I've heard that some guitars dont "age well" and "warp" after a while. What is warping? Why does it happen? Can it be fixed? Is it a serious problem, does the sound quality deteriorate after the guitars been fixed for warping.. How can it be avoided? Thanks, Beo
Hi, There are many causes for warping, and mostly it's caused by unequal expansion and contraction in wood. On an electric the neck is the most susceptible to warp, but on good solid-wood acoustics the tops can also warp. Basically the wooden section deforms and loses its geometry, making an instrument difficult/impossible to play, bad sounding or a combination of the above. It can be caused by abnormal thermal or mechanical stress, poor choice of woods, bad design method or careless repair techniques. Instrument care is the best way to avoid it. Keep the instrument in an environment where you are comfortable. If it's too hot for you, it's probably too hot for your guitar. Don't expose it to the sun and don't leave it in a parked car or boot. Don't get it wet and use only the recommended string guages or if you want to use heavier strings, tune them down. You can usualy tell an instrument is warped if the wood appears deformed. A lot of guitars where the action is already low, will start buzzing for no reason at all even if you've taken all the rigth steps. Sometimes you will just get a bad instrument, which will warp even if you do everything right. Neck warps are quite easily fixed, a neck reset and refret is a pretty simple procedure even for the monkeys who call themselves luthiers in this country. Solid tops warps are a different matter, usually not fixable in severe cases, even by the best luthiers in the world. Want to read more? www.frets.com has good sections on warping and warp repair. www.taylor.com has some excellent documentation on humidity and warping.
Warping = twisting of neck. Imagine the body of guitar on one of your hand. The headstock in other hand. And twist the neck. Wring it like drying a towel. That is warping. Bowing = bending of neck. Imagine your guitar neck supported on two pillars. Now you attach a heavy weight in the middle. Your guitar nack will start beding down. This is bowing.
