| Author |
Topic: [Sho-Bud] Pedal sensitivity question |
Remi Villeneuve
From:
Montreal
|
Posted 9 Aug 2009 5:19 am |
|
Hi folks
A friend of mine just got hold of an early 80's Bud SD-10.
Seems like its pedals are quite hard to work with. On my side I have an old 6139 RnB and my pedals are really really smooth compared to his.....
Feels like pedals on mine are even with the string tension... I mean that the action is kind of equal to string tension.
My friends' action is pretty hard.... Almost like you have to step on the pedal to make it to the right pitch and the action between A and B is not that easy to acheive.
The changer looks fine, no missing parts whatsoever.... Rods are fine too......
Is it normal to have such a difference in "playability" or is there soemthing somewhere that goes wrong ?
Cheers and thanx for you help !
Remi |
|
|
 |
Sonny Priddy
From:
Elizabethtown, Kentucky, USA, R.I.P.
|
Posted 9 Aug 2009 6:12 am Sho-bud
|
|
| I Would say It Needs To Be Re Ajusted on The Pulls. SONNY. |
|
|
|
Remi Villeneuve
From:
Montreal
|
Posted 9 Aug 2009 6:40 am
|
|
Hi
Thx,
What do you mean by "the pulls"....? How can you adjust "the pulls".... I am used to RnB but not those changer....
One thing we did si to try to connect everything for having maximum smoothness but it did not solve the problem.
Thanx again |
|
|
|
Pat Comeau
From:
New Brunswick, Canada
|
|
|
|
Kevin Hatton
From:
Buffalo, N.Y.
|
Posted 9 Aug 2009 8:33 pm
|
|
| The guitar needs to be set uo by a good Sho-Bud mechanic. It should not play that hard. |
|
|
|
James Morehead
From:
Prague, Oklahoma, USA - R.I.P.
|
Posted 10 Aug 2009 6:28 am
|
|
Hey Remi, good question. First, your RnB is a whole different generation of shobud guitars. As suggested, your friend's guitar would likely benefit from a good setup/adjustment job.
One thing that you might check, though, is where the pedal rods connect to the pedals. It is easier to press the pedals if the connector ball is in the hole closest to the pedal bar. That will be a quick thing to do. Some of the newer narrow pedals only have one hole drilled out, but you can easily drill out the other, if it isn't. Hope this helps.  |
|
|
|
Remi Villeneuve
From:
Montreal
|
Posted 10 Aug 2009 10:10 am
|
|
Thank you guys....
It seems like the previous owner didn't care about the proper tension of the springs.... So we planned to return all the fingers to an even position, tune to pitch ands then re adjust the pedals starting with the proper spring tension.
If that doesn't work, we will probably need an overall changer upgrade..
We don't have the proper technician on hand. I'll keep you post about it as it might be useful for the future. |
|
|
|
Marc Jenkins
From:
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
|
Posted 10 Aug 2009 10:37 am
|
|
Remi, I just completely tore down my rack and barrel S10. I found that the old lithium grease was so caked and hard that I could barely even get the pedals off the pedal bar, let alone turn them with my hands. After extensive cleaning, polishing, and re-assembly, and some lubrication, my pedals now move quite easily and smoothly.
I also removed the rack return springs, and that lowered the tension as well. |
|
|
|
Kevin Hatton
From:
Buffalo, N.Y.
|
Posted 10 Aug 2009 12:10 pm
|
|
| Marc, thats an excellent observation. The alot of the older guitars need to be inspected, cleaned, lubed yearly with proper oil. If not, as you say,the old lubricant can cause playiblity problems. Sounds like a car doesn't it? I've seen many old ZB's with this same simple problem. |
|
|
|
chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
|
Posted 10 Aug 2009 1:03 pm
|
|
| first thing i would do is turn it upside down and check the changer finger tension with my own fingers. compare it to your other sho-bud that works well. if it's stiff this way the changer is probably all munged up. if not, it's in the linkage. |
|
|
|
Bill Ford
From:
Graniteville SC Aiken
|
|
|
|
Remi Villeneuve
From:
Montreal
|
Posted 10 Aug 2009 2:08 pm
|
|
| chris ivey wrote: |
| first thing i would do is turn it upside down and check the changer finger tension with my own fingers. compare it to your other sho-bud that works well. if it's stiff this way the changer is probably all munged up. if not, it's in the linkage. |
That is exactly what we plan to do in the next few days !! All the springs seem to be either "over" or "under" extended.... I'll keep you post guys.
Cheers |
|
|
|
Remi Villeneuve
From:
Montreal
|
Posted 14 Aug 2009 8:15 am
|
|
Hi guys
A little update !!
So we release all the tension on the prings.
We tuned the Bud to pitch.
We tuned the 3 pedals...
... So far, evertything is normal and the pedals are smooth as we could expected'em to be.
But the changer is in a very bad state... It "just" works. A new one would be a real treat as the guitar has very very good tone.
I done somle research and found nothing about the price on a changer.... Any clue ? Either a Bud one or maybe an aftermarket....Marrs, Coop...; ?
Cheers |
|
|
|
James Morehead
From:
Prague, Oklahoma, USA - R.I.P.
|
Posted 14 Aug 2009 8:39 am
|
|
| Why don't you just simply clean the one changer you have already? You might find a huge difference. |
|
|
|
Marc Jenkins
From:
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
|
Posted 14 Aug 2009 8:43 am
|
|
| James Morehead wrote: |
| Why don't you just simply clean the one changer you have already? You might find a huge difference. |
Amen to that! |
|
|
|
Fred Glave
From:
McHenry, Illinois, USA
|
Posted 14 Aug 2009 9:03 am
|
|
James Moorhead's suggestion is a great place to start. My Bud had the same problem when I got it a couple of months ago. The leverage can be adjusted down on the pedal where the rod is connected. There are two places where the rod connects. Connecting the rod to the connecter closer to the pivot point increases your leverage making it an easier push with your foot. Another place to look for better leverage is where the top of the rod hook connects to the rack mechanism under the guitar. The fullcrum on the rack mechanism should have at least 2 holes to fit the hook. The hole further out to the end will give maximum leverage. Cleaning and lubing is always a good idea too. Good Luck!
_________________
Zum Encore, Zum Stage One, Fender 2000, Harlan Bros., Multi-Kord, |
|
|
|
James Morehead
From:
Prague, Oklahoma, USA - R.I.P.
|
Posted 14 Aug 2009 9:19 am
|
|
Well, back when those old buds were put together, they had some sort of grease in the fingers. After several years, that grease begins to dry out and harden. Then throw another 10-20 years of people pumping WD40 and who knows WHAT else in the changer as some sort of lubricant, years of bar-room smoke, and dirt and dust that's attracted to all that greasey mess, so It "ain't rocket science" why your pedals are stiff.
I have taken those caked-up fingers out of the changer, and can hardly move the parts. I've dosed them in carbureator cleaner, then grease cutting dish soap in hot water, then more carb. cleaner, more dish soap--and keep doing it until those fingers swing freely. Dry out the moisture right away with a hairdryer to avoid rust. Now put a small drop of sewing machine oil in the moving parts--the kind of oil that does not attract dust. Clean your changer housing, too(goes without saying, really). Re-assemble. Go through your undercarrage parts as well. NOW you can adjust your guitar so you can actually feel the pull of the strings. If none of this works, buy a new changer.
Huge hint, take 50 good digital pictures of your guitar before you disassemble it. When you put it back together, you will see the wisdom behind this. Have fun!! |
|
|
|
Marc Jenkins
From:
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
|
Posted 14 Aug 2009 10:14 am
|
|
James is right! This tearing-down/cleaning/polishing/lubricating/re-assembly will make a world of difference!
As I live in an apartment, and had to do all the work in the kitchen, and our grey water dumps in the ocean, I looked for an alternative to carb cleaner, and I found that TKO Orange just RIPPED through the old grease. Different concentrations worked well for different uses, as well. And it's made out of orange peels. Highly recommended! |
|
|
|
Jon Hyde
From:
Seattle, Washington, USA
|
Posted 15 Aug 2009 10:33 am
|
|
I can only reinforce what's being said here. I bought an old LDG a while back and when I pulled the fingers out to clean them, they were so gunked up that they barely moved. No way they'd be able to funtion properly. It took a lot of effort to clean them but that guitar plays great now. There is a big upside to doing this kind of work too because it gives you a true understanding of how the changer works. No steel techs that I know of in Seattle!
Mark, thanks for posting that. I, like James, have done this cleaning with carb cleaner and I've wished there was a more environmentally nice way to do it. I think I'll try your suggestion next time I overhaul a changer! |
|
|
|
