The scenario
I’ve been playing guitar for quite a few years. Some might say that I have what’s known as GAS – Gear Addiction Syndrome. This basically means that I have more guitar-related gear than people think I should.
They are, of course, completely incorrect, but I do have several guitars. When I used to live in a house by myself, that I owned, it was awesome, and I could do what I wanted in terms of storage and display of instruments: have individual stands for them, screw wall hangers into the wall… whatever I wanted!
My house was once described as “a dumping ground for musical equipment until it’s needed next,” a description I bore with pride!
Fast forward a bit, and I’m now sharing an apartment in Queens with a less guitar-orientated fiancée, and a guitar in every room or on every wall is less of an option.
The solution
I only had two single guitar stands, which are great, but they’re kind of a tripod shape so take up a good bit of room, and can be awkward to position when you don’t have a lot of room.
It also meant that I could only have two guitars out at a time, meaning the others would not be getting any love – a shocking waste of great instruments!
I concluded that I needed something that would firstly, hold all my instruments. Secondly, it needed to utilize the space well, in that it would precisely hold the number of instruments without taking excess space. And finally – and without doubt, the most important concern – it needed to be sturdy. These are my babies. They needed to be cared for.
As kind of a secondary consideration, I have a couple of instruments whose shapes aren’t exactly “standard,” so the stand would need to be able to hold them as well. Unfortunately, there’s no real way to check this before you buy, so I really had to just hope for the best.
I looked to Hercules for a solution straight away. My single instrument stands were made by them, and I have an untested suspicion that their products might actually be bulletproof. In my house, when I started hanging guitars on walls as a storage solution, I was happy with unbranded hangers for my cheaper instruments, but my Standard American Stratocaster hung from a Hercules.
I knew when I started researching solutions, that whatever I found, anything from Hercules would not be the cheapest option. But, it’s definitely one of those cases where when you’re familiar with the quality a brand produces, and you absolutely trust that brand with your instruments, an extra $20, $30 or $40 is entirely worth it.
First impressions
I favor practical birthday gifts, so I received the five instrument Hercules guitar rack that I required a in that context.
It arrived in an enormous box. It was much bigger than I expected, and for some reason that made me think it would be a pain to put together, with lots of bits and pieces that would require screwing or bolting together.
I couldn’t have been any more wrong.
Sure the box was bigger than necessary, but that’s how things are packaged these days. It came covered in plenty of wrapping to prevent any potential scrapes in transit, which is far enough, I guess.
Removing the packaging, and there was nothing to put together at all. The bottom of the rack literally just slid apart to create a triangular shape, that was the base. That was it!
The only work I really had to do with it was to adjust the holders at the top of the rack, to give appropriate spacing between my instruments. It’s also good to know that I can buy additional ones for when I get another guitar or two.
Use
There’s not an awful lot to say about the use: it’s a guitar rack – it mostly does just sit there, holding my guitars.
I’ve had it a couple of weeks now, and I really can’t fault anything about it. It’s strong and sturdy, and I can’t really ask for much more than that.
I’m a home musician right now, but if I was heading out on the road with a bunch of guitars, I’d be completely confident bringing this with me.
Apart from the stability, I’m still hugely impressed with how it can go from full guitar rack to being as flat as possible, and back again. The portability and storability, and retaining its sturdiness is awesome.
The foam padding along the bottom rail, and the rubber holders for the necks of Hercules guitar rack are great. There’s no danger of any scrapes that will damage my babies.
And it comfortably holds my more awkward shaped instruments too!
Conclusion
I would absolutely recommend this Hercules guitar rack for anybody who is tight on space, but still needs their babies on hand to reach for.
Sure, you can get cheaper models, and maybe if you have cheaper guitars, you’ll be satisfied with them, but for my Gibson and American-made Fender, I’m going to opt for the best, short of hiring armed security!
To date, this has entirely done its job, and I’ve been so happy with it. I expect it to look after my babies for many years to come!
