How to keep your guitar in tip-top condition and extend its service life?

The guitar is a very popular instrument, it can express a variety of styles and emotions of music. However, if you don't take good care of your guitar, it can develop all kinds of problems that affect its timbre and feel, and even damage its structure. Therefore, as a piano lover, you should know how to properly care for your guitar to keep it in top condition and extend its service life.

This article will introduce how to maintain the guitar from the following four aspects:

Step 1: Temperature and humidity

Step 2: Clean

Step 3 Adjust

Step 4 Store

Step 1: Temperature and humidity

Temperature and humidity are the most important factors affecting the condition of the guitar. Guitars are made of materials such as wood and metal, which expand or contract in response to changes in temperature and humidity. If the temperature and humidity is too high or too low, the guitar will cause the following problems:

•  board weather-shack or deformation

•  wire loose or fall off

•  neck bent or distorted

•  the bridge falls off or break

•  strings rust or fracture

•  tone variation or playing

Therefore, the appropriate temperature and humidity is the basis of guitar maintenance. The ideal temperature of the guitar environment should be 19-25℃, and the humidity is between 42%-55%. Always pay attention to the ambient temperature and humidity of the guitar and avoid long-term exposure to the bad environment. It is the most important thing to maintain the guitar.

If the temperature and humidity in your area are unstable or often change with the seasons, you can take the following steps to protect your guitar:

•  use humidifier or dehumidifier to adjust indoor air humidity

•  use temperature and humidity meter to monitor the guitar the temperature and humidity of the environment

•  use special guitar moisturizer or desiccant to adjust the humidity inside the guitar

•  avoid to guitar in direct sunlight or near heating and heat source

•  avoid to put the guitar in the wet or dry place, such as bathroom, kitchen, basement, etc

 to avoid the guitar from the environment of an extreme temperature suddenly transferred to another extreme environment, such as from cold to hot or from hot to cold

Step 2: Clean

Cleanliness is another important aspect of guitar maintenance. Guitar in the process of use will come into contact with a lot of dust, sweat, grease, nail chips and other debris, these debris will adhere to the surface or inside of the guitar, affect its appearance and sound quality, and even lead to its damage. Therefore, you should clean your guitar regularly to keep it clean and shiny.

The steps to clean your guitar are as follows:

•  prepare a clean soft cloth, a special bottle of guitar cleaner, a screwdriver, a hexagonal wrench, a string changer, a new set of strings

•  guitar in smooth the surface of the table, with string changer will loose strings, and then removed

•  with a soft cloth to wipe the surface of the guitar, remove dirt and stains

•  use cleaner spray on a soft cloth, gently wipe the fingerboard of the guitar, silk, the neck, the bridge, piano class, be careful not to spray to the piano or electronic components

•  with a clean soft cloth to wipe the guitar parts, be careful not to leave stains or marks

•  with screwdriver and hexagonal wrench check whether each guitar screw loose, if loose, and tighten them

•  install new strings according to the original way, adjusted the sound

•  gently with a soft cloth to wipe the new strings, remove excess oil

The frequency of cleaning varies depending on how often you use the guitar. In general, the guitar and strings should be wiped down with a soft cloth after each use, and the guitar should be thoroughly cleaned and replaced with new strings every once in a while (such as a month or three months).

Step 3 Adjust

Tuning is the last and most complex aspect of caring for a guitar. The purpose of adjusting the guitar is to make the guitar achieve the best tone and feel, which involves many details of the guitar, such as the curvature of the neck, the height of the string distance, the position of the bridge, the accuracy of the pitch and so on. If you don't know how to tune a guitar, or are not sure if you can tune it properly, it is best to get a professional guitar technician to tune it for you to avoid damaging your guitar by your own mistakes.

If you want to try tuning the guitar yourself, you can follow these steps:

•  prepare a hexagonal wrench, a screwdriver, a string of a ruler, a modulation, a tuning fork or electronic tuner

•  put the guitar smoothly on your desktop, use a fork or electronic tuner strings will be transferred to the standard

•  with clamp of tone sandhi in fujian, and then measured with a ruler chord distance of 12 product (string) the distance to the product of silk, record this value

•  if string from too high (more than 3 mm, for example), you will need to reduce the chord distance; If the chord pitch is too low (say less than 2mm), then it needs to be increased

  
  

The method of reducing or raising the chord distance is achieved by adjusting the lower and upper chord pillows. The lower string pillow is the little piece of wood on the bridge that holds the strings, and the upper string pillow is the piece of wood that holds the strings on the head of the piano. Ok, so let me keep going. Here is my follow-up, you may refer to:

•  strings pillow height and the depth of the groove, these will affect the string from the high and low. The lower string pillow refers to the small wooden block on the bridge that holds the strings, and the upper string pillow refers to the small plastic block on the head that holds the strings. If the lower string pillow is too high, you can sand its bottom to lower its height; If the upper string pillow is too high, file its grooves to reduce its depth. But these operations require great care and patience, grinding a little at a time, and testing again and again until the desired results are achieved. If you're not sure if you can do it well, it's best to get professional help.

•  the degree of curvature of the neck, it will affect the intonation of the guitar and feel. The neck is the long strip that connects the head to the body of the instrument. It has a metal bar inside it, called the neck bar. The bend of the neck can be changed by adjusting the neck rod. Generally, the neck should be slightly arched back in the shape of a C, so that the guitar will not be broken in all tastes. If the neck is too straight or curved forward, it will cause the guitar to be in high grade, affecting intonation and feel. The way to adjust the neck rod is to twist the adjusting mouth on the head of the guitar with a hexagonal wrench. Clockwise is loose and anticlockwise is tight. Twist the neck a little at a time, and watch the neck change until the desired bend is achieved.

•  the bridge location, it will affect the pitch and tone of the guitar. The bridge is the part of the body that holds the lower string pillow. It has two screws to adjust its position. By adjusting the position of the bridge, you can change the pitch and timbre of the guitar. In general, the bridge should be right in the center of the guitar, so that the guitar will not be out of tune in all tastes. If the bridge is left or right, it will cause the guitar to be out of tune in some taste, affecting intonation and timbre. The way to adjust the position of the bridge is to use a screwdriver to turn the two screws on the bridge, move it a little to the left or right, and then use an electronic tuner to measure the pitch of the guitar until it is in the desired position.

These are the basic ways to tune your guitar. If you can master these methods and check and tune your guitar regularly, you can keep your guitar in top condition and extend its service life. Of course, if you are not confident in your technique, or have some complicated problems, you are better to find a professional guitar master to help you adjust, to avoid damaging your guitar due to your own wrong operation.

Step 4 Store

Finally, we'll cover how to store your guitar. The way your guitar is stored can also affect its condition and longevity, so you should be aware of the following:

•  using dedicated guitar guitar case to put your bag or a guitar, this is to protect it from dust, humidity, impact, etc. The influence of external factors. If you don't use your guitar very often, you can put a desiccant in the body and bag to protect it from moisture.

•  put the guitar in a temperature and humidity appropriate place, avoid direct sunlight or near the heat source. If you're going to be without your guitar for a long period of time, you can loosen the strings a bit to reduce the tension on the neck.

•  the guitar in a safe and stable, avoid collapse or fall. If you use guitar stands or hooks to store your guitar, make sure they hold it securely and don't let it shake or fall.

•  put the guitar in a ventilation and clean place, avoid mildew or bugs. If you notice any odors or stains on your guitar, you should clean it promptly and check for any damage.

These are some tips on how to store your guitar. If you follow these tips and check and clean your guitar regularly, you can keep your guitar fresh and beautiful.

summarize

This article covers four aspects of how to care for your guitar: temperature and humidity, cleaning, conditioning and storage. If you pay attention to these aspects and follow the instructions in this article, you can keep your guitar in tip-top condition and extend its service life. Of course, in addition to taking care of your guitar, you also need to use it regularly to make wonderful music, which is the meaning and value of its existence. I hope this article is helpful and I wish you a better and better guitar!