Hi, just wondering about taking care of my stratocaster.

is it best to keep it in its flight case or out on a guitar stand? (I use it for about 20-30 minutes per day)

I was told to wipe down the neck with a cloth after each use to prevent build up of moisture on the neck and fingerboard, there is some coating wear on the top and bottom edges of the fingerboard, nothing major.

How often should it be serviced and whats involved in a service?

Thanks

You should always get a setup when you acquire a new guitar. This involves setting intonation, string heigth, pickup, height, etc. I don't feel that it needs to repeated that frequently thereafter, as long as you don't change sring guages are make any adjustments yourself. You should decide what strings you want to use before you get the setup.

The safest place for a guitar is in it's case, but it's not really such a bad think to keep a solidbody guitar out of its case.

It's a good practice to wipe down the guitar after you use it whenever you can. I use a guitar polishing cloth for the guitar, and a string cleaning cloth for the strings. If your hands perspire a lot when you play, this is especially important.

Good look with you new axe!

thanks gadabout, i'm a novice just learning so thats great advice.

the guy i bought it from recommended Earnie Ball Hybrid Slinkys (9's) (nickel i think) but found out that the original strings were Fender Super Bullet 3250L's (.009 to .042) Nickel Plated Steel....whats ur opinion?

Are the cloths special cloths for the guitar & the strings or are they just your normal household polishing/cleaning cloths.

I wouldn't be too precious with it. Strats are industrial strength guitars and in my opinion sound better the more they are played. Get some sweat, blood and tears into that wood. I'd also try 10's as the strat just responds better with more metal. Sure wipe it down but unless you have it in a place where it's going to get knocked about or you don't intend to play it for a while I'd just leave it on the stand. My 62 strat never went in its box unless I was travelling somewhere.

Hey jot, you remind me of myself when I first got my real guitar. I babied that thing and wiped it doen after EVERY time I played. It occured to me though that I was spending almost as much time cleaning the guitar as I did playing the guitar, all for no reason. Then I just started wiping it down only when it actually got dirty (maybe once a year if I'm not gigging). And be careful, some cheap polishes and rags will leave swirl marks in the finish and it will look like crap.

Remember to wash your hands before playing and your guitar will thank you! Seriously, your strings will last longer and the finish of your guitar neck will thank you.

I'm in the group that prefers to keep my guitars in their cases when not in use. This prevents them from being knocked over in a stand by cats or people. And there are large temperature and humidity changes where I live, and a case is a nice cozy place where my guitar can be in relative stable conditions to prevent the neck bowing.

I agree with gadabout's comments on getting the guitar setup to your preference. And you shouldn't need another setup for years unless you expose your guitar to extreme conditions.

Good luck!

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Obligatory gear list: Fender, Rickenbacker, Gibson, Gretsch, Vox, Martin, and more Fender.

Hi jot I agree with guitarlover you should put your guitar in the case after use partly because leaving on a stand leaves it vulnerable to getting knocked over also a lot of guitar stands have rubber cushioning on the parts that contact the guitar and the oils in the latex can react wih some finishes over time.Keeping the guitar in the case also ensures it's in a pretty constant humidity.I always wipe down the strings after playing and make sure my hands are clean.Adjustments aren't necessary unless you develop string buzz meaning a truss rod adjustment may be in order or as someone else stated after changing string gauge,going up or down 1 gauge shouldn't necessitate an intonation adjustment though.BTW I use 8-38 strings and they work fine if you raise the pickups a bit to compensate for the slightness of the strings.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Everybody is going to have a different opinion on strings, so I'll throw mine in. I like Fender 150TR strings, which are guaged .010 to .038. I have been using them forever and nothing else feels right to me.

To answer your question about cloths, yes they are specially made for guitars. The string cleaning cloths are impregnated with something which cleans metal.

If you have it in a safe place in a corner of a room or the likes it is fine to keep it out. I have 2 guitars that hardly ever see the case and there my 2 main players but I keep them out of harms way. All my other axes though are stored in there cases until needed.

I think strings might be the most overated thing on a guitar even though I use Daddario's for years I would believe any quality string will do. I never met a player who could pick up a guitar and tell me the make of string unless he saw the ball ends.lol

hi everyone

thanks for the all the replys....

Yea i'm probably over thinking the cleaning part...i thought to myself after posting the thread...maybe i should spend more time practicing on it rather than thinking about cleaning it! but i like to look after my stuff, but less cleaning and more playing for me in future have had the sweat and tears alright no blood yet just sore finger tips!

i have a microfibre polishing cloth (e-cloth) so i hope it doesn't mark the finish and that it will do until i can get those special string cloths etc.

good idea about washing the hands

the debate on strings seems to get everyone animated....string type doesn't really concern me too much at the moment as i'm missing the odd note when i'm playing so i need to keep practicing and not be think about the strings!!....just thought i'd ask anyway