NGD

[koula901]

Hi Guys!

 

As you know from my other thread, the H 137 arrived today, in perfect condition (with ten toes and fingers). It is just gorgeous - the pictures really don't do it justice. I won't re-post them here, as they're in the other thread. But, originally from the pics, it looked SO dark and I honestly thought: I'll have the ugliest guitar on the HOC, but not so. When I take it outside it looks exactly like the picture of Brent's 137 on the grass. It needs to be in the sunlight for all of her red hues to come out.

 

Weight/Neck: Funny thing, it weighs exactly as much as my strat, 8 lbs, 4 oz, so, nothing like the 10 lbs 4 oz of that 150 I had, I can manage this just fine. And the neck is sooo perfect. Oddly, I thought it would come chunkier than it is, but its exactly the perfect size, only slightly chunkier than they normally put out, which is what I really wanted. In fact, there's not much difference between my strat neck and this one.

Know this guys, when you order a chunky neck (and in the past, I've said "but not as chunky as the '59 baseball bat") there can be a wide variation on what Heritage will produce. The neck on my 150 was much chunkier than this, but again, I'm thrilled with how this guitar feels, and prefer it's neck size. There are no guarantees - as others have said, when they make them by hand, they won't be uniform.

 

Tone Report, nice, fat, juicy tones! I think this will be my go-to guitar. It can be bright and snappy when you want it to, or have the lucious woman tone, even a nice mid-range grind (just like a tele or strat) to it. I'm still exploring all the tones I can get. And having been a tele/strat player all my life, I'm tone-pot challenged when there's more than 2 knobs. This guitar has two volume knobs and one tone. It came with the Jason Lollar P90s. Kuz is right, P 90s rule! I happen to live in a place that has the worst 60 cycle hum you can imagine, so, I might not ever be using the bridge pick up, but it sounds just fine in the middle, and even though the two together technically make a humbucker, it still has the clarity of single coils. If I had an amp with a bright switch, I might just pop that on for a bit brighter tone, for rhythm. I'm finding that with the tone selector in the middle, I can't just back off on the neck pickup without the hum returning. I'f I'm backing off on one volume knob, I have to back off on both, to keep the hum away. If this becomes a problem, I could eventually swap them out for Lindy Fralin noiseless P 90s.

 

STRAP: Okay, now, the big question - what kind of strap do you guys use. Are you using locking, or just regular? I know a lot of folks use locking on the 150/LP style guitars because they're heavy and might fall out and be susceptible to neck breaks, but this is not so heavy, and I've never had a tele or a strat pop off of a non-locking strap. But still, the 137 is my new baby, and I want to take pre-cautions. I just would like to hear what every else out there is using.

KT

[tulk1]

I use guitar straps. I find that works best with guitars. ..........

 

Lately I've been using Italia Straps. Got them last year around Christmas. Nice leather, seems like they'll last. More than anything you want strap locks. Your choice of style, but get them.

[FredZepp]

Congrats on the happy day arriving, it's good to hear that it is perfect. It's cool when that happens..!!!!

 

I'd recommend a Heritage strap, but they don't make them any more and BigBob has all of them now...

 

Straplocks... YES. I've gone to PlanetLock straps by Planet Waves. No mod to the guitar needed, the lock is on the strap and works on all.......

[Patrick]

I use guitar straps. I find that works best with guitars. ..........

 

Lately I've been using Italia Straps. Got them last year around Christmas. Nice leather, seems like they'll last. More than anything you want strap locks. Your choice of style, but get them.

 

I don't know if you've seen the Lock It guitar straps. Built in guitar strap locks. There's a pretty good illustration of it on http://www.voxshowroom.com/northcoast/strings/lockit.html Or you can Google Lock It. I bought one. It works great . . . but for a 535 type guitar you will need the one that this Vox Show room speaks about with the reverse head. Katy, depending where your strap button is on the back of the neck, you might also need the reverse head.

[111518]

Very glad that you found no problems and that the guitar feels right. It looks like it would be comfortable to play, and with that shape the veneer would help any tendency towards being neck heavy.

 

I usually use strap locks, just for the security and speed of that "click." (I have to switch a lot from bass to guitar, and between guitars, so, a good tight-fitting strap is not something I want to fight with while the rest of the band is waiting for me to launch the tune.) On guitars that have a button on the back of the neck, like your 137 (and my 535 and other thinlines), I have a strap for each instrument, then use one of the dunlop locking disks on the neck button, and then a schaller on the other end. The dunlop is not quick change, but it is absolute insurance that the guitar is not going to fall off the strap at that end, and, since it is flat, it doesn't stick into me like a regular straplock. So, that's my strategy. Have to say, however, that those nicks on my guitars that aren't from cymbals, are mostly from straplocks. Pic shows some of my array of straps.

 

[Gitfiddler]

Koula~ Once again, congratulations on your new 'go to' guitar. It sounds like it is all that. I know that is a wonderful feeling. As for the neck carve, you are correct about Heritage being more conservative with their version of chunky. Unless you give them specific dimensions, it is pretty much left to their judgement. My custom ordered '59 carve came out with less chunk or shoulders, but it still fits my large hand perfectly. Mentally we tend to adjust to whatever guitar neck is in our hands at a given time.

 

Your strap decision is going to be a similarly personal decision. If your instrument isn't neck heavy, then most any strap will do. I prefer wider straps for my boney frame, since they offer the best long term comfort no matter the weight of the instrument. I like Levi's leather/padded straps, but their are tons of varieties out their now. Check out any guitar magazine and you'll see them in spades.

 

Hey, it's an excuse to go shopping! Go for it and enjoy that new gitfiddle for many years.

[Teeky]

Congrats on the happy day arriving, it's good to hear that it is perfect. It's cool when that happens..!!!!

 

I'd recommend a Heritage strap, but they don't make them any more and BigBob has all of them now...

 

Straplocks... YES. I've gone to PlanetLock straps by Planet Waves. No mod to the guitar needed, the lock is on the strap and works on all.......

Fred,

I was interested to hear about the Planetwaves PlanetLock straps. Are they any good for endpin jack buttons as I have on my 575? They are quite a lot larger in diameter than normal strap buttons.

 

Teeky

[H]

I like Levi's leather/padded straps

+1 on the Levi's straps.

 

For the 535 I use an old Rickenbacker strap. It's about an inch thick and has a sliding shoulder rest about a foot long and three/four inches wide. I'm sure you know the type.

[koula901]

Many thanks guys, will definitely get a strap lock for this one and the 535 when it comes next week. Thanks to Larry for posting the pic of his famiy - very nice. : ) Now . . let's go play our guitars!

[FredZepp]

Fred,

I was interested to hear about the Planetwaves PlanetLock straps. Are they any good for endpin jack buttons as I have on my 575? They are quite a lot larger in diameter than normal strap buttons.

 

Teeky

I don't see why it wouldn't work well on that also. They offer that if you have a guitar that it doesn't work with, they will send you new strap buttons for it for $2.95.

 

The only issue that I can imagine with them, is if your guitar is set up with one button on the back, and you want one end reversed , I don't know if they make that. But if you're ok with the strap in the regular configuration , they work great.

 

Some info on straplocks in general... Premier Guitar STRAPLOCKS

[FredZepp]

a NGD post MUST have some pics... here's a few...

 

 

And when you get some new pics, let us see 'em, KT...

[koula901]

: ) Okay.

[Guest mgoetting]

I've switched to leather strap locks. They are supple, don't stress the straps ends as much, sturdy, inexpensive and don't require tools to switch straps.

 

Amazon has them for about $4 each. The end strap button may or may not need one.

 

As far as a strap goes, pick one that reflects your personality. Maybe something with skulls.

[Guest mgoetting]

pic failure- oops

[Guest mgoetting]

pics

[yoslate]

or have the lucious woman tone,

 

 

Well.... Of course yours would...! ; ) It really is a beautiful plank, koula! Congrats on both of the new acquisitions! And yes, P-90's are "it"!

[Kuz]

I have SIX Eyeland Ranger straps.

 

They are nice and wide, thick, and will last you a lifetime. Best $80 investment you can make for bonding to a new guitar.

 

Oh, and Schaller Strap Locks (Fender uses the same size & locking device) are a MUST to ensure safety of my guitars.

 

Link for the Eyeland Ranger Strap...

 

http://www.eyelandenterprises.com/html/straps2.html

[tulk1]

I've switched to leather strap locks. They are supple, don't stress the straps ends as much, sturdy, inexpensive and don't require tools to switch straps.

pics

Way back in the nether-times I was playing my brand new LPC in public for the first time. We were on a concrete slab as the "stage". It goes: Ready? 1, 2, 3 , 4 ........ hit the first chord and the guitar slams butt first onto the pavement. Next day I had me one of them leather strap locks. It's still on the guitar and the now vintage Gibs strap. Kids ...... we're so stupid, how did we ever become adults?

[Guest HRB853370]

Hi Guys!

 

As you know from my other thread, the H 137 arrived today, in perfect condition (with ten toes and fingers). It is just gorgeous - the pictures really don't do it justice. I won't re-post them here, as they're in the other thread. But, originally from the pics, it looked SO dark and I honestly thought: I'll have the ugliest guitar on the HOC, but not so. When I take it outside it looks exactly like the picture of Brent's 137 on the grass. It needs to be in the sunlight for all of her red hues to come out.

 

Weight/Neck: Funny thing, it weighs exactly as much as my strat, 8 lbs, 4 oz, so, nothing like the 10 lbs 4 oz of that 150 I had, I can manage this just fine. And the neck is sooo perfect. Oddly, I thought it would come chunkier than it is, but its exactly the perfect size, only slightly chunkier than they normally put out, which is what I really wanted. In fact, there's not much difference between my strat neck and this one.

Know this guys, when you order a chunky neck (and in the past, I've said "but not as chunky as the '59 baseball bat") there can be a wide variation on what Heritage will produce. The neck on my 150 was much chunkier than this, but again, I'm thrilled with how this guitar feels, and prefer it's neck size. There are no guarantees - as others have said, when they make them by hand, they won't be uniform.

 

Tone Report, nice, fat, juicy tones! I think this will be my go-to guitar. It can be bright and snappy when you want it to, or have the lucious woman tone, even a nice mid-range grind (just like a tele or strat) to it. I'm still exploring all the tones I can get. And having been a tele/strat player all my life, I'm tone-pot challenged when there's more than 2 knobs. This guitar has two volume knobs and one tone. It came with the Jason Lollar P90s. Kuz is right, P 90s rule! I happen to live in a place that has the worst 60 cycle hum you can imagine, so, I might not ever be using the bridge pick up, but it sounds just fine in the middle, and even though the two together technically make a humbucker, it still has the clarity of single coils. If I had an amp with a bright switch, I might just pop that on for a bit brighter tone, for rhythm. I'm finding that with the tone selector in the middle, I can't just back off on the neck pickup without the hum returning. I'f I'm backing off on one volume knob, I have to back off on both, to keep the hum away. If this becomes a problem, I could eventually swap them out for Lindy Fralin noiseless P 90s.

 

STRAP: Okay, now, the big question - what kind of strap do you guys use. Are you using locking, or just regular? I know a lot of folks use locking on the 150/LP style guitars because they're heavy and might fall out and be susceptible to neck breaks, but this is not so heavy, and I've never had a tele or a strat pop off of a non-locking strap. But still, the 137 is my new baby, and I want to take pre-cautions. I just would like to hear what every else out there is using.

KT

 

Koula-Congrats on your NGD. Without question, put Schaller straplocks on that baby. You can get them through Fender and the packaging says Fender, but they are made by Schaller. I buy them off the Bay all the time for around $12-$15 for a set of two in chrome. Gold plating of course is more. Dont take a chance on that baby hitting the floor!

[SouthpawGuy]

 

Congrats !

 

That one looks like a keeper for sure !

[TalismanRich]

I added Schaller straplocks to my 140 with the Heritage strap. It's just too stiff to get over the button. But I have to be careful about dinging the guitar with the lock.

 

For my other guitars, I've gone to Onori International straps. They have a pretty good selection, the glove leather is supple and easy on the shoulder. I've got suede for my Milli, about 2.5 - 3inches wide.

 

Onori Straps

 

I liked them better than the Levy strap that I had for a while and way better than the cheap woven polyester ones.

[koula901]

Thanks everyone. I'll be ordering 2 Lock It straps. They look pretty good - they won't ruin the finish and I need reversed front-end locks because the button is on the back of the neck joint of both my 137 and 535.