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Topic: Micro-Adjust bell cranks, Linkon Equalizer |
Ross Shafer
From:
Petaluma, California
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Posted 21 Sep 2009 2:09 pm |
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Howdy all,
Anyone got any pics of these things? I recall seeing a pic of someone's version of a micro-adjustable bell crank, but I sure can't find it using the search function.
Thanks! |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Ross Shafer
From:
Petaluma, California
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 6:18 am
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I've called Linkon and didn't get an answer. I emailed them yesterday too, and no answer yet.
By the way Bent, your steels look great...I'm make-a-holic myself (its a pretty serious affliction of mine...www.six-ninedesign.com). Unless I jump into some sort of 12 step program, its likely I'll find myself trying to make myself a steel one day. |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 7:58 am
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Russ,email me thru the forum if you would like. Always nice to meet another potential builder.Fascinating stuff ain't it?
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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Chris Lucker
From:
Los Angeles, California USA
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 10:32 am
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| Blanton had adjustable bellcranks -- the coolest idea. I don't know whether they were worth the extra engineering, however. |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 11:20 am
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I had a seniors moment there..Of course, the Blanton is the very best example of an adjustable bell crank.
With it, there is no need for nylon tuners as you adjust the length of travel of the finger via the screw on the bell crank and thereby tune your pedals, adjust the throw and tune your pedal travel as I understand it.
A sidenote..the recent discussion about the merits of square cross shafts vs round...Blanton has an ingenious solution to easily fastening the crank on a round shaft, for easy dismantling, without having to take everything apart when changing copedents.
I would LOVE to see Jerry Blanton's steel up close. Here is a pic of the cranks and the way they are fastened to the round shaft.
http://music.mikeester.com/for_sale.html
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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Chris Lucker
From:
Los Angeles, California USA
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 1:29 pm
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I have no idea how well they work, but they are clever.
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 1:33 pm
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Chris, The system has proven itself through many years of use. So I don't think it's to much of a leap to say that they work very well indeed.
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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Chris Lucker
From:
Los Angeles, California USA
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 1:40 pm
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| Here is a leap of faith: If a designer gets to the point where he decides to use Fillister head screws, he must have figured out everything else about the mechanics. |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 1:50 pm
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Funny you should mention the Filister head. That's about the only thing I don't agree on. How much easier it would have been to have a knurled nut on the end of that screw, so you could reach underneath and, by feel, tune your pedals. Anything would have been better than a slotted screw...even a hex socket.
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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Dennis Saydak
From:
Manitoba, Canada
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 2:29 pm
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| Ross Shafer wrote: |
| I've called Linkon and didn't get an answer. I emailed them yesterday too, and no answer yet. |
Wayne is still around but he has moved. Here's a fairly current calling card of his 
_________________
Dennis
Just when you think you're getting ahead in the rat race, the rats get faster. |
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Chris Lucker
From:
Los Angeles, California USA
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 2:34 pm
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| I have never had a Blanton, nor have I ever set one up, but I imagine the adjustable bellcranks are for timing out the travels of two different gauge strings rather than fine tuning a string's pitch at the end of a pull. Therefore, the screws don't need to be easy to adjust. But, you do make a good point -- why make it harder than necessary to adjust the screw? Why not a cap screw? Perhaps he needed finer thread pitch? Fillister head screws are often used in applications where vibration is an issue. Maybe that is because there is more room for the cable tie through the head? |
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Ross Shafer
From:
Petaluma, California
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 3:52 pm
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Thanks guys!
The pic I remember seeing somewhere was very much like those on the Blanton. One of the things I wondered about was how the heck multiple pulls on the same string could be stacked vertically...with the Blanton design it looks like that can't be done.
I've got a design in mind that would allow nice straight "stacked" pull rod runs...not all that important I know, but it sure looks nice and orderly.
Dennis: thanks for the latest Linkon contact info.
Thanks again! |
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Stu Schulman
From:
Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 6:31 pm
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I've got three pulls "raises" on my Blanton LKL and it's like butter as are all the pedals,and knees on a Blanton. 
_________________
Steeltronics Z-pickup,Desert Rose S-10 4+5,Desert Rose Keyless S-10 3+5... Mullen G2 S-10 3+5,Telonics 206 pickups,Telonics volume pedal.,Blanton SD -10,Emmons GS_10...Zirctone bar,Bill Groner Bar...any amp that isn't broken.Steel Seat.Com seats...Licking paint chips off of Chinese Toys since 1952. |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 6:36 pm
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chris...i always understood the screws underneath 'do' adjust the string pull tuning, instead of having tuners at the end by the changer.
course i could be wrong.... |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 6:40 pm
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Stu that is excellent!
So tell us, can you tune the pedals as well as time the pedals to each other?
And how often do you actually need to tune the pedals?
Any more you wish to add , please feel free.
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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Tony Glassman
From:
The Great Northwest
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John Roche
From:
England
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Posted 22 Sep 2009 11:22 pm
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This was done years ago on the Springfield steel guitar
made by James Kerr |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 23 Sep 2009 7:02 am
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| chris ivey wrote: |
chris...i always understood the screws underneath 'do' adjust the string pull tuning, instead of having tuners at the end by the changer.
course i could be wrong.... |
I am quite sure you are right, Chris. I read it some where, that this is what tunes the string pulls, and therefor no hole in the end plate and on nylon hex tuners. Stu could certainly confirm this.
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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Chris Lucker
From:
Los Angeles, California USA
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Posted 23 Sep 2009 7:38 am
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Chris, you are right. There appear to be no windows or tuning screw holes in the endplates of a Blanton.
So, those clever bellcranks must do it all. |
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J D Sauser
From:
Wellington, Florida
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Posted 23 Sep 2009 7:29 pm
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| Chris Lucker wrote: |
I have no idea how well they work, but they are clever.
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Interesting design. However I see one drawback: It would seem that with this design, pull rods from same-string pulls can't go thru these bell cranks to shafts further back. So, multiple pulls on a string will result in offset pull rod and bell crank arrangements. Something many would have a though time accepting in these times when perfect parallel rodding has been a standard for over three decades by now.
... J-D |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 24 Sep 2009 6:34 am
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JD I see what you're saying. But really I don't know how much of a "standard" this has become... Many modern steels have some bent rods. This seems to be an accepted practice.The only 2 drawbacks I see is the visual one, which isn't a big deal, and the mechanical one which is that the rod causes some flex in the pulling train. This flex is usually not a huge problem to overcome.
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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Georg Sørtun
From:
Mandal, Agder, Norway
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Posted 24 Sep 2009 10:40 am
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| I like the idea of being able to 'equalize throw' and 'tune raises/lowers' under the hood. However, as I "read" the Blanton image, with that system we can only tune one parameter, not both, which means one parameter is fixed during first set-up. Of course that will work just fine, but it isn't very tunable. |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 24 Sep 2009 3:44 pm
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Georg,
my knowledge stops and I would just be guessing.
It would be great if someone with first hand knowledge tune in and tell us exactly how it is
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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