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storage question

Posted by Keith on February 9, 2015 at 6:38pm in Building Secrets, Tips, Advice, Discussion

Ok, I searched the forum and didn't see anything but as the collection grows and I wind up with far too many of these hanging on the wall, do I leave them tuned up or release the tension?  with no truss rod my inclination is detune but please let me know what you think.

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  • Keith February 11, 2015 at 10:56am

    around here Larch is the best firewood.  Maybe I ought to quit burning it and start whittling!

  • JL February 11, 2015 at 7:18am

    dictionary.google.com

    Hardwood - comes from broadleaf trees like maple and oak

    softwood - comes from conifers like pine and spruce

    Yew (a softwood) is harder than Basswood (a hardwood)

    and don't forget the larch, the larch

  • Keith February 9, 2015 at 10:51pm
    Ask a simple question and get an eddykashun! Whew glad I asked! Seems the consensus is tuned unless it's humid or tune it if it's humid, or if it is soft hardwood or hard softwood, then on the fourth Tuesday of every other month hook it to jumper cables and do a rain dance. That's what I love about this place, clear, concise, easy to follow advice!
    Thanks for the input fellas, I do appreciate your time and thoughtful replies.
    • Keith > Keith February 9, 2015 at 11:39pm
      Yeah, I'll leave em tuned up seems the easiest, and if I start noticing bowing I'll react to that. Thank you really. I was trying to be funny not snyde, I hope that came through, I know enough to know what I don't know, but I know where to ask!
      • TN Twang > Keith February 11, 2015 at 11:38am

        Like you, I worried about this so I've kept an eye on my "prototype" instruments over the years.  I've got instruments going back nearly 3 years--none with more than 3 strings. They all have soft necks of poplar or cheap pine. They've been kept at tension in a household environment. Local humidity tends to be moderate.

        For the fretless instruments, any warping has certainly been minimal and caused no problems.

        Curiously, I've had the most problems with a fretted canjo made out of a scrap of 2x4 lumber. It has warped into a very slight "S" shape. It's so slight I wouldn't have noticed except it screwed up my setup and started buzzing on one of the frets. I think it's because the wood is cheap and knotty.

        Even so, I've evolved into either making necks of 3 pieces laminated together--which also makes a nice "skunk-tail" stripe down the middle of the neck--or else gluing on a separate fretboard--even on an unfretted instrument. The hope is that any kind of wood laminate is much, much less prone to warp.

        I use a polyurethane glue like original Gorilla Glue to make laminates. A friend who is a better woodworker has made me some necks glued with 2-part epoxy.

  • Ron "Oily" Sprague February 9, 2015 at 9:29pm
    I store mine tuned, either in a case, hanging on the wall, or propped up to hand by the amps. I've got four sitting just that way. If they are detuned for too long, it takes them up to a week to settle down when brought back to pitch. I only detune them if traveling with them as checked baggage, which I hate doing, and don't often have to. I also almost always sometimes tune them before playing, except when I don't. Occasionally, this leads to funky tones that can then be corralled and explored in different tunings. I don't play them each once a week, but as the spirit moves me. Different songs in different gits.
    • the anonymous pick > Ron "Oily" Sprague February 9, 2015 at 9:42pm

      ;-)  lol..   "I also almost always sometimes tune them before playing, except when I don't."  

      here's a  perfect  sign  for ya  .

      306414362?profile=original

      • Ron "Oily" Sprague > the anonymous pick February 9, 2015 at 10:18pm
        My mind is usually somewhere else. Frustrates the hell out of my body. ;-)
  • Muddy Creek Guitars February 9, 2015 at 8:11pm
    My wife had a different idea. After I had five in the front room, my wife told me I had to start selling them.
  • the anonymous pick February 9, 2015 at 6:54pm

    well  ..  my  best  advice first  off,  is to  give  me  that  car   in  your   profile  picture     to  make  more  room  for the  guits  ;-)

    then ,  its a "different  strokes  for  different   folks"    kinda  answer  .    many  store em   tuned  ,  especially  if  its a  new  guitar   ,  (the strings  need to  stretch  and find  their  own  .  )  some also  believe   leaving them  tuned   keeps  the  guitar  in  "shape  " ,

     de-tuning    or stringless,  you  leave      the   wood  open  to   the  will  of climatic conditions      ,  humidity   etc  ..  

    then again  those  conditions  in  your  area  may  be  a  deciding  factor  either  way  .  tension may  help  humidity   bow a guitar  .  

    number  of  strings  and gauge   can  be a factor   to .

    it  can also  be a  testament  to  your  materials  used  . 

      i store  mine tuned  ..  hell,  i  even  ship   my  witches  fully  tuned ,  and they  usually  play  tuned  right out  of the  box.  . 

    but  that's my opinion  and   personal  situation  .

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