Moving with Guitars

[Hamer Time]

I'm moving to Oregon in a week or so from Cali, and will be driving a van with my guitars. It's pretty cold right now, and I might stop somewhere half way. I'm thinking as long as I don't leave them in the cold van overnight I shouldn't have any problems? Should I slacken the strings or anything?

Thanx...

[django49]

We made that move 6 years ago. Had a BUNCH of guitars packed in cases and boxes in a truck. Got stranded (in a motel at least) in N Cali for 3 days by very bad weather (early Feb). As a practical matter, we could NOT unload everything and bring them into the motel room. I never noticed any problems with any of the guitars. What I would NOT do is take them out of really cold weather straight into a very warm room and immediately take them out of the cases. Let them come up to room temperature and gradually open the boxes and cases.

Someone else may have better experience than me to opine......But it MIGHT almost be better to leave them in the van than take them from the cold into the warm and back into the cold the next morning(?). I suppose that will depend on the temp when you settle in and how cold you expect it to dip to overnight.

What part of the Beaver State are you heading out for?

[Bobby Marshall]

I believe you should loosen the strings to reduce the tension. Cold will shrink strings and increase tension which can damage neck if string are left at normal tension. I would wait as long as possible to remove guitars from cases after you unpack, at least a full 24 hours. Longer if the case is one of those waterproof deals.

[Bobby Marshall]

And if you have them in the van with you where it is heated you should definitely bring them in the hotel with you. Never subject guitars to extremes if you can avoid it.

[Hamer Time]

Thanx for the replies. Close to Eugene django. I will put them in the spare room then, that won't be heated, for a day or two, then open them up and again leave them a day before bringing them into a warmer room.

I hope the weather isn't too bad, it's been snowing.

[Hamer Time]

Yeah that's what I was thinking Bobby, going to be a lot warmer in the van when it's running than it will be during the night when it's orf.

Thanks for the replies, think I can take it from here

[crunchee]

When you say "van", you do mean "moving van", as in like a U-Haul, right?

Not to add anxiety, but thieves do like moving vans and trailers in motel parking lots. If you must park for an extended period of time, try to park in a conspicuous area, where any activity around the vehicle will get noticed.

[django49]

Should be minimal worries then.......When we moved, it was in a medium sized truck, where the back was not heated at all. If they will be inside a van with you and you are comfortable driving, you should have fairly little need to acclimate. It may well be quite cold outside going over the pass from CA to OR, but not likely to be nearly as cold as you move further north (at lower elevations). Waiting a couple days to acclimate would be way overly cautious.

Glad to hear of another HFC person in these parts, even if Eugene is a couple hours south of here!

[Studio Custom]

If you shipped the guitar it would not be heated

[Hamer Time]

When you say "van", you do mean "moving van", as in like a U-Haul, right?

yeah Uhall, gonna actually be a 10' truck, I thought I could rent a van but local only. Gotta find $750 now lol. Should have checked earlier but didn't expect it to be that much.

Anyway yes I am a little worried about it getting broken into. Maybe I'll just take lots of breaks and short naps in the truck and just keep going.

Anyone need a Rick 360/12 for $1000, bargain price lol

[Steve Haynie]

When you say "van", you do mean "moving van", as in like a U-Haul, right?

Not to add anxiety, but thieves do like moving vans and trailers in motel parking lots. If you must park for an extended period of time, try to park in a conspicuous area, where any activity around the vehicle will get noticed.

Part of my business is renting moving trucks. If you park in a well lit area that is out in the open you just make it easier for the thieves. Thieves make themselves look like they are entering their own truck, trailer, storage unit, etc. Police will tell you that. One customer told me about parking under a light overnight, then coming out the next morning to find he had been robbed.

Put the guitars toward the front where they are less likely to be seen. Try to put stuff at the back that is less desirable in a pawn shop.

Also, if a truck is going to have a rain leak it will usually be on the front corners of the cargo box. Also look for tiny holes that have been accidentally poked in the roof.

[django49]

Couple other thoughts occur to me.

If you do want to pull over for a nap in a SAFE place, I understand Wal-Wart parking lots are good----They encourage the community of RV and like-minded folks.

Also, BE SURE you do not overload the truck. Some of them have lower payload weight limits than you think. We made that mistake and had multiple white knuckle moments as we got into wintry weather in the mountain passes at the border.

Finally, food (drink) for thought....If your household imbibes.......Liquor costs/taxes are MUCH higher in OR and WA. A person COULD save well over $100 a case by buying in CA, even more with a BevMo card. People have been known to pay for their trip. Just sayin'

[Steve Haynie]

Maximum payload information should be posted inside the cargo area.

[django49]

^^^^^

No question. We severely underestimated the weight of the load when we packed over many days. Guitar amps, speaker cabinets, audio-video gear, exercise equipment, lots of boxes of books and clothes and tools, small appliances, many guitars. Folks at the rental place, told what we were planning to load, simply said. "No problemo!". They did not have a clue either.

My mistake, which I would not wish on others. As was underestimating the difference between driving a car and piloting a truck (much larger than 10 foot), around and out of Los Angeles.

Live and learn.....

[Tres Aardvarks]

Overweighted (or incorrectly placed weight) can be scary as shit. We moved East in two steps: moved some vehicles, guitars, all sorts of stuff to my in-laws place in Ohio 2 summers ago (we knew we were moving East but unsure where). I brought the guitars because I fully expected to do the other move in January, and did not want guitars in freezing cold weather. Good thing since it was sub-zero the night I finished packing the U-Haul.

Anyway, the only time I've ever experienced trailer sway was on that first move. We had movers pack our enclosed trailer (normally used to move our race car), and they put almost all the heavy weight at the back. Ruh-roh. I thought something felt funny while driving east on surface highways, but it was only when I got up to 70 on the interstate that all hell broke loose. Nothing like having the trailer start swinging when you've got semis bearing down from behind! I ended up having to stop twice to try and move heavy stuff to the front (and light stuff to the back). All this in 90+ degree heat...blech!

[dragan]

back the truck up against a wall or another vehicle, so theres not enough room to access the rear door

[Hamer Time]

Thought I'd let you all know I made it to Oregon with no problems. I ended up just taking uncomfortable naps in the van.

Guitars seem to be fine. Thanks for all the comments, have a happy new year!

[hamerhead]

Good to hear! A trip like that would worry the crap out of me. Glad it worked out. Have fun in the new place!

[Hamer Time]

Yeah mate I was all kinds of worried. So much could have gone wrong, but other than Avis charging me for 2 days rental instead of 1 everything worked out well. Loving the new place.