Used guitar with crack in bridge. Buy it or run away?

[rllink]

My first question is why do you want an old beat up guitar with a cracked bridge? Then are you going to have to sink money into it or can you play it to your satisfaction as it is, or if you have to sink money into it is it still worth it to you to have an old beat up guitar that had to be repaired? If you can answer those questions and still want it, then it is probably worth it. In my case the first question would pretty much end it for me.

[Tenn]

Originally Posted by rllink

My first question is why do you want an old beat up guitar with a cracked bridge? Then are you going to have to sink money into it or can you play it to your satisfaction as it is, or if you have to sink money into it is it still worth it to you to have an old beat up guitar that had to be repaired? If you can answer those questions and still want it, then it is probably worth it. In my case the first question would pretty much end it for me.

This ^^^

While I do not see a brand name listed, I would prob not mess with it unless it had a brand name and tone worth the effort. I would especially not mess with it if I have never had to deal with guitar repair issues and/or if I was a relative neophyte in these types of repairs.

[rmp]

I would too be interested in what we are talking about here.

a 75 year old martin or gibson?

[Boozehound]

Too much unknown to really answer. I'm not afraid of repairs, assuming the circumstances warrant it.

If this is a cheap (or cheap-ish) guitar, I'd probably leave it alone. The cost to repair would be too significant a portion of the purchase price.

If it's an expensive guitar, it could be worth fixing depending on the discount you were getting. I'd want to know if the bridge plate is cracked, too. A lot of times when a bridge cracks across the pin slots, the plate cracks too. That's a more involved repair than just filling a superficial bridge crack with ebony dust.

Are they really going to ship it with no case? That would suggest to me that it's a pretty cheap guitar.

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by Boozehound

Too much unknown to really answer. I'm not afraid of repairs, assuming the circumstances warrant it.

If this is a cheap (or cheap-ish) guitar, I'd probably leave it alone. The cost to repair would be too significant a portion of the purchase price.

If it's an expensive guitar, it could be worth fixing depending on the discount you were getting. I'd want to know if the bridge plate is cracked, too. A lot of times when a bridge cracks across the pin slots, the plate cracks too. That's a more involved repair than just filling a superficial bridge crack with ebony dust.

Are they really going to ship it with no case? That would suggest to me that it's a pretty cheap guitar.

Maybe there is a case but it wasn't cited in either ad.

Thanks for the comments but I'm passing on it. I don't want to deal with a seller who says a guitar with a cracked bridge just has "cosmetic" issues. If the shop was closer and I could test drive the guitar then maybe I could negotiate with somebody.

Frankly I'm disappointed (actually shocked) with that description. I'm thinking the seller knows the guitar has problems and is just trying to offload it by dropping the price. As others have said, a cracked bridge could be only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to finding other problems.

[jacot23]

Originally Posted by Ralph124C41

Maybe there is a case but it wasn't cited in either ad.

Thanks for the comments but I'm passing on it. I don't want to deal with a seller who says a guitar with a cracked bridge just has "cosmetic" issues. If the shop was closer and I could test drive the guitar then maybe I could negotiate with somebody.

Frankly I'm disappointed (actually shocked) with that description. I'm thinking the seller knows the guitar has problems and is just trying to offload it by dropping the price. As others have said, a cracked bridge could be only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to finding other problems.

Would still be nice to know the Make/Model you're talking abiut.

[rmp]

Originally Posted by Ralph124C41

Maybe there is a case but it wasn't cited in either ad.

Thanks for the comments but I'm passing on it. I don't want to deal with a seller who says a guitar with a cracked bridge just has "cosmetic" issues. If the shop was closer and I could test drive the guitar then maybe I could negotiate with somebody.

Frankly I'm disappointed (actually shocked) with that description. I'm thinking the seller knows the guitar has problems and is just trying to offload it by dropping the price. As others have said, a cracked bridge could be only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to finding other problems.

between all the scammers trying to prey on the unsuspecting, and all those other nefarious folk who wouldn't be able to conduct an upfront transaction if their lives depended on it, it's becoming a real risk to try and do anything in the used market. Buy or sell.

It's pretty much all becoming nothing but a circus to me. ...Sigh...

[Ralph124C41]

bit of an update

Out of the blue after I sent an email to the seller, he or she sent me a note offering to drop the price of the guitar by about another 10 percent or so. But the note said it was being made to others who replied.

I didn't ask about if a case came with it.

However the seller again insisted ... politely I would say ... that the crack is still a cosmetic issue and shows no sign of spreading and that the guitar plays and sounds great.

I sent a second email showing a couple of online comments (not from this forum) about the potential problems of not addressing that cracked bridge. I also pointed out that a crack in the bridge .. I'm told ... somewhat reduces the resonance of the guitar. So I said that if the guitar sounds great now with the crack then it should sound excellent with the crack repaired or the bridge replaced.

I know you folks want me to name the guitar and the seller but I want to spare the seller from any potential embarrassment, especially if I said anything that is wrong. But the pics don't lie and the seller has said that it has the crack.

I also told the seller that just because a crack shows no sign of spreading now that doesn't guarantee it won't spread. I am also concerned that the crack extends past the high E bridge pin so that shows to me it is on a major fault line.

I'm going to an acoustic jam today and my luthier buddy may be there. If so I will ask his advice. The guitar is priced at a good point but I don't want to put out extra money for a replacement. Moreover there is no way to know until I get it if there is any other problem with it ... although the seller does accept returns so I would just be out the shipping both ways.

Thanks to all for being patient with me and not revealing all the information.

[Ralph124C41]

Update: I went to that acoustic jam and my luthier buddy wasn't there so I asked the others there. They all agreed that a crack as I described it was not a cosmetic issue.

But it's a dead issue. I checked again and somebody bought it. So I know never to deal with this shop ... or at least with this sales person.