for all the advice. This one proved to be a difficult case!

The actual material was a thin metal, not a foil or decal and it had been folded back on itself leaving it bent despite my best efforts to flatten it back out. I tried several of the techniques suggested above, the first being tite bond which completely failed. I glued and clamped the logo over night and the next day, when I removed the clamp, the metal sprung back up, totally un-connected. I carefully cleaned out the residue and tried using HHG, also with no success. Again, I cleaned out the glue and tried thin superglue with a some success at the edges, then used medium super glue which did finally take hold. As suggested, it was nearly impossible to do without some run out and finish blemishes, but it was minor and did buff out.