Guitarist Chris Buck is the latest victim of musical gear theft, and he’s appealing to the internet for help.
In a new post on Instagram, Buck – who alongside Yamaha, recently launched his new signature Revstar at NAMM 2026 – makes an appeal to anyone who has seen or may come across his stolen gear, which includes a brand-new, unused Schmidt Array SA450 pedalboard, plus two cases with a selection of accessories.
“While I was in the US for the launch of my signature Yamaha, my car’s rear window was smashed in Bristol and a load of gear stolen,” he writes, promising to reveal more details about the theft in the coming days.
Alongside the Schmidt Array SA450 pedalboard, two Peli 1510 and 1640 cases were stolen, the first with accessories including guitar cables, capos, guitar straps, two Audix Cab Grabber mic stands, picks and a lid organiser. Buck says this case had two Telefunken stickers on it at the time it was stolen, but admits these would be “fairly easily removed”.
Meanwhile, Buck’s stolen Peli 1640 case is adorned with a “Let’s Get Loud” sticker, a Mythos Pedals sticker, as well as purple tape and “Heavy” tape from airport travel. The foam inside is moulded to fit a Schmidt Array pedalboard.
Buck says he believes the stolen items are still in the Bristol area, and urges anyone who comes across it, in person, “at a Cash Converters/car boot sale or online”, to contact him at chrisbuckguitar@gmail.com.
“If we could make this stuff too hot to handle, that’d be great!” he concludes.
Sadly, music gear remains a prime target for thieves, and many high-profile musicians have found themselves victims of this crime. Last year, for example, Australian jazz/funk band Hiatus Kaiyote saw “tens of thousands of dollars” worth of gear, including Jackson and Ernie Ball guitars, stolen from their studio space.
Similarly, New Zealand rock band the Beths had instruments, pedalboards and even their entire rented backline stolen from their van while on tour in France.
But musicians aren’t the only victims of such gear thefts, and brick-and-mortar retail spaces regularly find themselves victim, like when thieves managed to steal a $5k Gibson Les Paul in 2024 by simply walking out of a store with it.
Sam is the Associate News Editor for Guitar.com and MusicTech. Thoroughly immersed in music culture for the majority of his life, Sam has played guitar for 20 years, studied music technology and production at university, and also written for the likes of Guitar World, Total Guitar, Metal Hammer and MusicRadar.