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25.01.2022 This Cole Clark is in because its fretting out around frets 10 - 16 on the treble strings. First I checked the relief and it was double what it should be. Hmmm..why? Next I eyeball the neck and body and I see the top has a big concavity in front of the bridge. Inspection inside reveals a couple of broken braces. Further inspection reveals the bridge is lifting. What came first the chicken or the egg?... Regardless, the truss rod is not there to alter the string height. Adjusting the truss rod has allowed this guitar to keep on playing whilst masking the fact that the chicken and the egg were getting worse under string tension. Dont keep your guitar in the boot of your car, heat softens glue, string tension pulls up bridges. See more

25.01.2022 I hate fishing in f holes, your line gets tangled and you never catch a fish. :)

25.01.2022 Ive only set up 2 Maton SRS60c acoustics, so its not a big sample, but both were showing bugger all saddle above the bridge when they were set up properly. A guitar that looks like this needs a neck reset, but this one is only around 18 months old. Either they have moved a huge ammount under string tension in a short time or they werent built with enough neck angle. This results in a decreased break angle, this reduces the driving force to the top.

23.01.2022 This old Kasuga is a Japanese copy of a Gibson, much loved by its owner for the last 41 years. Its in for a re-fret, new tuners and a saddle, however, on inspection I noticed the soundboard in front of the bridge was concaved a lot and found the X brace beneath had a crack. Allowing the deformation to continue with string tension would result in its eventual destruction.

23.01.2022 When it comes to guitars, some people can hear quite subtle things, for instance the difference in the sound between a fretted note and an open string note from a nut. A Zero fret guitar is one where a fret is installed where a nut usually goes. Its usually done when building the guitar, and leaves about 5mm of fretboard between it and the nut which is there only as a string guide. This customer wanted a zero fret retro fitted to his Lowden....Enter the Zero Glide Nut system, for those with a sensitive musical ear. :)

23.01.2022 A nice Gibson with a lifting pickguard.

22.01.2022 Friday nights Bruce Springsteen concert was really enjoyable. Even though I didnt know all of his songs I still appreciated them all because I could see how much effort both he and the E Street Band put into the show and getting all the audience to participate. He didnt just phone it in, and rely on his reputation he really put his heart and soul into it and it showed. Im glad I was there and will now carry the memory with me.

22.01.2022 This 70s Epiphone is in because the intonation is all out . It was bought from Cashies and is a good example of why you shouldnt rush in and buy on impulse. Not only is the Intonation out, but the neck needs a reset and a re-fret. The owner says hell live with the guitar as is, but cant put up with poor intonation, so I had to make a new bridge with the saddle slot placed further back.

21.01.2022 A definite re-fret for this Maton, whos owner must have bionic fingers to dent the frets like this under the b string given that the guitar is only 3 years old.

20.01.2022 This old Ibanez has a big belly behind the bridge and is sunken in front of the bridge. Usually this is due to having a loose leg of the X brace, however this one is well adhered. On closer inspection I found the X brace wasnt 2 pieces with a nice lap joint as it should be, rather it was 3 pieces butted together with rubbish cloth tape over it, pretending to give strength. Also there are no braces around the sound hole so the entire area in front of the bridge is lacking. Ill cap the X and add braces to the soundhole to stop further damage as this guitar has sentimental value to its owner. Sentimental.... on Valentines Day.......

20.01.2022 This is quarter sawn wood, it relates to the way the log was cut into pieces and you can identify it by looking at the end grain, it shows the annular rings straight up and down like little roman columns. Why is that important? It is the most stable cut, it is stronger and less likley to warp, or move or crack. As water finds the easiest path down a hill, so too stress moves wood and follows the grain. In guitars this is particularly important in tops, bracing and necks. A we...ll quartered top may show lines perpendicular to the grain called medullary rays. Many times have I seen necks that warp enough to cause a buzz when loaded with string tension, due to the inferior neck wood used. Before buying any guitar, check the look of the neck grain both along and at the end. Straight is good, knots and twists are not, a painted neck could be hiding a poor quality piece of wood. I spend ages finding the best wood to build with, trying to ensure my guitars sound great and are built to last. See more

18.01.2022 Phil had some dented upper frets and not enough meat left for a fret dress on his Tommy Emmanuel Maton, so it required a refret. He chose EVO Gold frets for their wear resistance. The great man will actually play this guitar when Phil attends a master class soon. Slightly wider fret slots meant that the new frets just pushed in with my fingers, so I had to crimp the fret tangs to provide the grip needed and use epoxy to ensure they remain seated. Alls well that ends well, however, as is often the case, Phil now needs a new nut also because the new taller frets mean the old nut is now cut too low.

18.01.2022 This Martin D42 is in for a fret dress but also to have some of the plastic binding glued back on. Plastic shrinks over time and comes away as a consequence. Call me old fashioned if you will, but for that much Id want wood binding not plastic.

18.01.2022 This old Guild is in to have some loose back braces repaired. The customer mentioned it had a previous bridge repair and I was horrified when I looked inside and saw 2 bolts on the bridge wings coming through and crushing into the spruce X brace legs. I dont approve of using bolts to hold down bridges, but if there was no choice, at least dont crush the braces. The customer wasnt aware of the way it was repaired. Like a doctor...Do no Harm.

17.01.2022 This old EKO worked out really well, I love the look of the new bridge with the bigger footprint. Bridge, saddle, set up, strings, it should keep going strong for another 40 years. :)

16.01.2022 This strat came in to me with a savage backbow about a 2mm gap down at the first fret, unable to be played in standard tuning even with a high action, and a single way truss rod in the neck thats frustratingly useless. My only shot was a thermal neck set, It came to nearly straight, with 10s on it was playable with a slight buzz, with EB Beefy 54-11s it gave me that slight extra tension and therefore a bit of neck relief. Action set just a bit higher than normal and she plays fine. Customer gets it to buzz by strumming it like a bluegrass player and comments on the slightly higher action....alas, my genius goes unrecognised, but from where it was to where it is, I know what a legend I am.:)

15.01.2022 This Dobro came in because the neck was coming away from the body. Once I steamed it off, it revealed the joint to be poorly made, to put it nicely. Wedges in the cavity, uneven and a really poor fit. I cleaned off all the old glue and the fit showed the gap at the back to be just the way it fit together naturally, exacerbated by having to glue the fretboard extension down to soundboard. This means if I glue it back together it will naturally want to pull away. The customer has to ask himself if this is worth his money.

14.01.2022 This Mahogany Martin DC-17E is in because it, like so many other Martins, has succumbed to string tension. The neck block glacially rotates, the action gets too high, people take the saddle down until there is no more left. String tension, it wont happen overnight, but it will happen At this point it needs an expensive neck reset......Or, like this and many other Martins, if the bridge has enough height, you can shave the bridge down and re-rout the saddle slot. This is a cheaper fix, but next time it has to be a neck reset.

13.01.2022 A customer brought this in for repair, not for the obvious but because it fretted out around 5. Upon investigation I have to assume the neck angle is insufficient as somebody had wound way too much relief in the neck via the truss rod in order to get it to play at all. When correctly set up it choked out at 2 and string height was almost nothing. Ideally a neck reset is needed but this guitar isnt worth the cost, so a ridiculously high saddle will get it going.

13.01.2022 This old Eko has a lifting bridge. When I removed it , the soundboard was chewed up, indicating it had done it before at least once. The bridge itself was warped and cracked and so couldnt be re used. I suggested to the customer that if he didnt mind it being non-original, it would be better to make the new bridge different to the old one in that it would have a bit more real estate behind the bridge pins. This would be better than the skinny original bridge because it provides more surface area for glue adhesion in the part that needs it most, maximising the chances of staying on into the future.

13.01.2022 This is a gallagher guitar that was in recently for a set up. These are high end guitars built in the U.S.A. There was so little room to get an allen key in to adjust the truss rod, I had to cut one up to do the job. Turns out, according to their website, thats what I was supposed to do. What I couldnt believe was that it was made with 2 screws helping to hold the bridge down, as you see from time to time on cheap and cheerful guitars.

12.01.2022 Brendons guitar is in for a set up. Set up done, new strings on, weird buzz noticed, investigated, found to be a loose X brace, see the gap the papers slipped into? Strange dent in the brace...there from new?..or a previoius repair? Regardless it was a fortuitous find that if left could really damage the guitar.

12.01.2022 Weve had our summer season warnings about snakes, bushfires and dropping 2 on our sprinklers so heres another one about hydration for your guitar. Hot dry weather will cause your guitar top to lose moisture and as a consequence will cause it to crack. Some sort of guitar humidifier is a good idea to save your guitar and your cash.

10.01.2022 I dont post much, only when I think something is interesting enough to warrant it. This guitar came in with a buzzing open treble e string. I told the customer the nut is cut too low and he needs a new nut. I also mention his overall string height is way too low and he could use a higher saddle also. "No" he says "I like a nice low action" This is typical of guitarists so I leave it alone. Today when I went to work on it, I notice the soundboard has sunken, not the usual sli...ght belly behind the bridge and concavity in front but an entire central region sinking concavity. I surmise this is the cause of his problems with buzzing and overall action. Highly irregular and indicative of a poorly built guitar. I google the brand and the first result on the page tells me an interesting story. You may like to read a bit at https://www.savageclassical.com/avoid-bellucci-guitars-par/ See more

10.01.2022 Lately when refretting Maton guitars Ive noticed the existing fret slots are too wide for the new frets tang. They push in and pull straight out again with my fingers. This means crimping every new fret tang to widen them and provide some bite, and using epoxy to set them in. The end result is great, but its a whole lot more work. Either Ill have to raise my rates or stop doing these problematic Matons.

10.01.2022 Thanks Phil, you make me blush

09.01.2022 This Cole Clark was dropped and cracked along the treble side. I fixed the cracks using hot hide glue and because the standard popstick type internal side bracing would have given little reinforcement to the crack right along the base, I used carbon fibre tape. Not as neat but strong as a rock.

09.01.2022 This is a 100 year old Paragon in for some crack repair. When I looked inside I was shocked to see the extent of the cracks there were at least 21 small patches holding together what is, in essence, a lot of little pieces of wood.

08.01.2022 You dont see too many of these in Australia. A Froggy Bottom model K (small Jumbo). This one has an Adirondack Spruce top, flamed Tassie Blackwood back and sides and curly Maple binding.

08.01.2022 This interesting guitar is in to be swapped over for a left handed customer. Its a washburn parlor guitar and its interesting in that the neck is quite wide at 48mm nut width and the profile is a vee.

07.01.2022 This customer wanted a flat milled at the back of his neck to make his guitar easier to play with ageing arthritic fingers. I was worried about breaking through to the truss rod slot. I warned him of the risk but he wanted to chance it. I did it with my heart in my mouth and my fingers crossed, but it all worked out and is now just what he wanted.

06.01.2022 This is a Martin SS-041-15, 2015 Namm show special, in for a set up. If you like your Bling, this ones for you

05.01.2022 This customer bought an old Honer headless guitar and tried to change strings, he brought in the bridge and saddles in pieces to me when they all fell apart on him. The Steinberger style bridge has a little lever and catch underneath that locks it and stops it springing off. To make matters worse for the poor bugger he bought cheap chinese made double ball end strings that were too short to fit the guitar.

05.01.2022 This customer is in Perth for a holiday and bought this old beater just for the duration. He bought it from gumtree, the strings werent tensioned they were slack. He took it home, played it for 5 minutes and the bridge ripped off and the nut fell off. Nice..... welcome to Perth :) .... Always play a guitar before buying.... The bright side is now, after fixing it up, it plays and sounds great, so good hell probably pay to take it home.

05.01.2022 Watching Perth Pub Bands" and remembering The Frames, The Jets, Ice Tiger, The Night After...ah the good old days.

03.01.2022 Lately when refretting Maton guitars I've noticed the existing fret slots are too wide for the new frets tang. They push in and pull straight out again with my fingers. This means crimping every new fret tang to widen them and provide some bite, and using epoxy to set them in. The end result is great, but it's a whole lot more work. Either I'll have to raise my rates or stop doing these problematic Matons.

03.01.2022 This 1970s Martin suffers from a common complaint. The pickguard has shrunk, causing the top to deform and eventually crack. Patch the cracks so they dont continue to spread, and make a new slightly larger pick guard to cover the bald spot.

03.01.2022 Beware the Cowboy! This customer wanted a fret dress after having a re-fret elsewhere. It was still buzzing even after taking it back and having it "fixed" a couple of times. The frets are anything but level and they rise from 14 up, indicating the fretboard was not planed before the re-fret. A fret dress wont clean up this mess, it needs to be done again but this time with the fret board planed first.

01.01.2022 This classical was dropped and suffered cracks to the soundboard andbinding damage. I used magnets to locate positions of the internal bracing and and a rubbing of the outside to see what size patches to make. They must be thin enough to offer support to the damaged soundboard but not too thick as to alter the tone of the guitar.