Guitar display/stand or in case?

Safest place is always going to be the case, unless it’s one of those G-brand cases that turn your binding pink. Most all of the dings on my guitars were put there by me, while playing them... the reason they were purchased. I’m not trying to protect them from their nemesis because he is, apparently, me.
Exactly.

My first PRS was my Pauls. I now have 4 PRS (out of a total of 11-12 guitars). It is still my fav and I'm 93.7% certain it will always be. I bought it used but it was mint. In the place we used to live my office/music room was second floor north side of house. And in the coldest winter days I had to run a little space heater. Not really, but it seems, every time I played a guitar I would somehow turn, or do something, to slam my guitar into that damn heater.

My once mint Pauls now has all sorts of dings to document my playing time. But I bought it to play it. Have I probably hurt its resale value? Little doubt. Would I trade my playing time with it with a return of it to mint condition/value? Never.
 
There are good guitar care reasons to keep guitars cased. There are no good guitar care reasons to keep them out.
Mostly you're right...EXCEPT...

Certain guitars of a certain vintage have pickguards and/or plastics with a tendency for outgassing. Everytime you see a vintage guitar badly damaged by outgassing, I guarun-dam-teeya that it spent most of it's time in a case.

Acoustics, absolutely, in their case.

But otherwise I'm an out-of-case guy, for all the reasons mentioned above. But I also live in SF (mediterranean climate), so the temp and humidity rarely if ever vary enough to cause any issues, and no pets, no toddlers, etc.

If I have a guitar out that starts to have a thick layer of dust and maybe some corrosion on it from the air, clearly it's time to get rid of that one, because I'm obviously not playing it.
 
Acoustics, case no doubt. Have to keep them humidified. Electrics, I like mine out as it is easier access to them. Though it does have its issues with AC (wood tightening, etc.) it is not too much to deal with. It also depends on how much you paid for a guitar. A $450 used SE is not so big of a deal but a 3000 or 4000 Paul's guitar, might want to stay protected
 
Mostly you're right...EXCEPT...

Certain guitars of a certain vintage have pickguards and/or plastics with a tendency for outgassing. Everytime you see a vintage guitar badly damaged by outgassing, I guarun-dam-teeya that it spent most of it's time in a case.

Acoustics, absolutely, in their case.

But otherwise I'm an out-of-case guy, for all the reasons mentioned above. But I also live in SF (mediterranean climate), so the temp and humidity rarely if ever vary enough to cause any issues, and no pets, no toddlers, etc.

If I have a guitar out that starts to have a thick layer of dust and maybe some corrosion on it from the air, clearly it's time to get rid of that one, because I'm obviously not playing it.
I plan to keep all my PRSs and bequeath them when I am done on this earth. lol
 
Mostly you're right...EXCEPT...

Certain guitars of a certain vintage have pickguards and/or plastics with a tendency for outgassing. Everytime you see a vintage guitar badly damaged by outgassing, I guarun-dam-teeya that it spent most of it's time in a case.

Acoustics, absolutely, in their case.

But otherwise I'm an out-of-case guy, for all the reasons mentioned above. But I also live in SF (mediterranean climate), so the temp and humidity rarely if ever vary enough to cause any issues, and no pets, no toddlers, etc.

If I have a guitar out that starts to have a thick layer of dust and maybe some corrosion on it from the air, clearly it's time to get rid of that one, because I'm obviously not playing it.
I have a 1965 SG Special that has been cased since at least 1967, when I acquired it. No issues with pick guards at all. I don't know anyone who cases their guitars in my area that has had a problem like that.

And I don't live in a Mediterranean climate. I live in Michigan, which has the absolute sh!ttiest climate this side of Siberia. Cold, dry winters, humid, sticky summers. The worst.

I hate being me, 'cause I'm stuck here.

EDIT: I forgot to mention I've had lots of guitars and basses with plastic pick guards besides the SG, no issues. And there's also off gassing from the paint on guitars. Even the polish does it.
 
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So...here's my one little thing that bugs me about putting core PRSi into their cases - you have to take the strap off. And the strap buttons often hold my straps on really, really well. (Which is the idea, after all.)

I do not look forward to the struggle of removing the straps, and the usually larger struggle of getting them back on.
I've found the same problem on a few of mine. My solution was to get some strap button felt cushions. That raised the buttons away from the guitar just a bit, but made it much easier to get the straps on/off, while still keeping things feeling secure. You can find them many places, but I got them here from Philadelphia Luthier
 
I've found the same problem on a few of mine. My solution was to get some strap button felt cushions. That raised the buttons away from the guitar just a bit, but made it much easier to get the straps on/off, while still keeping things feeling secure. You can find them many places, but I got them here from Philadelphia Luthier
Works very well.
 
The only guitars I keep in the cases are my Taylor acoustics. The humidity in my house never varies too much from 50% and in the case of solid body electrics, it's not as important. I tried the case thing for years, and it was a hassle to pull out a case and remove the guitar, so they got played less. In all fairness, when my kids lived home, they were in their cases.
 
I've found the same problem on a few of mine. My solution was to get some strap button felt cushions. That raised the buttons away from the guitar just a bit, but made it much easier to get the straps on/off, while still keeping things feeling secure. You can find them many places, but I got them here from Philadelphia Luthier
Ah, I will have to try this! I might have a couple of those already laying about in my parts box, so mayhap I will try it with one of my more difficult guitars.

I see some on Amazon with higher quantities at reasonable prices, and since I have more than 5 guitars :rolleyes: getting more than 10 might be the right idea...
 
I have a 1965 SG Special that has been cased since at least 1967, when I acquired it. No issues with pick guards at all. I don't know anyone who cases their guitars in my area that has had a problem like that.

And I don't live in a Mediterranean climate. I live in Michigan, which has the absolute sh!ttiest climate this side of Siberia. Cold, dry winters, humid, sticky summers. The worst.

On one of our trips playing in Minnesota, I ran across an old Sherwood deluxe archtop at a music store we frequented. I couldn't help myself so it came back with me.

That guitar I believe is from around 1954 and has seen a lot of play time but hasn't been destroyed. Before being at the shop it ended up in the case for a long long time under a bed according to the shop owner and that's when the pickguard off-gassed and stained both the case and guitar.

 
On one of our trips playing in Minnesota, I ran across an old Sherwood deluxe archtop at a music store we frequented. I couldn't help myself so it came back with me.

That guitar I believe is from around 1954 and has seen a lot of play time but hasn't been destroyed. Before being at the shop it ended up in the case for a long long time under a bed according to the shop owner and that's when the pickguard off-gassed and stained both the case and guitar.

hubba hubba.
 
hubba hubba.

Not to derail, but thanks.

There's no truss rod so the neck is THICK and this one is one of very few not needing a neck reset.

This was the day I bought it. I currently have the pickup and pickguard off. Strung with flatwounds now and it does the jazz thing like you expect.


And back to the original subject...

I was mildly terrified of taking this back because it was October in MN with snow on the ground and we'd be going back to Nashville where October can be mid 60's, freezing, or summer within the same week.

It survived and so have all my other guitars I took out on the road. Those were heat and humidity tortured. MN one week with snow and next week we'd be in Biloxi with 90+% humidity and temps anywhere from 80-100+

The only guitar I ever had an issue with was my J45 when the top cracked. That one stayed at home in the case all the time.
 
Not to derail, but thanks.

There's no truss rod so the neck is THICK and this one is one of very few not needing a neck reset.

This was the day I bought it. I currently have the pickup and pickguard off. Strung with flatwounds now and it does the jazz thing like you expect.


And back to the original subject...

I was mildly terrified of taking this back because it was October in MN with snow on the ground and we'd be going back to Nashville where October can be mid 60's, freezing, or summer within the same week.

It survived and so have all my other guitars I took out on the road. Those were heat and humidity tortured. MN one week with snow and next week we'd be in Biloxi with 90+% humidity and temps anywhere from 80-100+

The only guitar I ever had an issue with was my J45 when the top cracked. That one stayed at home in the case all the time.
that’s cool you toured with great big old archtops, like in white christmas.
 
that’s cool you toured with great big old archtops, like in white christmas.

Not quite. I was out and found that guitar. I toured Teles and a LP and a strat if I felt weird. It was a country band.

My plan was to get that archtop ready to do acoustic shows in town but I ended up with my old Hollow body piezo and never went through with the archtop project.

Now one of my teachers in college didn't own anything but big old archtops and he'd go once a year to South America for a jazz festival with one of them.
 
Yikes. Sorry I’m an east coaster. Thankfully I don’t deal with your dry heat. We make up for it with humidity.
Yup. Maryland here.
In the summer, the dehumidifier in my music runs a lot to keep it around 50ish%. And in the winter I have to humidify to keep it up around that point.
For the popcorn munchers, I keep mine in cases unless im currently using them. Doing that preserved the finish on a ‘69 cherry sunburst Gibson hollow body in unfaded glory.
 
Ultimately, it’s about where you are in life, the household aesthetic, and the level of perceived safety you want for your guitars.

I litter mine about the house because I’m at war.
My 335 and a FrankenStrat suffered small neck back dings due to toddler attacks. But the dividends paid from an early exposure yielded 2 sons that are amazing musicians. Both have worked in the industry, too.

Every nick, ding, scratch, and scar carry stories of fun, love, excitement, and emotions from playing music…on stage, at home, with friends, with your children, and and combination thereof. I wouldn’t trade a single one for anything.


drew-guitar1.jpg
 
My 335 and a FrankenStrat suffered small neck back dings due to toddler attacks. But the dividends paid from an early exposure yielded 2 sons that are amazing musicians. Both have worked in the industry, too.

Every nick, ding, scratch, and scar carry stories of fun, love, excitement, and emotions from playing music…on stage, at home, with friends, with your children, and and combination thereof. I wouldn’t trade a single one for anything.


drew-guitar1.jpg
Exactly.
 
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