Help me understand an armrest

[Wade Hampton]

Originally Posted by gr81dorn

How do they fit in the case, seems like it might not fit great in certain tight squeezes.

It’s not a problem. The armrests are no thicker than the bridge, and if you can already close the case lid without having to press down on the lid, you won’t have to once you add an armrest.

Short version: if the case is the proper size for the guitar, the armrest won’t cause a problem.


whm

[Scallywag]

Worth noting that when I purchased one of these I was looking for some relief from the sharp(ish) edge of the guitar that’s in constant contact with the underside of my upper-right forearm area (you know what I mean.) I was practicing quite a bit and numbness was an occurrence. This Pearce arm bevel did not provide that out of the box, not to the degree I wanted at least. A wood file and various grits of sandpaper however resulted in the soft bevel I was looking for, and I was happy with the installation.

Both the sonic and other ergonomic benefits were there and apparent without this modification, for what it’s worth.

It’s still on that guitar, seven years later (which sits comfortably in its standard issue Martin case as I type.)

[Horsehockey]

Originally Posted by Scallywag

Worth noting that when I purchased one of these I was looking for some relief from the sharp(ish) edge of the guitar that’s in constant contact with the underside of my upper-right forearm area (you know what I mean.) I was practicing quite a bit and numbness was an occurrence. This Pearce arm bevel did not provide that out of the box, not to the degree I wanted at least. A wood file and various grits of sandpaper however resulted in the soft bevel I was looking for, and I was happy with the installation.

Both the sonic and other ergonomic benefits were there and apparent without this modification, for what it’s worth.

It’s still on that guitar, seven years later (which sits comfortably in its standard issue Martin case as I type.)

Hi Scallywag-One year ago, at age 66, I started to learn how to play a guitar. I’m left-handed and ignorant, so I bought a left-handed AMI dread, which is a Sigma guitar clone of a Martin D 16. Had I known better I would have bought a 12 fret short scale guitar with wider string spacing out the nut. But I didn’t know better, so it is what it is. As a consequence of having a guitar that is too large for my comfort at my age, I have to shift the guitar to my left in order to have my fretting (right) hand more comfortably out straight and not out to my right. If that makes any sense. So my too-large guitar results in my having the same problem that you clearly describe. Namely, the edge digs into my forearm. So I’m thinking for me that the John Pearse slimline would be best because I’m not making that much contact with my arm on the top as I am on the edge. I don’t think that JP makes a slimline for lefties in a standard size. They appear to make them for juniors but that’s no good for my dread. I’ll be checking with the JP folks to make sure. In any case, I do plan to acquire a JP arm rest in ebony to match the Macarta fretboard and bridge on my guitar. And to probably do the sanding that you have described.

Finally, my question: when you sand these things, does the sanded portion result in discoloration of the sanded portion or can it be made to look as cleanly finished as the unsanded original?

Thanks very much in advance.
Bill

[Rad]

I have never liked the looks of an armrest so I never even considered one. However, yesterday I decided to try a little experiment when playing my Guild D40. I stuck a chord with my arm laying across the guitar as usual. I let the chord ring and then lifted my arm off the guitar. Holy cow! It was like I turned up the volume knob on a electric and at the same time turned the tone knob to brighter.

I must resist, I really don’t want one on any of my guitars.......or do I?....

[gr81dorn]

Originally Posted by Scallywag

Worth noting that when I purchased one of these I was looking for some relief from the sharp(ish) edge of the guitar that’s in constant contact with the underside of my upper-right forearm area (you know what I mean.) I was practicing quite a bit and numbness was an occurrence. This Pearce arm bevel did not provide that out of the box, not to the degree I wanted at least. A wood file and various grits of sandpaper however resulted in the soft bevel I was looking for, and I was happy with the installation.

Both the sonic and other ergonomic benefits were there and apparent without this modification, for what it’s worth.

It’s still on that guitar, seven years later (which sits comfortably in its standard issue Martin case as I type.)

Yah, at least the Pearse ones don't look like their eased edge is much rounder than the guitar would have, but if you can round it over more, that would certainly help.

I am a telecaster player, but every time i grab a strat, I feel the luxury of the heavier roundover.

[Nymuso]

Yeah, I've got one of those, bought it when they first hit the market. It's upstairs in a box of other music stuff I wish I hadn't bought.

[Stevien]

Another thing worth noting; the smaller the guitar, the more improvement the armrest will make, due to the fact that your arm mutes a larger percentage of the top. They do work, but some folks just don't like the appearance. I'm sold on them.
Steve

[raysachs]

I put a Pearse armrest on my CEO-7 not long after I bought it, primarily for comfort. It didn't make much different in terms of comfort, but the guitar volume suddenly went to ELEVEN! I kept it on for well over a year, but then I started realizing the guitar was too loud for one of my key applications - recording both guitar and voice at the same time with one mic. To balance my voice and guitar (even with the mic us close to my mouth), I needed to reduce the volume of my guitar by more than I seemed able to do with a lighter right hand or pick and still maintain my playing style. So I took the armrest off and it made a difference, but it didn't seem to make as much difference removing it as it did when I first put it on. I didn't think the guitar sounded better or worse with it or without it, just quieter or louder.

The other thing to note is that it's not terribly difficult to remove the armrest without damaging the finish, but just having the armrest on with that adhesive for a good long time, left a bit of a mark along the edge - not like the finish is dented or dinged or broken or anything, but kind of like it's slightly compressed where the adhesive had been. I've had it off for months now and it hasn't changed, so I'd imagine it's there for good. The good news is you really have to look hard and in the right light to see it - I tried to photograph it and couldn't get it to show up. But for someone who's a real stickler for a perfect looking guitar, this might bother you. It doesn't me at all, but it's definitely there. So beware of that before you experiment with armrests...

-Ray

[L20A]

Wade has probably been waiting for me to post this.
We have discussed the use of an arm rest before.

I put an arm rest on my beautiful Guild D-55.
Some time later, I removed the rest.
The reaction between the rest adhesive and the lacquer finish on the guitar left a blistered finish where the rest was.

I have used the rest on other guitars that have poly finishes and have not had the reaction problem with them.

I believe that the rest comes with a warning that it is to be used as a permanent fixture to the guitar or something like that.

[Wade Hampton]

Horsehockey wrote:

Originally Posted by Horsehockey

I don’t think that JP makes a slimline for lefties in a standard size. They appear to make them for juniors but that’s no good for my dread. I’ll be checking with the JP folks to make sure. In any case, I do plan to acquire a JP arm rest in ebony to match the Macarta fretboard and bridge on my guitar. And to probably do the sanding that you have described.

Finally, my question: when you sand these things, does the sanded portion result in discoloration of the sanded portion or can it be made to look as cleanly finished as the unsanded part?

Regarding left-handed armrests, so far as I’m aware the only left-handed ones available are in the standard shape.

As for sanding an armrest, if you want to take off a little you can oil the sanded part of the armrest and restore the appearance that way. The one exception is the boxwood armrest, which can’t be sanded and restored with oil because the wood is stained. So if you attempt to restore a sanded boxwood armrest with oil it’s not going to match.

Hope that makes sense.


whm

[Horsehockey]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

Regarding left-handed armrests, so far as I’m aware the only left-handed ones available are in the standard shape.

As for sanding an armrest, if you want to take off a little you can oil the sanded part of the armrest and restore the appearance that way. The one exception is the boxwood armrest, which can’t be sanded and restored with oil because the wood is stained. So if you attempt to restore a sanded boxwood armrest with oil it’s not going to match.

Hope that makes sense.


whm

It does. Thank you sir.

[Wade Hampton]

You’re welcome.


whm

[Dadzmad]

I have armrests on my Kingpin and little Seagull - they do what their supposed to do keeping my arm off the top and don't look too bad.



The Kingpin has a JP eyebrow and the Seagull has a rest that is slightly smaller that I got online from India for about 10 bucks without the stickum.