older acoustic guitar intonation problem

[Arthur Sweeney]

Hello,

I’ve noticed that with my Brazos acoustic
guitar (model BA-50);

I tune the guitar as normal, using

a good chromatic tuner, but then

play a certain chord, and it sounds

a bit out of tune.

So, open strings tune fine, but

some fretted strings go sharp.

 Do you know how, when you check

the tuning by hitting the low E string

on the fifth fret, and then the string below

it open (A), they should sound the same (be in tune)?

Well, I will tune the guitar to perfect tune with the tuner,

then go check it with that trick, and some pairs of strings

will be right on, and others will not.

So, I am assuming the intonation is off, but how do you

alter that on an acoustic? Electrics have screws to turn, etc,

but acoustics seem unalterable.

Any idea?

Also, the action on the guitar is a bit high, not sure

if that is related or not.

The guitar is from the late 1980's. I do not believe

it is worth much, so I'd rather not sink alot of money

into it if possible, although I really do like the guitar.

Thank you,

-Arthur

[Arthur Sweeney]

I just came back from the luthier. He took a closer look at it,

and discovered some loose/raised frets. I did not even notice,

but then, I am not a luthier! Anyway, wouldn't you know it,

the frets with the worst buzz are the ones that are coming loose.

He is going to reset/reglue them, and it should fix the problem

once and for all, and I get to keep my guitar! Woohoo!

 

[Dave Fox]

heh-heh.....watch this--he'll end up with $500.00 into anyway by the time he's done  :)

[Arthur Sweeney]

No, he gave me a quote of only $40. Yes, $40.
He is going to reset only the loose frets.
I asked him if the quote would stay at $40, and
he said in his many years of business, he has
never gone-up on the initial quote.