Several years ago, Carolyn Sills of the Santa Cruz Guitar Company got a phone call from a guitar owner in great distress. A pair of antlers had fallen off of a wall and onto his F Model, goring the back of the instrument. “I couldn’t help but say, ‘Well, in order to properly conduct the repair, we’ll have to know what animal previously owned the antlers, ’” Sills says, laughing.
Around the same time, Martin Keith, a luthier and repair guru based in Woodstock, New York, fixed a Ribbecke guitar that had sprung apart at the lower bout, the result of having been in extended contact with a radiant floor heater. But that’s not the worst he’s seen in terms of damage. Keith says, “The most egregious situations I’ve encountered have typically been people bringing me guitars without cases, walking through freezing rain with the instruments barely covered by garbage bags.”
Had these instruments been carefully tended to, they would have avoided those hideous injuries. And with even just a little thought into how you store and display your guitars—whether short- or long-term, on a limited budget or with an expansive one—you can keep them in optimal shape, primed and ready to receive your ideas when inspiration strikes.
The Little Guitar Shop
One way to keep tabs on the humidity level inside your guitar’s case is with D’Addario’s Humiditrak, which has a Bluetooth sensor for connecting to a free smartphone app with push notifications.
Generally speaking, the safest way to store a guitar is in its case—ideally, a good-quality hardshell, as opposed to a gig bag or ill-fitting chipboard case. As obvious as this might seem, if you have multiple guitars, don’t stack them one on top of another in their cases. Instead, store them vertically, side-by-side, positioned in such a way that they won’t be prone to topple over like dominoes. A product like String Swing’s CC29 Folding Hardwood Guitar Case Rack (from $59.99) is an excellent solution for storing guitar cases upright, with or without instruments inside. If you’d like to store your guitars horizontally, use a heavy-duty shelving unit, and, of course, make sure that the weight of the instruments in their cases does not exceed the maximum recommended weight of the shelves. (Figure about 12–15 pounds for each guitar and case.)
Don’t be lulled into the false sense of confidence that your guitars in cases are impervious to damage. They might be protected from hazards like wayward antlers but are susceptible to the undesirable influence of string tension. Richard Hoover, the founding luthier of Santa Cruz Guitars, explains, “As the action rises [due to string tension], the change in your instrument’s geometry decreases the guitar’s resistance to the string pull and in turn increases the forward movement of the neck. Here the strings are pulling the bridge from a steeper angle, causing it to rotate and belly the top behind it. This bulge in the top will raise the strings even higher, which will further accelerate the now well-established—and possibly fatal—distortion of the whole instrument.”
How To Store A Guitar (the Right Way!)
As a preventive measure, if you’re storing a guitar in its case for a short period of time, like a few weeks or months, loosen all of its strings by anywhere between a half step and a whole step. But for extended durations, consider going slacker, with just enough string tension to hold the nut, saddle, and bridge pins (or the floating bridge on an archtop) in place. Hoover says, “When storing a detuned guitar with a single-acting rod for a long time, it is advisable to put the truss rod in a neutral position, which will make adjustment after retuning a sure thing.”
It’s also important to consider climate control. Store your cases away from external walls, attics, and heat sources, and be mindful of relative humidity. Some cases, like select models by Ameritage, come with built-in humidifiers and hygrometers. Another way to keep tabs on the humidity level inside your guitar’s case is with D’Addario’s Humiditrak ($49.99), which has a Bluetooth sensor for connecting to a free smartphone app with push notifications. A soundhole humidifier like a Kyser Lifeguard ($14.99) is also a good option for humidifying a guitar inside its case, but be sure to check on the instrument frequently. Just as excessive dryness can wreck a guitar, so can an overabundance of moisture. In extreme cases, humidified guitars gone unwatched can grow black mold inside, and even sustain structural damage. Richard Johnston, co-founder of Gryphon Stringed Instruments, in Palo Alto, California says, “There’s one example [guitar historian and dealer] Walter Carter sent around of a really clean mid-’30s D-18 with a soundhole humidifier that gradually leaked over a long period of time. The water went right through the back of the guitar, destroying the finish and the stain—and probably resulting in a devaluation in excess of $20, 000.”
If treating each of your guitars individually seems like too much of a hassle, consider humidifying the area in which all your instruments are stored using a room humidifier, or even an easily improvised solution like placing your guitars in their cases in a closet with a bowl of water on the floor. If your home already has an HVAC system and you have a collection of expensive guitars, adding a whole-house humidifier is a practical option. Paul Heumiller, the owner of Dream Guitars, in Weaverville, North Carolina, says, “It’s less expensive than you think—I’ve seen it done for around $1, 000 plus labor—and it’s the most reliable approach. It’s also hassle-free and healthy, as you can get an evaporative steam–style humidifier that eliminates the risk of mold.”
Guitar Shipping Box
Floor stands are an obvious choice for storing and displaying guitars, as they’re relatively affordable and can be arranged flexibly within a room, studio, or house. Stands come in a variety of different designs, from A-frame to tubular to tripod to multi-stands and guitar racks.
A good-quality A-frame stand is relatively affordable—at press time, for instance, Amazon listed a two-pack of Top Stage Pro Universals for $18.95. Aside from affordability, an advantage of this design type is that it’s compact and foldable, easily stored for travel. On the other hand, the typical A-frame is nonadjustable, and a guitar can fall out if the stand is bumped. But a specialized A-frame, like On-Stage’s Professional Flip It ($25.95), incorporates a height-adjustable neck support with a top yoke that will hold an instrument securely in place.
Tripod stands are generally the best option for securely displaying and storing guitars. There are plenty of inexpensive options, such as On Stage’s XCG4, available in a three-pack on Amazon for $29.95. Premium models, like Ultimate Support’s GS1000 ($39.99) or Hercules Stands’ GS414B ($49.99), with their self-closing neck yokes, will give you both peace of mind and easy access to your guitars. “Our favorites [at Gryphon] are the Hamilton hangers, which have been around forever.” Johnston says. “The guitar is hanging in the stand [suspended from its neck] and the weight is aimed at the center of the stand’s three legs, rather than moving out. Sometimes I do a test where I’ll put a guitar in a Hamilton stand on the floor and just bat it about. It’s amazing—those things can hop around like a spider and the guitar is still hanging on the stand.”
Pre Owned, Used And Second Hand Guitars For Sale
However you choose to store your guitar—whether in its case or on display—it’s important to do so in a climate-controlled environment. That’s because too much heat and humidity can wreak havoc on a wooden instrument, distorting its top, back, and sides, and adversely affecting its tone and playability, while excessive dryness causes issues like undesirably low action, fret ends protruding from the fingerboard, and cracks in the finish the wood.
To avoid the unfortunate effects of humidity cracks (like the extreme case seen above), invest in a good-quality thermometer/hygrometer, and be vigilant in monitoring it. Ideally, maintain an environment in the low- to mid-70s Fahrenheit, with a 40–60 percent relative humidity level—in other words, conditions in which you would feel comfortable when dressed lightly. —
If metal stands don’t suit your space in terms of aesthetics, perhaps wooden stands will. This is the most expensive—and perhaps the most visually appealing—route to go. The Woodstock, New York–based company Take a Stand offers elegant, sculptural stands made from cherry, walnut, curly maple, and other solid hardwoods, customizable with inlay and binding options, from $450 each.
Should You Buy A Guitar Online Or In A Store?
For storing all of your guitars in one convenient place on the floor, look into a multiple-guitar stand or rack. Like single-instrument stands, there are some good and economical options out there. Gator’s Frameworks, for instance, is a tripod stand that is available as a double ($29.99) or triple model ($39.99). While a bit more expensive, Hercules offers double and triple versions of its GS414B stand for $79.99 and $99.99, respectively.
If space is at a premium, a guitar rack offers the benefit of having a small footprint. A unit like Hercules’ GS523B ($79.99) or GS525B ($99.99) will securely hold three or five guitars, respectively. The drawback to racks is that they tend to be side-loading, which is a less
Floor stands are an obvious choice for storing and displaying guitars, as they’re relatively affordable and can be arranged flexibly within a room, studio, or house. Stands come in a variety of different designs, from A-frame to tubular to tripod to multi-stands and guitar racks.
A good-quality A-frame stand is relatively affordable—at press time, for instance, Amazon listed a two-pack of Top Stage Pro Universals for $18.95. Aside from affordability, an advantage of this design type is that it’s compact and foldable, easily stored for travel. On the other hand, the typical A-frame is nonadjustable, and a guitar can fall out if the stand is bumped. But a specialized A-frame, like On-Stage’s Professional Flip It ($25.95), incorporates a height-adjustable neck support with a top yoke that will hold an instrument securely in place.
Tripod stands are generally the best option for securely displaying and storing guitars. There are plenty of inexpensive options, such as On Stage’s XCG4, available in a three-pack on Amazon for $29.95. Premium models, like Ultimate Support’s GS1000 ($39.99) or Hercules Stands’ GS414B ($49.99), with their self-closing neck yokes, will give you both peace of mind and easy access to your guitars. “Our favorites [at Gryphon] are the Hamilton hangers, which have been around forever.” Johnston says. “The guitar is hanging in the stand [suspended from its neck] and the weight is aimed at the center of the stand’s three legs, rather than moving out. Sometimes I do a test where I’ll put a guitar in a Hamilton stand on the floor and just bat it about. It’s amazing—those things can hop around like a spider and the guitar is still hanging on the stand.”
Pre Owned, Used And Second Hand Guitars For Sale
However you choose to store your guitar—whether in its case or on display—it’s important to do so in a climate-controlled environment. That’s because too much heat and humidity can wreak havoc on a wooden instrument, distorting its top, back, and sides, and adversely affecting its tone and playability, while excessive dryness causes issues like undesirably low action, fret ends protruding from the fingerboard, and cracks in the finish the wood.
To avoid the unfortunate effects of humidity cracks (like the extreme case seen above), invest in a good-quality thermometer/hygrometer, and be vigilant in monitoring it. Ideally, maintain an environment in the low- to mid-70s Fahrenheit, with a 40–60 percent relative humidity level—in other words, conditions in which you would feel comfortable when dressed lightly. —
If metal stands don’t suit your space in terms of aesthetics, perhaps wooden stands will. This is the most expensive—and perhaps the most visually appealing—route to go. The Woodstock, New York–based company Take a Stand offers elegant, sculptural stands made from cherry, walnut, curly maple, and other solid hardwoods, customizable with inlay and binding options, from $450 each.
Should You Buy A Guitar Online Or In A Store?
For storing all of your guitars in one convenient place on the floor, look into a multiple-guitar stand or rack. Like single-instrument stands, there are some good and economical options out there. Gator’s Frameworks, for instance, is a tripod stand that is available as a double ($29.99) or triple model ($39.99). While a bit more expensive, Hercules offers double and triple versions of its GS414B stand for $79.99 and $99.99, respectively.
If space is at a premium, a guitar rack offers the benefit of having a small footprint. A unit like Hercules’ GS523B ($79.99) or GS525B ($99.99) will securely hold three or five guitars, respectively. The drawback to racks is that they tend to be side-loading, which is a less
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