Buying warmoth products during the winter

[JerseyTrash]

I wanted to buy a neck + body + hardware for the next build from Warmoth, but I'm in New York (which is currently under snow) and was wondering if I ought to wait to minimize warping of the wood due to the weather. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

 

[Logrinn]

A very good question. I have had these exact thoughts myself as I'm in Sweden and have bad weather here.
But on the other hand, I'll probably not buy my body and neck for a few more months, but still ... Could be nice to hear other peoples thoughts on this.

 

[ByteFrenzy]

Just checked... I've had shipments in all seasons, and never noticed any weather impact. An most of my orders were for unfinished products which I would consider to be more sensitive to that sort of thing. The wack your neck gets from sitting in an aircraft cargo hold is probably worse that what it will experience in the brown pickup truck.

René

 

[Cederick]

A very good question. I have had these exact thoughts myself as I'm in Sweden and have bad weather here.
But on the other hand, I'll probably not buy my body and neck for a few more months, but still ... Could be nice to hear other peoples thoughts on this.

I'm Swedish too!  :icon_thumright:

3 guitar necks
2 guitar bodies
and 1 bass neck/bass body (a friend paid, but I ordered and built it for him)

I thing all my orders have been made during the winter, so I have got my stuff when it's snowing and everything.

The only problem I have had was a finished alder body that shrunk and showed the grains under the finish,

So I wouldn't be TOO worried, even tho next time I order, I wanna do it during summer... I had no idea about humidity and stuff before, or I was aware of it, but I haven't been thinking much about it until recently, and I will actually get a humidifier for my studio room and stuff like that.

 

[Guitarsan]

What I'm about to say is for short term periods, meaning the time it would take to ship to U.S. or Sweden...

It's about humidity variation as much as temperature. The issue with winter is low humidity and the cold. Both tend to shrink the wood and finish, the more extreme they get. The way Warmoth packages bodies and necks is good for slowly allowing any changing temp/humidity changes to do just that as it is shipped - slowly change. This is good.

What is not good is opening that package and "shocking" the finish with a warm, properly humidified room IF the contents have gotten cold and lost humidity. It's this shock, with the finish warming up far faster than the body which can cause problems.

So, if in doubt, when it arrives let the part(s) sit in the package unopened for at least 24 hours. This will eliminate 99% of all potential problems.

 

[mayfly]

I've had over 12 necks and bodies shipped to me here in Ottawa, some in -40 deg weather.  Everything arrived in good shape.

I don't think you'll have a problem.

 

[Cagey]

Same here. Lotsa bodies and necks here to Michigan, and no problems.

 

[tomasino]

That's a reason for Roasted Maple if I ever heard one.  :dontknow:

 

[Logrinn]

That's good to know. Thanks everyone!

Och Cederick, säg till om du är i Lund eller Stockholm, så får vi träffas och snacka om nördiga gitarrelaterade saker vid tillfälle.

 

[Glimmer]

Funny, when I ordered my one and only (thus far) body from Warmoth last Oct., we were having a spate of 90–95° weather and I was really worried about it. It arrived at 6 PM – meaning it sat in the truck all day – and I made sure the box was cool to the touch before opening it. There is one spot on the front where, when viewed at an angle against the light, you can see a small area of light ripple. Don't know if the heat had anything to do with it or if it's a product of the laminate top wood or... Whatever it is it's minor and you have to look hard in the right conditions to see it.

FWIW the only time I ever ordered a guitar on-line (an acoustic archtop coming from a shop back east (I live in L.A.)) I did get a bit of finish checking – the only checking I have on any of my instruments. It is minor, runs along the grain of the wood on each of the lower bouts, and is barely visible even when you're looking for it, but it's there. Oh well...

 

[drewfx]

I've never had any problem, but as a general rule when there's a dramatic difference between temperature/humidity inside and out I tend to leave it in the box for a while to acclimate slowly before opening.

Needless to say, this is difficult if there's a picture of a turtle on the box and I'm not sure if it's of any value or not in practice.

 

[musicispeace]

I've shipped a raw neck to Cagey in the middle of the country in the dead of winter with not so much as a hurt feeling happening to it. Personally, I'd be a little more concerned about hot and humid as opposed to cold. 

 

[Verne Bunsen]

I used to live in Alaska, and now I live in Arizona. Extremes: check. I've had good luck with both shipping and receiving and I believe that patience is the key. If the guitar/body/neck is well packed (which Warmoth products are), it's unlikely (not impossible, but unlikely) that it will be damaged by climatic changes during transportation. It's the sudden ripping open of the box when it arrives that does it in. The internet is full of heartbreaking accounts of people watching their finish check before their very eyes 'cause they were understandably excited about the arrival of a guitar or other wooden instrument. Bring it inside and leave it. Make it a religious exercise of self deprivation or whatever you have to do, just give it time. When I'm shipping guitars, I typically send the following link to the recipient because I think it covers the situation nicely.

https://artisanguitars.com/faq/temperature-warning-why-should-i-wait-24-hours-open-my-newly-delivered-instrument

The meat of it is this paragraph:
First... feel the outside of the shipping box.  Is it cold? Hot?  After allowing the box to acclimate to your interior climate, place your hand on a wooden table in your office or living room for comparison.  Does it feel like it is the same temperature as the shipping box?  If so, open the box and feel the case through the protective plastic bag.  Does it feel cold or hot?  Once again, compare to some wooden furniture in the same room.  If it does not feel like it is the same temperature, wait to open the case.  If the temperature feels the same, it is safe to remove the plastic and open the guitar case.  Feel the guitar itself... if it still feels warm or cold, close the case immediately and let it sit awhile longer, otherwise it is now safe to play!

 

[Guitarsan]

I've had over 12 necks and bodies shipped to me here in Ottawa, some in -40 deg weather.  Everything arrived in good shape.

I don't think you'll have a problem.

Canal good for skating currently, eh? I've been to Ottawa when it was -40, it's frickin cold. Was that C or F everyone asks? Why, yes, I reply - that is the day I learned it doesn't matter. (They cross over at -40)  :icon_biggrin:

 

[musicispeace]

I've had over 12 necks and bodies shipped to me here in Ottawa, some in -40 deg weather.  Everything arrived in good shape.

I don't think you'll have a problem.

Canal good for skating currently, eh? I've been to Ottawa when it was -40, it's frickin cold. Was that C or F everyone asks? Why, yes, I reply - that is the day I learned it doesn't matter. (They cross over at -40)  :icon_biggrin:

I don't know about skating but I was in Winnipeg once in mid-January and the Assiniboine River was frozen over enough that it had a lane for walkers and one for skaters. Walked all the way downtown on it, no one I spoke to on my cell phone suddenly heard a crack followed by "ah......"  :laughing7:

 

[Cederick]

That's good to know. Thanks everyone!

Och Cederick, säg till om du är i Lund eller Stockholm, så får vi träffas och snacka om nördiga gitarrelaterade saker vid tillfälle.

Jag bor norrut och är inte så social av mej, jag träffar nästan aldrig någon för att "hänga" förutom när jag spelar/repar/turnerar med mina olika band  :icon_biggrin: men tack ändå!