Hello there,

I'm a complete Chapman Stick newbie based in Germany (US ex-pat).
Having first heard about the instrument way back in the early 90s (when I was a teenager), I had always thought I would try it out one day.
That day has now come.

My musical background is first and foremost percussive, sitting behind a drum or drum set. I picked up the bass guitar as a hobby several years ago and it only made sense to take this leap. Though, I do admire the thought I've come across that some come to this instrument completely uncontaminated by other instruments (my choice of words and I mean it in a positive sense!) and those Stickists seem to be just fine if not even better off (in the long run).

Anyway, I emailed SE for info on my Stick (over a month ago now) and haven't heard back from them (not that I would expect to the high on their priority list). According to the previous owner, the Stick (#753) is from the 80s.

When looking into getting new strings, I read on the website that they only recommend light gauge strings for all Sticks made before '89. I guess that pretty much settles it for me.

I haven't decided whether to go straight for the Classic tuning or perhaps MR.

Are there any meetings in Europe for Stick players and enthusiasts?

See you!

Anyway, I emailed SE for info on my Stick (over a month ago now) and haven't heard back from them

According to the previous owner, the Stick (#753) is from the 80s.

When looking into getting new strings, I read on the website that they only recommend light gauge strings for all Sticks made before '89. I guess that pretty much settles it for me.

I haven't decided whether to go straight for the Classic tuning or perhaps MR.

Welcome to the forum.
From looking at your posts, you tried to buy several different Sticks.
Which one did you get? What type of materials is it made from?

I suggest trying again. Jeff usually replies in a day or so & SE are typically very keen to know where their instruments get to.
Mabye use a subject line something like "Stick #753 has a new owner"?


In which case it probably has a fixed bridge, i.e. 10 slotted screws, and a pair of unadjustable truss rod in the back, which would make it an 'Ironwood' Stick. Is that correct?


If it's a 1980's Ironwood then you really only have 2 choices, Classis light, or Baritone Melody light (& even for that you need to ask SE for a set of special bridge screws too).

There are two reasons for that.
a) The lack of an adjustable truss rod means that the overall string tension needs to be pretty much unchanged.
b) The fixed bridge means you can't adjust intonation.

The only reason that Baritone Melody is possible is that the 2 special bridge screws are shaped to make a small change to the intonation.

Your #753 is not from the 1980s. He is a 1990s model with an adjustable bridge, round headstock and fret rods. Probably hi is made from red oak or shedua. In the 1990s, SE started numbering Sticks from the beginning. With this bridge you can set any tuning using strings of any thickness.

Tell me where I'm wrong.

The belt hook is not adjustable, which according to what I've read is an indication of its age.

As you now know, this isn't #753 from the first number sequence (which would have put it in the 80s), it's #753 from the restarted sequence.

If you not seen it yet, there's a 'Timeline of Stick Advancements' page at SE: https://stick.com/about/history/timeline/


That belt hook is adjustable. It's currently at one extreme of the possible locations. If you want to move the hook position, undo the two screws.

Then fit them back in using one of the other pairs of holes (the holes in the 'outer' leaf are there to provide the extra access you need for that). I hope that makes sense now?

N.B. take care when re-fitting. The screws are just threaded into the body wood, so try to avoid messing up or stripping the threads in the wood (but if you do don't panic, there are easy ways to get back to a tight fit).