Other People Using Your Instruments / Gear

[gnoll]

My Martin D-18 was at my parents place and my dad had some friends over. Apparently, one guy who played guitar just took it out of its case and started jamming on it when my dad wasn't in the room. Then it looks like he just chucked it back in the case without putting the humidifier bags back between the strings, they were just squashed under the guitar in the case.

I'm surprised and a bit annoyed. I didn't think people did this. You don't know me, and you play my expensive guitar without asking, without me being there?

Of my guitars, that's the one I spent by far the most money to buy, and it's the one I really care about.

I let other people play my stuff, if they ask. My electrics, my amp, cool, as long as I know the person is not completely irresponsible. The D-18, I'd probably offer them another guitar if I had one around, and if not, ehh, maybe? But jeez, ask me first, surely?!

How do you guys feel about other people using your stuff? With or without asking?

 

[M3CHK1LLA]

wow...how rude!

only my close friends are allowed to play mine and that's only if they know how to play.

i could tell you a few nightmare stories but id have to start my own thread lol...

 

[High Plains Drifter]

I'm not going to get too annoyed if I'm leaving my most prized possessions at other people's houses. I'm not suggesting that keeping it there wasn't warranted but I don't generally rely on anyone else to look after something in the same way that I would. It's my responsibility... no one else's.

I may get irritated if someone mishandles or damages something of mine but unless it was malicious or completely irresponsible, then I tend to let it go. Generally speaking... I won't allow someone to borrow something that I'm going to wind up devastated about if it gets damaged or destroyed. If they "borrow" it without asking then they can just go fuck right off regardless of it it gets damaged or not. There's a big difference in someone using something of mine w/o permission as opposed to me allowing them to use it so that has everything to do with how I react if something gets damaged.

 

[c7spheres]

I get pissed if anyone touches anything I own without asking. Everyone seems to be rough with my stuff for some reason and I usually regret it if I let them. Somehow something always gets damaged. If I damage it it's just me I'm upset with. I always had problems with people sitting there drinks on my amp and next to my studio mixer, and they always come over to "my area" where I stand and my pedal board is and hover over it all drunk with thier dripping beer. Pisses me off so much. Eventually I stopped letting people in my jam spot when I had one, because if I let them in and leave my guitar on then they start messing with other stuff in my room and I have to take it off anyways and stop everything I'm doing. Eventually I just stopped answering the door and would only talk to people when I felt like taking a break. I don't drink and can only be around drunk people for short bursts of time. Even when I use to drink I wasn't rude like that towards other peoples stuff. I almost never let anyone touch my guitar. I let this girl I was going out once try it because she was nice and respectful with me and my stuff. She was kinda petite and was sitting down. When I handed her my guitar it might as well wieghed a thousand pounds to her and she just dropped it. Total accident. I did good that night not losing my temper with her. It took all I had in me but I played it off well. She was sorry so I let her grab it again, this time making sure to put the strap around her. I turned up the volume (it was at full jam levels) and she would have dropped it again it scared her so bad. I thought it would be a joke but she was actually shaking it startled her so bad. I felt really bad. I mean, she could hear how loud it was in the building but I guess she's never been around that before. The lesson is to never let anyone touch your stuff, especially girlfirends.

 

[Boris_VTR]

Replacable stuff I don't mind if they play while I'm not around. But something that is not that easy to come by (RR1, Jem, 5150 - not a lot of this thing floating around in Europe) I never leave unattended. But I always let them play my stuff if I'm asked.

 

[Derek Spear]

How do you guys feel about other people using your stuff? With or without asking?

To quote Billy Joe Armstrong, "You don't mow another man's lawn."

My younger brother once played my keyboard synth while I was as school; my gear has been under lock and key ever since...that was over 20 years ago.

 

[GunpointMetal]

I have an el cheapo nylon string and a squier strat that live in my guitar stand, and those are fair game to anyone. My nicer stuff, my pedals, etc either live at the rehearsal space where only my bandmates have access and I trust them to either contact me before messing with my stuff or just not messing with, or they get cased and put away in a closet if company is coming and I'm not gonna be around, or people with children, etc. IF they can't see it/the case, they won't mess with it.

 

[Big Dumb Bitch]

Gear is meant to be played. At gigs I'll let the other bands use anything of mine they want as long as they ask nicely and I can keep an eye on it. I'll also let my friends borrow any of my gear that I'm not currently using. Worst case is whatever gear I have gets broken and I just won't let that person or band borrow stuff again and it gives me an excuse to buy new stuff.

 

[Kaura]

When I was a kid my sister used to throw house parties when I was out of town with my parents. She had a lot of guitar playing friends. It was not fun coming home after the weekend and finding all my guitars and amps covered in beer.

Okay, to be fair. These days I do the spilling myself but there's nothing a bit of wet wipe won't get rid off. Except dings.

 

[efiltsohg]

I've had enough gear returned to me in worse shape than I lent it that it won't happen anymore

 

[Werecow]

When I was a kid my sister used to throw house parties when I was out of town with my parents. She had a lot of guitar playing friends. It was not fun coming home after the weekend and finding all my guitars and amps covered in beer.

Jesus, i'd go ballistic

 

[c7spheres]

I have an el cheapo nylon string and a squier strat that live in my guitar stand, and those are fair game to anyone. .

Great idea! Decoy guitar!

 

[cardinal]

Nice unintended consequence of having 8-strings with Floyd Rose trems: pretty much no body wants to play or borrow my guitars!

 

[noise in my mind]

Nobody touches my stuff without my permission first. I do know some people that do this and I consider it very rude. I avoid these kind of people at all cost. Some people have very little self awareness.

 

[akinari]

I have tons of guitars, so when my friends come over I encourage them to grab whatever catches their eye and jam out. It's nice being able to give them an opportunity to play something different that might get them inspired to write something. I've lent local bands PA gear and stuff to put on shows. No big deal.

 

[Mprinsje]

It depends on who it is really. My bandmates can play whatever they want without asking as I trust them and I know they know their gear. Other people have to ask first.

During shows I really only let them use my cab. Very rarely will I let them use anything more then that.

 

[bostjan]

Nice unintended consequence of having 8-strings with Floyd Rose trems: pretty much no body wants to play or borrow my guitars!

Nobody but nobody wants to play my microtonal extended scale guitars, you'd think... but when I've done festival shows, there's always some band that shows up with no gear and expects to use everyone else's, and they never notice how fucked my fretboard is nor listen to reason. I wish I had video of the guy who grabbed my 19-edo 7 string, without asking (out of the case, nonetheless), thinking it was just an ordinary 6 string guitar, or the other dude who insisted that he borrow my freenote guitar, since he said he had the same guitar at home and forgot to bring it, then had no clue what was going on with the fretboard when he went on with it.

 

[KnightBrolaire]

Yeah... that shit would infuriate me. Hence why I put any of my nicer guitars in their cases and then shut the door to my bedroom if I'm entertaining people. I only let people play my guitars if I know they can actually play and are going to treat my guitar well. I got into a fistfight with a kid during college because he basically threw my classical guitar against a wall during a party. Granted it was a cheap classical, but I was poor and it had a ton of sentimental value to me.

 

[Splenetic]

I only let like 2-3 people come into my apartment these days (and they either don't play or don't care to touch my shit), and the dude I jam with occasionally plays drums when jamming anyway, but he also owns several guitars (including two of my old ones), and knows not to fuck around with them in general so I'd trust him (he never asked though).

 

[NoodleFace]

In general I don't like it when anyone comes into my house and touches anything without asking