Guitar Repairs
Going to The Lutherie, a guitar repair shop, is a lot like going to the dentist and the auto mechanic at the same time.
“You haven’t been flossing, have you?”
A high-quality acoustic guitar needs to be kept at a high level of humidity. We are on our way out of one of the driest years we’ve had in a long time. (I have no data to support that, it’s just a hunch.) I’m not very good at keeping my guitar humidified. It is a discipline (keeping the humidifier wet, storing it in a humidified room) that I just haven’t gotten myself into yet. It’s a lot like flossing. You get yelled at by guitar guys when they see how dry your guitar is. A dry guitar is a fragile, weak guitar. Mine now has a wonderful crack on the top “face” of the guitar because of it. It costs a lot of money to have that repaired.
“I just found 12 other things that need to be done while we’re at it.”
A well made, well played guitar needs to be well maintained. This is the first time in my 3 years of owning the guitar that I’ve taken it in to get looked at. It needs six new frets, a new saddle, and new nut, among other things.
“That’ll be $350 to get her back in top shape…”
Ugh.
this has been one of the dries years…. people’s hair shows it too.
Also, if your friend who is kind of a grease monkey keeps telling you to get your car in for an oil change (it’s been 2 years) and to get that clunking sound checked out, it’s a good idea to listen instead of ignoring him until it’s really expensive. Also, a little bit of routine maintenance (tune-up) done a few times a year will keep the car running better and end up costing less in the long run.