beater guitars

Was wondering what you guys used as a junky beater guitar...or if you even do? Do you take your good guitar with you even though it may not be the best situation for the guitar...like camping...the beach etc?

I live a mile from the beach and love to sit and play there. Its no fun cleaning sand out of the case though....not to mention having to carry a full size case in addition to a cooler and towel etc. I have a ovation treker cheapy travel guitar I bring now. I really dont find it comfortable and its not a great guitar AT ALL but I guess its a small sacrifice to protect my other guitars.

I have an Ibanez artwood acoustic that I am going to sell. Its a nice guitar but I never play it. A friend was looking for a beater guitar for the beach and I mentioned that I was selling the ibanez. Though I dont play it Im still wondering if I want to give it up as a beater guitar. Its like im passing a long a child and dont want to see it harmed. lolol. Ever have a hard time letting go of a guitar?

I pains me to give up any guitar! I definitely keep beater guitars. I have an old Dana acoustic and a crappy Kingston electric I keep out in the workshop. I get some pretty wild environment changes out there since it does not have a permanent heating. The Dana is from an acoustic bridge-building experiment, and the Kingston is getting replaced once I finish my Yamaha project. ...Unless I like the Yamaha too much to leave it out there :)

Originally Posted by: ItsmesillyWas wondering what you guys used as a junky beater guitar...or if you even do?

Yes, absolutely. It's a great idea, when going outside, to the park, or anywhere I am not specifically performing or doing a job, I often take a guitar of lesser value.

Chris has a guitar so beat up and ugly only HE could love it. :D
I've seen it in one of his videos.

Originally Posted by: RickBlackerChris has a guitar so beat up and ugly only HE could love it. :D

LOL. Thanks a lot, Rick. That's almost (but not quite) a compliment. I think. Or maybe it's just an outright insult. :p

It's the gold one here:

http://www.truthagainsttheworld.com/files/Tools/SchlegelFourElectricGuitars.jpg

Of course, the red fretless to the left of it ain't winning any beauty contests either.

All of them are featured up close here:

http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=653

But hey! With a face like mine, it's nice to have something else to look at, yeah?! :)

Not exactly a beater, but my Baby Taylor is my beach guitar of choice. Small, unfussy, lightweight, easy to sling over my shoulder in it's adorable little gig bag.

Originally Posted by: CSchlegelLOL. Thanks a lot, Rick. That's almost (but not quite) a compliment. I think. Or maybe it's just an outright insult. :p

It's an acknowledgment of how much it's been loved. ;)

Originally Posted by: CSchlegel
All of them are featured up close here:

All vintage style trems... Not a two-point fan?

Originally Posted by: RickBlackerIt's an acknowledgment of how much it's been loved. ;)

And beaten, battered, banged on, dragged around, etc. over the course of the last 2.5 decades. :D I do love it very much. The original case fell apart about 10 years ago. I almost bought another one for it. But I haven't yet. I should look into that!

Originally Posted by: RazboAll vintage style trems... Not a two-point fan?

Good observation!

I've had one guitar with the 2-point system. I've had a few locking systems (Floyd, Kahler, no-names, etc.). Back in the 80s you had to have a least one guitar with a Floyd Rose to get certain gigs! :) EVH made that a necessity. Then, Steve Vai released Flexible, WOW! It was a fun challenge to learn that stuff & a locking system was absolutely part of the puzzle.

But after I learned all those licks I realized I really didn't like the boing-iness of the locking systems. Then, for about 3 years in the early 90s I took the bar off my strats, put 5 springs in the back and loved the tone of the guitar with the bridge firmly pulled against the body.

However, I never have completely liked the tone of a hardtail strat. I almost bought a couple of them over the years.

Eventually, I got back into using the bar again. I tried a few of the 2 point systems. I got a used Fender (I think) Squire with a 2-point for a backup stage guitar. Again, it was a little too much boing! And I was never totally satisfied with the tone. Sold!

I actually tried doing this with a few vintage vibrato systems, too! I removed all but the two outer screws. Then I tried moving those two to the next position in. Then I tried 4 screws. It sounded OK, but it didn't feel right to my hand when I used it.

So, anyway ... it's vintage original synchronized tremolos for me. :)

BTW - I've never heard conclusively why Leo decided to use the term tremolo (changes in volume, attack or velocity), when it's actually vibrato (changes in pitch) that the system achieves.

That is my official geek report for today. Thanks, Razbo! :p

Originally Posted by: CSchlegel
BTW - I've never heard conclusively why Leo decided to use the term tremolo (changes in volume, attack or velocity), when it's actually vibrato (changes in pitch) that the system achieves.

...And used "Vibrato" to label the amp's tremolo effect. He completely interchanged the two. I think he just mixed them up one day, but the ad was already printed and it was too late! :)