Do I really need string trees?

I think it's also pretty easy not to break a Gibson headstock if you just take care of it the same way you take care of you laptop, for example.

I'm not a touring musician. I understand unpreditctable shit happens while on the road, but at the same time, what percentage of us are touring musicians?

I hate to be the dumbass to defend Gibson, but owning one and really loving it, they're not nearly as bad as the whole internet makes them out to be.
 
Chistopher said:
What difference does it make if the guitar sounds and plays well if it doesn't inspire you to pick it up?
Click to expand...

Well, considering the topic of discussion, that's a really silly comment.

We're not talking about different guitars (one that sounds and plays well and one that doesn't)...the SAME guitar with or without string trees. If the guitar doesn't inspire you to play it because it has a string rattle/vibration ("doesn't sound or play well"), then the string tree is the answer...NOT a different guitar.
 
Rex_Rocker said:
I think it's also pretty easy not to break a Gibson headstock if you just take care of it the same way you take care of you laptop, for example.

I'm not a touring musician. I understand unpreditctable **** happens while on the road, but at the same time, what percentage of us are touring musicians?

I hate to be the dumbass to defend Gibson, but owning one and really loving it, they're not nearly as bad as the whole internet makes them out to be.
Click to expand...

I'm trying to compare apples with apples. Of course if you take care of ANY guitar (even one made of crystal) it won't break.

I've got over 50 guitars, at least 30 of them being Gibsons or Gibson-types, and NONE of them have broken in the past 60 years...because I take very good care of them. That doesn't mean they are as strong as Fenders.
But if a Gibson and a Fender were subjected to the same abuse, the Gibson headstock is more likely to break.
 
GuitarDoc said:
I'm trying to compare apples with apples. Of course if you take care of ANY guitar (even one made of crystal) it won't break.
Click to expand...
I got your point, but my point was:

GuitarDoc said:
I'm trying to compare apples with apples. Of course if you take care of ANY guitar (even one made of crystal) it won't break.
But if a Gibson and a Fender were subjected to the same abuse, the Gibson headstock is more likely to break.
Click to expand...
​
If they're both subjected to the same zero to low abuse, then the Gibson headstock is as likely not to break as the Fender.

Like I said, I hate it that I'm defending Gibson, TBH. And I have nothing against Fender (hell, I started like 7 threads about me getting excited about wanting to mod my Strat), I'm just mildly annoyed that I had to install a string tree, and I don't find the straight headstock all that aesthetically pleasing, but it's no biggie. I still love my Strat, but I have no plans on abusing either my Gibson Les Paul or my Fender Strat in order to know what are the odds of each's headstocks breaking.

:)
 
Last edited:
I fell off a small cliff in the woods of NH going to a barn party at night with my LP in my gig bag on my back. I landed on the LP on my back and all that broke was my high E string and the plastic tip cover for my selector switch. I was in bed for a week but the LP was fine. I would not describe these guitars as delicate in any way.
 
ok,

IMG_20240110_093941.jpg

see the difference ?
if I lay my strat and my LP on the floor the gibson presents a gap between the body and the ground, the Strat hasn't, that's the problem, any pressure beyond the limit of the wood strength, even accidental, could cause the damage, in this regard Gibson is structurally, by design, less sturdy than a Fender.
That said, you have to put a lot of pressure to break a headstock, it's not that easy, but the issue is actually present
 
Anything can break, tanks break. I do not think I would call a Gibson fragile, it is not prone to break with regular use. If you drop a guitar, there is a chance it will break; that is the same for any guitar.
 
Securb said:
Anything can break, tanks break. I do not think I would call a Gibson fragile
Click to expand...

Nobody is saying that a Gibson is "fragile". It's just that the headstock, by design, is less strong/more fragile than a Strat. It's due to the grain of the wood. Nothing else.


Securb said:
it is not prone to break with regular use.
Click to expand...

No guitar is prone to break with regular intended/normal use. However, if "regular use" includes dropping or stepping on your guitar then, yes, Gibson IS "prone to break".

Securb said:
If you drop a guitar, there is a chance it will break; that is the same for any guitar.
Click to expand...

No it isn't!
 
Securb said:
I fell off a small cliff in the woods of NH going to a barn party at night with my LP in my gig bag on my back. I landed on the LP on my back and all that broke was my high E string and the plastic tip cover for my selector switch. I was in bed for a week but the LP was fine. I would not describe these guitars as delicate in any way.
Click to expand...

I got in a car accident once and only part of the rear end was dented. I would not describe a car as delicate in any way. I don't believe all of the accident reports where cars were totaled.
 
GuitarDoc said:
No it isn't!
Click to expand...

Like I said even tanks can be damaged. No guitar is indestructable.

34s5hlu-jpg.2444283
 
disclosure : I'm a very shy guy in normal life but I'm a cringy bozo on stage and very often I launched my strats on amps and on the floor playing in the past, never had a problem apart some chips on the paint, but with gibsons... no, I'd never do it
 
Last edited:
Yeah, mine was discounted, but before discount, it must have been like 400. And it's not even top-of-the-line.
 
Aceman said:
OMG - how did we get tom broken LP headstocks????

Nobody complains about broken Strat/Tele necks because you can get a new one for ~$129
Click to expand...

So I guess that means that nobody complains about having to replace necks that CAN be replaced? Or that Strat/Tele necks break just as often but it's no big deal, because people don't mind spending money to replace necks? Or, this is something that you totally made up?
 
GuitarDoc said:
So I guess that means that nobody complains about having to replace necks that CAN be replaced? Or that Strat/Tele necks break just as often but it's no big deal, because people don't mind spending money to replace necks? Or, this is something that you totally made up?
Click to expand...

Totally made it up, but it is totally true.

If not, why the booming business in Strat necks in the first place?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

ErikH
String Tree and/or tuner screw hole filler
Replies
6
Views
180
marcello252
marcello252
idsnowdog
Mustang Coming Soon
Replies
3
Views
43
Artie
Artie
Securb
Nylon string squeak! How do I stop it?
2
Replies
31
Views
237
Ashurbanipal
Ashurbanipal
idsnowdog
Introducing the Garbagecaster
Replies
6
Views
118
JamesPaul
JamesPaul
S
NUPD, with love and kvetching
Replies
0
Views
55
Seashore
S
Back
Top