Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I saw some new stands at a guitar shop that only supported the guitar by the neck/headstock. Imagine a typical stand with no supports on the bottom, and a higher upper support with a "C" narrow enough to hold the neck under the headstock.

I thought of buying one because of the dents I have in my F****r bass due to the non-symmetrical body shape causing it to be a bit unstable in a standard stand. (Read: the frickin' thing fell off it's stand no fewer than 3 times!)

Anyway, the salesman said he didn't like them because it didn't support the guitar's body. If I'm not mistaken, aren't most guitars in a showroom held on the wall by the neck/headstock with no body support? Does this mean they're not properly supported??

This is nonsense, right?!

The only bass/guitar stand I'll use is called "Ultimate". It's kind of an 'A' shaped stand, a bit reminiscent of a Klingon vessel on the old "Star Trek" tv series. I'm not sure if they're still available. But I wouldn't give mine up, they do a helluva job.

No there should be no problem with a guitar stand that hangs the guitar.

I got one becasue my Jackson Kelly, although sits in a normal stand ok doesnt look to stable to me..
I also use one for my dakota. It works very well and doesnt put any undue stress on the neck (plays in tune while hanging) Just make sure the padding is foam or if it is rubber make sure its not the cheap kind that can damage the finish.

Most people who try them prefer hanging stands and yes every showroom I have been in has had almost every guitar hanging on the wall. Even those expesive custom shops.

Some people may say it has a higher center of gravity but that is almost untrue. The only weight shifted higher is the part that holds the neck - which is usually very light. so therefor no noticible change in the center of gravity is present.

get on ethey also avoid contact on the part of the neck you pley... and consact the finished body much less....

JP

The only stand that doesn't support the body that I would buy is to use on my Ibanez, which is an Explorer shape. Any "wierd" body shapes that don't fit in the body rest is sure to fall off with a little bump when walking passed it.

The type of tubing that protects the instrument from the metal parts of the stand is as important as the stand itself. Surgical rubber is essential in my view as it does not interact with the finish as other "black" rubber tubing does. Many a finish has been ruined by leaving a guitar in a stand for months at a time.

Thanks for the info. I'm going to try using these stands.

Peter - I agree 1000%

I had a stand dissolve the finish on the bottom edge of a mid-'70's black tele. It didn't go through to the wood, but its almost like it "melted".

I recently figured out a very cheap way to solve the worry: go to the hardware store and buy a pair of $2 cotton garden work gloves, cut the fingers off and cut the tips off the fingers. You now have a heavy-weight cotton "tube" that will slip nicely over both the lower fork and upper cradle on your guitar stand ensuring that your guitar is resting against cotton and not against plastic.

Amazing!

I bought 3 pairs of 100% cotton jersey gloves yesterday at a discount store with this exact purpose in mind!

Great minds think alike?! (We both play Ric's too!)

I bought felt similar to the thick dark blue felt like the kind in my Rick cases and had my wife hot glue it to the guitar stands. It actually looks pretty good and protect my basses at the same time.

Have a great new year

Cheers,

Andy

I had a "hang by the neck" stand for my Fender Jazz Bass. It took a little while to get the 'fingers' into the right position to balance the off-set neck, but it was great apart from that. My feeling was that it kept the tension on the neck very evenly and helped it stay in tune.

I'm currently using those infamous "foam-flubber" stands. My solution was to by black cotton binding tape from a milliner's store and wrap that round the 'rubber' parts. Looks the same and is 100% safe.

Cheers, LK

I use the same kind of stand...instead of using cotton stuff, I have cut some pieces of leather, fold them in half over the "C" neck holder. I have sewn some velcro on the inside part of the leather so it stays in place once installed! That way, no harm is done to the finish of my guitars