SpiritusZabaione said:
If you're ever getting one, do get one from a good brand.

A good brand doesn't always guarantee a good guitar, especially in the second hand market which is rife with poorly modified and damaged instruments.

I bought a cheap one for $50 that had a bad neck/fretboard and played only up to the 4th fret. Got nothing from it but spare parts in the end.

That sucks. Did the neck have a forward/back bow?

On the other hand, had an old Fernando CG-1003(?) acoustic loaned to us from years ago and it still plays good (with a couple of strings and worn out gears replacement)

It's always good to learn basic guitar maintenance.

Voltage-controlled said:
That sucks. Did the neck have a forward/back bow?

I don't remember it going bending/bowing forward or backwards. Just the frets being placed haphazardly: 4th fret was sticking up so pressing down on the next frets do nothing but play the same tune. Plus, some frets aren't finished smoothly and had sharp ends!

Quite the learning lesson!