Prevent bending tuning keys

[Bob Branstetter]

I have a Subaru Forester that I use to carry my bass in. Like many small SUVs, if you lay your bass on it's back with the back seats folded forward, the scroll passes over the obstacle of the folded rear seat on it's way to between the front seats. I found that some of the keys were getting bent while pulling the bass out. Here is a DIY idea that has stopped this from happening on my bass. It is made from a couple of pieces of thin plywood and styrofoam shaped to fit over the keys and resting against the back of the scroll. I covered it with some pool table cloth, but that is more for looks than anything else.

[bribass]

Originally Posted by Bob Branstetter

I have a Subaru Forester that I use to carry my bass in. Like many small SUVs, if you lay your bass on it's back with the back seats folded forward, the scroll passes over the obstacle of the folded rear seat on it's way to between the front seats. I found that some of the keys were getting bent while pulling the bass out. Here is a DIY idea that has stopped this from happening on my bass. It is made from a couple of pieces of thin plywood and styrofoam shaped to fit over the keys and resting against the back of the scroll. I covered it with some pool table cloth, but that is more for looks than anything else.

What a great solution to a problem I'm sure we've all dealt w/ for years! I've thrown out my back trying to leverage the bass to avoid tuning peg damage while taking the bass outta some cars.

BG

[Eric Swanson]

Clever fix. Thanks for sharing it.

What kind of glue did you use?

[svenbass]

Great idea!! I usually put the bass on it's side and have a bungee strap to keep it from rolling around. Do most folks lay it on the back?

Also, I have a bent key - just the paddle part, not the stem. Is there a way to fix this? I've left it alone, but I'm always afraid one day it will break while tuning.

[steve66]

Patent the idea and market it before someone else does. Its always the simple inventions that make the most money.

[Bob Branstetter]

Originally Posted by Eric Swanson

Clever fix. Thanks for sharing it.

What kind of glue did you use?

I think I used Weldwood white glue. It will stick just about anything together.

[Bob Branstetter]

Originally Posted by steve66

Patent the idea and market it before someone else does. Its always the simple inventions that make the most money.

The problem is that it has to made to fit each bass. Not a one size fits all situation.

[Jake deVilliers]

That's a nice solution to an all too common problem Bob. Nice work!

[David Potts]

Maybe you could do the same thing with a strap-on wheel, Bob.

But wait, with your idea is any bass weight resting on the scroll when driving? Conventional wisdom is that the bass is supported in such a way that the scroll is not carrying any weight. This safeguards the base of the neck from being broken if you go over a bump. If the rear seats don't fold down flat enough then support the top of the back with an old cushion or pillow.

I drive a similar sort of car and have wondered about making a frame of light weight tubular steel on runners/rails that you lay the bass on to slide it into the load space. This would reduce the risk of back injury when you cantilever the bass in (using handles that I don't trust anyway!!)

I'm 67. If I can't carry or lift it I can't play it!!

DP

[Bob Branstetter]

Originally Posted by David Potts

Maybe you could do the same thing with a strap-on wheel, Bob.

But wait, with your idea is any bass weight resting on the scroll when driving? Conventional wisdom is that the bass is supported in such a way that the scroll is not carrying any weight. This safeguards the base of the neck from being broken if you go over a bump. If the rear seats don't fold down flat enough then support the top of the back with an old cushion or pillow.

I drive a similar sort of car and have wondered about making a frame of light weight tubular steel on runners/rails that you lay the bass on to slide it into the load space. This would reduce the risk of back injury when you cantilever the bass in (using handles that I don't trust anyway!!)

I'm 67. If I can't carry or lift it I can't play it!!

DP

Since I am also 67 (with 2 knee replacements), I know what you mean about lifting.

However, in my Subaru and all of the other small SUVs that I've looked at, none of the weight of the instrument is supported by the neck. The bass lays on it's back and the neck hangs free between the seats. I always bring my bass along and check on how well my bass, stool and amp fit in the back before I sign the papers to buy any new car. I've always felt that unless you have the bass well supported, laying a bass on it's side in the back of a car is an invitation to disaster if you have to make a sharp turn to avoid some idiot. I have to admit that I have carried basses in the back of my car on their sides, but only when I have to carry more than one bass at a time (I do the repairs for a local school district) and there isn't room to lay them on their backs.

[Damon Rondeau]

I haven't thought about this before. Since my bass has been through hundreds of loading cycles in my van stowed exactly like that and I have been, as I say, ignorant, I'm completely amazed I don't have bent keys.

Thanks, Bob.