Stop scratching the back of my guitar!!! (members, cover, shows)

[kaleidoscope..]

Hey guys...

Ive had a bit of a problem with scratches on the back of my guitarz...
I know the simple answer is just to not wear a belt or cover you belt with a tshirt(doesnt always work)

But during a gig sometimes my band members swap guitars and what not and end up using mine and scratching the back of my guitarz..

Any thoughts or suggestions on how to prevent it? Or fix my existing scratches?

[GuitarBizarre]

You're never going to prevent it unless you put a really ridiculous covering on the back of your guitar.

They do sell such coverings but they make the guitar stick to your clothes.

The easiest way is to stop babying your damn guitars and treat them like the tools they are instead of your unborn children. My guitars all have their fair share of dings and nick and even on the expensive ones as long as its not something huge, I couldn't give two ****s.

[Angel's Punishment]

I understand that's gotta be frustrating. I guess just don't switch guitars with band members, or like Guitarbizzare said, get a cover.

[kaleidoscope..]

Yeah i guess i could get over it...it just my acoustic Maton is so damn beautiful!....ahh
thanks

[Fletch]

I know how you feel - but after the first few scratches appear you have to accept your baby is now growing in character! Enjoy it.

[Farfisa]

Originally Posted by kaleidoscope..

it just my acoustic Maton is so damn beautiful
thanks

You let your bandmates use it? I won't even let my jam buddys touch my mexican tele.

[Angel's Punishment]

You could shorten your guitar strap so your belt is right under your guitar. You don't need the body right against your belt. Lower =/= "cooler". It's easier on the wrist anyway if you have the body higher.

[Astronomer]

Originally Posted by loose_lips_sink_ships

You let your bandmates use it? I won't even let my jam buddys touch my mexican tele.

Yeah I made the mistake of sharing my instruments around and they all got wrecked :/ I don't do that anymore.

[mr dave]

Originally Posted by GuitarBizarre

The easiest way is to stop babying your damn guitars and treat them like the tools they are instead of your unborn children. My guitars all have their fair share of dings and nick and even on the expensive ones as long as its not something huge, I couldn't give two ****s.

YES. absolutely.

there is very little more annoying than being at a jam with people who are overprotective about their 'babies'. but it goes both ways, if you've got a some sort of crazy vintage piece then yeah i can understand being protective. same goes with the behaviour of your bandmates, if they're all drunk and smashing things around then step up and address the issue in the moment. don't wait until a few days later to remind them to be nicer with your gear. but if they're just really getting into the music and grooving along then belt rash is gonna happen eventually.

when someone shows me the 'baby' they've had for years and it looks exactly the same as any number of guitars still on the wall in a music store my first thought isn't 'wow, that's a really nice guitar'. my first thought is 'wtf is wrong with this guitar that it never gets played?'

dings and scratches are called 'cosmetic' blemishes for a reason. they don't affect the tone or playability of the instrument, only its look. the better an instrument is the more likely i am to play it and the more likely it is to accidentally get dinged or scratched, it's a measure of it's use. i really don't buy the idea that an instrument should always look the way it did in the store.

hell, i'm still waiting for the day when i finally start breaking through the layers of gloss on my strat and begin wearing down the paint under my right wrist. figure i'd have to start wearing a bracelet for that though.

[Astronomer]

Yeah but some people spend A LOT of money on their instruments and so they want to try and protect them as much as they can... it kinda sucks if you spend like 5 years savings on a guitar and then just see it get scratched up and ruined. I can understand why people are protective of their guitars, especially if they've put a lot of time and effort and money into them.

But then on the other hand some people just take it too far - there's no point having a guitar if you're not going to make the most out of using it.