The Journey of Used Instruments to the Store Shelves

We at TCGAKKI have had a store here in Shin-Okubo for over 30 years. Thanks to our customers, we now handle over 16,000 musical instruments annually. One question our staff gets surprisingly often from customers is, “Where are the used instruments?” We answer that question with pride.“Everything here is used.” These are the words that make us happiest. Even customers who are used to shopping at stores that sell only New instruments feel right at home when they visit us. They may not have the shine of a New instrument.

While there may be scratches, stubborn rust, or a bit of tarnish, we polish, repair, and tune our instruments every day with a focus on maintaining a level of cleanliness that rivals that of new instruments. Sometimes we come across a guitar so filthy that we’re tempted to exclaim, “Was this thing buried somewhere?!”—but even then, we polish it relentlessly, envisioning the day it will find its way to its next owner.Have you ever seen instruments lined up at a secondhand store? Guitars with warped necks, rusty strings, and a thick layer of dust. We often hear jokes—though they’re hardly funny—like, “I bought one at a secondhand store, and the repair costs ended up being more than the purchase price.” But at a specialty shop, it’s only natural to properly set up and thoroughly polish each instrument. As a specialty shop, we go beyond simply selling products; we strive every day to provide added value through our commitment to “cleanliness” and the “peace of mind that comes from a properly set-up instrument,” ensuring our customers are satisfied.

The staff at TCGAKKI not only possess extensive knowledge of used instruments but are also maintenance professionals—and we all love instruments. To ensure you can purchase that guitar in the best possible condition, we adjust each one with a high level of technical skill and a warm heart.

Now, let us walk you through the process from when a guitar arrives at our store until it’s displayed on the sales floor.

The guitar we’re featuring today is a ’74 Fender Stratocaster. As you’d expect from an instrument that’s about 35 years old, it’s showing its age.

There’s a lot of grime, especially around the bridge and on the surface of the fretboard.

First, let’s play it.
Checking the condition of the neck and the electronics before cleaning and adjustment allows us to take the appropriate steps during disassembly.

First, I’ll wipe off the general dust with this.
A household cleaning product called “Quickle Wiper.” It’s incredibly convenient—just a quick wipe and the dust stays gone!

First polishing step: Remove the general grime from the entire instrument.

Next, remove the strings.

I also remove the tuning pegs.

Taking the whole thing apart?! ...It might seem like a lot of work at first glance, but it’s more efficient and yields a better finish than trying to polish between the pegs.

Second cleaning step: Polish everything from the headstock and body down to the smallest parts.

TCGAKKI carries two types of cleaning cloths.

The one on the left is a standard “silicone cloth.” The one on the right is the “Hyper Micro Cloth.”

Here are the cloths

Can you see the difference in the fineness of the weave?

The Micro Cloth is made of ultra-fine fibers processed using advanced fiber technology, and the fibers themselves are designed to easily wipe away dirt.

I think it’s a good idea to keep at least one Micro Cloth at home.

I carefully polish each peg one by one.

For the fine details, I use a cotton swab.

It ends up this shiny. The difference compared to before polishing is obvious at a glance.

Next, I’ll polish the frets. I’m using a professional-grade compound called “Solar Rubbing Compound Extra Fine,” which has a very fine grain.

I mix it well before polishing.

To prevent the compound from seeping into the gaps between the frets, I apply a small amount to a cloth and polish each fret one by one.

For rosewood fingerboards and the like, I use masking tape to prevent the compound from seeping into the wood’s pores.

Check it out! This high-speed polishing! It makes even the worst rust shine like new!

I also scrape out any debris from between the frets.

You can clearly see how much shinier it is compared to before polishing.

I also remove the pickguard and polish it. I never cut any corners.

Dirt can get trapped between the pickguard and the body as well.

We polish it carefully to avoid damaging the finish.

There you go. It’s clean now.

We also verify the dates on the stamped gray bobbin pickups and the CTS pots. Ceramic capacitors, CRL switches… we thoroughly check all the original parts as well.

Dirt tends to accumulate on the sides of the pickups.

We carefully remove the dust, taking care not to cut the wires.

We also check the electrical system.

Next up is the bridge.

We’ll take this apart as well. Be very careful not to lose any of the small original parts!

Polish the screw heads.

I remove dust and grime from inside the springs.

We’ll polish all six strings’ worth of screws, tuning pegs, springs, and other parts.

The bridge plate is shining like this, too!

This took about 40 minutes.

This completes the general polishing work. The darkening on the fingerboard has almost completely disappeared.

The third polishing step: For the final finish, polish with wax.

Be careful not to rub too hard—this could damage the finish! This brings back the luster.

It’s not just a matter of stringing the guitar and calling it a day…

We’ll adjust various aspects, such as the neck, string height, and intonation.

We do this with the next owner in mind—to make the instrument as easy to play as possible and to bring out its full potential...

A guitar polished and adjusted in this way must pass the rigorous inspection of our “Drill Sergeant”—er, I mean, our Head of Guitars—at THE Used Instrument Shop before it’s allowed on the sales floor.

This first inspection unfortunately resulted in a “fail”… The adjustments were good, but the polish needed a bit more work.

So strict!

Time for a fiery re-polish!

How about this time!

After all that work, it finally got the OK! And so, it was finally allowed to take its place on the store shelves.

Author: Matsui (Store Manager, TCGAKKI)

Joined TCGAKKI after serving as store manager at Kyoritsu Gakki’s Shinjuku branch. As a store manager, he has been responsible for a wide range of genres, including the vintage guitar floor, electric basses, amplifiers, and parts. He is one of the industry’s leading experts in electric guitar sales, deeply trusted by renowned musicians. His favorite band is B’z. His hobbies include horse racing and golf.

Qualifications and Achievements: 20 years as a musical instrument appraiser; has contributed as a writer and supervisor to publications such as Guitar Magazine

▶︎Read his articles here:
Real Closet Classic ~ Unused 1961 Strat
1951 Fender Nocaster “PROTO”
A Journey Through the History of Tuners with Famous Brands
Column on the History of Pickups and the Trajectories of Great Figures