Reference to the kelly thread below

[warlok]

The thread talked alot about the neck diving. I don't have that problem. But Spivonious mentioned about it wanting to lean away from him. I have that issue as well. It's not something that bothers me that much but if I can fix it... it'd be better. Has anyone fixed this issue? My front button is where neckplate would be and I think needs to stay there for no diving. The back one is centered. Raise it higher maybe? Don't want to make swiss cheese figuring it out... anyone got a known fix?

[Spivonious]

Heh, well I deal with it by just going into a rock star pose and leaning back a bit.

[Dred]

Aah, the guitar wanting to check your carpet issue.

It hasn't really ever bothered me, because on a kelly, I use the rear of the guitar as an armrest and my forearm is pressed against the face of the guitar naturally, so the guitar is helf firmly in place. I also grip the neck quite hard, so even if I let go at the other end, I don't think It'd really dive. The only time it may dive, is when I'm not playing it, and what's the purpose of having a guitar on your body without playing it, anyway?

You could try resting the picking arm on the body, tilting the neck either towards the ceiling or towards the floor a tad more, or shortening the strap.

I think either one of those may help you a tad.

[Tekky]

Shirt and strap made of velcro! Problem solved!

You might also get a couple chicks weaing cashmere sweaters too.

[Jayster]

Drink more beer, as your stomach grows it will nicely counter this effect.

[toejam]

Drink more beer, as your stomach grows it will nicely counter this effect.

No, the problem with my old Kelly XLR was my beer gut was making it tilt out.

[Jayster]

No, the problem with my old Kelly XLR was my beer gut was making it tilt out.

That's why you need to drink lite beer!!!:ROTF:

And on a serious note, the type of strap pins you're using can also influence this phenomenon. Schaller and pro line do not work well for me, I use the dunlops( http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/StrapLkDDNkl ). They allow for a bit more flexability and I've found this will help the guitar to properly lay against your body at least for me, and I said "NO brown M&M's".

[Jack The Riffer]

No, the problem with my old Kelly XLR was my beer gut was making it tilt out.

You should have slid the top of it up under your moobs. That would have held it in place.

[Tekky]

That's why you need to drink lite beer!!!:ROTF:

Shoulda just said, "You should just drink water" same thing.

[warlok]

Well.... I'm keeping leaded beer! I already made a sacrifice on that one. Started growing a tire so I had to stop drinking or stop eating... Mmmmm... Budweiser!!! And with that sacrifice, I don't have a 12-pack or moobs... so no help there..

No need for velcro either, it's not diving. It's actually pretty balanced. I have some Marvel straplocks on the way and some dunlops on my strat. I'll try a few different ones I'll try and see how it goes. Thanks.

[Newc]

They call that "Near-Beer" down here. "I almost had a beer!"

As for the Kelly wanting to lean forward: does it not have a belly bevel on the back? If so, let out the strap so it hangs lower.

There are a few things you can try - loop the strap over the rear point where your arm rests, or pull your picking arm in tighter so it tilts up, or lean over the guitar.

If it's doing that because of your gut, lose the gut.

Get a Warrior - radical shape without the anorexia requirement


As for moving the rear strap, be aware that doing so will relocate the bridge in relation to your body, so if you're used to the way the Kelly plays, I don't recommend moving the rear strap pin.

I moved both on the bolt-on Kelly I had - front one to the edge of the neck pocket and the rear one up closer to the tip and it put the bridge in the proper place for me.

[etepbbb]

The thread talked alot about the neck diving. I don't have that problem. But Spivonious mentioned about it wanting to lean away from him. I have that issue as well. It's not something that bothers me that much but if I can fix it... it'd be better. Has anyone fixed this issue? My front button is where neckplate would be and I think needs to stay there for no diving. The back one is centered. Raise it higher maybe? Don't want to make swiss cheese figuring it out... anyone got a known fix?

My Kelly leans forward on the top as well, which was kind of uncomfortable, I came up with 2 answers for it:

1. Move the forward strap lock from behind the neck, to the top of the smaller horn like Gibson Explorers have there strap locks located. Look at Hetfields Explorers, and you'll know want I'm trying to say. I didn't want to do drill another hole in the guitar so I skipped that.

2. I just got used to it, I tried the strap over the upper horn, but didn't like that either.

A good strap does help, those cheap plastic ones suck, they slide all over.

[roodyrocker]

I've played a couple of my Kellys out live and have not had the problems discussed here :think: Hmm, perhaps mine are worth much more money since they don't, as they would say on E-Bay: "This one is one of the good ones, not one of those POS new ones that neck dive and tilt out. Made back when they built them right"

[jdr94]

[quote=Dred;1233959]

It hasn't really ever bothered me, because on a kelly, I use the rear of the guitar as an armrest and my forearm is pressed against the face of the guitar naturally, so the guitar is held firmly in place. I also grip the neck quite hard, so even if I let go at the other end, I don't think It'd really dive.

You could try resting the picking arm on the body, tilting the neck either towards the ceiling or towards the floor a tad more, or shortening the strap. quote]

same here
you shouldnt have to move anything, just positioning your self makes all the difference. jayster would be the pro in the kelly department being that he has like 12,000 of em

[Newc]

My Kelly leans forward on the top as well, which was kind of uncomfortable, I came up with 2 answers for it:

1. Move the forward strap lock from behind the neck, to the top of the smaller horn like Gibson Explorers have there strap locks located. Look at Hetfields Explorers, and you'll know want I'm trying to say. I didn't want to do drill another hole in the guitar so I skipped that.

2. I just got used to it, I tried the strap over the upper horn, but didn't like that either.

A good strap does help, those cheap plastic ones suck, they slide all over.

Because of the angle of the top stub/horn of Explorer shapes, putting a strap there will not help. I tried it with both a real Gibson USA Explorer and a Kelly. The basic design itself is flawed.

Yes, a grippy strap such as leather or whatnot will prevent it from diving, by means of friction. The guitar wants to nosedive because the center of balance doesn't match up with the strap pins. When you use a leather or cotton or other grippy strap, the guitar still wants to nosedive, but the downward force is being transferred to your shoulder. This can cause problems later down the road for your shoulder.

Who was it that mounted the strap on the rear of the body in one of the trem cavity cover holes? He said that worked great and felt more like a seatbelt strapping the guitar to him. He was using a standard nylon strap as well, IIRC, not a grippy-material.