Are Cheap Guitar Tools On Amazon Any good?
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2020
- #knowyourgear #sharpenmyaxe #mcknightrepair
Here is some affiliate links to gear In the order it appears in this video
Guyker Guitar Fretwire Bender
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Fret and nut files that may not be good for either
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My Favorite Fret End File
www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools...
V&H Soldering iron tip cleaner wire-typ
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Melissa's Sharpen My Axe video
• The Ultimate Squier Up...
15 Pieces Guitar Luthier Tools Set
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The D Addario Kit I Love!
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Soldering Iron Kit Electronics, Rarlight 60W Adjustable
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Micro Mesh 9 Sanding Sheet Introductory Woodworkers Kit
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Know Your Gear T shirts
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D Addario Fret Polish Kit
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Dava Picks
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I use D Addario American Series Cables
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Stew Mac Tools like the ones I used in the video
Fret Bender
www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools...
My Favorite Fret End File
www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools...
Radius Gage Set
www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools...
Understring Radius Gage Set
www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools...
String Action Ruler
www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools...
Stew Mac is expensive but their Fret End Dressing File is a real winner. Your Sharper My Axe video with Melissa was a WINNER - gave me confidence to work on my own guitar. Kudos to Melissa!
I still use that copper sponge cleaner. A lot of times I forget to put solder on the tip when I turn the iron off and it oxidizes. That thing is totally worth $6.99.
Their fret crowning Z-file is the BOMB! $100 and worth every penny.
thanks to the assholes who voted for Biden that fret end dressing file has nearly double in price since this was filmed four years ago, one day Liberals will wake up and realize Trump wasn't lying about Fake News but they still lie about him daily
I definitely think this video is a great idea.. yes, PLEASE definitely do more stuff like this. It's informative & I mean info that newbies need to know. It'll help people from making some mega mistakes (like scratching up a guitar.. or God forbid, scratching up someone else's guitar). Tanx heaps Phil. You're a legend 🤘🏽
Phil: gives real reviews even though he can get commissioned off our purchases because of this video. What a man and thank you for the vid because it also works as a review of every tool you may need for guitar maintenance! Best wishes from Afghanistan, army strong
Thank You for your service Brother, AATW. As always be safe, if you can't be safe be deadly and dangerous. I served 27yrs in the Army myself.
You rock man! Was literally on amazon looking at tools when this video’s notification popped up! Lol please do more of these. Maybe put together a “best budget tool set” for us home diy-ers. Thanks Phil
Yep Phil.
What DP says.
I 4th. that!!!!
I’m on a really tight budget d/t being disabled and on disability. I have to do most all of my own guitar repairs, I don’t have much choice. I watch you do what I need to if I don’t already know how then I do it.
I like the idea of a complete tool kit, I have tools already that you showed in this video. Last Christmas was a guitar kinda Christmas lol
I am in the same boat.
I want tons of these videos! I'm just barely starting to work on our guitars, so getting reviews on tools is extremely helpful. I love your honesty.
I think a series like this would be very helpful to those just learning to adjust, maintain, or repair their guitar. Definitely would have watched when I built my first Tele last year. Great vid Phil.
Phil, thanks for all you do!!
I'm thinking of doing my own work on my instruments , and this video definitely helped a lot ! Your reviews on these products were on point ! Thank you for this video !
I have that same soldering iron and I've been using it for over a year without a problem. Also, if you haven't done a video on proper soldering technique already that would be enormously useful for a lot of us. Great video Phil, you have been so helpful for so many people.
Phil, love your videos! Sooo much info and helpful tips. Great idea for a video and would love to see more of it. I’m quite mechanical, so I’m well aware of quality tools and how they work and feel but I’m not a luthier and would rarely use most of the specialized tools needed so I’d love to hear all of your luthier hacks for gear and techniques.
Thanks man!
Been wanting to get into working on my own guitars. Didn’t really know where to start on my search for inexpensive tools, and your video helps immensely. Thank you Philip!
Really liked this one, glad you enjoyed it and I hope to see more like it.
Great video, really helpful! I've been looking online for luthier tools and I really appreciate you taking the time to make this review - A+😊
Finally- a thorough video about guitar tools. Awesome! Great video! Thanks dude for the review- this helps big time. Rock on!
Thanks, Phil. Another incredibly useful video for those of us who like to work on our own gear. I've gotten a lot of use out of several cheap needle file sets from Amazon, both conventional toothed steel files and the diamond grit ones. I'm sure the quality can vary quite a bit, so maybe I've just gotten lucky. I find them great for nut work and fret ends, with the finer diamond grit files being the most useful for guitar work.
Phil, thanks again for your professional advice!
Oh yes mate ! Do some more of these vids please. Fantastic !
Great reviews, thanks for going over these. I actually bought that soldering kit a year or two back, has been very useful for me. The soldering iron can get pretty darn hot, and has enough mass to heat up contact points properly.
Good job, Phil! A series of videos offering a practical perspective about tools and other gear that are inexpensive and readily available would be a great resource. I like that you included reasons both pro and con for buying something that seems like a good deal online.
GREAT video! Please keep doing videos like this Phil! Love it
Thank you for this post. It makes sense.
I really enjoyed this video. I am beginning to work on guitars and found this information very helpful. Keep up the good work.
Absolutely fantastic video today Phillip. I actually use a Ernie Ball tool kit and the rest are StuMac. I really like the soldier kit. I marked it on Amazon and the micro mesh. You didn't show a neck gauge but it was such a good topic today. Thank you
Great video with real thoughts on the products. This will likely save me quite a bit in the long run of just not buying garbage. I have been working on guitars for a long time, and mostly using more inexpensive products. Some of these I have looked at, and now know which ones to consider, and which ones to just ignore (for the ones I haven't already tried).
Very cool. Thank you for doing this one! 🎸❤️
Great video. I just subscribed. Thank you for your videos. I'm in the process of upgrading all of the parts on my LTD MH 400nt. I never knew how to set up a guitar before. But this time around i want to learn how to do it myself. You are helping me a lot with getting back into playing guitar.
I have the exact same soldering kit. For starting out it's great.
I got a solder iron tool from Home Depot with a fancy light embedded in it for $20 - pretty awesome to brighten up the task at hand. Nice video. 👍🏽
awesome! Thank You Phil, for everything
Was literally looking at kits this morning. Well timed and thank you!
Very helpful. Great as always.
Please do more tool reviews like this . Very informative !
Hey Phil, great video. I have purchased some of the tools you reviewed last year. Your spot on. I have also purchased numerous tools from Stew Mac and like them a lot. But I too am not sorry about saving several dollars on some tools. Super video, thank you.
Love this kinda stuff, thanks Phil!
I've got the solder tip cleaner - great little thing to have, comes in handy every time I do some soldering. I've also used the leveling blocks from Amazon (4-sided/multi-grit on an aluminum carrier). They work great, single or maybe 2- use items, but cheap and reliable.
Thank you for this video!
Great video Phil. I've been looking at some of these tools as of late. Trying set up my own personal work bench. Thanks for the video. A video on setting up a home work bench and what tools would be great. I also loved your string change tool box (tackle box) video. I actually have one of those in the works as well but most of those tools are ending up on the bench. Thanks for all your great videos.
This is an awesome idea for a video. I'd love for you to do more of these! As someone with your experience, it's nice to hear from you if something is good for the price or if it's something that you can save money on. I'm not very familiar with guitar tools, but I've used other tools and know that some things are fine to get form Harbor Freight, while others will just make your work more difficult than if you just got the better quality tool from the start.
As a someone who's looking to get into guitar repairing/customizing as a hobby I found this video really useful :)
Great video as always Phil, thank you. I think you are 100% right about buying quality tools.
Good sensible advice. Thanks
Thanks for this video Phil. Ive been buying one or two stewmac tools a year, but it's nice to know about alternatives
Excellent video, very helpful! Do more!
Thanks for doing what you do.
Thanks Phil, Another "A" video - A for Awesome. I'd like to see more alternative tools to Stu Mac or Crimson Guitar, ect. Not because I don;t like their gear (I do), it's just because the budget is a greater important to a hobby Luther - I won't make back the dollars spent on top quality tools. In all honesty I wish Stu Mac and others would produce a budget line.
What brilliantly infectious enthusiasm!
Greetings from NY! Great review Phil, very helpful indeed. Thanks! :)
I have been waiting for this video!! The micro mesh and the copper tip cleaner are in my cart. I use the micro mesh pads from SM for my frets but I'll try the sheets.
Great video! keep them coming. Fret crown & level tools
Couldn't find that great deal on Micromesh papers, was $73 for that same introductory kit when I checked, so the deal you got was gone. Decided to look at the long term and go for the Quality of a $53 Stewmac Fret Polish kit after hearing your concerns about the rusty, flimsy and sharp pieces you found in the cheap kits. Very helpful Vid!
Super useful info!
Thank you, Phillip - always informative and considered. Couple of things. First, Stewmac is very high-priced if you live outside the US because of their postal charges, but if you want the specialist stuff, there is, in my opinion, no alternative. For example, their nut slot files will last a very long time, if treated with respect. The Amazon alternatives are poor and the alternative approach of using welding tip cleaners (sold on Amazon and ebay as nut slot files) is a joke. There are ways you can save money thru Amazon and ebay, though. For example I would never pay for a fret end dress file or similar from Stewmac because a top quality 3 corner file comes in much cheaper and you just make a safe edge on it and you're done. Plenty of other generic tools sold by SM as specialist come in the same category. Similarly, I would never use fret protectors - you get just as good results with masking tape and care, and there are loads of tools you can make yourself if you have the ability to make a guitar (e.g. fretwire benders, spool clamps, bridge clamps (including that cute one the fits thru the bridge pin holes) radius sanding blocks, etc). Finally, I've used micromesh for years, and it is unbeatable but users should be aware that in the lower grits (e.g.1500) the grit is not equivalent to abrasive paper US or UK standards. There's a comparison chart at www.sisweb.com/micromesh/conversion.htm. - 1500 comes in at about 400 US standard. The real secret with micromesh is that the abrasive action is cutting rather than rubbing, so you get a much finer, more consistent scratch pattern, and this holds true even in the lower grits, so even though 1500 mm has the same grit count as 400 US there is no comparison between the quality of the results.
For someone on a low budget, such as myself, I've found that the four-sided nail polishing foam block you can get at the supermarket or pharmacy is a cheap alternative to a Micro Mesh set. It does a decent job of getting scratches out of frets and won't harm the fretboard, and doubles as a string riser if you need to spot level a single fret. They run less than two bucks apiece. I save my Stew Mac polishing set for the finishing touch.
I love this kind of thing Phil! please keep reviewing tools and how to use them.....
Phil! Loved this video! I'm currently amassing tools for my guitar and this was extremely helpful- as are all of your videos showing guitar maintenance and repair! Thank you very much!
Yeah, we get it!! You love everything StewMac.
Great idea I like this type of review.
Absolutely keep doing these tool reviews. Love stuff like this and is cool to see what's kicking around out there. Theres alot of crap out there. But from time to time theres a really good deal on something. So if not for the review of the tool or tools themselves, it's cool for a heads up that theres a great deal on something and save a few bucks. People like me who love working on guitars as much as playing them is a cool clip to check out
I would love to show tools that I have bought on Amazon, that work. I do not usually buy them in kits, with the exception of a soldering iron kit, (without multimeter), and a double set of under string gauges. I have some pliers that are as much as $26.00, (optional), used to remove screws that the slots are ruined, and some cutters that are inexpensive that I wouldn't do without. Notched straight edges that are thick and nice to use. There are tools from Stew Mac that just can't be duplicated. If you want professional results, you need professional tools.
I really liked this video, thank you for sharing your thoughts on these products. I will only use what you say is good. It would be good to see your recommendation on fret crowning files, with so many options out there it’s easy to buy a bad one. Thank you for sharing your knowledge Phillip!!
Thx! Great and informative video!
Thanks! This was enlightening...
Thanks for your great videos Phil!! I DO have the cheapo needle files (Harbor Freight) in my toolbox, and they are handy for loads of things. I also have a set of cheapo (Harbor Freight) diamond needle files, which also come in handy. However, I would never use any of them on frets or fingerboards! Another thing I use a LOT is Paper Mate pink erasers, which make great sanding blocks for small areas, and even fine for sanding out whole lacquer sanding whole bodies.
All of the things you talked about are why I haven't been able to pull the trigger on on the Amazon files and such. As always, helpful information, even if I'm coming at this a year late. Thanks, Phillip!
Love the technical stuff. Mount to the thing, clamp to the thing. You are so real, love your channel. :-)
The screwdriver in the Amazon kit has the phillips at the other end. Just push in the ring by the handle and you can withdraw the entire driver. The notches in the shaft enable you to lengthen or shorten the tool.
Great video! 👍👍👍
Thanks for sharing this with everyone.
Yep!
I use the same D'addario kit. Was a sweet Xmas gift.
Very cool. Thanks.
Great vid. Thank you
Quality tools, whether it be Stew Mac or any other, are always a better deal in the long run. "You get what you pay for" truly applies to tools of any kind.
That being said, Stew Macs shipping charges are absolutely criminal.
I’ve been an aircraft tech at a major airline for 35 years. We use micro mesh kits to polish very fine scratches out of aircraft windows. That stuff works great. Never thought to use it on frets. Thanks for the tip.
The lighting looks great, Phil
The baroque fret file (featured a few times on Dan’s GunsandGuitars channel) is pretty decent. I got the v3 and use it any time I’ve got fretwork to do.
Great idea for a video. I'd love to see more in this series.
Such a great video. Much needed not for the bashing but for the good stuff. Even the 50/50 stuff can be salvaged with a little to extreme amount of love/hate but that's the point. It's the stuff that no amount of Shineola could help that we need to know about. You've given us a perspective that we don't have as techs to ourselves, Lol. Esp. the UL label, something I'm not 100% positive I'd remember to look for so thanks. Look at you, saving lives! Plus you put the right kind of pressure on both ends of the market, nicely done. This really was a great video, Lol.
Awsome video!!! Let's do this again for sure. Thanks for everything you do.😁
I watched your "Ultimate Restring Toolbox " video, I purchased my tools according to you recommendations. Most of which I bought from ebay or Stew-Mac. I like this video of yours. I have been contemplating putting together my own "on the go" tool kit. I have a soldering iron very similar to the one in that kit. If people are on a budget, they can piece together a toolkit.
Best review video ever :) Thanks
Thanks Phil! Very cool. You mentioned you like tackle boxes for tools - please share the models you like for portability and larger.
Great video! Some of the Stew Mac stuff is definitely worth the price, their string action card/ruler is 100% worth the money over alternatives.
I just ordered that basic tool kit before I came across this video. I read the reviews first and seemed to be about what you said, a decent place to start. I also bought a guitar neck notched straight edge as well. Held off on buying the soldering iron though but I do need one so I think I will pick up the one you showed next. Not only to do setups but I also want to replace pickups and pots as well on my Epiphone SG 400. So a useful video, you should do more like this showing tools, and possible uses.
Thanks Phil. Ya reviewed two things that I just made ME think I was crazy, whew...Know Your Gear!
I'm with you Phil - I switched over to the Micro Mesh for all neck work (and yes, I also go all the way up to 12K grit for those who don't think it exists) , though I agree with your complaints on how long they last! I stopped using a full sized foam block - I cut it in half before I wrap the micro mesh pad around it - I find it contours better into the gaps between frets, and I get to use more of the mesh pad as a result.
I use my soldering iron and solder sucker every day, i built a princeton reverb clone, over the weekend, it sounds amazing, i did afew changes to the circuit and added a easy bias, i love building tube amp circuits, its adddicting to find my own tone.
Great video! Yes, more videos for a non-luthier, but not afraid to tackle anything type guy.
Just bought the soldering iron cleaner. What a great idea.
I bought a different soldering kit with the exact same soldering iron, and the iron itself sucks. I used it for about a week...it wouldn't heat up at low temperature settings, and then rapidly heated at the higher, then you had to turn it down or burn the tip! Not recommended!!! But all of the other accessories were probably worth it for me, as it came with a bunch of dentist picks, a nice tube of OK solder, that i can reuse the tube when I used up the solder in it. In addition to it, I picked up a flux pen, which makes life so much easier for doing soldering, just rub the pen on the part you want to solder, tin them, and away you go!
I also recommend the "copper brillo" pad style solder tip cleaner. Much better than the wet sponge ones of the days of yore.
When I bought the kit I cooked the tip on the first time I used it. Giant swiss cheese hole. Garbage.
Phil i really enjoyed this video !!!
Very old Vid, but I have to comment from England, GB. It is I wanted a fret end dressing file , just to sort out the odd frets that were sprouting, I didn't want to spend, £'s they wanted, for a dedicated one. So I had an idea. I bought a set of 10, cheap needle files off UK Amazon for £3.50.($4.4) They claimed to be diamond coated files. They certainly did have a very rough surface to them. It was the rectangular one, I wanted. (8" long. Blade, L4".x H 0.21" x W 0.003". ) Using my multitool, with the small sander attachment, and wet and dry metal sandpaper, I first sanded all the roughness off, on both sides of the file. Then sanded one edge smooth to a polish finish. Took me 10mins.
Now I have one perfect Fret end file, and 9 very useful needle files. All for £3.50 😊
Had some of these things bookmarded, happy I saw this. I will spend the money and get the StewMac tools. I have a Weller digital soldering station.
micro mesh is fantastic, we used it to polish the canopies on harrier jump-jets
I'm shocked you didn't acquire any of the cheep fret rockers or those cheep orange handle fret crowning files. Not something to be used frequently or in a professional atmosphere, but for the occasional DIY fret level and crown, I found them to be sufficient. Of course followed by a proper fret finishing process.
Micro Mesh abrasive pads, once you try these once on frets, you'll never go back to anything else unless you can't find them! Although, a Dremel/rotary tool with a polish wheel with some compound (while messy) can go a long way too.
For inexpensive files, I bought the Husky brand (Home Depot) 7 piece precision needle file set. It comes with two flat bar files, one of which I sand and polish both narrow edges smooth with a slight round taper and I use these as fret end files (out of box the edges are abrasive file edges).
The included 3 edge triangle files, these I use to establish the first groove lines when cutting a bone nut from a raw blank. Then, I buy those cheap thickness gauges you mentioned at the auto store. I then take the ones out for my string gauges and with a Dremel, cut small teeth and use these as bone nut string slot file/saws.
This video is great Phil! Would love for you to do more reviews of this sort of stuff, as I'm always not sure about the cheap stuff on eBay and Amazon ...can you extend this to actual _parts_ to please?
Also, I just want to shout out the "iFixit" tool kit, which I bought for computers and electronics, and its usual use-case.You get a whole bunch of screwdrivers and small sockets with a driver, some of which is useful for working on a guitar, but what I've really useful is the selection of small plastic prodders and pryers (like car interior tools, but smaller) and the three different needle-nose tweezers (one locks shut, the other two are manually closed). It's even got a set of free guitar picks! (lol, no but they are small triangular bits of plastic for wedging and offsetting parts, and they look like slightly oversized picks).
Showing basic to middle of the road tools is a great ideal especially for the beginning Luther or just the guitarist who needs to make repairs on the godo more of these
Phil, I got a set of those "diamond" files in a toolkit, I agree with you, I did not use them on the frets, I bought the StewMac fret file and it works great. Got this kit from China via E-bay, it has the metal action gauge and I added the Fritz Rule. It had a sanding sponge, I did not use that either. I did buy and I do like the aluminum rectangle bar with different grit sandpaper on each side. It did a nice job fret leveling a new kit neck.
Also, I liked the metal ruler to check for neck bow. StewMac has one that is very nice and expensive. But since I am not a professional, the $18.00 one from E-bay works for me. You are right to watch the edges of the metal it can cut paper. Hint: you can get a dish scrubber, stainless or copper at the food store or even a dollar store to clean your solder tip. I have a professional solder station with temperature control, that is a great feature on the pencil iron, I cringe when I see someone using a 200 watt solder gun on sensitive electronics, too much heat can "kill" the parts. 60 watts is fine for guitar work. The wet sponge also cleans the tip. Use electronics solder flux and keep your tip tinned, they last longer that way. Like your channel!
awesome review
Thanks Phil. You're a good man
With respect, I worked at an electrical/electronics shop some years back and they used Radio Shack soldering irons and de-soldering tools - i.e. the 'solder suckers' as you call them and we never had any issues with them even though they weren't the best our shop could afford. Some things one does not need to go all out on when it comes to tools likea simple screwdriver, especially when one is a hobbyist in this field. I have invested in Fret Guru tools and bought a Skyscraper fret leveler yet I agree with you on the cheaply made tools with burrs on them.
yeah do more of these videos! very helpful. you might do a video on using some of the lesser known tools and show us how to properly use them. so the people that want to d.i.y. have a good reference. (and don't mess up a guitar to bad) lol
My in-laws got me a kit for Christmas. It was kind of a combo of the feeler gauge, under-string radius gauges, and the kit you show here in the pouch. Most of it is pretty good, but those same nasty files came with it. I don't know much, but I knew to toss those as soon as I saw them. :) Great info, Phil.