Beach Guitar

[Ting Ho Dung]

I've been inspired to play lately since plugging in my Brewmasterized 18 watter. But I can't take that to the beach. But I was sitting on my cooler wishing I had a guitar in my hand. I was thinking of getting a Sigma DM4 or other model as they get really good reviews and are sub $200. Then I thought I could buy a Pignose used for $39 and take one of me partscasters. My partscasters are already aged so it's not like I have to baby them.

So, what happens to a guitar when it's exposed to elements like sun, heat and salty air? The DM4 is all laminate so I would assume that would make stronger. I guess I'd also have to use something like Elixir Nanoweb or Polyweb strings. But, seems like the Strat pickguard seals up the delicate stuff pretty well too. We generally don't get salt spray where we go but after a few hours I have to clean the film off my glasses with fresh water because of the salt in the air.

Theft is not an issue where we go.

[Steve Haynie]

How close are you to the beach where you live? All that you really need to worry about is the humidity affecting your neck. The acoustic is going to be fine unless you drop it in the ocean.

The electric ought to be OK, too. Any salt is going to affect your metal parts a little, but so do sweaty hands. Your partscasters can have parts replaced if something goes really bad. The worst that you are going to deal with might be a dirty input jack. The pots are enclosed inside your guitar. Drop in a little cleaner/lube every now and then if you want to feel safe.

The amp is going to be your weak link for sure. The Pignose is all enclosed, so your only exposed points are the input jack and the AC adapter input. You could even look for another solid state amp with an enclosed back.

[Jeff R]

I kind of share that notion that short of throwing it in the ocean, filling the body with the sand intentionally to create a paperweight for beach towels on a windy day, or letting it bake for hours on end in an unshaded area, you're probably going to be just fine. I used to tell my students, my sons, and now my workshop clients that the easy rule of thumb for guitar care/storage/exposure to things is gauge what you can and cannot comfortably tolerate as the litmus test and apply that logic. Using that approach and predicting what may happen on a beachfront, I'd personally say extended exposure to direct sunlight/heat is your beach guitar's biggest potential enemy. That prolonged heat could potentially wreak havoc on the finish and more importantly, the glues/adhesives holding the guitar together. How do you remove an acoustic neck or bridge for a reset, or remove a fingerboard to access a truss rod assembly? With heat, whether it be dry heat via a heat gun or wet heat via steam. Mix prolonged heat with glues and adhesives and then add 100 pounds of string tension. The potential for a very unpleasant, crackly POING!!! sound inches that much closer to reality haha.

[crunchee]

Get a uke. It'll give you an excuse (if you need one, I never do ) for wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxjWaRcilsk

[ptm1diver]

Yo Dung

Don't forget the rusty bucket or empty joint compound bucket for the loose change donations. Remember to wear really crappy clothing that does not match and lastly the cardboard sign.

[Ting Ho Dung]

Yo Dung

Don't forget the rusty bucket or empty joint compound bucket for the loose change donations. Remember to wear really crappy clothing that does not match and lastly the cardboard sign.

So you want me to look like a homeless guy on a nude beach? They don't pack any spare change anyway. At least I don't think they do.

ETA: And that's Mr. Dung to you, Coachie.

[Steve Haynie]

Wait.

You're going to a nude beach and you only post pictures of clouds?

[cmatthes]

Steve...you've SEEN the people who typically frequent nude beaches, right?!

[django49]

Get a uke. It'll give you an excuse (if you need one, I never do ) for wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxjWaRcilsk

To quote the old (and obscure) Don McLean song, "The More You Pay, The More Its Worth".

[velorush]

Yo Dung

Don't forget the rusty bucket or empty joint compound bucket for the loose change donations. Remember to wear really crappy clothing that does not match and lastly the cardboard sign.

So you want me to look like a homeless guy on a nude beach? They don't pack any spare change anyway. At least I don't think they do.

ETA: And that's Mr. Dung to you, Coachie.

[ASIDE] Reminds me of my trip to Hot Springs, Arkansas: after having me strip, they lead me about fifty yards to a huge bathtub filled with scalding water, have me drink scalding water and soak to raise my body temperature. After about ten minutes of that I am led (still nude) another fifty yards to a massage table. I get up on the table and look to the left of me: a tip jar... Now where exactly was I supposed to carry a tip? Still wondering about that fifteen years later.[/ASIDE]

[Ting Ho Dung]

Steve...you've SEEN the people who typically frequent nude beaches, right?!

It's the same as any populous. You can even find good looking people in WalMart occasionally. Like when my wife and I are there.

[crunchee]

^^^^^

I'm convinced that at least 75% of finish checking/finish cracking/finish lifting and worse damage to the spruce tops of older Ovation acoustic/acoustic-electric guitars is from people maltreating them...like making them live in the trunk of a car ALL the time, or the usual 'keep them in a freezing car or garage then bring them indoors and immediately opening the case in a warm room' scenario. Just because the body/back is synthetic and isn't made from wood DOESN'T mean that the REST of the guitar is as weather-proof and durable.

[gtone]

They have carbon fibre acoustic guitars now - maybe they're worth checking out for the beach.

http://www.rainsong.com/about.html#StoryHow

[The Shark]

PlayLinda is a Florida treasure for nudists, or at least it used to be. Honestly, it's not my thing. I look better with clothes on.

[Ting Ho Dung]

PlayLinda is a Florida treasure for nudists, or at least it used to be. Honestly, it's not my thing. I look better with clothes on.

There is only one Florida sanctioned (for lack of the real term) nude beach. That is Haulover near Davie. I've never been there. It's too far to drive for just one day. But a friend of mine at Playalinda likes the beach quite a lot. He says there are thousands of people there. The girls are mostly Latino (and guys) and very hot. I don't like crowds, especially at the beach, and am not into loud / materialistic / fake titted, Latina women and all their bling. Watch any of the Spanish channels and that's the girls that are there.

Playalinda is secluded and the wife and I can get away by ourselves. There is also an age old debate whether nudity is legal at Playalinda because Brevard County has laws (like all counties) about public nudity and that includes the beaches. Playalinda is also a National Park. There is no Federal law on the books about public nudity so nudists (which we are not) believe all National Parks are legal places to be nude. So if you've ever been hiking and seen a naked person walk past you, that is why.

Brevard County used to try to stop it but the judges have thrown all the cases out. But it's still a PITA to deal with that kind of citation. You go to the North end which is in Volusia County and there has never been a problem with law enforcement writing tickets.

Haulover is the only beach where the county (or city, I can't remember which) has declared it a public nude beach so there is no grey area about it.

But, in all cases, lewd acts will land you in jail. And a lot of people who are nudists bring their children so it's not tolerated.

And, no one really cares what you look like. Yes, a lot of people are out of shape. Just like on a textile beach. But occasionally a pretty bird will float by. Or you can just bring your own.

We have made some really good friends there. People are open and will wave or stop to say hi once they notice you have become a "regular". Our absence was noted the year Joel died and they were very kind and supportive of us. Counter the textile beaches where you have to guard your stuff or someone will steal it or worry about gangs or disorderly people.

The entire Canaveral National Seashore is a Florida treasure and there is only a small area where the naked people are. The rest of the 25 or so miles are textile because the nudists are considerate and have declared their own boundaries in the effort to get along. But there are always curious people who wander in wearing clothes. We always get a chuckle out of them.

[Hamer Dave]

I've seen drummers spray WD40 on all their hardware for protection when doing multi-night beachside bar gigs, when their stuff sits out all night.

[Ting Ho Dung]

I've seen drummers spray WD40 on all their hardware for protection when doing multi-night beachside bar gigs, when their stuff sits out all night.

We used to spray that on fishing lures too and boat parts. Forgot about it. Thanks. IIRC WD=Water Disbursement.