Fixing a small crack in the bell of a cymbal?

JesusMySavior

Silver Member
Just bought two really nice cymbals but one of them has a crack in the bell (was advertised as such, no worries), looks like maybe some spider cracks.... (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170529482053&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT) the biggest one looks to be about 1/4" long.

I want to fix it, I'd like to just drill a hole in it, but what sort/size of drill bit should I use? I have a splash I bought for really cheap too that has these little spider cracks in it too. Is soldering an option?

What's the best method of fixing these?

Thanks!
 
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I wouldnt really reccomend welding, soldering or using epoxy or anything of that sort as solder or welding can break and epoxy is just nasty.

I would reccomend drilling however thier is a slight risk that the crack will continue if you fail to drill correctlly, you can however maxmise your chances of ending the crack.

I did this to my ride cymbal and im waiting a week or so to determine results. All you need is some flour (Baking flour preferably) and some wd40.

Spray some wd40 onto the underside of your cymbal where the crack is (in your case the bell) and rub it in really good, until the surface of it is dry but slippery wipe any excess. Now flip the cymbal over and this is where the flour comes in. Take a table spoon of your flour and drop it onto the crack, with your spoon work it into the crack with the base smoothing it around, use multiple spoons if necessary. then tilt the cymbal onto its side, and give it a few taps, then put it down as normal, and use a tissue to wipe off any flour.

Congrats you have now found the X Factor! The entire crack is then identifiable by the flour and you'll see areas of the crack you did not see before, Mark maybe 1mm after the crack to be sure, and then take it to a hardware store/tool shop and ask them if they can drill that spot. I would use a fairly large drill bit, nothing too major.

Congratulations! its pretty likely you have now eliminated the crack, You can now file down the actual crack to the drill point and smooth it down but thats completley optional. I will probably make a thread about this if my cymbal passes the test, and hope this helps.

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Original Thread: http://www.cymbalholic.com/forums/showthread.php?37585-Which-dremel-bit-for-removing-a-crack

EDIT:
Here's some pictures courtesy of Cymbalholic.
 
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You want to stop the crack from making it's way further down the bell. Find the end of the crack (yeah, looks about 1/4") and drill a small hole so that it can't split any further. Get JB Weld (specifically a metal/steel epoxy - i've tried the epoxy putties and they are too hard to work with for this type of fix.. get a liquid epoxy) and fill in the crack and hole. You can either pry the cracked edges apart slightly to work JB Weld in, or you can goop it up and then whack it a bit to ensure the cymbal's natural vibration fills the crack. Let cure (24 hours).
 
Thanks for the advice guys. Only problem is, when I've used epoxy before, it totally deadened my cymbal. I had a K Session Crash I bought cracked that I worked epoxy into and let dry, and it made it sound like I had a t-shirt draped over it. I quickly - QUICKLY - opened it back up with a warm wet cloth and washed the epoxy back out. I'm glad I did because it restored most of what I had lost before the epoxy incident. Not a fan of epoxy, maybe I just did it wrong..
 
Filling in a huge crack like the one in the above pic.. I imagine epoxy would hurt the sound as it'll severely deaden the vibration/resonance/energy-transference/whatever of the cymbal when played.

For a small crack like what is shown in the ebay pic though.. and based on where it is, I think any sound degradation is going to be slight.

You could also dremel or file the crack out entirely with a very tiny bit (creating a very tiny keyhole). It would probably have close to 0 effect on the sound, though would look like a pretty obvious keyhole.

Use JB Weld over regular epoxy tho.. it's formulated to work with metal, transfer vibration and such. There's a guy over at Cymbalholics who really recommends the stuff.

http://www.cymbalholic.com/forums/showthread.php?6444-J-B-Weld-for-Cymbal-Repairs-You-gotta-try-this!

RE: nasty keyhole.. I've also seen the Cymbalholic guys use appropriate sized grommits to 'create' new holes for heavily keyed cymbal.

See : http://www.cymbalholic.com/forums/s...yhole-is-too-much-keyhole&p=198958&viewfull=1
 
Looking for the best way to repair spider cracks at bell on a vintage cymbal.
What should I use. Any suggestions ?
 
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