smells like smoke

[zaskar1]

hi all

i am considering buying a used Taylor 914ce from the local GC.
i have played it several times and it has always sounded great.

trouble is that i noticed that it smells like it has been in a smoky environment.
i guess i had kind of hypersensitive to cigarette smoke and the guitar smells
like it.
is there anyway to get rid of this smell?
i believe that it will dissipate with time, but the smell kind of bothers me.

any experiences with such a situation?

thanks in advance

z

[Von Beerhofen]

Hi Zaskar,

I think you can only treat the lacquered parts with guitarpolish. This will usually dissolve a micron of the lacquer but since it's in a shop they've very likely already given it such a beauty treatment.
Bare wood and the inside can only be sanded down to expose fresh wood, which is very expensive as the guitar needs to be opened. Only very rare and expensive vintage guitars may undergo such treatment and should only be done by experts.
Sandblasting comes to mind or somehow using sand on some vibrating table, leaving it there until you start smelling fresh wood. I don't think it's good for the structural integrity of the guitar though.
I'd wait for another one or ask for an additional discount.
At the right price you might be able to do something with some parfumed tissue or a drop in a spot where it won't do any harm. It will eventually be absorbed into the woodpores and your guitar will for ever smell like roses or daisies, .
This is just creative thinking and not an expert opinion, perhaps the luthiers have a better idea.

Ludwig

[Cindy]

My first suggestion is to ask to see the guitar's case. Most likely it will have an odor, too, but at least you'd know what you are up against. Then I would contact Taylor's customer service to see if they have any suggestions on how to deal with this situation. After all, they do all kinds of repairs on all brands of guitars.

Did you ask at the shop if there is anything they can do? If they know you are seriously interested, they might be able to try something.

The UTGF cannot be responsible for any problems incurred from suggestions that may go south, and I certainly wouldn't recommend having the guitar's inside be sanded down (sorry Ludwig, but that is too extreme for me). The inside of the guitar is porous which means the smell can penetrate beyond just the surface. There may be products which absorb odors, but to do it safely, I'd ask Taylor what they do in this type of situation.

[M19]

Is it urban myth, or have I heard that if you put a dryer sheet or two (Snuggle to the rescue!) in the cavity and leave them there, you'll get reid of the smoke, smell? Make sure you like the smell of the dryer sheets though! 

Cindy's right about the case, too. It'll be worse than the guitar.

[Steve]

I think you can only treat the lacquered parts with guitarpolish. This will usually dissolve a micron of the lacquer but since it's in a shop they've very likely already given it such a beauty treatment.

Taylors aren't finished with laquer. The finish is polyester-based. Also, the guitar is in Guitar Center as opposed to what most of us would consider a "shop". The guitar probably hasn't had that beauty treatment...

Bare wood and the inside can only be sanded down to expose fresh wood, which is very expensive as the guitar needs to be opened. Only very rare and expensive vintage guitars may undergo such treatment and should only be done by experts.

Wow.

Yeah... no.

I've never seen an instance where anything like the above has ever even been attempted, much less accomplished, and I've been at the "guitar thing" for a long time.

There's simply not a single reasonable thing about any of that...

Sandblasting comes to mind or somehow using sand on some vibrating table, leaving it there until you start smelling fresh wood. I don't think it's good for the structural integrity of the guitar though.

Stunning...

I'd wait for another one or ask for an additional discount.

If the guitar smells like smoke, it's probably a used guitar, in which case waiting for a new one would mean the price would be much higher. Asking for an additional discount is certainly a way to go, although, the guitar may already be priced with the smokey smell in mind...

[TaylorGirl]

They had the same issue at the uke forum I belong to. Maybe you can get some ideas from this:
http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?66677-cigarette-smoke&highlight=smoke+smell

[mgap]

I had a guitar come to me stinking of cigarette smoke, it was quite noticeable, so I used Fabreeze on the velvet in the case multiple times.  I then set the guitar in front of a Ionic breeze air conditioner for weeks, with the case just behind the guitar.  Check your humidity in the room so you don't dry out the guitar.  That did the trick for me, but don't expect results quickly, this will take time.

[Edward]

hi all

i am considering buying a used Taylor 914ce from the local GC.
i have played it several times and it has always sounded great.

trouble is that i noticed that it smells like it has been in a smoky environment.
i guess i had kind of hypersensitive to cigarette smoke and the guitar smells
like it.
is there anyway to get rid of this smell?
i believe that it will dissipate with time, but the smell kind of bothers me.

any experiences with such a situation?

thanks in advance

z

You definitely want to make 100% certain that the smell is from the guitar.   Mention to the sales guy that you're serious about the guitar, but want him to do a quick surface polish of the entire guitar (they've got spray and towel in the store) which should get rid of any surface oils, sweat, odors, and the like.  Once cleaned on the outside, then take the guitar into a different room, play and see (ahem, smell) what you can.  If it still smells, it is very likely from inside the guit as the bare wood has absorbed whatever odors it has been exposed to ...which if it's a non-gigged-looking 914, could only be explained as having lived in a smoker's home.  Smell the fretboard and sound hole carefully as these are your areas of unfinished wood.

With a guitar on a wall that smells off, there really is little recourse for you.  It if bugs you, pass.  Some odors can be neutralized with ozium (I've used this stuff, works pretty well and leaves no smell later), and I've heard that charcoal also works, but never tried that myself (though I'd personally avoid trying to cover it up with dryer sheets or sprays ...that typcially just changes the smell rather than killing it).  Then there is always the sunshine method, which obviously should be done judiciously with an acoustic, but the sun's warmth (no, not hot!) and UVs can do lots to dissipate what smells have made their way into the inside pores of an acoustic. 

Bottom line, though, is there are no guarantees here.  So either pass on it, or you better love the guitar and be accepting of whatever smell you have as all odor-removal is a roll of the dice.

Edward

[maritimer]

I had one that reeked and the case was worse.  I have one of those air purifiers with the ozone thingy in it.  I put the guitar on a stand and the case opened on the floor in a small room and let the air purifier run with the ozone setting on max.  I let it run continuously for a week.  Then I put that odorizer carpet powder in the case (left open) and let it sit on the velvet fur, again for a week with ozone thing still cranking.  Vacuumed it out and put both in the room again for another week of ozone.  Poof, smell was gone.  Would less time work?  Maybe.  I was away for a week and half during that time so I just let it go. 

[zaskar1]

hi all

thanks for the suggestions, yes to be clear, this is a used guitar. it is 6 years old,

i should check out the case, perhaps they left it in a smoky environment

i will be calling Taylor this morning, and i did call the GC, but the kids that work there arent
really good about forwarding messages.  usually i just get put on hold and end up dropping
 the call myself.

i will call CB Perkins, the LGS who does have real luthiers, Ken and Eric and ask them what can
be done

sanding or removing the finish is out of the question, i think if i had to go to that extreme, i would
get something else.

i do like the odor of dryer sheets and fabreeze, so perhaps that is an option

regards
z

[zaskar1]

hi all

i just talked to taylor, they said that the smell would dissipate over time.  to accelerate it, i could leave the guitar outside in indirect sunlight, provided it is not too humid or dry. 
most likely the case is the cause. 
i should not store it in the case, as the guitar is picking up the odor
from its environment.

there is nothing that they would recommend that i do to the guitar, no chemicals, sanding or refinishing.

the case can be sprayed with frabreeze or aired out.  maybe dryer sheets
 
if that doesnt work, i can always buy another case, they are fairly reasonable

regards

z

2012 Taylor 814ce TB
very old Goya G-10
Fender AS Telecaster 2006
Fender Hot Rod Deville
Fender Acoustisonic SFX

[michaelw]

cedar chips in a mesh (delicate clothes dryer) bag or a few
drops of rosewood oil on a sponge put in a plastic bar soap case
with a few holes punched in it may  speed up the process a little -
it all depends if you like the smell or cedar or rosewood, of course

[Terry]

For an extreme case of musty odors and smells, here's a fix from master luthier Frank Ford using rice and baking soda
http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Quickies/RiceClean/riceclean.html
I tried this on an old Guild that I bought off of ebay a number of years ago. Helped considerably with the musty odor.
Terry

[RGtheMusicGuy]

Sunlight like taylor mentioned works great, and really is the thing I've found that works best.  Coffee Beans also work pretty well... but then your guitar smells like coffee which I guess could be good or bad.  Another option is to get some activated charcoal odor absorbers.

Most of the time with smells it's more in the case than the guitar.  I've found taking the guitar out of the case and setting it on a stand for a couple days will air it out and get rid of most if not all the smell.  It's getting the smell out of the case that can be a hassle but it can be done at least with plastic or tolex cases.  Tweed I think is a different story, I got a really bad smelling tweed case one time and I couldn't for the life of me get the smell out.