what do you guys do when its cold out...

[Thor Von Clemson]

And you have to keep your gear in the car all day while you work before you go to rehersal or a gig. I think the best decision would be quit my job BUT somethings telling me I should think of other methods to keep my gear warm.. Lord knows it gets mighty cold here in MN.

So what do you guys do in this situation? Tomorrow it should be anywhere from 35-50 degrees. I should be ok for the most part with some heavy blankets but there may be days when its under 20 degrees and I have to practice after work.

Any ideas?

[thetroy]

Can you take stuff inside to work?

[rjohnstone]

Bring your guitars inside if you can.
The rest of the stuff will be fine.

[horns666]

the same thing I do when it's hot out..

I lay around, smoke weed and play with my balls..

Fuggum..

[toejam]

Well, if you have to leave your guitar in your car, let it warm up to room temperature for awhile before starting band practice, otherwise the finish might check going from cold to warm too fast.

[Thor Von Clemson]

nope, cant take my stuff inside. I will be driving around quite a bit so I may be able to route myself so that I can drop the stuff off but other than that I am out of options.

I left a Randall Warhead in the car once for a few hours when it was pretty cold out. I think something froze, melted, and fried something because the amp hummed like mad after that. I am scared of what the cold might do to a tube amp.

[atomic charvel guy]

sung to Green Acres-

B.C. Beach is the place to be,
Fembots and twinkies is the life for me
Fake ones spreadin' out so far and wide
Keep Manhattan, just give me a double D size

Bender Beach is where I'd rather stay,
Cold weather shrinks your tool everyday.
I just adore a g-string view,
Darling I love you just do me and I'll do you

The whores, the scores
Fresh box, Traffic stops

I love my life,
Good bye stress and strife.
Black Crowes Beach we are there, ba na , da na na, wa wa!!!!

sorry lost my head Thor. move out here it's fukkin' great.

[mm2002]

Damn Tommy....you make ME want to move out there!

[jeff300]

I wouldn't leave any gear in the cold at less than 40 degrees.

The guitar will go through contraction and expansion at the temperature changes and the condensation that will form in the amp could have disastrous effects. You live in the tundra, you should know this.

[RacerX]

sung to Green Acres-


I love my life,
Good bye stress and strife.
Black Crowes Beach we are there, ba na , da na na, wa wa!!!!

Bwahahahaha!

Tommy you are one talented mofo!

[horns666]

sung to Green Acres-

B.C. Beach is the place to be,
Fembots and twinkies is the life for me
Fake ones spreadin' out so far and wide
Keep Manhattan, just give me a double D size

Bender Beach is where I'd rather stay,
Cold weather shrinks your tool everyday.
I just adore a g-string view,
Darling I love you just do me and I'll do you

The whores, the scores
Fresh box, Traffic stops

I love my life,
Good bye stress and strife.
Black Crowes Beach we are there, ba na , da na na, wa wa!!!!

sorry lost my head Thor. move out here it's fukkin' great.

Nice..I just realized the theme of this thread was about guitars..not us personally..

[toejam]

When it's cold out, you gotta be careful about shrinkage.

[zeegler]

Definitely don't leave any of your gear in the cold, especially if you intend on using it within 24 hours. It's called condensation, and can be just as bad as pouring a glass of water in the back of your amp. If you leave your amp in a cold car, and then bring it inside, the moisture from the warm air inside, will immediately condense on anything cold, such as the circuitry of your amp. Plug it in, and you run the risk of turning it into a smoke machine.

[bonghits]

When it's cold out, you gotta be careful about shrinkage.

YES! And that's why you tell her to keep sucking it! Oh, sorry Joe! I guess you meant fretboard shrinkage, right?!

[charvelguy]

We used to leave our gear in the truck, ..sometimes I used to ride with the gear when there was no ride back to the cities and no room left in the cab (tho not very often).

Condensation is the problem as mentioned by Zeeg...
If you want to protect your stuff from the cold, namely your amp or axe.. buy a road case like a anvil, viking or such.. it'll still get cold but it will be able to handle the extreme temp changes alot better. Speakers too can be effected, have at least an amp cover.

We used to use the heavy blankets and pads movers use..and being a broke musician, I could barely afford food, strings and rent.. so, I never had a real road case. At the very least.. I would say.. have your guitar in a hardshell and use blankets on everything. I rarely left my guitars in the truck overnight regardless of what time of year it was just because of theft..but especially moreso during really cold months like Jan or Feb where it got to be 20 below- I always brought them in.