How to buy a used guitar without getting burned

Buying a used guitar can be one of the smartest ways to get high-quality instruments for less money. It can also be one of the easiest ways to waste hundreds or thousands of dollars if you don’t know what you’re actually looking at.

The problem is not that used guitars are risky.
The problem is that most buyers don’t know where the real risks actually are.

Cosmetic wear is easy to see. Structural, mechanical, and functional problems are not. Photos rarely tell the full story, sellers often repeat claims they don’t fully understand, and many issues only show up once a guitar is under string tension and actually played.

This guide explains how experienced guitar techs evaluate used guitars, what matters, what doesn’t, and how to avoid the most common and expensive mistakes.

Start with this mindset

The biggest mistake buyers make is assuming that used guitars fall into two categories: great deals or junk.

In reality, most used guitars fall into a third category: fine instruments with hidden costs.

Your goal is not to find a perfect guitar. Your goal is to understand what problems are normal, what problems are fixable, and what problems should stop the purchase entirely.

Once you understand that difference, buying used becomes predictable instead of stressful.

What condition descriptions usually mean and don’t mean

Terms like excellent, very good, or player grade are not standardized. They are subjective and often optimistic.

A guitar described as excellent can still need fret work, nut replacement, tremolo service, or electronics repair.

Condition labels mostly describe appearance, not function.

Always assume that setup-related work is separate from condition unless it is clearly documented.

The parts of a guitar that matter most

When evaluating a used guitar, focus on these areas first. Cosmetic flaws are secondary.

Neck and truss rod

The neck is the heart of the instrument. Problems here are the most expensive to fix and sometimes not fixable at all.

You want to know whether the truss rod functions smoothly, whether the neck is straight under string tension, whether there are twists or uneven relief, and whether the truss rod has already been maxed out.

A guitar with cosmetic wear but a healthy neck is usually a good candidate. A guitar with a compromised neck is often a money pit.

Frets and fingerboard

Frets are consumable parts, but they are not cheap consumables.

Look for heavy wear in the first few positions, deep grooves under the plain strings, flattened crowns, and buzzing that cannot be corrected with setup alone.

Light wear is normal. Severe wear means future expense.

A recent setup does not fix worn frets.

Hardware and moving parts

Bridges, tuners, tremolos, and tailpieces wear over time.

Pay attention to sloppy tuners, bent saddles, stripped adjustment screws, and excessive corrosion on moving parts.

Locking tremolo systems deserve special scrutiny and are covered in detail elsewhere on this site.

Electronics

Electronics problems are common and often misrepresented as something that just needs cleaning.

Watch for scratchy pots that don’t improve, intermittent signal loss, pickup height screws that no longer adjust, and non-original wiring with poor workmanship.

Electronics are usually fixable, but they affect price and expectations.

What photos never show you

Photos are useful, but they hide more than they reveal.

Photos rarely show neck relief under string tension, truss rod function, fret height and wear depth, tremolo knife edge condition, internal wiring quality, or micro cracks that move under stress.

This is why asking the right questions matters more than asking for more photos.

Questions every buyer should ask

Before buying any used guitar, you should be comfortable asking whether the truss rod adjusts normally in both directions, whether the guitar has had fret work and what kind, whether all electronics are original and fully functional, whether anything structural has been repaired, whether the guitar stays in tune under normal playing, and whether there are any issues that affect playability right now.

Vague answers usually mean vague knowledge.

Red flags that should slow you down

Some issues don’t automatically kill a deal, but they should pause it.

Examples include claims that it just needs a setup, uncertainty about the truss rod, statements like never noticed that before, guitars that have been sitting unplayed for years, or pricing that is said to be adjusted without explanation.

Experienced sellers explain problems clearly. Inexperienced sellers often hide them unintentionally.

When walking away is the right decision

Walking away is part of buying used guitars well.

Situations where walking away is usually smart include a non-functional truss rod, severe neck twist, structural cracks that move under tension, heavily worn frets priced as if they are fine, tremolo systems with multiple worn components, and sellers unwilling to answer basic functional questions.

There will always be another guitar.

Why inspection standards matter

Two guitars of the same model and year can differ dramatically in value depending on condition, wear, and prior work.

This is why professional inspection matters and why blindly trusting listings is risky.

Every used guitar I sell has been evaluated under string tension, adjusted, played, and checked for the exact issues described above. Not because it sounds good in marketing, but because these are the things that actually matter once the guitar is in your hands.

Where to go next

This page is the foundation. The pages below go deeper into specific problem areas that commonly catch buyers off guard.

Used guitar inspection checklist
What photos never tell you
Red flags and deal breakers
Questions to ask any seller
When a setup claim is meaningless

If you are buying a guitar with a locking tremolo, start with the Floyd Rose buyer guide next. If you are looking at Japanese or vintage imports, the MIJ buying guide will save you time and money.

If you want to avoid the gamble entirely, you can view my current inventory through my Reverb shop, where every instrument has already gone through this evaluation process.