GUITAR DESTRUCTION STORIES!!

[EvanExempt]

Brag. You know you want to!!

[smopo24]

i destroyed an old laptop......it sucked anyways and was broken. on the 4th i broke it and burnt it; i must have looked like a total psycho.

[mikegee]

way back in the good ole days, we blew up an old yamaha acoustic with an M80, total acoustic destruction, it was cool...

[Uluru]

Well besides having friends beat the crap out of some of my guitars "accidentally" (back in the 80's I had this real nice acoustic . . . . ) I've never been able to justify breaking such a beautiful posession. A tv or computer is one thing, but an instrument doesn't deserve it. Unless you're rolling on 20's . . .with the top back . . . so much money . . .
Ludacris knows what's up.

[johnS]

In the 80s hair metal scene, there was a (mercifully) brief fad where guitarists would flip their instruments up over their shoulders. The strap would wrap around and bring the axe back into perfect playing posistion--upon which every totally hot extra in an eight-row radius would immediately remove an undergarment.

My cousin tried it with his bass, and of course the strap came loose and the thing went skipping down the driveway (he was literally in a garage band). Forutnately, it was only a cheap Fender copy. I think he managed to find the tuning peg that snapped off.

[GearJunkie]

Originally Posted by johnS

My cousin tried it with his bass, and of course the strap came loose and the thing went skipping down the driveway (he was literally in a garage band). Forutnately, it was only a cheap Fender copy. I think he managed to find the tuning peg that snapped off.

[lukedavo]

Never have, never will, stuff costs too much money these days, if you buy it you probably need it for something. However, the V-tone line would be given great consideration.

[GearJunkie]

My old band's last show. Everything went wrong.

PA kept cutting in and out. Pedalboard wasn't working right. Drummer cracked a cymbal, keyboard fell off the stand and on the last song I was using my backup to my backup guitar.

This was a Squire HSS strat with EMG pickups that was given to me for letting someone borrow my car to do their driving test at the DMV.

3/4's through the song, I feel the strap go. The strap ripped off the guitar. The attachments were still on the strapbuttons, but the cloth was torn.

Grabbed the neck, spun the guitar upside down, and with two hits, it smashed in 3 pieces on the floor. Neck, and two body parts. With the strings still attached, I picked the thing up and launched it across the stage. The band kept playing the final verse going into the chorus. The place went nuts, we thanked the crowd for being supportive for 6 years, left the stage in a feedbacking mess, and once the adrenaline died down an hour later, my hands were pulsing with pain (and covered in blood).

Lessons learned:
#1: Destroy a guitar once in your life, preferrably onstage. It's worth it.
#2: Destroying a guitar hurts like hell
#3: No, salvaging parts from it isn't worth it.

One of the two body parts of the guitar is hanging on the wall of my loft.

[Bellringer]

A few years back I did an acoustic set at the Beat Kitchen. It was a Tuesday night and I wasn't expecting more than 15-20 people there. I had just enough time to get from work to my loft to grab my Alvarez 12 string and get there to play 10-10:30. I was still recovering from surgery from a car accident so my left hand wasn't working well yet. I agreed to do the gig a month before because 4 other guys I worked with were all playing, so they guilted me into it. I started getting nervous 'cause it was the first time for me to take the stage alone in about 13-15 months. So I take a Mg of Xanax for my nerves and have a smoke on the way there. I wrote out a set list of stuff I didn't think I could forget but I began to freak out. My friend who came with me sat at the bar up front and we started doing shots of Makers Mark. It was 20 till 10 when we got there. At 10 my buzz was on and I didn't care about those few people I thought were in the back (whiskey makes you brave!). Someone came up front to get me. "You're on now!"
"Fine"
I stumble to the door leading to the live room carrying my guitar and a glass of whiskey. I walk in and the room is filled with people. Filled! I told no one but everyone we worked with and many friends showed up. Everyone was waiting for me and watched me squeeze thru the crowd to the stage. I put a notebook, ashtray, cigs, and a drink on a stool and had to put on sunglasses because the they would'nt turn the spotlight down.
It was like I put on a drunk act. I was on stage swearing at people. Flipping thru a notebook to decide what to play. Strumming random chords trying to remember songs. The crowd was getting restless with me almost playing. I asked if It had been a half hour yet. About 30 people yelled no. So I start with the theme to Different Strokes. This seemed to win the crowd. I felt a bit better and chainsmoked and had drinks brought to me as I played some originals, pixies songs, flaming lips, Abba, Sesame Street, etc. Then the room started to feel like a boat. I was trying to get thru Wave of Mutilation and too many barre chords on a 12 string thru me into a cramp. I finished holding a root note. "Way a-a-a-ave". Pissed at myself thinking I looked like a fool I grabbed the guitar and cleaned the barstool of what was left of my smokes, drink, etc. with a big swing. My foot got tangled in a cord. For some reason I hit myself in the forehead with the back of the guitar. Then let it fall to the ground with the back cracked open and tried to walk off stage. Unfortunately there were no stairs where I tried to step down. a few people caught me as I tried to walk invisible stairs. I broke their beer mugs in the little fall.
The funny part. My friend went and got my guitar for me as I tried to get out of the room, mortified at how I played. I was surrounded by co workers, friends and strangers all telling me what a great job I had done. How entertaining my "act" was. I was cussing everyone.
The next day I was afraid to go to work. I found out that everyone else had played respectable sets, but I turned out to be the highlight of the evening. Nothing I'm proud of but everyone had a good time watching me play a strange acoustic set then self destruct all acoustic punk rock. I vaguely remember Dave Friedman telling me he liked my version of "Bad Days" by the Flaming Lips (which he produced). He said he hoped my guitar was ok and swore like everyone else, that my set was good and entertaining and I was just crazy with anxiety. To this day I have no idea. I just have a big crack in my guitar and some scars from beer mug glass that cut me up a bit. Luckily the guitar still plays and I no longer get drunk on stage! (so far).

[drewsifer]

In my first band back in '92, we practiced in my buddies garage. Nothing was grounded and there were pieces of carpet to stand on so you wouldnt get electrucuted. However the pieces were small and anytime you steped off them you got shocked and if you touched anyone else you got heavly shocked. so my lead guitar player with his brand new squier strat droppes his pick. he reaches down to grab it and as his hand, which is about an inch away from the cement floor, attracts a bolt of electricity that jumped into his fingers! Screaming like a girl he threw his brand new squier strat fifteen feet across the garage into the wall knowcking over all the rakes and shovels. the strat hit the cement HARD! he continued to scream and flail about for several minutes. This is where my passion for destruction began and I began to persue a profesional demolition career.

F.Y.I. the squier strat was fine. didnt even have a scratch on it and was even remotely in tune!