instrument care on the playa

pinkponies · Post by **pinkponies** » Fri Feb 06, 2004 10:59 pm

This year will be my first burn and i am really very nervouse about bringing my bass with me, i am afraid the extreme conditions will destroy it. since i cannot simply not practice for the amount of time it will take to go and come back by car from philadelphia, if i cant bring the instrument, i cant go. Anyone have tips, or experinces?

Borris · Post by **Borris** » Sun Feb 08, 2004 4:02 am

What type of Bass are we talking about?

if it's a regular electric bass then you wouldn't have much problems, just don't keep it lying in the sun too long.

centrifuge · Post by **centrifuge** » Mon Feb 09, 2004 2:13 pm

Keep it in its case unless you're playing it of course & everytime you finish playing, spray it down good with some of that compressed air they got for computers. You'll want a few cans of that, it works great.
Did that exact thing for the turntables & mixer, even after some thick dust rolled thru & they're perfectly preserved. After ever record change, a quick blast of air saved the vinyl a lot too.

Even when packing up you can use it on chairs & such if you're that worried about excess dust. We had a designated "air bitch" while packing up last time & were glad we did when taking all that stuff back out at home.

Have fun & thank you for bringing more 'traditional' instruments to the playa!

bratsche · Post by **bratsche** » Thu Apr 01, 2004 10:05 pm

I took my viola last year. Only problem was a broken tail gut. Mind you I don't bring my best instrument. But the one I took survived fine...

Fugazi Hobbit · Post by **Fugazi Hobbit** » Fri Apr 30, 2004 3:27 pm

I took my good acoustic last year and I'll never make that mistake again... The heat cause the body to crack, and it also through the tuning completely out of whack and rendered it useless. 70 bucks fixed it right up, but I would suggest taking a cheaper instrument, not a good one.. and make sure you tune the stings down when you put it away because the heat out there is brutal and it puts a lot of strain on acoustic instruments. But definitely dont go without an instrument..

bratsche · Post by **bratsche** » Fri Apr 30, 2004 4:00 pm

Yea, the one I took was a real beater. NOT the one I play in symphony. It's a heavy, student instrument with a Glasser bow, steal strings and about two times as much wood on the top as it should have.

And I'll bring it again. I'd love to find someone to play duets with. Out on the playa doing a little Mozart... Yea, I can see that.

Fugazi Hobbit · Post by **Fugazi Hobbit** » Fri Apr 30, 2004 4:16 pm

I took my good acoustic last year and I'll never make that mistake again... The heat cause the body to crack, and it also through the tuning completely out of whack and rendered it useless. 70 bucks fixed it right up, but I would suggest taking a cheaper instrument, not a good one.. and make sure you tune the stings down when you put it away because the heat out there is brutal and it puts a lot of strain on acoustic instruments. But definitely dont go without an instrument..