Sabre HT 2022 with issues

[Brent Something]

Hello everyone,

I’m new to the board and just wanted to get your opinions.

I was offered this guitar for $2,000 due to a couple of issues. It has pretty severe fret sprout, and since the frets are stainless steel, I know that can get a bit pricey to address. There’s also something going on with the electronics — the pots are scratchy and rattle when changing volumes.

Aside from those issues, the guitar plays amazing. I would plan on having a professional fret dressing done and taking it to someone to look over the electronics, but I wanted to see what you all think before moving forward.

Has anyone here dealt with stainless steel fret sprout or scratchy pots on this model? I’d really appreciate any insight or experience you’re willing to share.

 

[beej]

Is the guitar stored in a particularly dry environment? When the fretboard dries up and shrinks, the frets can protrude slightly from the sides of the board. Once you increase the humidity, this usually becomes a non-issue. That said, it's not the worst idea to get someone to file them down slightly while they're sprouting. Shouldn't really be too expensive a job.

Scratchy pots aren't really a big issue. Spray a small amount of contact cleaner (DeoxIT D5) into the bottom of the pot housing (where it opens up) and then work the pot back and forth a number of times, quickly. That'll get rid of any built-up deposits and eliminate the scratchiness. This is something that can happen to any pot over time and is really easy to fix.

Not sure what you mean by "rattle". Like a physical rattle? Maybe the nut on the pot shaft housing needs to be tightened? Again, really easy fix.

If you really like the guitar, these aren't big issues to solve. These are the sorts of thing you'll have to deal with on many used guitars, regardless of brand or price.