Ou7shined Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 [quote name='Len_derby' timestamp='1326790727' post='1501843'] I used to play regularly at a place in Matlock Bath during a time period either side of the smoking ban. About a year before, and then about a year afterwards. Within a month of the ban the function room at the pub changed from the good old ciggy smell to a vile mixture of urine, sweat and mouldy curtains and carpets. An egg-head doctor friend of mine told me that cigarette smoke actually has an antiseptic effect and that the mould spores (now rampant) might be more harmful than the smoke! We packed the gig in soon after (not because of the smell!) so I can't confirm that. We've all got to die of something, so[b] I reckon we just have to make our own informed choices.[/b] [/quote] I guarantee that if you packed in smoking you'd change your mind about all of the above (especially the stuff about it's antiseptic effect). I did. If you think about it, we all know the harm smoking does so the choice [b]to[/b] smoke is not an "informed choice" as it directly contrary to all the good information we have. It is however a choice we can make about our own heath given the rights we all have to freedom of choice... this right only falls down when it impacts on the freedom of choice for other [b]not to [/b]smoke... hence the ban for public places etc. (I still see idiots smoking with children in the car - hopefully the will be a law against that soon too) I used to smoke (a lot) but I gave up about 7 years ago (coincidentally around the time my mrs fell pregnant which helped a lot). At the time I felt very much in the minority as almost all my peers smoked too. I'm glad to say that times are changing and now I know only a handful of smokers... those who are too set in their ways and those who are in denial and find excuses about the benefits of smoking (like it keeping mould off the curtains ) I still see school kids smoking (mostly girls) so I guess we as a society still have a way to go to un-glamorising it. Back on topic - I bought a bass to do up last year (supposedly owned by the sellers young nephew ) which when I opened the package absolutely stank of smoke and made me smell of it too when I touched it. I find the smell very unpleasant now and I definitely wouldn't have bought it had I known. The catch 22 of course is that the seller would have been absolutely oblivious as to how much it smells as you genuinely can't smell just how bad it is when you yourself smoke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BILL POSTERS Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 (edited) I quit a couple of days before the end of December, I was already down to 10 a day, and just didnt fancy another one. Come next weekends gigs, I'm not sure what I'll do, cos it helps to pass the standing round waiting time, especially as I;m driving and so cant even have a drink. Havent noticed any increase in smell coming from other people or furniture yet though. Agreed, it used to be bad everywhere, but so few people smoke these days that its not as bad as some people make out. Funny though, i grew up in the 60s when everyone smoked cheaper, stronger, untipped fags and nobody, not even nonsmokers ever noticed it,. What a orrible smelly world it must have been back then eh.. Edited January 17, 2012 by BRANCINI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 [quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1326806453' post='1502136'] ....Funny though, i grew up in the 60s when everyone smoked cheaper, stronger, untipped fags and nobody, not even nonsmokers ever noticed it.... [/quote] I can assure you we did! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swanbrook Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 11 years off them but still love the smell of standing beside someone with a fag. My mother in law still smokes and does it on top of my kids it drives me insane so we just don't go there much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BILL POSTERS Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 [quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1326807909' post='1502164'] I can assure you we did! [/quote] OK. Maybe I should have said I never heard anybody complain. Certainly growing up in a house with brothers and sisters, all their mates etc all smoling, I never did myself. Then again, as we lived in an inner city back to back, between a huge Bakery, a large pork abattoir, and a with a chippy 30 yards away, the smell of Woodbines was probably the least of our worries But at least I can tell my missus and kids I awoke to the smell of freshly baked braed evey morning.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick's Fine '52 Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 [quote name='swanbrook' timestamp='1326809515' post='1502190'] 11 years off them but still love the smell of standing beside someone with a fag. My mother in law still smokes and does it on top of my kids it drives me insane so we just don't go there much. [/quote] I hate people who smoke inside when theres kids around, absolutely no need for it whatsoever, often they're the same people (No reference to your mother-in-law here! ) who swear constantly when there's kids around too. I smoke, and swear, but i'm intellectually aware enough to change my behaviours to suit the occasion/environment, even if I'm stupid enough to still smoke......if that makes sense?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost_Bass Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 (edited) I'm a smoker (on the process of starting to quit) and in my country the smoking ban only appeared two years ago (i think it was two...). Before the ban the pubs were stacked with people (and a big cloud of somoke) but after the ban they took a heavy hit, realy! Less than half the normal customers. In our case the ban wasn't strickt, some venues could still get a license for smoking if they had a good and effective ventilation sistem, what happened was that after the ban the pubs who forbid smoking started to see less customers and the ones that invested in ventilation started to pack. It also reflected in venues with live music, lots of pubs started to do less shows because they couldn't make enough money to pay for the band. I agree with the ban but in restaurants, public equipments, markets, etc... in pubs and discos where you must be over a certain age to enter i think the choice should be up to the landlord, as long as he guarantees a proper ventilation of the space. People that go to a pub go to have a good time, to drink a coffee or a beer and to smoke a cigarrete. People who don't want to be in a smokey room can choose to go to a non-smoker pub! Back on topic, i smoke and play in pubs with smoke, everytime i change strings on my bass (every two months) i give a good clean - i also clean my amp and cables at least twice a year - , i never had anybody complainting of any smell comming from my gear! It's simple, don't be a pig! Keep your gear well taken care of and it will never turn yellow or reak from dirt or smoke and it will last for years to come! Sorry if i came up too strong, i just don't understand why do people let their gear reach the conditions i've seen... Cheers edit: some mistakes, i know there are a lot still remaining... Edited January 17, 2012 by Ghost_Bass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ou7shined Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 [quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1326806453' post='1502136'] I quit a couple of days before the end of December, I was already down to 10 a day, and just didnt fancy another one. Come next weekends gigs, I'm not sure what I'll do, cos it helps to pass the standing round waiting time, especially as I;m driving and so cant even have a drink. Havent noticed any increase in smell coming from other people or furniture yet though. Agreed, it used to be bad everywhere, but so few people smoke these days that its not as bad as some people make out. Funny though, i grew up in the 60s when everyone smoked cheaper, stronger, untipped fags and nobody, not even nonsmokers ever noticed it,. What a orrible smelly world it must have been back then eh.. [/quote] Good for you for quitting. Keep it up. It sounds like you are ready. I was like that too - I was down from heaps (my social circle was based around smoking) to just 3 or 4 a day at the end as it was kind of hard to spark up where I worked. Then one day I got up and realised that I'd simply forgotten to have any fags the day before and I just challenged myself to see how long I could make it last. I didn't pressure myself either and in fact carried baccy with me for about a month after I quit but never dipped into it. I think for me the smell became detestable after about 3 or so years in, so there's plenty time yet. Rather than the smell I think the first thing you'll notice is how far you can walk without breathing heavily, how little coughing you do and how you escape colds when others around you get smitten. Eventually your senses of taste and smell come back to you. Of course the main downside to quitting smoking is you can never find a lighter when you need one for birthday cakes or barbques etc. - eventually even all the ones hidden at the backs of drawers have no gas in them. [quote name='Ghost_Bass' timestamp='1326813590' post='1502296'] I'm a smoker (on the process of starting to quit)... [/quote] Good luck. [quote name='Rick's Fine '52' timestamp='1326812318' post='1502264'] I hate people who smoke inside when theres kids around, absolutely no need for it whatsoever, often they're the same people (No reference to your mother-in-law here! ) who swear constantly when there's kids around too. I smoke, and swear, but i'm intellectually aware enough to change my behaviours to suit the occasion/environment, even if I'm stupid enough to still smoke......if that makes sense?! [/quote] Perfect sense and +1. The mind boggles when you see a mum pushing a buggy with a baby in and she's puffing away. Mind you those types never give up during pregnancy and the baby's probably got a habit anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom1946 Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I started smoking in 1958 and quit in November 2004, the day I went in to hospital for a triple bypass. Now I can't stand being near anyone who smokes, period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swanbrook Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Any other ex smokers still dream about them at night ?? Don't get me wrong of course I am glad I'm off them but sometimes I still dream about them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shambo Posted January 20, 2012 Author Share Posted January 20, 2012 No guitar ever lost value because it was owned by a smoker. The ony reason people say from a "smoke freee home" is because they're trying to validate their non or ex smokieness. I kinda knew what sort of responses to expect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Foxen Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 I've totally stripped and refinished a bass because it reeked of weed. I have a frankenstein Gretsch/Grimshaw F-hole archtop that totally reeks for smoke, and not much I can do about that. So I sold it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 [quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1326730289' post='1501144'] As I peruse the for sale boards for instruments I can't afford, I regularly see them advertised from "smoke free homes". I was just wondering, am I missing something about ciggarette smoke causing damage? [/quote] Because it makes instruments f***ing stink. And thats never nice, it never really goes away. It was more of an issue years ago when you could buy a used bass that was fresh from years of gigging in smokey old pubs. Yuck. For me, having a bass from a smoke free home is important, I don't want that disgusting smell in my room when I'm playing my basses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BILL POSTERS Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 (edited) [quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1327018777' post='1505454'] No guitar ever lost value because it was owned by a smoker. The ony reason people say from a "smoke freee home" is because they're trying to validate their non or ex smokieness. I kinda knew what sort of responses to expect. [/quote] Yeah i reckon your right. Hard surfaces, you can clean. All of my basses have been gigged in a lot of smokey pubs/clubs.rehearsal rooms, and been around smokers, One has a burn on the headstock from where I used to stick a fag under the G string. Cant see it affecting the value. They dont smell, I would notice if they did. Its getting non PC to smoke nowadays, so certain types of peple just like to put 'from a smoke free home' on ads for holy appeal.. The only time it would bother me is with a used car. Edited January 20, 2012 by BRANCINI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed_S Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 [quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1327018777' post='1505454'] No guitar ever lost value because it was owned by a smoker. The ony reason people say from a "smoke freee home" is because they're trying to validate their non or ex smokieness. [/quote] Value is a subjective thing. Any bass that had an unfinished board steeped in cig smoke, various assorted headstock burns and a case I couldn't keep in the house would be absolutely worthless to me, [i]personally[/i]. Doesn't mean that somebody else wouldn't find it irrelevant or even appealing, therefore the saleability probably isn't affected, but the market is certainly reduced. I'd like to think that people put 'from a smoke free home' in the spirit of honesty, in much the same way as you'd put 'some buckle rash'; it prevents non-interested parties from wasting their time and yours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musicman20 Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 I have had the misfortune of buying something, (not a bass) that was from a smokers home. As soon as I opened it, you could smell it. The whole item and packaging smelt of it. Never again. I'm sorry, but I get tired of smokers moaning about having to go outside pubs. I literally cannot stand smoking near me, and I hate the fact that when you walk down the street (especially when its busy) you see the odd smoker holding their cigarette away from them but towards oncoming people. The amount of times I've seen people have their clothing damaged like this is crazy. I would go mad if it was myself. Yes, I'm 100% anti-smoking, and I've been in bands were they all started smoking because of one of them, and I quit quite quickly because I was sick of it. Some of them used the practice as an excuse to smoke/drink and generally do nothing just to get away from their families. I went home annoyed and had to wash my clothes every time. Don't get me wrong, I know smokers who are very polite and considerate, and that is all it takes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neepheid Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 [quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1327018777' post='1505454'] No guitar ever lost value because it was owned by a smoker. The ony reason people say from a "smoke freee home" is because they're trying to validate their non or ex smokieness. I kinda knew what sort of responses to expect. [/quote] What wonderful opinions you have, they are truly magnificent - strong, forceful, clearly genuine and believed in. Please stop presenting them as facts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raggy Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 [quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1327053286' post='1505605'] and I hate the fact that when you walk down the street (especially when its busy) you see the odd smoker holding their cigarette away from them but towards oncoming people. [/quote] What, like this? [attachment=97818:smoke-sword.jpg] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 [size=4][color=#222222][font=Arial]I put "smoke free", "only travelled to gigs in my car" and "condition 10/10" in my ads in order to give complete information and show any prospective buyers that I care about my equipment and look after it. If this doesn’t matter to people then I haven't caused any problems but if people do care then I've given them extra information which I hope will make them buy my gear rather than someone else's.[/font][/color][/size][color=#222222][font=Arial][size=1][/size][/font][/color] [size=4][color=#222222][font=Arial] [/font][/color][/size][color=#222222][font=Arial][size=1][/size][/font][/color] [size=4][font=Arial] [/font][/size][font=Arial][size=2][/size][/font] [size=4][font=Arial][color="#000000"]As for the smoking thing, the wheel has turned full circle and now it’s not cool to smoke. Really not cool. [/color][/font][/size][font=Arial][size=2] [/size][/font] [size=4][font=Arial] [/font][/size][font=Arial][size=2][/size][/font] [size=4][font=Arial][color="#000000"]I recently had a very unpleasant experience on tour with a smoking keyboard player. He is a nice guy and a great player and was considerate in that he smoked outside but when he came back in the room/car etc his smell was overpowering. I suppose I only spoke to him once in the week. I couldn’t get near him! It’s a shame because he’s not a kid anymore, his health isn’t good and at this rate he’ll be dead in a few years. [/color][/font][/size][font=Arial][size=2] [/size][/font] [size=4][font=Arial] [/font][/size][font=Arial][size=2][/size][/font] [size=4][font=Arial][color="#000000"]Pete Stephens just died of smoking related disease and I know 2 musicians who are currently on chemo for smoke related cancers. We don’t know yet if the treatment has been successful. Smoking is such a futile activity.[/color][/font][/size][font=Arial][size=2] [/size][/font] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul S Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Smokers can''t see the fuss but they can't smell the smell. If you don't smoke it is very apparent. Like any smell - if you live with it you stop noticing it. A bit like dog owners don't smell their dogs but if you walk into a dog owners house it hits you right away. Cats, too, to a lesser extent. When I come back from holiday I walk into the utility room where the cats stuff is and notice the cat smell. A couple of days later it has 'gone' - it hasn't, I just stop noticing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 [quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1326754165' post='1501674'] Any instrument that I buy [i]must[/i] come from a smoke-free, pet-free environment; no high-cholesterol cooking (the stink of chip fat has been known to send me into a swoon). No red-top newspapers (ink transfer to the fretboard); no porn (partly for similar reasons to the newspaper thing, but principally because of the objectification of women); no magnolia decor (the residual vibes stifle my creativity) and a seller who supports inclusive, progressive social policies. [/quote] Notice you don't stipulate "an air-conditioned home" to keep the instrument stable in it's lifetime; don't come crying to use if you buy something with a neck like a Sopwith Camels' propellor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellyfish Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Never bought a bass from a smokers home but I did buy a mobile phone once and was genuinely surprised when I opened the package and it reeked of stale smoke. Luckily I didn't have to use it for long but the thought of buying a used bass from a smokers home turns my stomach. Very rarely do people buy basses that don't sound nice or look good, so I don't think people should have to put up with one that doesn't smell good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 [quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1327018777' post='1505454'] No guitar ever lost value because it was owned by a smoker. The ony reason people say from a "smoke freee home" is because they're trying to validate their non or ex smokieness. I kinda knew what sort of responses to expect. [/quote] You are completely wrong. I do not mean to embarrass you unduly, but please read back over your post and see how ridiculous it sounds. When I say my basses are from a 'smoke free home', I'm not trying to 'validate' my stance on smoking. I am simply informing potential buyers that they are going to get an instrument that doesn't smell of anything, and definitely doesn't smell of toxic fumes. It's the same with my cars, I don't smoke in them and I don't let anyone else smoke in them. I cannot cite a case where an instrument has lost value because it stinks of smoke, but I'm sure it has happened. It certainly happens with cars. If I were viewing a car I'd want at least £300-£400 of the price, to cover the time it would take me to get it valeted and then to pay for the valet. So you are completely wrong, because non-smokers will let their money talk when it comes to buying soiled goods. Frankly, the last line of your post says a great deal to me, you sound like an embittered smoker who feels increasingly isolated from society by his foul habit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shambo Posted January 22, 2012 Author Share Posted January 22, 2012 I'm not slightly embarrased or embittered. Not one thing posted in this thread has made me reconsider my opinion on this matter. I have been taken aback by the ferocity of some of the anti smoker comments though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mylkinut Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 [quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1327089581' post='1506418'] I would sum it up like this. would you buy a bass from an alcholic if everytime he drunk he pissed on his bass??? [/quote] +1 and Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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