Way of getting rid of smell?

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Hello! First post here. So my http://imgur.com/a/JzXYq smells. Bad. Like, so bad that I have to keep it in a case otherwise I get a headache from the smell. For reference it was in a basement for roughly 5 years in a very old and decaying case. The Guitar has come out with very little wear apart from the awful smell.

How can I get rid of the smell?

As a secondary question I'm looking to sell it as the original pickups are gone and I'm not a fan of the sound of the replacement generic ones. Where should I be looking to sell it, and would $1000 be a decent price to ask for?
 
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Hello! First post here. So my http://imgur.com/a/JzXYq smells. Bad. Like, so bad that I have to keep it in a case otherwise I get a headache from the smell. For reference it was in a basement for roughly 5 years in a very old and decaying case. The Guitar has come out with very little wear apart from the awful smell.



How can I get rid of the smell?

As a secondary question I'm looking to sell it as the original pickups are gone and I'm not a fan of the sound of the replacement generic ones. Where should I be looking to sell it, and would $1000 be a decent price to ask for?

I would try an ozone generator, if I could rent one or borrow someone else'. You could also get a couple of replacement HB-1s from the Guild store. You might like those better. also, your link seems to be bad.
 

Neal

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Can you describe the smell?

Dirty socks? Armpit? Dog poop? A wino's breath? Something unrecognizable left in the fridge for way too long?
 

GAD

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Can you describe the smell?

Dirty socks? Armpit? Dog poop? A wino's breath? Something unrecognizable left in the fridge for way too long?

A dirty dog? A wino's socks? A dog's armpit? Something recognizable from a cheese shop?
 

GAD

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Back to the topic at hand, I had a guitar case delivered that REEKED of smoke. Here's what I did:

Sunlight has an enormous effect on odors. Open it and leave it in direct sunlight for a day or three (bring it inside or raccoons will end up living in it). Also take it in if it rains or the raccoons will be pissed. Note that the sunlight may bleach the color, but that usually takes longer.

Sprinkle baking soda in the case with baking soda, put in a fresh dryer sheet, then close it up and leave it in the garage for a week.

The combination of above made a HUGE difference and I no longer gagged when I opened the case.
 

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The guitar is a S-100 and it is the guitar that smells, not the case. I think that leaving it out of the case would probably help. Maybe in a unused room with the window open?
 

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The guitar is a S-100 and it is the guitar that smells, not the case. I think that leaving it out of the case would probably help. Maybe in a unused room with the window open?

Definitely. The sunlight thing works, too, but it will age a lacquer finish in short order.

The guitar that came in the case I described above smelled, too. I hung it on a hanger I have next to a window and left the window open. With a nice cross-breeze the smell was greatly diminished in a matter of days.
 

richardp69

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There's also a product called Ozium which I've used for bad case odors. Not sure it could be applied directly to a guitar though. I found it on Ebay at a fairly reasonable price. It worked quite well on the cases I had issues with.
 

rampside

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The guitar is a S-100 and it is the guitar that smells, not the case. I think that leaving it out of the case would probably help. Maybe in a unused room with the window open?

I would agree. Because it's a finished solid body, it should be an easy fix with a cleaning and airing it out. Maybe it's the old strings that smell (if they haven't been changed).
 

merlin6666

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With basement storage and decaying case I would be concerned about mold spores that can be a serious health hazard. I would wipe the guitar down with diluted chlorine bleach, dry it well, and let it air dry for a few days before setting and stringing it up again. Discard the case.
 

Quantum Strummer

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I had a smoke-soaked SG for awhile last year. I let it sun itself each evening for a few weeks, also leaving it out of its (cheap cardboard) case during that time. Killed the smell dead.

-Dave-
 
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