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Cruising/sailing with musical instruments... ?

11K views 41 replies 30 participants last post by  travlin-easy 
#1 · (Edited)
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#4 ·
5 string clawhammer banjo ... using Nylgut strings that dont corrode in salt air as does 'wire'.
Wife always takes her fiddle.

Plenty of jammin' when travelling if youre looking for some.

Bagpipe chanter .... I dont 'really' play the bagpipe but it helps when someone anchors on top of me ... temporarily anchors on top of me until I start 'practicing'. Better than a Honda generator to chase away too close anchorers. :-o

For any instrument simply spray "Boeshield" on any component that will corrode in salt air.
Take the Guitar!!!!!
 
#6 ·
Chris,

All my gear is in heavy-duty, padded, insulated, canvas cases. It will all be going on the boat with me October 1st. The beauty of an arranger keyboard is you have every instrument in the world in the keyboard and they really sound great. Essentially, with an arranger keyboard you are a one-man-orchestra. Here's a recording of one of the songs I recently performed. It was recorded during the performance, so it is unedited, therefore you get to hear my mistakes as well.

Gary :cool:

Wonderful Tonight.mp3 - File Shared from Box - Free Online File Storage
 
#7 ·
Ovation guitars will probably weather better than regular guitars. Still, the neck is made of wood and can warp. If you keep it in a quality case, humidity changes will be more gradual and help the guitar last longer.

If guitar is something you really want to play, get a cheap one. There's some brands out there that play relatively well and they're not solid wood so they're a bit more stable as far as warping goes. Let a good luthier run their hands over it to get the action right since a lot of the cheap guitars have five ft high action that's murder on the fingers. The one I use charges $40 to set one up right.

About the only thing I can think of that would be "marine proof" would be one of those plastic recorders. Who wants to play that though?

A banjo could last a bit, depending on what type of metal it's made of. You know metals and salt water don't usually mix. I have a banjo. It can be difficult to find music.

Learn to read music if you're playing flute/piccolo. Much more music will be available to you.
 
#10 ·
I guess there isn't room on my boat for the drum kit but I've been thinking about taking the djembe. I have the same concerns about moisture affecting the drum head (it's goat skin) and the drum shell. It's made of thick oak but over time could still be affected. I would nodoubt have to find an isolated anchorage to play it.
 
#11 ·
I've had the djembe on the boat for 7 years, no problems in the tropics. Set it out in the sun once in awhile to dry things out. Have a nice spot by the mast (inside) that the drum tucks into nicely.
 
#12 ·
On Lake Michigan, there's no worry with salt (or sharks!).

I bring along my guitar. Either the Fender Stratocaster or a full-size acoustic. Our boat's a 31 foot Catalina.

If I bring along the Stratocaster, I also bring along a very small practice amp.

The guitar shares the v-berth with me (my wife gets the aft berth cuz she's...well, she's kinda noisy when she sleeps).

So, a guitar, two Siamese cats, a litter box, the usual travel bags and we're good to go.
 
#13 ·
I always have a uke with me on the boat, although those that been subjected to my playing probably wish that I would wait until I'm singlehanding outside the 3 mile limit! I also have a Washburn Rover traveling guitar that some of my friends play when they're aboard.

When my kids were little I used to bring a bugle along for those early morning wake-ups. ;^)
 
#14 ·
I'll second the djembe suggestion. Doesn't have to be a big one. Also the egg shaker or a cabasa.

But, as far as a bomb proof melody instrument, look at an Irish whistle (sometimes called a penny whistle). Good ones are made of brass. Sometimes aluminum. Cheap ones out of tin can be had for 10 bucks or so. Great nautical tradition with these instruments and nothing is more beautiful on a foggy mooring than an Irish air floating on the air. PM me if you need more info.
 
#15 ·
oh.... and as for guitars on board, the solution is garage sales. Find one for 20 bucks and throw it away if you ruin it..... but you probably won't for quite awhile. With little invested, you won't worry about it. No case, just throw it in the back of the wet locker! Rusty strings .... oh well. (gut strings on a classical guitar anyone?)
 
#17 ·
I agree. Doesn't have to be a garage sale (don't normally find guitars). When getting ready for a trip last summer, my wife picked up an excellent used, plywood topped (for stability and cheapness), 6 string acoustic guitar for $50 at a music store . It has surprisingly good sound, a very accurate and easy to play neck, and came with brand new strings! :D We got it for a week long sailing trip, we used a garbage bag for a "case", which didn't take up much space. On an extremely small boat for two people for a week.

I keep it in the open air on a rack at home, easy to pick up and play for a few minutes, and I don't worry about it drying out without a case. Because I don't care much about it. Little investment, lots of fun.

As an aside, I was putting on a roof in Florida once and from my height I saw the garbage truck coming. I looked across the road and saw a guitar leaning against the garbage, about to be picked up and crushed. What would you do? Yeah, and it wasn't a bad classical guitar to drive home with.
 
#18 ·
Well, I had a Yamaha drreadnought which was far too big. I gave it away to a friend for the price of new strings.

I bought a Parkwood by CORT - parlour size - which fits into 'fiddle storage' above front bunks.

I found that if you keep using it, the strings dont rust where you play.

Anyway, for me, the guitar is just for personal use.
 
#19 ·
Well, I guess I'll have to forget about my 4 valve contra tuba. I spent all winter making a harness so I can strap the instrument into the dingy. Also had the bell made so it screws on and off to save space. The nice thing about the tuba is the pipe is wide enough to use as storage.

I think a Bosun whistle may make the most sense. Although a plastic uke may be okay.

Still thinking about ideas. I won't consider the Oboe. If ya want to be a good musician ya have to know your bass from your oboe.
 
#21 · (Edited)
What musical instruments are some of you playing on your boats?
I use a Martin LXM acoustic. It is very stable in the marine environment, even with the high levels of humidity. It is basically made of a composite (seems like Formica) and the neck is highly laminated. The thing does not move and stays in tune amazingly well for an acoustic.

While it does not sound like a D-18, OM or 000 it sounds quite decent for a little composite guitar and I played all the "baby" or small models. It's actually got some bottom end to it.. Carbon Acoustics & Rain Song make them in carbon fiber but I've yet to play one in the baby size but have played both CA and Rain Song in the D size... The baby size fits the boat very well I just wish the nut width on the neck was a bit wider.

I brought my Santa Cruz OM on the boat once, won't do that again.....

Martin LXM
 
#22 ·
I have had a flute on both boats the first one lasted for 7 years and was still working OK but needed repadding.

Always remember the Fenchman who built his own boat because he wanted to have a full size upright piano on board. He built the boat round the piano.
 
#23 ·
My baby grand could replace the Saloon table as there's a U shape seating arrangement but the mast would have to go through the middle of the strings and soundboard!
 
#24 ·
Guess you need to step the mast on the cabin top, and reinforce the piano's structure to bear the compression post. I have seen a steel beam span the cabin, with supports to either side. Can you fit your piano through the companionway entrance?

Obviously I think music is just as important as sailing! :D
 
#25 · (Edited)
As much as I'd like to keep a Taylor or Martin on board, I know neither would survive the temp and humidity changes on the boat. I built a slightly scaled down nylon string guitar and a rugged case just for the boat. It is all cedar with a Spanish foot but with a modern neck shape with a 12" radius. It has held up really well on the boat and does not take up too much room. Nylon strings put a lot less stress on the structure of a guitar and probably hold up better than a steel string where moisture is a factor. Having a guitar is a high priority item to me so I don't mind using some space to keep a real guitar. Those "travel" guitars that some builders make usually have very crappy tonal value.
 

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#26 ·
I lived aboard in Florida for 12 months and kept my banjo with me. It shows remarkably little effect from that time. I kept a moisture eater in the soft case with it and replaced it periodically. Still can't play it worth a sh*t, I blame the salty air for that :)
 
#28 ·
I use a small electric travel guitar on board. It's survived the winter well and stays pretty much in tune, no rusting visible and the nylon strap is the only thing that suffers; i.e., mold spots here and there.

The boat is its permanent home. I get great joy while having my weekly whisky, playing guitar along with the IPOD.

I've thought of bringing my full sized acoustic, but have thought better of it, due to size.
 
#29 ·
If you already play the guitar and are worried about space then a mandolin might be a good solution - same basic technique, notes just in different places. Also, a dulcimer can give you that sound in a very small package and would fit in with other instruments for jammin. My teacher has a fairly high end mandolin that has a plastic body with traditional materials every where else.
You might find that the piccolo gets you thrown out of the anchorage as an instrument not many people like for other than Sousa marches.
You think you have it bad with a guitar on a 30 footer, how about a cello on a 28 footer!
Look for Suzuki method books for what ever instrument you take up, you will learn to read music and the basic repertoire.
John
 
#30 ·
Had my "Paki practice pipes" on the boat in Med Spain for about ten years. Not really a problem around those that like highland pipes. Only one other piper happened by one year, good fun doing a gig at a local pub.
To make the pipes work in that environment, I used some modern plastic reeds, a synthetic bag and reworked the drones with brass inserts. The (B Flat) chanter was plastic, but a fine bit of "Edinbrough" craftsmanship. It was important to run a little alcohol thru the bag to kill off the little beasties, but no real maintenance problems.
Was in Almerimar for awhile; would walk the seawall & belt out some tunes. Inevitably, someone would comment on it later: " Oi, ya be chokin them cats again, I hear.." Sigh.
But miss a couple of days, and it's " Oi,lazy....get back to yer pipes!"

Good clean fun!:)
 
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