Dad3353

I'd recommend getting two guitars, a 1/2-size for the tot and a 3/4 for the elder. That way, no fighting. Don't buy toys, the Yamaha range is a Good Recommendation. A guitar emporium will either have them in stock or can order them, and they're not that expensive (around £50 or so, I think..?). It's a Good Plan to get the kids interested, and, even if they don't pursue as ados, they'll have a head-start if/when they decide to take it further.

... and find a Telecaster 'ashtray'..?

Good evening (again ... ), Ed, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

Good evening, Ed, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share. Here's a link to the 'Introductions' section ... Introductions ...

Firstly: stop playing so hard for so long. Secondly: the 'standard' treatment to harden up finger tips is to dip them for half a minute in methylated spirit. It won't work wonders, however, if you're punishing yourself with over-zealous practise. Be assured that, as with most things, the fastest way is to go slowly. Practise, of course, but in sessions of, say, fifteen minutes, with a break, then another, then a break. Little by little (weekly..?) increase the session length by five minutes. This will give your fingers time to build up the toughened skin. Hope this helps.

Here are some on Amazon.co.uk ... The 'A-frame' ones will do the job nicely; I use 'em for, amongst others, a Samick 335 copy, much like your Tanglewood. No need to go out; get one delivered.

What guitar are you wanting to put on a stand..? Electric (model...)..?) Acoustic (Nylon... Jumbo...)..? Bass (Model...)..? I've got about half a dozen stands, for different instruments. What budget do you have..? Where are you..? All these things would help to give better advice.

The first purchase, after the guitar itself, should be, in my view, a case for it. Not necessarily a flight-case, nor even a hard case; there are soft 'hard cases' now that protect very well. I shan't disgrace myself by recounting all the accidents I've either had myself, or witnessed in family, friends and even professional players whereby the instrument is put down, sometimes even for a couple of minutes, and the unthinkable happens. Store the guitar in its case. Take it out to play, leaving the case open (if at home, certainly, and elsewhere if at all possible...). Put it down in its case, and take it up again when ready. A stand is an option, and is very convenient, but a case beats it every time, in my experience, in preventing damage, with the added advantage in protecting the instrument when travelling (between rooms, to a friends house, to an 'open-mic' and more...). The only exception, for my own 'go-to' guitar and bass, is the wall-hangers behind my armchair, where they're out of danger but ready to hand, but they have cases, should I wish to go anywhere with them. Just my tuppence-worth; hope this helps.

If we're open to other guitars than the high-flying Usual Suspects, I could present some of my guitars, just for their own sake, and recount a little of their story (how/why got them, what they're good or less good for etc...). Similarly, I have been learning, on and off, for decades, some aspects of guitar-playing; specifically trying to get to grips with chord/melody, and testing my receding memory with 'Misty'. I put the guitar down for a couple of weeks and it's gone; I have to start again (old age, you see...). Would a Beginners Guide to Guitar Pro or Drop 3 chords be useful..? Just a few from the top of my addled head...

I'm right-handed, but play drums 'lefty'. I have a younger brother, totally left-handed; he plays guitar (very well...) right-handed. Whatever comes naturally, plus practise, is the thing, that's all. All sorts of tricks concerning jack sockets; one that might be useful is to use a knitting needle, slid into the jack hole to 'fish out' the socket. Once guided out, put a nut on it and tighten it up, with fingers at first, then with a spanner, socket or, at worst, a pair of pliers, end-on. Tip: slide the knitting needle through the retaining nut before anything else, so that it's already in place when the threaded part of the jack peeps out. The hardest part is often obtaining a suitable jack socket retaining nut in the first place, though; good luck with that.

Good evening, BLO... With a guitar like that to learn on, you may consider yourself to be a very lucky person. Tanglewood have a fine reputation, and that model of guitar, in general (335 copy...) is extremely versatile. Be aware, if you're not already, that the instrument in the photo is the left-handed model. This may or may not suit you, depending on whether or not you are, yourself, left-handed. You may like to consider, as a beginner, seeing if guitar lessons are available in your area. It's the best way of making rapid progress, and avoiding troublesome bad techniques which are difficult to erase afterwards. For practise, it's better to do a few minutes each day than a couple of hours each week. Good luck with it all.

No, they're normal. They're not caused by the strings, they're cut in by the luthier, or maker, to allow the string to come out from the bridge at not too sharp an angle. No cause for concern; all is well with that bridge. Hope this helps.

Good evening, Simon, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share. I found your tip on pick-guard removal very useful, although I can't get the screws out of the narrow-neck jar I put them in (we don't have smarmy things such as ceramic ramequins...); at what point may I remove the gloves, please..?

So... Play in 'E' like everyone else. No, seriously... Try connecting the amp to a different speaker (disconnect the current speaker, temporarily wire up another cab...), just to see if it's the speaker freaking out or the amp. If it's the speaker: change it for another. If it's the amp: a bit more difficult to trace, but a good tech should be able to. Try tapping the chassis to see if there's a loose contact, same on the soldered joints, to see if there's a dry one (don't do this yourself, unless qualified to work on potentially lethal equipment...). I'll assume that the valves have been swapped out, one by one, because that's an obvious source of problems of the sort..? Once fixed, t'would be good to get news here; it could help others. Good luck with it; it's a fine amp.

Not the best, perhaps, but darned useful just the same..! I use one, for many tasks, especially when soldering (but not only...). If it's jack plugs you're soldering, the plug can be plugged into something (anything, really, as long as it's not turned on..!). A pedal, amp input, whatever... That'll hold the plug steady. Spring-type clothes pegs can help, too; one can even hold something in a peg, and hold the peg in the Rolson tool..! A small block of wood, with suitable holes drilled into it, can also make a support for stuff. I can't think of any 'magic bullet' device that does it all; a bit of 'System D', make-do and mend, and, of course, a big bucket full of Patience are about as best as it gets, along with the 'Helping Henry' Rolson tool.

Good evening, Chris... It sounds as if you're not all that in love with your guitar, which is a shame. It should be understood that Danelectro were, and still are, rather towards the 'budget' end of the market, with the advantages that that brings, and the inconveniences. It has a distinctive tone, but will never be a Gibson nor Rickenbacker. Personally, I wouldn't consider upgrades as such; repairs are a different matter. Leave the nut alone; it's doing its job and it won't improve anything to change it. Same for the bridge; once it's intonated, it shouldn't need touching often at all, and it won't be an easy job to find anything that'll fit. I'm puzzled by the mention of a 'boost' switch. If that's the seven-position pick-up selector, what's wrong with it..? What has the tone pot got to do with it..? If you can explain that a bit more, maybe a solution could be offered. Over to you...

Sorry, Dave, but your query is a bit vague. I presume that the guitar played correctly with its original pick-ups; is this so..? If so, and without knowing if there's anything special about the Vanson pick-ups, I'd have thought that a wire-for wire swap would give the same result, but with the 'Vanson' sound. What difference is there between the original wiring and what you now have..? I certainly don't associate a 'microphonic squeal' with earthing issues; that would more likely induce hum. Does this 'squeal' occur at all volume levels, or simply when turned up loud..? When you say the 'noise goes' when you touch the jack, do you mean the barrel of the jack..? By 'noise' do you mean this 'squeal'..? Any chance of a short video demonstrating this issue..? Apologies for the lack of assistance, but it does sound odd to me, described in your terms. Looking forward to your reply, hopefully shedding some light on the problem.

Ah. Duane Eddy. A very distinctive tone, only really found by using an electric guitar (and amplifier, naturally...). Most easily emulated with a semi-acoustic guitar (often referred to as 'jazz' , or 'arch-top' guitars...). There are many that would fit the bill, but they can become rather expensive when moving up-market. For a first guitar, it might be preferable to look for a good second-hand one, as long as its condition can be certified to be sound. An amplifier would give that characteristic 'twang', notably from a built-in reverb unit, and, even better, a tremolo. Not many entry-level amps have these features, so, again, shopping around for a good-condition 'vintage' amp might do the trick.No great power is needed; a five-watt valve amp will do a fine job. Another option could be the use of a pedal, such as the Boss 'Fender Deluxe' pedal, which has these features (and more...). Hope this helps.

Good afternoon, Colin, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share. I'm a drummer, so I shan't go recommending stuff; you have a very wide choice before you. What do you want to play, as that could have a bearing..? What budget..? Where are you located..? As a novice, would you consider finding a tutor (always a Good Move...), or go the 'self-taught' route..? Others will be along shortly with more replies to your request; it might help if you filled in a bit of background.

A good source for much in the way of guitars is StewMac, who carry a very wide selection of spares and parts. Their site ... StewMac ... ...lists 3-on-plate tuners of varying dimensions, clearly indicated; the ones linked above seem close. Prices vary, dictated by quality and production volume. You could try Yamaha themselves, directly; they may be able to help, although I suspect that, at the time of manufacture of your guitar, they were using pretty generic tuners anyway; nothing special. It's also possible to remove the tuners and replace with individual ones, either by cutting away the missing one and replacing only that, or changing the whole lot for separate tuners. Obviously this could affect any 'historic' resale value the instrument could have, but it's an option. Hope this helps.

I'm a drummer, but have several guitars, and several basses. I only have one drum kit though (one kit to rule them all...). In saying that, I do have a second kit, but I lent it out to a buddy, got it back and have not touched it since. It's pretty ropey. So, several basses, but only one 'go to' bass: my Hofner Verithin. I was gifted a fretless six-string, but that's been 'confiscated' by Our Youngest, who uses it exclusively, now. We also have a very nice Cort Fiver, originally for said Youngest, but he prefers the Sixer, so I use it when I want a different tone from the Verithin. There's another four-string; I don't recall the make/model, and can't be bothered to fetch it to see, but it's quite a modest little thing. Guitars..? No, I'd better not get started on those...

Good evening... Difficult to do this at a distance, but I'll try. I think you'd be best off working backwards from the jack. Un-solder the wire going to the jack and touch it to the amp input jack. Do you get a sound from any of the pick-ups..? Go through each switch position, any sound at all, or nothing..? If there's at least some sound, check carefully how the guitar output jack should be wired, and connect again the wire you took off. If there's still nothing, un-solder the wire from the volume pot, coming from the switch. Same test. If sound, check the pot and its connections. If nothing, disconnect one, then the other, tone pots. Sound..? Check the tone pot connections. No sound..? Check the switch connections. In general, I'd not be at all happy with solder joints like that. I don't want to discourage, and you're doubtless doing your best, but it's so easy to overheat and melt the inner wire, causing a short-circuit, very difficult to see. I can't do much to help with that except recommend using a decent iron (a Weller station is a Good Purchase...), to carefully strip the wires cleanly, and 'tin' them straight away. Don't 'pigtail' too tightly the outer braid; leave a bit of play where it separates from the inner core, and make sure that the outer is not heated for too long when tinning. It may pay to use a good flux paste for the braids and pot shielding; just make sure that it's flux for electronics, and not acid-based, such as used by plumbers. Hope this helps a little. Any more issues will need the use of a multi-meter (always a Good Purchase, too..!).