How to choose a used guitar (a practical guide)
Why buy a used guitar
A good used guitar often gives better value than an equivalent new one. Many have already gone through the wood settling period and, with the right setup, play as well as day one.
What to check before buying
- Neck and relief: sight down the neck. It should be nearly straight, with a slight relief and no twist.
- Frets: look for wear, grooves or sharp ends. Worn frets cause buzzing and dead notes.
- Nut and action: very high strings make playing hard; a setup usually fixes it.
- Electronics: test every pickup, pot and the switch. Crackle or dropouts mean cleaning or resoldering.
- Structure: check the neck joint and the headstock area for cracks.
The value of a professional setup
Almost every playability issue on a used guitar is solved with a setup: truss rod, string action, intonation and cleaning. It is the difference between an instrument you put aside and one you want to play every day.
Buy with a technical assessment
At RR Guitar Shop in Caldas da Rainha, every second-hand instrument is assessed and set up before it reaches the shop. If you are thinking of buying, see the available instruments or book an assessment and take home your next guitar ready to play.
Cover image: used guitar shop in Ochanomizu, Tokyo — perke via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0).
Ready to play?
Every second-hand instrument at RR Guitar Shop is assessed and set up before it reaches the shop — in Caldas da Rainha.
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