D-03 bought used, cracked finish near the soundhole, worry or not?

[bobur_smq]

Hello from Samarkand. I finally found a used Larrivée D-03 here, which is not easy in Uzbekistan, most guitars in the shops are Chinese brands I never heard of. The seller said it is from around 2012 and it plays very well, action is low and the neck feels straight. There are a few thin lines in the finish around the soundhole and one near the lower bout, they look like finish checking, not wood cracks, I cannot feel them with my nail. The summers here are very dry and hot and the winters are cold, and the flat has central heating that is either off or very strong. Is this something to fix now, or just keep a humidifier in the case and watch it? And what humidity do you keep yours at in a dry climate? I do not want to lose this one, it took me two years to find.

[B0WIE]

Welcome to the forum. The guitar was built at a very specific humidity and deviating from that means there's tension. A certain degree of this is totally fine and woods eventually relax and become less likely to crack. What you really want to avoid is sudden dryness. Woods don't want to move quickly and shrinking quickly seems to be the fast track to cracking. I personally keep my instrument room around 42% RH and I live in the desert city of Phoenix AZ.

 The lines sound a little concerning, or maybe confusing is a better word because the finish Larrivee used in that era does normally check. Not like traditional nitrocellulose finishes. Something traumatic typically needs to happen. If you can post pics it may help us give some insight.

[jpmist]

The summers here are very dry and hot and the winters are cold, and the flat has central heating that is either off or very strong. Is this something to fix now, or just keep a humidifier in the case and watch it? And what humidity do you keep yours at in a dry climate? I do not want to lose this one, it took me two years to find.

Welcome! and let me encourage you to read Larrivee's own Care & Maintence info here - https://www.larrivee.com/care-maintenance which will answer all your questions.

Where I live in Georgia USA, I have central air and heat. The humidity inside can get in the 60's in the summer and as low as 20 for a week or two in the winter. I leave my guitars out with zero concern in the summer, but for about 2 weeks in the winter when the humidity stays below 30 I use a humidifier similar to this one.

Best of luck and enjoy your nice Larrivee!

[Silence Dogood]

Hello and welcome to the forum.  You might've missed it, but the D03 is considered the Best Guitar In The World around these parts.  See this helpful thread:

https://www.larriveeforum.com/forum/index.php?topic=55011.0

My own D03 had a crack many years ago that a friend of mine repaired.  I usually forget it was ever there and it's very hard to see.  If you like the guitar, and especially since they are hard to find in your part of the world, I would grab it.  All best wishes. 

[BlueBowman]

Congrats on finally snagging a Larrivee!

Acoustic guitars, even the lighter-built ones, are tougher than most people realize. To echo Bowie, it's the low relative humidity during the winter that you should pay closest attention to: anything approaching and exceeding below 30% RH, especially for long periods of time, is highly inadvisable. That dry weather can do damage. I'm more a fan of using an evaporite room humidifier than in-case ones, but the goal should definitely be to not let the guitar get too during the winter.