FX, Quitting Smoking, and GAS-channelling: the board-build incentive

BintyTwanger77

I have 2 problems at the moment (well 2 of my problems are...)

Effects pedals
Smoking

The health incentives for giving up the latter are obvious, but then there's the financial side, again mainly the latter. I probably spend between £250 and £300 a month on the bloody things (cigarettes). So here's the idea I'm floating.

1. Sell all my pedals bar my beloved Dr Scientist Cleanness and JHS Kilt (and my amp and guitars). Put that £ straight back on the credit cards;

2. Stop f*cking smoking and go on the vapouriser;

3. Put the money I would spend on smoking in a jar/savings account;

4. Use said money to gradually (and thoughtfully) build up the board again;

5. DON'T BUY ANY MORE GEAR ON CREDIT. Only spend saved money on gear.

As I love extravagant mad pedals with crazy reverbs/delay/weird boink noises, there is is a huge incentive for me to save cash to acquire them, and in the interim I can concentrate on just PLAYING and TECHNIQUE rather than figuring out whether Strymon really do have the best plate emulation, or whether an analogue delay would work stacked into a Timeline or whether that 6th H9 would really nail it... or whatever. 

If I were to go ahead with this and all went according to plan, I'd be healthier, happier, richer, a better guitarist, and would eventually have a pedalboard I'd earned rather than twatted around with plastic money deals to acquire.

That's it really. In a nutshell. The "not smoking" is the most important part of the plan, obviously, but channelling my GAS like this might just help. There. Just a thought. Thanks for reading about my fascinating life.

Teetonetal

Yes.

Except don't do the vaporizer. It just keeps the muscle habit going and you won't quit. 

markblack

I'd second that - a guy in work is as addicted to the Vaporiser.

I'm lucky I've never smoked - but my mates who were pretty heavy smokers only managed to give up when they genuinely wanted - rather than telling themselves they did.

My sister in law got hypnotised and hasn't smoked since. Still amazes me how well it worked for her.

But all of the above sounds like a fine plan. Good luck.

digitalscream

I'm due to stop smoking tomorrow. Should save me nearly £300/month...so the first thing I'm going to do is get myself either a Boss DD-500 or an Eventide Timefactor (haven't decided which yet).

Good luck, dude.

Wazmeister

Vaporizers are incredible... I know of 10 people, including my wife, who have quit thru using a vape.

@bintytwanger - sounds like an excellent plan mate - DO IT !!!

Teetonetal

Wazmeister said:

Vaporizers are incredible... I know of 10 people, including my wife, who have quit thru using a vape.

@bintytwanger - sounds like an excellent plan mate - DO IT !!!

Do they still use a vaporizer? I know a few people who have stopped smoking but have never ditched the vaporizer. 
As an ex-smoker of 11 years, I still get the occasional craving.. I wonder for those people what will happen when the craving strikes with no vaporizer to hand.

Still, what ever way you do it, Good luck and don't don't start again!

professorben

Wish I smoked, so I could quit and have loads of money spare for gear......

as it is, I don't smoke I don't drink and I sew all my own dresses. 

richardhomer

Though I very occasionally have a fag outside the pub when I go out with a particular friend who still smokes - smoking is the the one thing I regret most taking up. Vile habit - lousy for your health and bank balance....

I think directing the money into some kind of reward is an excellent idea.

Good luck with the plan.

pintspiller

@BintyTwanger77  @digitalscream I hope all goes well. I am an ex-smoker. I used a couple of methods over the years and have been free for over six years having had hypnotherapy.

I was would suggest staying clear of vaping, as anything part of the "ritual" never worked for me (chewing gum, pencils, etc). 

brojangles

In your position I'd be thinking about smoking a bit more for the next month or so just to have a correspondingly bigger 'budget' to spend on toys afterwards. 

BintyTwanger77

Thanks for all the supportive comments. I'm wondering how far I take the depravation-of-gear-as-incentive motivation towards building up an even bigger ex-smoker gear fund. Do I sell off my Deluxe Reverb as well? That would still leave me with a Blackstar HT1R to play into.

Wazmeister

You could then sell me your Big Sky

BintyTwanger77

Well funny you should say that (see £FX) 

mburekenge

Having lived in the 'developing world' for almost 10 years now, where fags are ridiculously cheap, I get a genuine shock how much people are prepared to pay in the U.K.! 

Serious wonga. 

Good luck to everyone trying to quit. Positive vibes to you. 

Having been a smoker myself, it is so satisfying to quit. No one can do it for you, it's a great achievement. 

BintyTwanger77

All bar two of my pedals (Cleanness and Rat) are now up on the £FX forum. It has begun.

clarkefan

Good luck, giving up is effing hard. Vaping made the difference for me, it's a game changer, and yes I've swapped one addiction for another, so what? No more poison, just nicotine, like my addiction to caffeine,  big win afaic!

Oh yeah, and big savings! Jam jar is a great idea Enjoy the new toys

sgosden

Good luck quitting dude! 
You'll realise how food actually tastes when you haven't smoked in a while !

Wazmeister

BintyTwanger77 said:

I have 2 problems at the moment (well 2 of my problems are...)

Effects pedals
Smoking

The health incentives for giving up the latter are obvious, but then there's the financial side, again mainly the latter. I probably spend between £250 and £300 a month on the bloody things (cigarettes). So here's the idea I'm floating.

1. Sell all my pedals bar my beloved Dr Scientist Cleanness and JHS Kilt (and my amp and guitars). Put that £ straight back on the credit cards;

2. Stop f*cking smoking and go on the vapouriser;

3. Put the money I would spend on smoking in a jar/savings account;

4. Use said money to gradually (and thoughtfully) build up the board again;

5. DON'T BUY ANY MORE GEAR ON CREDIT. Only spend saved money on gear.

As I love extravagant mad pedals with crazy reverbs/delay/weird boink noises, there is is a huge incentive for me to save cash to acquire them, and in the interim I can concentrate on just PLAYING and TECHNIQUE rather than figuring out whether Strymon really do have the best plate emulation, or whether an analogue delay would work stacked into a Timeline or whether that 6th H9 would really nail it... or whatever. 

If I were to go ahead with this and all went according to plan, I'd be healthier, happier, richer, a better guitarist, and would eventually have a pedalboard I'd earned rather than twatted around with plastic money deals to acquire.

That's it really. In a nutshell. The "not smoking" is the most important part of the plan, obviously, but channelling my GAS like this might just help. There. Just a thought. Thanks for reading about my fascinating life.

The most wisdom Ive heard on here in a while.

Keep the vision, good luck, and you''ll come out the other side better in every way

BintyTwanger77

Wazmeister said:

BintyTwanger77 said:

I have 2 problems at the moment (well 2 of my problems are...)

Effects pedals
Smoking

The health incentives for giving up the latter are obvious, but then there's the financial side, again mainly the latter. I probably spend between £250 and £300 a month on the bloody things (cigarettes). So here's the idea I'm floating.

1. Sell all my pedals bar my beloved Dr Scientist Cleanness and JHS Kilt (and my amp and guitars). Put that £ straight back on the credit cards;

2. Stop f*cking smoking and go on the vapouriser;

3. Put the money I would spend on smoking in a jar/savings account;

4. Use said money to gradually (and thoughtfully) build up the board again;

5. DON'T BUY ANY MORE GEAR ON CREDIT. Only spend saved money on gear.

As I love extravagant mad pedals with crazy reverbs/delay/weird boink noises, there is is a huge incentive for me to save cash to acquire them, and in the interim I can concentrate on just PLAYING and TECHNIQUE rather than figuring out whether Strymon really do have the best plate emulation, or whether an analogue delay would work stacked into a Timeline or whether that 6th H9 would really nail it... or whatever. 

If I were to go ahead with this and all went according to plan, I'd be healthier, happier, richer, a better guitarist, and would eventually have a pedalboard I'd earned rather than twatted around with plastic money deals to acquire.

That's it really. In a nutshell. The "not smoking" is the most important part of the plan, obviously, but channelling my GAS like this might just help. There. Just a thought. Thanks for reading about my fascinating life.

The most wisdom Ive heard on here in a while.

Keep the vision, good luck, and you''ll come out the other side better in every way

Cheers, pal.

BintyTwanger77

The board, taking it again, from the top...

https://imgur.com/a/E6zlF

Wazmeister

Exciting to see an empty board !!

Man, that Cleaness must be impressive to survive the kull...