Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum

At The Back => Time Out => Topic started by: MrBump on March 06, 2009, 04:37:47 PM

Title: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: MrBump on March 06, 2009, 04:37:47 PM
Well, is it?

I have an old Encore accoustic.  And one of the nasty plastic tuning pegs has sheered off.

... and I'm thinking "can I be bothered..?"

But is it a crime to throw it away?

Mark.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on March 06, 2009, 04:53:43 PM
No, just smash it in. :lol:
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: WezV on March 06, 2009, 04:55:43 PM
burn it!!!!


in all seriousness its worth offering it up free somewhere - maybe freecycle or a local paper
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: FELINEGUITARS on March 06, 2009, 05:01:29 PM
give it to a school/church or charity
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: MDV on March 06, 2009, 05:06:01 PM
Yeah, give it away.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Philly Q on March 06, 2009, 05:07:44 PM
Agreed, give don't throw.  Someone might have a use for it.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: AndyR on March 06, 2009, 06:15:34 PM
Yeah, I've given guitars away. One, playable, went to a charity shop a while back, and a good few years ago I gave the remains of my first guitar to a young guy I knew who fancied trying to do it up.

EDIT: Spot the dick!! (Me :roll:) I thought "I forgot to vote..." and promptly clicked the wrong button :lol:

But then I realised it was the right button for me :lol:

In answer to the question - yeah of course it can be "right" to throw a guitar away, assuming it's yours, of course!
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: _tom_ on March 06, 2009, 06:18:19 PM
I've chucked the neck of my old strat copy away because it was horrible. Other than that I'd rather try to sell it or donate it to a school or something.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Denim n Leather on March 06, 2009, 06:34:44 PM
If the guitar will do more harm than good; ie, it's unplayable, even to someone who doesn't know better, then I say chuck it without looking back.

Giving the guitar away sounds like a nice idea, unless you procrastinate and it ends up not moving, like Bilbo's ring ("How did that get back there? I thought I chucked it or gave it away") PDT_008. In which case you're doing yourself more harm than good and should just throw the cr@p out. Many people will not let a guitar sit in the skip for long if they spot it.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: hamfist on March 06, 2009, 07:06:56 PM
I've got an old squire strat, whcih is pretty much unplayable (the truss rod is broken I think). It's been handy to keep it for emergency spares for other guitars though.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: ailean on March 06, 2009, 09:11:07 PM
If the guitar will do more harm than good; ie, it's unplayable, even to someone who doesn't know better, then I say chuck it without looking back.

Giving the guitar away sounds like a nice idea, unless you procrastinate and it ends up not moving, like Bilbo's ring ("How did that get back there? I thought I chucked it or gave it away") PDT_008. In which case you're doing yourself more harm than good and should just throw the cr@p out. Many people will not let a guitar sit in the skip for long if they spot it.

That's a good point. I'd have said give it away, but if it's not playable then you could end up putting someone off playing, which is worse than binning it.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: FELINEGUITARS on March 06, 2009, 10:17:40 PM
But new guitars all have a no-wheelie bin sticker on them
You cant throw them away..... have to pay someone to safely dismantle them these days

(http://farm1.static.flickr.com/245/447129172_69a99c3b74.jpg?v=0)
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: MrBump on March 06, 2009, 10:23:07 PM
Hah!

As a luither though, you MUST get to a point with a guitar where you just say "Oh, F**k It!!!"  and throw the thing in the bin...
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: WezV on March 07, 2009, 12:45:15 AM
seriously - i have burnt a few... they are the ones i wouldnt want to inflict on someone or just dont want existing in the world - since its my work and my name i think i get t make that choice. 

if the acoustic is that bad send it to me  - i will make it play a little better put new strings on and give it away!
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: broken cord on March 07, 2009, 12:59:01 AM
If the guitar will do more harm than good; ie, it's unplayable, even to someone who doesn't know better, then I say chuck it without looking back.

Giving the guitar away sounds like a nice idea, unless you procrastinate and it ends up not moving, like Bilbo's ring ("How did that get back there? I thought I chucked it or gave it away") PDT_008. In which case you're doing yourself more harm than good and should just throw the cr@p out. Many people will not let a guitar sit in the skip for long if they spot it.

Help me Obi Wan you're my only hope.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: JDC on March 07, 2009, 11:27:27 AM
give it me so I can practice alan holdsworth legato...
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Antag on March 07, 2009, 02:14:10 PM
I voted "Yes" & have thrown away one guitar in my life: a Marlin Sidewinder (cheapo strat copy & my first 2nd electric guitar)

After a few years, it had become a total dog to play, I'd modded it heavily (including painting all sorts of cr@p on it with Airfix enamel paint), took it apart & couldn't be bothered to put it back together again.  A music shop wouldn't have touched it & I'd have been lucky to even get £10 from a pawn shop, so I slung it in a cupboard & forgot about it.  Several years later my mother contacted me (I'd long since left home, leaving the guitar in the cupboard) & asked if I still wanted it.  I explained how useless it was to anyone so she binned it :)
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: FELINEGUITARS on March 07, 2009, 03:48:25 PM
Hah!

As a luither though, you MUST get to a point with a guitar where you just say "Oh, F**k It!!!"  and throw the thing in the bin...


Hmmmm - you might FEEL like it but then you remember that it is someone's guitar brought in for repair and get on with the job (just kidding)

Sometimes you do have to advise people that certain guitars are beyond repair, or that maybe we could make a new neck and body and add some new hardware (oh - thats a custom built guitar I'd be selling them though - isn't it!)
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Twaddlefish on March 07, 2009, 06:34:13 PM
No, because you can destroy it.

I had a Squier strat, couldn't sell it so I destroyed it onstage at a festival we played.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: ToneMonkey on March 07, 2009, 08:14:38 PM
Rip it apart to see how it's built.  Really I'd like to say that you shouldn't throw it away, but sometimes it just ain't practical.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: MrBump on March 07, 2009, 10:05:49 PM
Been thinking about it and I think that I've accidentally thrown away my first half decent guitar - a Vantage strat.  Took it apart after getting my Charvel, intending to do something with it, and never got around to it - I guess that it got thrown away after time...
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Catalyst77 on March 07, 2009, 10:23:35 PM
Burn it on stage!

I had the same problem with a honer L90 les paul copy; i think its made out of ply or something i'd just ditch it.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: ToneMonkey on March 08, 2009, 01:50:07 AM
Been thinking about it and I think that I've accidentally thrown away my first half decent guitar - a Vantage strat. 

I used to have one of those.  A black one with about 6 inches of finish on it.  My first ever electric.

I think that was one where I got drunk and made a thinline start.  Hollowed out the body (freehand) and cut some old ply to fit over the top.  All the pup and F holes were done with a chisel.  Painted it in some hammerite that I found in the shed.  It definately had a rustuc look  :lol:  More filler than your average Metro.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: MrBump on March 08, 2009, 09:42:15 AM
Hah!  Really good guitars though, from what I can remember.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Johnny Mac on March 08, 2009, 07:28:48 PM
I Re-Cycled a kids sized Encore Acoustic only last week. I found it at work just after the new year. Put it in the boot of my car to let it dry out gently. Cleaned it up in the week and re-strung it with nylon/nickel strings. It's all there except the action is a bit high. I let one of the girls at work have it for her son as he wants to learn to play one after guitar hero got the better of him. Total cost to do. 4.5 quid. Well it gave me something to do seeing as I'm stuck at home at the moment!
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: roland_rat on March 08, 2009, 07:33:28 PM
Could you offer it some seasick steve wanna be. If it just one machine head thats  knackered?


Guess unless you know someone that would enjoy learning how to do a guitar up it might be one for the bin.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Jonny on March 09, 2009, 02:12:25 AM
I'm going to set mine on fire. It is a memorable thing, but it sucks but I'd not give mine away. Or any.
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Roobubba on March 09, 2009, 12:26:23 PM
If the guitar will do more harm than good; ie, it's unplayable, even to someone who doesn't know better, then I say chuck it without looking back.

Giving the guitar away sounds like a nice idea, unless you procrastinate and it ends up not moving, like Bilbo's ring ("How did that get back there? I thought I chucked it or gave it away") PDT_008. In which case you're doing yourself more harm than good and should just throw the cr@p out. Many people will not let a guitar sit in the skip for long if they spot it.
Not bad, only half a page before we got onto Bilbo giving his ring away O_o
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: AndyR on March 09, 2009, 12:46:56 PM
Seriously disappointed, Roo! :lol:

I saw you'd just posted in a thread entitled "Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?"

So I piled on in here expecting a classic from the master ... but he's missed the opportunity!

(Or maybe you felt it was too easy a target? :lol:)
Title: Re: Is It Ever Right To Throw A Guitar Away..?
Post by: Johnny Mac on March 09, 2009, 10:34:46 PM
Many people will not let a guitar sit in the skip for long if they spot it.

Quite right Ben quite right.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4aOVNOPJ-g (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4aOVNOPJ-g)