How to fix a bent guitar neck?
I have an Ibanez Classical Acoustic Guitar and Ive had it almost 2 years but the neck is starting to bend. I heard that the bolt on the inside needs tightened. How much would it cost on average to fix it (cheapest please) or how can i fix it?
Im not using steel strings. I just bought new nylon ones. And I wouldnt fix it myself.
Classical guitars usually have no truss rod – if yours does, a guitar tech can adjust it for you. If you have a full setup done on the guitar it might cost as much as $50 – 75, but a quick rod adjustment should not cost anywhere near that.
In cases where there is no rod, as on most classicals, or in cases where the rod is not sufficient to bring the neck into proper adjustment, there are two ways to change the neck curvature. One is to remove the frets and plane the fretboard, and the other is to use heat and clamps to try and bring the neck into the right shape. Many repairmen feel that the heat/clamp method doesn’t work well or last very long. Both methods are rather expensive and not the sort of thing you would do on a beginner guitar.
You didn’t say which direction the neck is going, but significant neck warping on a 2-year-old classical is quite unusual because of the low string tension. Has the guitar been subjected to high temperatures or abnormal pressure on the neck? Is it under warranty by any chance?
P.S. Are you sure that the problem is the neck bending, and not a shifting in the area of the neck/body joint causing the neck to lean forward? Not that that’s any cheaper to fix…Anyway, I suggest you show the guitar to a repairman and see what he says after thoroughly inspecting it.
First off, trying to fix it yourself unless you know a bit about instrument repair is NOT a smart idea. I suspect the reason your neck is warping is that it is not re-enforced and you are using Steel strings on the guitar. Take the guitar to a reputable music store and they can help you find someone qualified to repair it. I doubt just tightening the neck bolt will help but it certainly could hurt at this point..
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Classical guitars usually have no truss rod – if yours does, a guitar tech can adjust it for you. If you have a full setup done on the guitar it might cost as much as $50 – 75, but a quick rod adjustment should not cost anywhere near that.
In cases where there is no rod, as on most classicals, or in cases where the rod is not sufficient to bring the neck into proper adjustment, there are two ways to change the neck curvature. One is to remove the frets and plane the fretboard, and the other is to use heat and clamps to try and bring the neck into the right shape. Many repairmen feel that the heat/clamp method doesn’t work well or last very long. Both methods are rather expensive and not the sort of thing you would do on a beginner guitar.
You didn’t say which direction the neck is going, but significant neck warping on a 2-year-old classical is quite unusual because of the low string tension. Has the guitar been subjected to high temperatures or abnormal pressure on the neck? Is it under warranty by any chance?
P.S. Are you sure that the problem is the neck bending, and not a shifting in the area of the neck/body joint causing the neck to lean forward? Not that that’s any cheaper to fix…Anyway, I suggest you show the guitar to a repairman and see what he says after thoroughly inspecting it.
References :
Ibanez makes a good guitar so this shouldn’t be happening… in my opinion, the best way to deal with this problem is to show it to an experinced friend who can advise you for no cost, and save you from getting clipped by one of these so-called "luthiers".
It seems every music store has a so-called "luthier" who is supposed to deal with guitar problems, and I’ve found that the vast majority of them don’t know beans from soup, rip people off, and usually can’t resolve even a simple problem at all.
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