I bought myself a guitar last week. It wa quite cheap and on special but I wanted something I could dangle off a swag without feeling too precious about it. I was prepared that it would be not the sweetest of tones and possibly a little less comfortable to play than the better ones. I WAS NOT PREPARED FOR THE EVENTUALITY THAT IT WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE TO TUNE!!!

An owner of a fretted instrument will be aware that the frets are spaced at musically/mathematically calculated distances to make a scale. As with this one. However, behind the first fret, where the nut should be, was one more fret, a gap of 3/16 of an inch and THEN the nut. [!!!!?] That meant that every fret was in the wrong place and it was impossible to tune it so that open and fingered strings together made a harmony.

I took the strings and nut off and cut back the fingerboard until the nut rested at the start of the first spacing where the unexpected fret had been. I did this with a chisel and a complementary steak knife, a very ignoble procedure and one which I was gutted to have to perform on a musical instrument. I did achieve a passably finished surface on which to put the nut and it now tunes well and sounds fine for what it is.

More than anything, I was annoyed that it is conceivable for an instrument maker to offer something on sale that is so blatantly unfinished, or so shoddily made as to not perform the job it is designed for.

Thankyou for this steam valve.
Clean Supper