An Ultimate Guitar Inspection Guide

English version (literal translation by AI), see original Chinese version below

This is a note from 2021. I believe it is the most detailed and most intuitive checklist on the internet.

Pick up the guitar and look directly

1. Whether the neck and body fit together; whether the joint edges are tight or protruding too much; whether there is looseness or repairs; whether there are finish cracks (the body may be cracked).
2. Whether the neck is straight relative to the body.
3. Whether the bridge is straight (for example, the six saddles on an ST may be crooked — a common issue on lower-end models) (LP-type includes two parts: the bridge and the tailpiece).
4. Whether the nut slots are even and the left-right spacing is equal.
5. Whether the pickups align with the strings.
6. Body dings, cracks, signs of repainting, etc.
7. Whether the neck is straight.
8. Neck relief.
9. Check whether the neck is twisted (S-shaped), bent, or cracked.
10. Fret wear level.
11. Observe whether frets are lifting at the edges or protruding; they can cut fingers.
12. Fret finishing quality.
13. Whether the tuning pegs are straight.
14. Whether there is binding, possibly delaminated.
15. Whether the string retainer is crooked.
16. Other various component misalignments.

Begin to feel / play

1. Whether adjustment of the truss rod functions normally.
2. Variation in tuning peg damping feel; uneven.
3. Whether it goes out of tune and the degree of tuning instability.
4. String action condition, or whether it can be adjusted to a normal action; guitars with an incorrect neck angle can never be adjusted to a normal action.
5. Octave tuning condition.
6. Plug into an amp and check whether each pickup position sounds normal and without noise.
7. Whether the input jack is loose or has bad contact.
8. Smoothness of the neck (how smoothly it plays).
9. Smoothness of the tremolo arm; whether it is rusty, worn, or cannot be adjusted smoothly.
10. Unusual string noise (nut or saddle lubrication insufficient).
11. Test with an amp; listen to the tonal differences between pickup positions and whether the phase is correct.
12. Check for dead notes or buzzing; smoothness of frets when bending strings.

Inspect with the guitar opened

1. Whether the two screws for the tremolo springs on the tremolo plate are oriented correctly.
2. Whether any screws are misplaced, penetrating through the body.
3. Whether the entire bridge sits correctly in its slot.
4. Whether the two studs that fix the bridge into the body (two-point type) are secured in the body.
5. Neatness of the electronics.
6. Neatness and quality of the woodwork.

Less important aspects

• Smoothness of plastic parts’ edges after filing.
• Whether the strap buttons are straight.
• Plastic cover plates, headstock cap, and other parts — correctness of screw placement.

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这是一篇来自于2021年的 note，我相信它是网上最详细、最直观的 checklist。

拿起琴直接看

1. 琴颈、琴体是否贴合，连接口边缘紧密与否，或者超出太多，是否松动或修补，是否有漆裂（有可能琴体裂）。
2. 琴颈是否正于琴体。
3. 琴桥是否正（比如 ST 的六个点可能会歪，低端通病）（LP 型包括两部分：琴桥和拉弦板）。
4. 上琴枕开槽均匀，左右间距相等。
5. 拾音器点和弦是否对准。
6. 琴体磕碰、裂痕、重新喷漆痕迹等。
7. 脖子是否笔直。
8. 琴颈余量。
9. 琴颈是否有扭曲（S 形）、弯曲或开裂。
10. 品丝磨损程度。
11. 观察品丝是否翘边、突出，会刮手。
12. 品丝处理程度。
13. 弦钮是否正。
14. 有包边，可能脱胶。
15. 压弦扣是否歪斜。
16. 其他各种部件定位错误。

开始感受

1. 调节 truss rod（钢筋）时是否正常。
2. 调音弦钮阻尼感是否偏差、不均匀。
3. 是否跑音及跑音程度。
4. 弦距状态，或是否能调至正常弦距。有琴颈角度错误的琴，永远无法调节至正常弦距。
5. 八度音状态。
6. 插上音箱，听听每个档位是否正常、无杂音。
7. 插口是否松动或接触不良。
8. 脖子顺滑程度。
9. 摇把顺滑程度，是否生锈、磨损或无法顺畅调整。
10. 琴弦是否异常响（上下琴枕润滑度不足）。
11. 插上音箱实测，听清楚不同档位的音色差异，是否相位正确。
12. 检查是否有死音、打品；推弦时品丝顺滑程度。

拆开琴看

1. 拉弦板拉弹簧的两个螺丝方向是否正确。
2. 是否有螺丝位置不对，打穿琴体的情况。
3. 整个琴桥在开槽里是否正确就位。
4. 琴桥往琴里固定的两个椎（两点式）是否能在琴体内固定牢靠。
5. 电路整洁程度。
6. 木材及木工处理的整洁程度。

其他不太重要的方面

1. 塑料部件毛边打磨是否光滑。
2. 背带扣是否位置正确。
3. 塑料盖板、琴头盖等部件的螺丝定位是否正确。