Guitar-stand dilemma

tarheelguild · Oct 1, 2017

I just bought a guitar stand at Guitar Center. When I got it home, I noticed a sticker on one of the legs which read: "This stand is not recommended for guitars with nitro-cellulose finishes". Since most of my Guilds have the NC finish, should I return this stand? I've heard of some stands leaving a stain on guitars with certain finishes. Why would they make a guitar stand which reacts with NC? What do ya'll think?
Tony

'84 D40 NT
'96 D4 NT
'96 D25 CH
'98 D30 AB
'98 D225
'00 Taylor 414 ce

nielDa · Oct 1, 2017

I would return it and not risk marring a guitar. Which stand is it (so that we can also stay away.)

dreadnut · Oct 1, 2017

Ha, my new Snark tuner came with the same warning. So why don't they change the pads on it to something that doesn't attack nitro finishes?

tarheelguild · Oct 1, 2017

I looked up other, similar stands on Amazon and they all issue the same warning. I also looked at the questions customers asked and found one that dealt with the finish issue. It seems that your NC guitar would be OK as long as you don't leave the guitar on it for extended (a month or two) periods of time. It seems like there's an issue with the neoprene or whatever they use coming off on the guitar. I'll have to investigate further. BTW, nielDA, the stand I got is a Fretrest, by Proline.

poser · Oct 1, 2017

There was a long discussion about this a few years ago on the acoustic guitar forum. The rubber or neoprene or whatever it is will, after a period of time, melt the NC finish leaving pretty nasty burn on the guitar, the neck usually. As you discovered it's not a big deal if you are not leaving your guitar on the stand for extended periods of time. Otherwise you could wrap the offending part of the stand with cloth (I saw photos of old socks designed for the purpose). You can also buy cloth covers for guitar stands. They're sometimes marketed as guitar stand "bras".

Frank Ford at Frets.com discussed the effects of vinyl on guitar finishes: http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Musician/GenMaint/Vinyl/vinyl.html

tarheelguild · Oct 1, 2017

Does anyone know of a guitar stand which doesn't harm NC finishes?

poser · Oct 1, 2017

I think the Hercules stands are safe. They claim to test their stands against a variety of finishes.

dreadnut · Oct 1, 2017

I re-covered the surfaces of my triple stand with clear vinyl tubing, no problem.

Rayk · Oct 1, 2017

dreadnut said:
I re-covered the surfaces of my triple stand with clear vinyl tubing, no problem.

Great Idea

dreadnut · Oct 1, 2017

I agree with what it says on the Hercules website: "*Hercules tests for many types of nitro finish, however some guitar manufacturers change their nitro mixture often. Guitars should never be stored on a stand...always in the case." (italics mine.)

walrus · Oct 1, 2017

I put some felt for the bottom of chairs on my stand where the guitar rests on it - sticky backing on the felt, just cut it and stick it on!

walrus

davismanLV · Oct 1, 2017

I made little tubes out of old cotton socks and slid them over the foam like little booties on mine. They were a pain to make, but now my guitars ride on cotton instead of the actual foam. My guitars live on their stands, not in their cases.

swiveltung · Oct 1, 2017

There have been notes on this in various forums, I have not seen an actual example of it happening. You might consider just putting something over the soft rubber part of the stand as a precaution as many of them have this same stuff. It appears the manufacturers are now labeling just to be safe. Maybe buy a pair of Nitrile , cotton or other gloves and cut the fingers off and use them as covers?

The Retro Rocker · Oct 1, 2017

I always keep my guitars in cases...only use the stands for live gigs, or at home where I might have the guitars out for a few hours, maybe even overnight. I don't think short-term use has any effect. I would LOVE to keep my guitars out on stands, but I live in So Cal...earthquake country. So I just don't chance it!

tarheelguild · Oct 1, 2017

Thanks for all the great responses, guys!! : )

tarheelguild · Oct 1, 2017

I like the "little booties" cure Tom mentioned above. My kids have tons of old socks that don't fit anymore. I'll try them rather than risk my D30's beautiful AB finish being ruined. Luckily though, my guitars all live in their cases.

merlin6666 · Oct 2, 2017

My GF knitted some cool looking covers for those parts of the stand. The Orpheums like it.

davismanLV · Oct 2, 2017

Hey tarheel, I remember an old post where we discussed this and I think I showed or explained my little process. To make it look "tailored" and fitted I had to use the sewing machine to zig-zag a little seam to make a tube and then slipped them over. I had just gotten a whole new package of black cotton socks so the old ones were just fixin' to be thrown out or used as rags. I wondered about the dyed black cotton but there's no moisture involved and the stands are black so it makes them look better. I'll try and get a photo tomorrow and show ya what's going on...... :encouragement:

nielDa · Oct 2, 2017

I don't know what they don't make guitar stands, or sleeves, using the same fabric as guitar cases. I bought some similar fabric but have yet to sew them into stand covers. I've been using String Swing hangers, no problem but I would feel better if I knew for sure nothing will happen over time. Meanwhile, I've considered buying a role of tubular cotton finger bandage material, not easy to find but sold in some drug stores. There may be other ready-made tubular cotton material somewhere – wide shoelaces exist, but never tried them to see if they will fit on a guitar stand.

tarheelguild · Oct 2, 2017

A sewing machine?? Ugh, that is waaay too much work for me. Besides, we don't own one. I have an old tye-dye t-shirt I can cut up to cover the offending areas of the stand, or the felt idea above sounds good too. I don't know why these guitar stand makers can't make stands which don't attack NC finishes. It's ridiculous.
Tony

davismanLV said:
Hey tarheel, I remember an old post where we discussed this and I think I showed or explained my little process. To make it look "tailored" and fitted I had to use the sewing machine to zig-zag a little seam to make a tube and then slipped them over. I had just gotten a whole new package of black cotton socks so the old ones were just fixin' to be thrown out or used as rags. I wondered about the dyed black cotton but there's no moisture involved and the stands are black so it makes them look better. I'll try and get a photo tomorrow and show ya what's going on...... :encouragement:

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