Acoustic/electric - jack broke

The output jack on my acoustic/electric has been loose for a couple weeks until yesterday it finally came off. The 2 little washers came off and it slipped back inside the guitar...

I took all the strings off and tried reaching into the soundhole to pull it through the hole but I'm just barely out of reach...

I don't see any other way of getting it through. Has this happened to anyone else? Should I just shell out the cash and take it to a shop?

[Zaphod B]

Find a hemostat or some other long, skinny, two-jawed grasping tool. Use that to get inside the sound hole and push the jack back through.

It wouldn't hurt to get a small telescoping inspection mirror (auto parts store) so that you can see what you're doing in there.

Good luck!

Yeah, I tried a pair of tweezers but that didn't work too well, and that's about the only thing I have small enough to fit in there.

I almost got it just using my hand so I guess I'll just keep trying. Thanks.

Also, before I put it back in there, is there something I can do to prevent it from happening again?

[Zaphod B]

Does the jack have threads, with a nut on the outside of the body that holds the jack in place? If so, use either a star lockwasher, or some threadlock compound to keep the nut from backing off the jack.

[Zaphod B]

As far as getting the jack back out....

This may sound kind of screwball, but if the jack hole in the body is big enough to put a guitar cord through, and you have enough room inside the sound hole to plug the cord into the jack - inside the body - then you could fish the jack out with the cord.

[ggunn]

When this happened to me, I held the guitar vertically (neck pointing up) and shook it around until I could see the jack through the hole where it is supposed to stick out. I then used a short piece of coathanger wire to center it up until it fell out though the hole.

The other problem you'll have after you do that, though, is getting enough of a grip on it to where you can tighten the nut. I got mine back on a few times but I could never get it tight enough so that it would stay, so I finally gave up and took it to a guitar shop. The tech there had a little grabber tool that he stuck in theough the sound hole (he didn't even have to loosen the strings) to grab the jack from the back side. He tightened it once, four years ago, and it has never come loose since then. I think he charged me five bucks.

Thanks guys. I finally got it through. I stuck a small screw driver into the hole to use as a guide, so I could feel around where the hole was. Then I just pushed it through.

I also used a pair of plyers to tighten it so hopefully it will stay this time.

Thanks again.

[Zaphod B]

Don't let it happen again!

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For future reference, that is one of those things which is so quick and easy to fix that I just do it for free while you wait. At least in my shop (and I would bet in other shops as well), it is worth it to simply not have it taking up space in the shop. Usually takes me all of about a minute or two, and most of that time is spent collecting some of the tools I need.


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