I just received a shipment of some factory guitars, and they have a very strong smell of glue. I mean REALLY VERY VERY strong – not just some residual odor.

What I would like to know from luthiers is –

1) Is this stuff actually toxic? Or just strong smelling?

2) Is there some way to reduce or eliminate the odor?

If it's not actually toxic, I can possibly mask the odor in the same way I have in the past with used guitars that have some odor – musty etc. Auto supply stores sell these little felt car deodorizers that you hang in the car. One of the most popular of these is a little pine tree. So I take a small piece of that and hang it inside the sound hole, and Presto! it smells like fresh pine.

So I could do that, as long as the fumes are not actually toxic, in which case there's no use covering it up.

Appreciate any thoughts or suggestions.

Ramon

One of the luthiers will have much more knowledge about this than I do, but are you sure the odor is from glue rather than finish? Lacquers have very strong odors. What kind of finish was applied to the guitars?

-Bob

Most likely, the source of the smell is the guitar's finish, although the cases also seem to have their share of nasty-smelling adhesives, which can take a while to off-gass.

As to your question about toxicity, the short answer is that pretty much any smell that has an unpleasant quality to it, and is the product of modern manufacturing, will have some level of toxicity. If you get enough off-gassing materials into the house, air quality will invariably suffer. Some catalyst-activated vinyl finishes are rather thick, and tend to off-gass longer. Most of the worst off-gasing happens early-on (usually the first week or two), although volatile compounds are not entirely stable, and continue leaving the finish for many months to come. Sometimes during a repair I have to scrape down a many year old catalyzed finish on a guitar. By disturbing the outer layer of this older finish, one unleashes a fresh layer of rather pungent finish underneath. OSHA as well as other occupational safety and hygiene outfits take the time to calculate exactly what parts-per-million concentration is deemed "safe." Almost invariably, by the time the smell is strong enough for you to detect it, the concentration has exceeded maximum thresholds.

This discussion of toxicity is another reminder why I like French polish. Food grade resin, mixed with food-grade ethanol.

To remove the smell without waiting is nearly impossible. To reduce it, you can keep the cases open, and guitars on stands in a warm room with good air circulation. Heat and air circulation will speed-up the "curing". Ideally, that room should not be in your living space, unless you want to experiment with various industrial solvent highs. I hope this is helpful.

Thanks Peter. Very helpful. I've concluded it's not the finish, by smelling the back and top, and then the sound hole. it's definitely coming from the sound hole.

But it's moot now - I'm returning them.

Thanks -
Ramon

Hola Ramón
I can understand you returning them.
I had a guitar once that smelt bad and it never completely got better even with all the fresh air and warm in Mediterranean.
Tomás