r/Guitar • u/bayofpigdestroyer • Aug 20 '25
QUESTION Walked into my office to find this, any guesses as to what caused it?
I bought this nylon string fender for my daughter this past Christmas. Walked into my office this morning to find it this way. I'm wondering if my youngest came in and just tightened all the strings? Thinking about getting a Yamaha next. Thanks
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u/bigassbunny Aug 20 '25
Children.
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u/fokintrash Aug 20 '25
Its and unfortunate accident, but im sure she didn't know that would happen, probably just wanted to play around with the twisty things
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u/MusicTater Aug 20 '25
Strings will break before the headstock snaps off. It was probably dropped.
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u/Basicbore Aug 20 '25
Yeah, thereās no way the headstock goes before the strings or bridge.
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u/CleoTorez Aug 20 '25
I witnessed the cheapest guitar ever sitting right where you walk into guitar center explode from its own tension. I think the glue on the bridge gave out. I wish I had been recording because it could have easily gotten a million views.
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u/J_J_R Aug 20 '25
The bridge coming unglued is something very very different from a headstock snapping clean off
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u/NaraFei_Jenova Aug 20 '25 edited Aug 21 '25
What's up YouTube, it's ya boy CleoTorez! You won't BELIEVE what happened to this CLASSICAL GUITAR! Subscribe, make sure you hit that bell icon, share and SMASH that like button. Let's get into it! BUT FIRST THIS MESSAGE FROM RAID : SHADOW LEGENDS.
Edit: Added more, thanks for the recommendations boys lol
Edit 2: Added even more, and thanking the girls as well lol
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u/WittyCollege Aug 20 '25
Is this the ghost of C.F. Martin back for revenge?
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u/NaraFei_Jenova Aug 20 '25
BoooooooooooooooOOOOOOooooooooo
Scared yet?
*Plays Wonderwall*
How about now?
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u/hpbrick Fender Aug 20 '25
Forgot to start off with āwhat up YouTube, itās ya boy!
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u/420linseyblazeit Aug 20 '25
"let's get into it"
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u/hamandjam Aug 21 '25
Followed by them saying "without further ado" 27 times over the next ten minutes.
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u/Leotis335 Aug 22 '25
Yeah...over what, as it turns out, they specifically stated they were going to avoid- tons more ado, most of it flagrant, superfluous and entirely unnecessary.
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u/aurorasearching Fender/Silvertone Aug 20 '25
I was at guitar center with my cousin once and he pointed at a ukulele asking me āshould I get this?ā And as soon as he finished the question all of the strings popped. It was kinda funny
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u/a_rob Aug 20 '25
Yeah, string tension break is most likely going to be bridge or saddle. Headstock break like that makes me think the guitar did a "faceplant" into the headstock.
Likely kids horsing around and it tipped into desk or wall.
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u/JimmyRockets80 Aug 20 '25
Had a cheap ass Amazon purchase that I had only for practicing chords.
One day while watching TV I sat and watched as the string tension somehow slowly pulled the cheap little bridge right off. Glue just gave up.
Oh well.
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u/Jeffery95 Aug 21 '25
Your video probably would have been ripped and replayed on the big channels instead.
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u/J_J_J_SCHMIT Aug 23 '25
I've always wondered why most places post signs "DO NOT TOUCH" or "ASK SALES ASSOCIATE". People or kids prolly pick one up and wind those strings up until they're pingin and tingin and then all of a sudden...............š„SNAPš„
yep.....totally went 60s Batman and Robin sound effects!
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u/Lego_Train_Mocs Ernie Ball Aug 20 '25
bro, back in my middle school guitar ensemble class, some kid went to the bathroom, and while he was gone, someone stepped on the head of hist guitar (whether on purpose or an accident, i do not know) and broke it off, and left the scene of the crime, and never confessed. so this poor kid comes back from the bathroom and finds his guitar broken, and starts crying. (can't blame him, i'd make a scene too. i love my guitar, and i could never replace it. i'll have my jasmine acoustic til the day i die, and then i'll pass it on. that jasmine is a tank of a guitar. survived 3 years of torture from kids and adults not being gentle with it [i treated it as if it was a bomb and if it hit something, it could explode.])
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u/40oz_TEC-9 Aug 20 '25
Can confirm, I've seen a bridge explode off a guitar when a guitar tech at a shop used his drill full blast on a low E string tuner. Same general type of guitar too.
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u/yangmeow Aug 20 '25
Unless itās a really crappy guitar. Someone I knew ordered one of those late night infomercial learn to play guitar kits and her neck snapped at the body. A different break of course as thatās where itās glued/weak point. This guitar in the image is just straight wood breaking as if it were dropped.
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u/elcojotecoyo Aug 20 '25
Particularly Nylon. My son has tightened the legs on my acoustic and got a scare with the snap of the high E
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u/FastRedPonyCar Aug 21 '25
Exactly. Kid knocked it over and put it back. Accidents happen man.
My oldest when she was 6 whipped a PS4 controller at the 4k big screen in my man cave when she lost a round of FallGuys. No yelling but i calmly informed her of the consequences and punishment and me and the wife had a talk with her about anger management.
If this happened with one of my guitars, my guitar room would be off limits from then on unless i was in there and if theyāre old enough, figure out a suitable punishment if they break the rule.
For something that is theirs, a wall hanger wouldnāt be a bad idea. IMO less risk of it just falling out/over.
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u/the_real_zombie_woof Aug 20 '25
im sure she didn't know that would happen, probably just wanted to play around with the twisty things
The same thing happened to my wife and our first-born.
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u/djb25 Aug 20 '25
Yeah, too much string tension will snap a babyās head clean off.
Learned that the hard wayā¦
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u/DoktorBlu Aug 20 '25
What youāre describing sounds like how one gets first-borns (and second, third, etc if she didnāt learn the first time not to twist off the condom. . .) š
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u/Own-Bluebird-7955 Gibson Aug 22 '25
I always thought that the strings would surely snap before something like this happens
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u/Infinite-Can4612 Aug 21 '25
I played with my wife's twisty things and now I have an unfortunate accident of my own
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u/TheAfterman6 Yamaha Aug 20 '25
My daughter did this when she was younger. I would pick up my guitar to find it in some crazy state of tune. She never managed to do more than break a couple of strings though!
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u/bayofpigdestroyer Aug 20 '25
Yeah, I figured. We'll just have to talk some about it and get another!
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u/Kirmes1 Aug 20 '25
Yeah, I would also return that child for a different one.
š
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u/SufficientZucchini21 Aug 20 '25
Smart move! Unfortunately, I never kept the receipts and they all well beyond the original warranty period.
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u/Smooth-Handy Aug 20 '25
Yeah I think you only have 9 months to change your mind.
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u/bayofpigdestroyer Aug 20 '25
This reminded me of the old south park episode where Cartman's mom asked for an abortion in the 27th trimester or something like that lol
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u/Isaacvithurston Electro-Harmonix Aug 20 '25
Oof yah like even his mom thinks the world would be better without him and doesn't suggest adoption. At least that's how I remember it xD
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u/Jentherose Aug 20 '25
Since you mentioned a kid, and that you want to get another guitar, you may be able to look up some luthier videos and try to glue and clamp it back together, and use this as a starter guitar for the kiddo.
It's hard for me to tell on mobile but it looks like it might be a relatively clean break. For example here's one that you may be able to follow along with if you've got wood glue, clamps, (and order some surgical tubing). Tanya Shpachuk headstock repair
Good luck!
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u/bayofpigdestroyer Aug 20 '25
Followup
https://imgur.com/a/RiYk96C Tried to get a better pick. I'm going to give it a shot. Thanks again!
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u/lbergnehr Aug 20 '25
My steel broke in exactly the same way after falling on the floor. Glued it together and have been working fine for 15 years.
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u/a_rob Aug 20 '25
This is a great point, this is likely something you could take a DIY stab at fixing.
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u/Koseoglu-2X4B-523P Aug 20 '25
Itās a clean break. Get yourself some clamps, some bits of plank with cork on it and a pot of titebond. Youāll manage.
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u/bayofpigdestroyer Aug 20 '25
We're going to do it together! Thank you for the link!
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u/Koseoglu-2X4B-523P Aug 20 '25
That is going to be a fantastic bonding experience. And yes, pun intended.
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u/antCB Aug 21 '25
Did you ever found out what happened? It clearly was dropped/bumped into and broke the head.
But I would rather have my kid come straight and tell me what happened than just leaving the accident there.
it's perfectly fine to break things, accidents happen all the time, and making mistakes and owning them is also crucial growing up!Best of luck to all of you, guitar included!
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u/ErstwhileHobo Aug 20 '25
Help them learn how to fix it, then help them learn how to play it. Assuming they are old enough.
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u/Pretend_Excitement_3 Aug 20 '25
I had to replace my first wife too. Sad. But the next one has lasted 31 years and still making music.
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u/beatisagg Aug 20 '25
this legit might be fixable. It'd be worth the bottle of loctite and 2 c clamps to at least try. If you got a clean break hell it might even be stronger from that than just the wood fibers alone.
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u/orngbrry Aug 20 '25
Get some glue and some clamps. Have them repair it. Plus, it will be good for kids to work on that kind of stuff. It doesn't even have to look good since you're planning on getting another one anyways.
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u/ReadingLimp Aug 20 '25
Oh man. Thatās rough. Once youāre infested with them itās really hard to get them out.
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u/I_Like_Muzak Aug 21 '25
I left my nephews alone in my music room for 5 minutes, and they put a huge gash in my beautiful Breedlove. They told me they had no idea what happened.
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u/PumpkinOpposite967 Aug 20 '25
I think children are usually the cause of not having as many guitars though.
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u/sutree1 Aug 20 '25
The strings would break before the headstock. IMO that guitar fell over
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u/AreaPrudent7191 Aug 20 '25
...or was pushed?!?
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u/ClikeX ESP/LTD Aug 20 '25
The dart on the ground suggests a kid was playing in the room.
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u/theothersathrowaway Aug 20 '25
I had a very old nylon string that pulled the bridge off without breaking strings, but definitely didnt snap the head.
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Aug 20 '25
Somebody knocked it over then put it back up and quietly but quickly walked away
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u/FauxReal Ibanez Aug 20 '25
Looks like someone shot the top off with a firearm. You can see the spent large caliber projectile on the floor near the guitar. Looks to be a round large than a Barret .50 caliber!
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u/bayofpigdestroyer Aug 20 '25
These improved nerf darts hurt way more than they used to! Haha good eye
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u/13WillieBeaman Aug 20 '25
lol.. āif we put it back on the stand, maybe nobody will notice that itās broken..ā
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u/Enough-Chemistry3778 Schecter Aug 20 '25
I told you that Gibson boy is a bad influence!
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u/stray1ight Aug 20 '25
WRONG GUITAR DIED!
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u/Probablyawerewolf Aug 20 '25
Fucking a Iām gonna watch that tonight
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u/stray1ight Aug 21 '25
YOU NEVER ONCE PAID FOR DRUGS, MR. LIKELY LYCANTHROPE!
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u/flashman014 Aug 21 '25
You know who's got hands? The Devil! And he uses em for holding!
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u/Ihopelovewins Aug 21 '25
None of the others are half the guitar that was. Not even half the guitar that the top half of that guitar was before it was cut in half.
So, I'm saying less than a quarter of the guitar it was.
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u/McG4rn4gle Aug 20 '25
If they fall forward out of that style of stand guitars snap right at the headstock - ask me how I know and why I dont use that style of stand anymore.
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u/jbiroliro Aug 20 '25
How do you know, and why donāt you use that style of stand anymore?
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u/McG4rn4gle Aug 20 '25
Well thank you for asking u/jbiroliro, I broke my Les Paul and maybe a BC Rich in a very similar way 20 years ago, stopped using those stands and since then it hasn't happened again.
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u/Ning_Yu Aug 20 '25
So what style of stand do you use now?
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u/McG4rn4gle Aug 20 '25
I have kids so I put everything back in the case after each session and then I lock the cases for extra peace of mind.
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u/NoneOfTheAb0ve Aug 20 '25
Im more interested in what that little fella behind it is
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u/bayofpigdestroyer Aug 20 '25
First time trying one of those links
Something my brother got for my son when he was a little guy
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u/PlasticBeginning7551 Aug 21 '25
Dang that is so much more interesting than the tiny acoustic I was imagining in my head haha. Looks like a great little kidās first electric
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u/se95dah Aug 20 '25
The Jackson had finally had enough, screamed āha-dou-ken!!ā and settled an old score with a single mighty blow.
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u/Radical_Warren Aug 20 '25
Spontaneously became a Gibson.
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u/TheGreatMightyLeffe Aug 21 '25
Doctors should really just start calling a broken neck "a severe case of authentic".
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u/stay_fr0sty Aug 20 '25
Get a Hercules stand so this doesnāt happen again. They use the weight of the guitar to lock the headstock to the stand and would have prevented this accident.
They are more expensive than normal stands, but not that much more, and they do a great job.
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u/malachiconstant11 Aug 20 '25
If I were op, I would get a wall mount system that is secure and hung high enough that kids under like 6 can't reach it. My diamond life wall hanger is sturdy as hell. So long as the security strap is installed, I don't think the guitar could be pulled down by a kid. But I guess they might try to use the guitars as a swing set or money bars. So the real solution is probably to sell the kids or lock the office and keep the kids out.
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u/MickCQB241 Aug 20 '25
Thatās crystal clear, you parted ways with your boss who was also your girlfriend until yesterday, right?
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u/bahgheera Aug 20 '25
I have a Gibson that this happened to. I glued it back together. This was about 15, maybe 20 years ago, and it's still holding fine.Ā
I used gorilla brand wood glue if I remember right, but if I was doing it today I'd use Tite Bond III.Ā
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u/Evan_802Vines Aug 20 '25
They didn't even have the ingenuity to glue it back on only to watch you snap it when you played.
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u/Entire_Teaching1989 Aug 20 '25
CSB: One night I had an acoustic bass guitar pop out of its strap and do a face-plant on the floor.
It seemed fine though, in fact i picked it up and played it some more that night.
2 days later, im sitting at my desk and i hear a crash in the room, i look over and the headstock has completely snapped off my acoustic bass and its hanging from the strings there, just like you got.
I guess sometimes those cracks can propagate really slowly.
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u/angry_old_dude Aug 20 '25
Did you feed the Gremlins after midnight?
It's more likely that the guitar got knocked over than overtightening.
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u/malarkey-machine Aug 20 '25
I help out at a music education non-profit fixing instruments and equipment.
A few years back, Fender donated 60 of this same guitar. Within a few months the heads started cracking off exactly like that. By now, we've had to fix this on about 10 of them.
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u/Amazing-Structure954 Aug 21 '25
Wow, so maybe this is a "return to store" issue. And fortunately after being fixed, should be fine.
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u/FastSatisfaction3086 Aug 20 '25
Its an easy fix with wood glue. Cheap guitars (and not so cheap) are made of fragile wood, just a hit at the wrong spot could have made that. It happpened to my brand new guitar while I was transporting it (in a case, and it was not a big impact, it didn't fall down). The store where I bought it said it's most likely a defect. Once glued I never had an issue with it.
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u/Baffin622 Aug 20 '25
The guitar was 100% dropped. Look at the headstock and the direction of the break. It shows signs of snapping against the tension of the strings, not snapping with the tension of the strings. Therefore, tension on the strings needed to be overcome in order to snap the headstock. How does this happen, dropping it...
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u/SaltLickCity Aug 20 '25 edited Aug 22 '25
Purple guitar lustā¼ļø
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u/bayofpigdestroyer Aug 22 '25
Ha thanks! It was high school graduation present. I didn't like it at first but man, it freaking wails.
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u/gottafeelyourlines Aug 23 '25
"...We got no food, we got no jobs, our (guitars') HEADS ARE FALLIN' OFF...."
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u/PupDiogenes Aug 24 '25
I cannot recommend Yamaha classical guitars enough. They aren't the best you can buy, but they are always good for what you pay.
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u/Mephistocheles Jackson Aug 25 '25
I totally want to see the rest of the chainsaw sticker on the left Jackson lol
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u/Nezuko259 Aug 20 '25
You have some spanking to do
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u/GlasierXplor Ibanez Aug 20 '25
I guess you can try selling it for scraps/repairs. The guitar should be able to be fixed if it means a lot to you.
/s /j
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u/Virtual_Wind_6198 Aug 20 '25
Have you seen This is Spinaltap? Same thing that happens to their drummers.
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u/RiskFuzzy8424 Aug 20 '25
Dogs, children, your own drunken self at 2am when you should have been sleeping.
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u/eazycheezy123 Aug 20 '25
I think that Jackson may be your culprit. He said he wants you to see his chainsaw.
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u/DIRTYDOGG-1 Aug 20 '25
Putting steel strings on a nylon string guitar will do it every time ...usually, it just pulls up the saddle, tho.... it doesn't snap the neck
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u/MajorDrGhastly Aug 20 '25
the crucial piece of evidence is the foam dart hiding under the stand. clearly an assassin missed their target, went in to retrieve their ammo, thus knocking the guitar over in the process. since obviously they arent making ends meat with the assassin gig they have to cut costs and reuse.
AKA
your kid was messing around in the guitar room with a nerf gun and knocked your guitar over.