Keeping an instrument in playable condition.
3
votes
2answers
921 views
Is it safe to use guitar polish everywhere on the guitar?
I have owned my first electric guitar for half a year and have only been cleaning it with a damp cloth (without any cleaning agent). Since I'm going to change strings, I think it might be a good time ...
8
votes
6answers
152 views
How do you care for your guitar?
A guitar that is used regularly will sooner or later show signs of wear and tear. How do you best care for your guitar and make sure it stays as good as it is for as long as possible?
4
votes
3answers
973 views
Acoustic Guitar Intonation Adjustments
Simply put, how does one adjust it. I have a low-end acoustic where the intonation seems to be out by quite a bit and I'd like to adjust it.
It comes down to adjusting string size or length, so I ...
5
votes
2answers
267 views
Upgrade tuners or get a new guitar?
I have an Ibanez V70CE Acoustic-Electric guitar. While it was not expensive, I like the way it feels and it sounds just fine. The problem is it doesn't like to stay in tune. I always use high quality ...
5
votes
1answer
167 views
Should I replace unwound strings on my acoustic guitar as often as the wound ones?
The wound strings wear off quite fast, and start sounding dull even faster, so I replace them quite often. But whenever I do so, I replace the unwound strings as well, even though at that point, they ...
4
votes
2answers
311 views
Acoustic guitar, chip in rosette wood, how to avoid in future?
I was performing this afternoon when I felt a sharp pain in my right thumb. I looked down, and there was a big hunk of wood (about half an inch long) sticking out from my right thumbnail. There was a ...
14
votes
1answer
389 views
How does one change bow hair?
What are the steps to follow to unmount the hair from a bow and install a new set ?
What kind of tools and products do you need beside a new set of bow hair ?
How do you measure/adjust the length ...
5
votes
3answers
1k views
Switching my strings from 10's to 9's - am I in for more fret buzz?
So, I'm playing an Agile 200 Les Paul copy (tune o matic bridge).
I've had 10's on it and sadly it has some fret buzz. I recently got it set up to eliminate the buzz and the tech got it pretty close. ...
5
votes
5answers
1k views
Will steel strings wear out my nickel frets ?
I have bought some coated strings because I wanted to try that out. After my purchase I noticed that the package says the uncoated strings are stainless steel.
Since my frets are made out of nickel ...
2
votes
3answers
220 views
Damaged tremolo arm hole in Edge 3 bridge…
just got a new Ibanez that has an Edge 3 trem in it.
The difficulty I'm having is that there appears to be a piece of plastic that goes around the circumference of the hole where the arm is inserted ...
6
votes
1answer
85 views
Strings stick to pickup poles when the tremolo is depressed.
Sometimes, when I depress the tremolo quite far, the strings magnetically stick to the pickup poles...
Is this normal? Is there a way I can prevent it, aside from not depressing the tremolo so far?
...
5
votes
3answers
2k views
What are the repercussions of using really thick gauge strings on my electric guitar?
I have a Jackson King V JS32T electric guitar in blue, see the linked text for specs and the look of it. Anyway, it came with 0.09-0.42 strings and I've been using 0.13-0.56's on it for a little ...
4
votes
1answer
167 views
What are good oils to use on a neck that has been stripped of veneer?
I would like to strip the veneer off of the back side of a strat's neck - I'm guessing that, like furniture, I would need to lock in/out the moisture so that the neck won't warp. Any oils work better ...
9
votes
2answers
3k views
How do I know when it's time to change a tube on my amplifier?
I think this would be a wonderfully instructive question to people who are new to tube amplifiers. In short, how do I know that it's time to change a tube, and what's a good strategy for figuring out ...
5
votes
4answers
2k views
Do I need to have my guitar re-set up if I change the weight of my strings
I'm a newbie transitioning to intermediate and I have a rather nice strat with 11 gauge strings. I'd like to try lighter strings but someone told me changing gauge will require the guitar to be re-set ...
6
votes
4answers
168 views
What is a guitar truss rod?
What is the "truss rod" on a guitar? Do truss rods vary for an acoustic, electric, or classical guitar?
7
votes
3answers
3k views
What's causing this buzzing sound on the high e string?
My Takamine acoustic has a tendency to buzz when I play the high e string fretted around frets 2 and 3. I figure it's something to do with the neck and tension rod. Are there any other parts of a ...
3
votes
1answer
205 views
How often should electric guitars be serviced?
I have an electric guitar that I play from time to time. Should I be giving it 'maintenance services' or only if something goes wrong?
8
votes
3answers
2k views
Lowering the action on a bass guitar
I have obtained a rather cheap P-bass imitation bass and, while it plays well in the lower register, about the 9th fret the action starts to rise and after the 12th fret it's in to the "wow, this ...
7
votes
0answers
111 views
How to properly store valuable guitars?
What are the general guidelines when storing a collectors, very nice guitar (special woods, etc.), or one you value greatly? You will find humidity control systems in place at stores with "acoustic ...
3
votes
3answers
1k views
How do you access the electronics on a hollow-body electric guitars ?
Some models of electric hollow-body / electric arch-top guitars do not have seem to have any kind of access to the electronics (switches, pots, caps, wiring) beside the "f" shaped sound holes.
I ...
5
votes
4answers
32 views
Should I worry about this strap pin?
I recently bought a Fender Stratocaster that came stock with Schaller straplocks. This is great, because I pretty much always play standing. In shows, I jump around and do all the tricks in the book. ...
6
votes
2answers
647 views
Insane amounts of fret buzzing on my lower strings
This may have been addressed before, but I can't really find a thread that targets this problem.
Whenever I play on my low B, E, or A string between open and fifth fret inclusive, it always buzzes ...
6
votes
4answers
4k views
how does one use or apply lemon oil ?
I have bought a classic guitar for my nephew who is starting classes. The vendor gave me as a gift a little vial of "lemon oil" (translated from the french) saying just quickly something like "it ...
3
votes
1answer
248 views
Proper maintenance for classic guitars?
I have had my classic for about two years, and don't do anything to it other than wiping dust off the guitar and replacing the strings when needed(about every month or so).
I've had a sponge type of ...
8
votes
2answers
280 views
Dealing with sharp fret ends
Continuing on my quest to subjugate this cheap bass I picked up in to the realm of "actually useful instrument" I've got a question about taming sharp fret ends. This bass, it has a lot of them. After ...
7
votes
1answer
2k views
Cleaning a tarnished flute
My flute is tarnished and needs to be cleaned... I was afraid if I polished it, I would break something on it. I read online that it's a bad idea to remove tarnish on a flute yourself as you can ruin ...
10
votes
3answers
314 views
Will my wind instrument be damaged if I leave it assembled?
Almost every teacher, expert, and book has informed me that I should disassemble my (clarinet / recorder / saxophone) each time after I practice.
However, it is difficult for me to see how this would ...
7
votes
2answers
996 views
How to remove all traces of rosin from a bow ?
I saw once the case of a beginner violinist that turned out to be allergic to a specific type of rosin that came with his student violin outfit. Another hypoallergenic rosin was purchased and they ...
6
votes
1answer
180 views
Is there a standard efficient method of cleaning / maintaining a guitar?
In terms of 'spring-cleaning' and maintaining guitars, and asking with regards to those of the acoustic variety, just to specify, however not to eliminate any differences should anyone care to ...
