Care of Guitars

[Andre S]

I am definitely choice 2, I know its a guitar and it shoud get aged, naturally, but i dont go around dropping things on it and purposely being careless with it, like a drunk rocker might be after a gig........ neither am I overly careful about getting scratched, here and there, once it isnt serious, and its not everywhere it doesnt bother me.

[Pink_Floyd]

I think general wear through use is going to happen as well as the odd dink - option 2 I think. There are however people who either just don't care or have too much money and watching them with a guitar is scary, even if it is a $100 thing.

[LPguitarman]

I know it will get scratches, but I don't like to see them. I do everything I can to avoid scratches. I polish her after every use and keep her in the case.

[Silverbursted]

O.C.D. in the worst way.

 

[dmeds]

I'm with Silverbursted. Is there such a thing as O.O.C.D?

[retrosurfer1959]

I'm not careless but it a tool not a oil painting. except for my BrockBurst R9 with the one piece top I treat it like the art it is.

[Aaresz]

I am very careful to treat all my guitars like the works of art they are. I covet them all.

That being said no matter how careful I am, stuff happens.

[Tim Plains]

I try not to be careless but I have dropped the bridge on my R8 & SG. Both have small dings.

Sh*t happens and they're not going to stay in perfect condition forever, there's not point stressing over it.

[Phoenix]

When I first got my LP I was super super careful, but unless you plan on only playing without a belt, on your couch, never standing up, and only playing without a pick.. you will inevitably get dings and scratches over time. But in my opinion the player builds the guitars character.

[Rushview]

My Fenders get scratched.

My Gibson gets worshipped.

[Big Bill]

I'm generally careful with my guit-fiddles, a scratch here and there is hard to avoid and is accepted. Now, for my LP, that is a different story, I pamper that thing like its a new born baby. Of course I just bought it a couple of weeks ago, so the romance is still hot and heavy.

[djroge1]

I'm not totally careless with them so they all eventually get some sort of dent or ding. However, I never have and never will worship them.

 

My attitude towards my guitars is that they are just wood with some metal attached to be used as a tool to make music.

[pohatu771]

That depends on the guitar, really. I'm not careful at all with my $100 acoustic - I've stripped the finish, taken a large chip out of the back along the binding, there's a broken back brace, and the top is bulging quite a bit for a guitar its age. If I open the case someday and it has a huge crack in the top, I won't be heartbroken. I'll keep it around, as an "art piece," and probably replace it with a very similar model... it is a good guitar, after all.

 

Meanwhile, the Martin, that I go to great lengths to treat well, takes damage on its own. I picked up the case one day and found that it wasn't latched, so it came out and put two rather noticable marks on the top. I've patched them up the best I can, and there's not much else I can do short of refinishing it. It breaks my heart to see them, but I'll live with it. Fifty years from now I'll remember how they got there.

 

Pretty much, if I don't do some sort of damage to a guitar within a month of owning it, that means I'm not playing it enough. I put the headstock of my Casino into the ceiling fan (no damage, but it scared me), I ran the Strat into a doorway, almost repeated the Martin incident with my classical, and bought the two older Gibsons in pre-damaged condition.

[callen3615]

I know it will get scratches' date=' but I don't like to see them. I do everything I can to avoid scratches. I polish her after every use and keep her in the case.[/quote']

 

+1

[Bender 4 Life]

Sh*t happens and they're not going to stay in perfect condition forever' date=' there's no point stressing over it.[/quote']

 

+1 on that !!

I don't abuse them, but i'm not afraid to handle them, I play with "gusto" and am pretty sorry about keeping them clean.

They're cased when not in use, and get buffed with a clean terry-towel occasionally, but thats about it.

[Julie7x]

2. Unless you keep it in the case forever, it is BOUND to get a tiny ding or scratch on it someway or another. All Gibsons are a work of art and need to get the respect it deserves by not smashing it at the end of concerts I say

[NeoConMan]

I am very careful to treat all my guitars like the works of art they are. I covet them all.

That being said no matter how careful I am' date=' stuff happens.[/quote']

Same here, I chose option one.

I'm not a complete anal pr!ck with them but I will NOT tolerate carelessness and I let few people play them.

None of my guitars are perfect, but a few are pretty close - and as much as 50 years old.

 

If I kept them in a bank vault, maybe they would be safer but I do enjoy them.

They all get regular playing time, if nothing else it allows me to inspect them for any sign of trouble brewing.

I would rather keep everything adjusted than pull one out of a case after 5 years and find the neck bowed for archery.

 

That being said, I haven't played a gig in a couple years and when I did we were ALL insanely protective of our guitars.

 

 

I apply the same standard to them as everything else I own.

Guns, vehicles, my home....

 

Now and then I might get a door ding on one of my trucks but it's not because I squeezed in between two Mommy-Mobiles.

 

 

 

Of course, I did have an issue with the finish on my goldtop last week after I let Ted Nugent handle it....

:-)

[Loco]

My Fenders get scratched.

My Gibson gets worshipped.

 

Why would you treat a Fender with less respect? Don't understand - sorry!

[Rushview]

 

Why would you treat a Fender with less respect? Don't understand - sorry! [/quote']

 

Because old battered Tele's look cool.

Because old battered Les Paul's don't.

[Loco]

Gotcha. Well used Les Paul's just look neglected. Fair enough!

[Boston004681]

i wanna see mine get aged nice and natural. ill admit, i freaked out when i got my first ding, (which was really more like a deep gash) but after that, ive been extra careful with mine. so i polish it every time i finish playing, and make people wash their hands before they play her. including me.

 

EDIT: my money says AXE® picked choice no. 3.

[jnastynebr]

I am between 2 and 3. Guitars are for playing, and built to take some abuse. My Fenders tend to get pretty beat up, but my LP has its share of dings, too. Its not like I keep it in the trunk under the spare, but sh*t happens, and guitars get scratched.

[G Unit]

Choice 2 for me. Mine is 1980 LP Std.

 

It is kept clean and in a case when not is use but it is for playing, not for looking at and mine has a bit of wear because of this.

 

I have let my 11 year old son play it at a couple of school concerts under pain of loosing certain parts of his anatomy if these are any dings not put there by yours truely.

 

It's for playing not hanging on a wall.

[Mad Rax]

My Fenders get scratched.

My Gibson gets worshipped.

jeje, I agree! My Gison gets treated very well but my Epiphone gets beaten to hell. She's full of scratches. She's like that from the day I bought her, she was only for display but sounded great, much better than the one they tried to give me in the store which was the same model and colour but absolutely new. No scratches but no soul. I treat my axes as they tell me too, some receive treatment 1 and others treatment 2 or even 3.