The Importance of Regular Guitar Maintenance
By Josh Connor
GUITARS ARE ALIVE.
Over my years of working as a guitar tech, I’ve seen many instruments that could have sounded and looked incredible if they’d just been looked after properly.
Guitars are living, breathing things. Wood expands and contracts under temperature and humidity, metal tarnishes over time and electronics
degrade. If you ignore it your guitar won’t only sound worse, it’ll feel worse.
YOUR TONE SUCKS, THIS IS WHY.
Tone not only comes with the gear you use, a freshly setup and restrung guitar can be the difference between clarity and unresponsiveness
Fresh strings alone can change the tone entirely. Over time strings collect dirt, oil, and in some cases rust which dampens their brightness and clarity. Going further into guitar maintenance, a well hydrated fretboard, properly adjusted truss rod, and correct intonation can all have a positive effect on sustain, clarity, and tuning stability.
SMOOTH AS BUTTER.
If your guitar feels awful to play, inspiration will soon turn into irritation. You won’t get the same enjoyment out of your instrument if it’s not smooth as butter to play. This is why it is important to maintain guitars as they aren’t just a plank of wood with some electronics, they live and breathe creativity.
HOW TO NOT BREAK THE BANK.
Smaller issues on your guitar, if ignored or go unnoticed, usually tend to snowball into bigger more expensive issues. This can range from dry fret board leading to cracking, dirty pots lead to irreversible corrosion, loose parts leads to lost parts. This is why regular checks on your instrument done by yourself or me is important in catching these issues early so it doesn’t cost more in the future, a £20 job can easily turn into a £100 job.
ELECTRONICS NEED LOVE TOO 🙁
Out of sight out of mind is not something that should be taken into guitar maintenance, if you can’t see it, all the more reason to check on it to make sure everything is in order. Most of the repair requests I get will be crackly pots and pickup selectors which can be easily fixed with some contact cleaner. A quick check in the back cavity that everything is secure and clean will keep you riffing for longer.
MY RECOMMENDATIONS.
· Change strings regularly (depending on how often you play).
· Hydrate the fretboard every 2 string changes.
· Check intonation.
· Occasionally check hardware and electronics.
· Get a professional setup (by me) at least twice a year.
