How to Buy a Used Guitar

Purchasing a used guitar can be a very smart choice and you can often find great deals in your local listings or music store. But, how can you be sure you’re not paying too much? How can you make sure you’re buying a quality instrument? These steps will tell you what to look for when choosing a used guitar.

Your first step should be an overall inspection of the body of the guitar to see if there are any cracks in the wood or edges coming un-glued or separating from the rest of the guitar. If there are major cracks be aware that it can drastically effect the sound quality and possibly require further repairs as the guitar ages. If there are any gaps or cracks, it’s best to walk away and look for a different guitar.

Look at the grain of the wood. You should see grains that are close together and preferably a solid piece of wood over the entire top. However some guitars will have two pieces of wood to make the top but these guitars are generally cheaper quality. If you see anything that resembles plywood or pressed wood, put down the guitar and walk away…no, run away.

Next check the bridge. On some used guitars you may see that the glue holding the bridge onto the guitar body has dried out causing the bridge to separate from the body. A good trick is to take a piece of paper and see if you can slide it under the bridge at all. If you can’t then you’re good to go. If the paper slides under, then you may want to reconsider purchasing that guitar. Bridge repair can be a fairly expensive fix. Also look at the saddle on top of the bridge. This is the piece that the strings rest on. Check for an cracks or broken portions. Also see if the saddle moves around at all in the groove. If the saddle isn’t perfect, it’s not the end of the world, This is a relatively inexpensive fix and you can use this to bargain with the price.

Next check the neck and frets. Run your fingers along the sides of the fingerboard to see if the metal frets have started sticking out of the sides of the neck. If they are, it may be a walk away situation. This means the neck may be warped or bent or just a cheaply made instrument. You will have to make a judgement call, if they are very slightly coming to the edge, then it may still be playable. Also, check to make sure the frets are not rising out of their slots. If they are, this is not an expensive fix and they can sometimes be fixed with a few taps of a hammer. But, you can use this to bargain the price.

Now, look at the head stock of the guitar. Make sure all the tuning keys turn freely. If you’re looking at a nylon string guitar, check the white rollers that the strings wrap around. If there are any cracks on these rollers, the guitar will have a hard time staying in tune. This, however is not a super expensive fix, but it all depends on whether or not you want to deal with fixing it. Also check the nut or the white part that the strings rest on. Make sure it is not cracked, broken or coming un-glued. Again, this is not an expensive fix but you can use this to bargain with the price.

Check the neck of the guitar. People often worry about older guitars having a neck that is bent. Although this can happen, it’s actually a bit rare. the fingerboard of a guitar, especially a classical guitar, actually has a slight unevenness. The bottom portion of the fretboard, under the high E string will actually be raised a tiny bit higher than the top portion of the fretboard. So don’t be alarmed if you see a slight twist to the fretboard.  Also on the neck, take a look at how the neck attaches to the guitar body. Better guitars will have a larger “boot”. This is the piece of wood under the neck that attaches to the side of the guitar body. A longer boot is less likely to give you problems.

The last thing you should do when selecting a used guitar is to play it. If the guitar has all it’s strings, bring a tuner with you so that you can tune it. If the guitar doesn’t seem to want to get in tune, then it’s not a good pick. When you play the guitar, listen for any buzzing. This may indicate that the struts inside the guitar are coming loose. If they are, this is a walk away situation because fixing the struts inside the guitar is a labor intensive job and will cost a few hundred dollars. Quite frankly most used guitars aren’t worth the bother.

To sum it up, whenever you’re considering a used guitar, always take careful time to look over each part of the guitar carefully. Play the guitar to see how it sounds and feels. Never purchase a guitar sight unseen, such as on eBay or other similar sites, unless you are able to pay them a visit for an actual inspection. Don’t be afraid to bargain with the price a little, but be reasonable and offer what the guitar is worth.

 

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