The String Action Gauge: Stop Guessing at Your Guitar Setup

You pick up your favorite guitar, and it just feels… off. Photo: TT Zop, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons You know the feeling. You’re lost. You tweak a saddle, play a chord, and try to remember what it felt like a minute ago. Was that better? Worse? You have no anchor point, no objective … Read more

The Erlewine ShopStand: The Rock-Solid Hub Your Workshop is Missing

This is it: the glorious, rock-solid monster that anchors your entire workshop and changes the game forever. It puts a decisive end to the familiar, frustrating reality for so many of us: that slight wobble you try to ignore, the cluttered benchtop that forces you into awkward angles, the constant, low-level fear that one slip … Read more

End Fret Buzz: Pinpoint Problem Frets with the Fret Rocker

That frustrating, tell-tale buzz. You know the sound. Whether it’s an open string ringing sour or a note dying out on the fretboard, persistent fret buzz is a common plague for guitarists. It ruins tone, compromises playability, and can drive even the most patient musician to distraction. The main culprits are almost always frets that … Read more

Mini Cam Clamps: Precision Clamping for Fragile Pieces in Tight Spaces

You’re deep inside your guitar, trying to clamp a loose brace, but your traditional clamps are fighting you every step of the way. You squeeze, pump, and wrestle, but the clamp either won’t do up tight enough, or the little rubber pads keep sliding off, forcing you to constantly check and readjust. Even worse, if … Read more

A Luthier’s Only Vise

If you’re currently using a clunky, old woodworking vise with foam pads taped to the jaws to hold your precious guitar—stop. Just stop. That improvised setup, that slight wobble you try to ignore, that nagging fear in the back of your mind every time you apply pressure is the single biggest unaddressed risk in your … Read more

Rescue Your Guitar’s Broken Truss Rod: A Pro’s Blueprint for Serious Hobbyists

You reach for your truss rod wrench, but it just spins freely—or worse, gnaws away at a mangled, stripped nut that simply won’t budge. Photo: Detlev Dördelmann (Wickler), CC BY-SA 2.0 DE, via Wikimedia Commons This isn’t just frustrating; it’s a critical injury to your guitar’s neck, compromising playability, action, and tone. For the dedicated … Read more

Master Your Guitar’s String Spacing with Pro Precision

You’ve replaced your worn-out nut, the string height is dialed in, but something still feels off. Photo: Martin Hesketh from London, UK, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Perhaps your bass strings feel cramped, your fingers stumbling over each other on chords, or certain single-note runs feel surprisingly awkward. The real problem? Inaccurate string spacing. … Read more

Is Your Guitar Nut the Bottleneck to Perfect Tone?

You look down at your guitar’s nut and it’s a chaotic landscape. Photo: TorrentFox at English Wikipedia, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons The low E string swims side-to-side in its slot while the G-string binds and pings when you tune. Even worse, the high E has worn down so far it’s buzzing open against … Read more