Learn Electric Guitar

Beginning With A Used Instrument

Finding a used electric guitar – or used acoustic guitar for that matter – should probably be one of the simplest and most straight forward tasks a budding guitar player could ever undertake.

The shops are constantly full of second hand guitars and these stringed instruments are being advertised in guitar magazines and online sites such as Craigslist and eBay by the thousands each and every day.

Add to that another massive number of classified ads running in newspapers and other magazines, plus used guitars changing hands trough bulletin boards and personal contact.

There are many valid reason why someone wanting to learn how to play guitar would want to consider buying  a used guitar.

At the same time there are quite a substantial number of potential pitfalls and things you should be aware of when you might be considering purchasing a second hand guitar.

In the following, we’ll take a closer look at all this.

Why buy a second hand guitar?

Why would you want to consider buying used in the first place? After all there’s an abundance of  really good brand new beginner guitars and the prices are way low too! These days, finding a new electric guitar bargain is basically compared to a Sunday stroll in the park.

Well, the way I see it, is that you may get a better quality instrument for the same price … if you know what to look for. Secondly, you will get an instrument that is played and thus has had the chance to “settle in” properly. Again you will need to know what to watch out for.

What to look for in used guitars

First of all you will absolutely be best off if you can manage to get help from someone who knows how to test guitars properly. Just trusting your eyes and the words of a seller is not the way to go about it.

If you have someone helping you out, then you may consider trying all sorts of used electric guitars – well known brands as well as the totally unfamiliar ones. You may be positively surprised by what you can find :-)

If you go about this without qualified help, you should stick to the better known brands. For a start, you may want to check out what other players are saying about the actual make and model at: Harmony Central.

If you like what you see here, you should examine and play the instrument thoroughly. It should go without saying that I advice you not to purchase a used guitar without having the chance to test if first when you’re a complete beginner.

Here are some of the things you should check:

Neck: Is the guitar neck straight? Look along the length of the neck. It should look perfectly straight. If you press down one of the outer strings at the first fret and the 12th fret, you should see just a tiny, tiny gap between the string and the fret in the middle – around the 5th or 6th fret. If the neck is bowed or got a “lump”, don’t buy – unless the owner can adjust the neck for you at the spot.

Frets: check all the frets. Loose frets is a no-go. Play all strings one note at the time all the way up and down the neck. If you hear any major buzz or dead notes (or indeed the same note on two different frets when you go up or down the string), you have a problem. You may also run your fingers (carefully!) along both sides of the neck to feel if the guitar frets are sticking out. If they are, you may check the frets more closely, since there may be a problem with the wood drying out. Finally, check the frets for major grooves and fret wear – some wear is common and not a problem.

Guitar wood: Check the back side of the head stock for hairline fractures or cracks. A broken headstock that has been fixed by a pro is not a problem. Done by someone who don’t know how, it is probably not worth taking the risk. Check along the length of the neck for fractures as well. How is the neck and body fit? Does it seem tight and solid? This is very important on glued in necks!

Hardware: Are all the guitar tuners working properly? Is it possible to adjust the bridge height and the bridge saddles? If there’s a tremolo bar – does if function well? Are both strap buttons in place and screwed on tight?

Electronics: When you plug the guitar in and test it (which you definitely want to do of course), is all switches working properly. You may sometimes try to tap all pick-ups lightly and carefully with a screwdriver to make sure they work – at least you should hear how the sound changes as you play the guitar and use the switches and pots. Scratchy pots can most likely be fixed with contact spray but  do use a little caution! You want to check that the guitar cable fits firmly into the output jack of the guitar, and that there are no sound drop outs.

Playability: How does the guitar feel? Is it hard to press down the strings at the first fret? Is the neck width and size OK to you? Use a guitar strap and check that it hangs and feels OK.

Intonation: If you know how, you should probably also check the guitar intonation. I will advice you to bring a guitar tuner and that you learn how to use it before you start looking at guitars. Go online and do a search for how to check intonation on a guitar. There’s also a video below which shows you how to do this.

If you go through these steps and you don’t rush into things, you should have no problem finding a nice used electric guitar, perfect for your playing style and needs.

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Guitar Set-Up: Get Into The Action

Having your electric or acoustic guitar properly set up and adjusted is way too often overlooked when you want to learn electric guitar skills.

One of the best places I have found to dig into this vital aspect of having a guitar that will bring out the best in you for years to come is this: Learn and Master Guitar Set-Up. Do check it out when you have the time.

Disclosure: We are compensated when you purchase products reviewed here through our links. We do our best to test each product thoroughly and recommend only the best. The opinions expressed here are our own.

Here’s the thing: You would more than likely think I was making it all up if I told you how many times people came to me asking about problems they had with playing their beginner guitar – and it just boiled down to an inferior or non-existent guitar setup.

“I can’t do a barre-chord for my life”. “It hurts playing the guitar”, or “This guitar is killing me”, people would say. Then, after a few simple tweaks, it was time and time again like a burden was almost magically lifted from their shoulders!

Having a guitar that is well adjusted will many times relieve you of so much extra strain and discomfort that it is almost unreal. The opposite, having a badly adjusted guitar, is a real confidence and motivation killer. Yes, it is many times that bad…

A more expensive guitar will come better adjusted from the factory and/or the dealer. Some times you can even have the guitar tailored and adjusted for your specific playing style and comfort.

Here are the most common factors in order to set up a guitar so that you will stay motivated and continue playing on a regular an on-going basis.

Set up your guitar – the basics

Before doing anything else, you should have your neck checked. First, you will need to have the guitar frets checked. Any loose or uneven frets may give you a host of problems further down the road.

Usually, this is not a problem. You will now put on a fresh set of guitar strings (after you have cleaned the fretboard of course :). The string gauge – how heavy or light your set of strings are – will determine the set up. Most beginners will in general use fairly light strings as these are easier to play.

The next step is to check that the neck is straight with the strings tuned to concert pitch. Almost straight, that is – you will need just a tiny neck relief in the neck (think of the guitar neck as being like a very wide and extremely shallow “valley”). If you press down one of the outer strings on the first and 12th fret, there should be just a tiny fraction of a gap between the string and the fret somewhere in the middle – around the 6th fret.

When you get hold the info at the page I mentioned, you should have no problem with doing this yourself. I would however ask you to be careful unless you know what you’re doing. The neck truss rod found in electric and acoustic steel string guitars will need to have just a quarter of a turn at the time most of the times. Go gently and use the proper guitar setup tool!

When the neck is set up properly, you may adjust the height of the bridge. On an electric guitar this is very easy. An acoustic guitar will need to have the bridge saddle manually adjusted. Again, this is not hard … when you have the right tools and know how.

The final step – if needed – is to adjust the depth of the nut (found between the guitar tuners and at the first fret). Here you will definitely need proper tools and knowledge. You do not want to file away on a guitar nut or cut the slots too deep!

What a relief!

This may seem like a lot of work and perhaps even something you will never manage yourself. Yes, often times you will need to have your guitar checked by a qualified repairer.

However, you can save quite a bit of time, hassle and money by knowing what to look for and what you can manage yourself. The guitar setup guide I mentioned is perfect for that, as well as teaching you proper guitar maintenance.

And rest assured – a properly adjusted electric guitar may well be worth a small investment in time or money.

I’d love to hear your comments and experiences about it!

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