Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Howdy all!

I'd like to know what you think is the best way to store Rics that you're not planning to play
for a while...specifically string tension. I think the prevailing thought is to slacken the tension completely. Someone else told me that they tune their unplayed guitars down two steps.

Any opinions?

Any different methods for 6 strings, 12 strings, acoustics or basses?

Thanks!

If I recall right the RIC owners manual says to keep the neck under tension. I would leave it tuned to concert pitch.

Look here on page seven: http://www.rickenbacker.com/pdfs/manual.pdf
It states under General Guitar Care: "Do not loosen string tension when storing and transporting your instrument..."

Thanks much Ken!

Does anyone know if this applies to '60s vintage Rics as well?

Any opinions on non-Ric instruments?

Unless you plan on adjusting the truss rod of any guitar to compensate for less tension, I would advise against detuning any guitar for storage or shipping.

Yep, string tension is a good and necessary thing.

Slacking off the string tension allows the neck to react far easier to changes in temperature/humidity etc---it has nothing "holding it" from moving, ie. string tension.

Don't detune or slacken. The neck is a three-component tension/compression structure. The neck itself--in the middle of the three--is the compression member. The strings--on one side--are a tension member; they must be at a given tension to register the appropriate open pitch and generate a musical tone. The truss rods--on the other side--are the second tension member, balancing out the tension of the strings and, by adjustment, allowing the neck to remain nominally straight.

Loosening the strings (without loosening the rods, too) puts the neck in imbalance--never a good thing. Loosening them both presents you with the task of resetting up the guitar when you pull it out of storage. This is tricky and can be time-consuming. Just leave it tuned. It's more important that the temperature and humidity are maintained at optimum levels during storage, than any other factors.

jingle_jangle wrote:The neck is a three-component tension/compression structure. The neck itself--in the middle of the three--is the compression member. The strings--on one side--are a tension member; they must be at a given tension to register the appropriate open pitch and generate a musical tone. The truss rods--on the other side--are the second tension member, balancing out the tension of the strings and, by adjustment, allowing the neck to remain nominally straight.

Wow! The next time my wife says "just quit playing that stupid guitar" I'm gonna lay that line on her!!

And which line would that be?

I could speculate, but then the thread might no longer be G-rated ...

Thanks to all for your input!

Mine's been tuned to pitch for 24 years. No issues.

I commute every 6 months from Arizona desert to a Canadian lakefront property.

Not a single problem with any Ric or quality instrument as long as you ship/drag it along tuned.

Yes, I have shipped by USPS and checked baggage on United Airlines, and neither of them BREAKS GUITARS as a career objective.