Ebony Fretboard Cracks and Value

[iplayLouD]

Somebody in my neck of the woods is selling a BFR Petrucci 7-string sig for a little over $1k. The catch? There's a small crack in the ebony board on the high frets, nothing that affects playability afaik but still, nobody is touching the thing.

Wdyt? A hell of a deal? Is there anything to be afraid of with that crack?

[Dinosaur David B]

Ebony is more brittle than rosewood and can get the micro cracks in dry humidity. Try not to let it get too dry.

As for fixing the crack, I had to do that on one of mine. Just sand a little of the ebony dust off the high end of the board above the last fret where it won't be noticed and catch the ebony dust on a post-it or piece of paper. Mix the dust with a drop or two of superglue so it turns the color ebony, then work it into the crack with a toothpick. It's better to under-do it, and repeat than to overdo it so too much spills out onto the board.  Once it dries, sand it smooth with high grit sandpaper with the grain if possible. 

[iplayLouD]

I bought it. Insane bargain for $1k IMO.

Not sure if and when I should treat the crack. It's tiny.

Lovely guitar, plays like butter. Despite the larger neck, it is probably the most comfy guitar I own now.

So... What do you even play on a 7-string? 
 
Here it is




And here is the crack



 
 

[Dinosaur David B]

The usual worry is that it gets worse/longer, but it looks contained by the fret slots at each end, so there's nowhere else for it to go. That's so small all a repair guy would do is put some superglue in that and sand it clean. You can probably just leave it alone unless you see it getting worse.
 
 

[iplayLouD]

The usual worry is that it gets worse/longer, but it looks contained by the fret slots at each end, so there's nowhere else for it to go. That's so small all a repair guy would do is put some superglue in that and sand it clean. You can probably just leave it alone unless you see it getting worse.
 
 

 

Hmm, depends on where you look at it.

It's been like this for three years without any change, and frankly, I don't see how this can turn worse. But for what it's worth, it's deep.

Here's a better picture.

[Dinosaur David B]

There's not enough space in the crack to fit any superglue in it anyway. 

[iplayLouD]

I got it fixed! Luthier managed to get glue and ebony into it, good as new (almost).

Great guitar. I'm not a JP fan but the guitar is FIRE.