We are “Draw a New Sound”, running a repair store that is now in its 11th year.
The current status of musical instruments in Japan is as follows
I don’t know what the situation is like in other countries, but there are many cases where the strings are left taut, causing a large amount of forward bowing, which exceeds the range of truss rod adjustment and ruins the neck.
However, it is a questionable environment that many experts in repair stores and music stores other than myself say that it is OK to leave the strings taut. This area is Japanese, but I have never seen anyone other than myself transmitting the message that “strings should be loosened”.
The neck is not structurally designed to withstand the tension of the strings.
It may be true that many old woods were strong and did not warp easily even when strings were stretched, but recent woods tend to be weaker and more prone to warp under the tension of strings.
This is to be expected, as the wood of the past was naturally grown for many years, and the size and density of the wood naturally increased, making it a good quality material. In recent years, however, the artificial use of fertilizers and other chemicals has resulted in a wood that has not grown naturally and is not as dense as it could have been. And trees that have grown naturally for a long time are probably already harvested.
In addition, the wood is quickly harvested, processed, and commercialized. I think this explains why the strength of the wood is reduced.
With this background, if you work in a repair store, it is natural to notice a decrease in wood strength when you touch a new instrument every day.
However, the current state of the Japanese musical instrument industry is that it does not communicate this information, and the people who buy the instruments seem to be creating a cycle in which the instruments are ruined by the buyers themselves, forcing them to buy new ones.
Information from people like me, who have been working in the field for many years, has become a minority opinion in Japan, and even on Youtube and blogs, it is not seen at all.
However, every year more and more people cry because the instruments they buy do not last long enough. Many new instruments are sold with little room in the truss rod from the beginning, or are sold in a state where the truss rod is almost at its limit. Such inferior products are increasing, even for famous makers and expensive instruments.
How about overseas?
I have been using translation software to send information to English-speaking countries since 2024, but I would like to know if it is the same in other countries or if it is happening only in Japan.
I would like to know if this is the same thing happening in other countries or just in Japan.
Musical instruments are wood, so drying them out is especially bad. In the summer, air conditioning dries them out, and in the winter, the outside air is dry, and in addition, the heating system dries out the room, so the use of a humidifier is essential all year round.
Most instruments often have little room in the truss rod in their current condition. Most guitars and basses are much more likely to have conditions that require loosening the strings.
If the strings are kept loose and properly humidified, forward warping is unlikely to occur.
The looseness of the strings is determined by the effectiveness of the truss rod.
For example, if the truss rod is at its limit, loosen the strings until there is zero tension.
If the truss rod has a significant excess, the strings should be lowered a half or full tone. In this way, the amount of string loosening is adjusted according to the amount of excess truss rod.
If the truss rod excess is close to 100%, it is better to leave the strings on only in this case, as you do not want the instrument to warp backwards, but such a good situation is rare. Most instruments are often in a state where the truss rod is quite effective.
If the strings are loose and warp back, this is a situation to be happy about.
If the instrument has warped backwards and you have to loosen the truss rod, loosening the truss rod means that the amount of excess has been restored.
By storing the instrument in this way, it is possible to maintain the same instrument for many years.
Please protect your precious instrument with proper knowledge.
Thank you for reading.
〒114-0014 東京都北区田端1-21-3 エーデルワイス101
ギターリペア工房 Draw a New Sound
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