BEWARE: Hercules guitar stand failure! ** IMPORTANT UPDATE *

[bobj]

Hi Everybody

I was just putting my strat back onto it's Hercules guitar stand when it collapsed ... fortunately I hadn't let go of the neck so the strat is OK.

On closer inspection the height adjustment grip mechanism has become all 'sticky' and the plastic/rubber has simply failed ... releasing the grip handle and allowing the top section of the stand to fall.

I've had the stand a few years but this is not something you would expect to happen.


If anyone is using a Hercules stand can I suggest you check it to see if the height adjustment grip mechanism has become all 'sticky'.

If it has can I suggest you don't trust the stand with your valuable guitars any more.


Best regards ... Bob

PS if you happen to post on any of the other forums can you please pass this message on.

** IMPORTANT UPDATE **

I've had a few exchanges of emails with HERCULES during the day ... great news ... they are going to send a new stand out to me.

Can't say fairer than that

Apparently the problem relates to a manufacturing problem a few years back which they are aware of.

[abstamaria]

Exactly the same thing happened to me, Bob. It seems the plastic biodegrades prematurely and permits the collapse. I removed height grip mechanism and put a metal hose clamp around the tube to keep the height at a fixed length. I hope the jaws themselves don't disintegrate, but they don't seem to be getting sticky.

Andy

[Tone]

Not quite the same thing but I use several wall hangers - the type that has two metal prongs sticking out which hold the headstock. There is a rubber or plastic sleeve on each prong to protect the headstock wood (but it can still mark it). On one of my hangers the sleeves had, through use, worked their way to the end of the prong, unnoticed by me, to the point where they were unsupported. I found it out the hard way by hearing a sickening crash a couple of minutes after hanging up a guitar and I found that the sleeves had finally dropped off the end of the prongs, taking the guitar with them. I had to have it refinished.

I've now glued the sleeves to the prongs.

Cheers.

Tony

[noelford]

Luckily, with Hercules wall hangers, that can't happen because of the sprung closures which lock across the neck when the guitar is hung. I've used them for ages and they are brilliant.