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Richard Jernigan -> RE: caring for a 39 year old guitar? (Apr. 9 2012 15:02:48)
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I have a 1967 cedar/cypress Ramirez 1a that I have had since it was new. Since cedar is soft, the top has quite a few small marks and dings, but no major scratches. The guitar has been stable all its life.
During the first twenty years of its life the guitar lived in Austin, Texas except for a year and a half in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The humidity varies considerably from winter to summer in Austin. It's very humid in Baton Rouge. During this time the guitar was in a plywood double arch case, but no humidity control.
In 1987 the guitar moved to Palo Alto, California. It can be pretty dry in Palo Alto. At this point the guitar received an airtight Mark Leaf flight case, complete with hygrometer to measure the humidity. It never fell below 45%.
In 1988 the guitar moved to Santa Barbara, California. I lived practically on the coast, but above the fog most of the time.
In 1991 the guitar moved to Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands, in the Central Pacific. It's 90% humidity outdoors all the time on this tiny island. Indoor humidity was around 60%, where the guitar stayed all the time except when it was traveling.
After getting its flight case in 1987 the guitar traveled extensively, putting on more than a million miles (1.6 million kilometers) as checked baggage on airliners, traveling to every continent except Antarctica. It experienced a wide variety of weather conditions, ranging from very dry heated houses in winter to the rainy season in Indonesia--but in air conditioned hotel rooms.
The only precaution was to allow the guitar a few hours to come to ambient temperature after its cold ride in the airplane hold, before opening the case.
Since January, 2010 the guitar has been back in Austin, going through the dry winter and humid summer, but in its airtight case with an Oaais humidifier.
In summary, the guitar has seen a wide variety of climates, with only moderate care. It has remained stable and sounds great. It doesn't get played as much as my spruce blanca, but it doesn't get totally neglected.
Advice: get an Oasis humidifier or equivalent, and protect you guitar from drier than 45% humidity.
I've seen at least a dozen of these cedar/cyoress Ramirez from the 1960s an 1970s, but never one with a crack under or near the golpeador. I don't think you need to worry about cracking your guitar with golpes, but I would recommend looking out for humidity.
Enjoy your instrument!
RNJ
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