| Author |
Topic: Question about tone bars for a newbie steel player |
Marcus Provis
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Posted 26 Oct 2009 1:40 pm |
|
Hi all, I was wondering what you guys would recommend as the best type of tone bar for steel. I had been told that the John Pearce Tone Bars are very good, but I noticed that they are quite big, and I have been used to using a more standard sized one. Does John Pearce produce only the "Big Daddy" tone bar or are there other types available.
Many thanks,
Marcus
_________________
Emmons Black Rock S-10, Hilton Volume, Peavey Nashville 400, Fender Steel King, Fender Champion 40, Line 6 Echo Park Delay, Bullet Tone Bar. |
|
|
 |
Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
|
|
|
|
Marcus Provis
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Posted 26 Oct 2009 2:03 pm Bars
|
|
Many thanks Jerry, for those links etc, they have been most useful.
Regards
Marcus
_________________
Emmons Black Rock S-10, Hilton Volume, Peavey Nashville 400, Fender Steel King, Fender Champion 40, Line 6 Echo Park Delay, Bullet Tone Bar. |
|
|
|
Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
|
|
|
|
Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
|
Posted 27 Oct 2009 7:04 am
|
|
Just get a BJS bar and your search is over!  |
|
|
|
John McGuire
From:
Swansea,Illinois, USA
|
Posted 27 Oct 2009 7:40 am
|
|
| I agree with Erv. |
|
|
|
Stu Schulman
From:
Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)
|
Posted 27 Oct 2009 11:39 am
|
|
Marcus,John Pearse bars come in a 7/8" size and they are great bars,Forumite Jerry Roller sells them.
_________________
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. |
|
|
|
Pat Comeau
From:
New Brunswick, Canada
|
Posted 27 Oct 2009 12:14 pm
|
|
I have a 7/8 BJS bar and it's the best one i have ever tried, it has alot of sustain from the 12fret and up, if there's a better bar then BJS...i'll buy it right away  , i don't know about John Pears bars i have never tried them, but i know BJS bars and would recommed it to anyone.
_________________
Comeau SD10 4x5, Comeau S10 3x5, Peavey Session 500,Fender Telecaster,Fender Stratocaster, Fender Precision,1978 Ovation Viper electric. Alvarez 4 strings Violin electric.
Click the links to listen to my Comeau's Pedal Steel Guitars.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIYiaomZx3Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2GhZTN_yXI&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvDTw2zNriI |
|
|
|
Paddy Long
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Posted 27 Oct 2009 12:28 pm
|
|
Hey Marcus .. these are the best there are !!
http://www.bjsbars.com/index.html
Have we met ??? PM me if you want to have a chat.
cheers Paddy
_________________
14'Zumsteel Hybrid D10 9+9
08'Zumsteel Hybrid D10 9+9
94' Franklin Stereo D10 9+8
Telonics, Peterson, Steelers Choice, Benado, Lexicon, Red Dirt Cases. |
|
|
|
Marcus Provis
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Posted 27 Oct 2009 1:45 pm Tone Bars
|
|
Hey thanks guys for all your helpful input, it gives me plenty of food for thought. The bar I've been using has plenty of dings and pitting, so a replacement is imminent.
Thanking all again
Regards
Marcus.
_________________
Emmons Black Rock S-10, Hilton Volume, Peavey Nashville 400, Fender Steel King, Fender Champion 40, Line 6 Echo Park Delay, Bullet Tone Bar. |
|
|
|
Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
|
Posted 27 Oct 2009 1:52 pm
|
|
Marcus, when you're starting out, just about any decent solid bar will work okay. While the BJS and Pearse are both top-of-the-line products, a $20 Dunlop No. 920 will work just as well for all but the most discriminating players. A bar around 7/8" x 3 1/4" is usually good to start with if you're playing a 10-string steel.
Later on, after you've learned the basics pretty well, you can try various sizes and weights of chrome or stainless bars. Only after considerable time will you be able to appreciate the differences and benefits each one offers, and only then will you be able to pick the one that pleases you the most!  |
|
|
|
Brick Spieth
From:
San Jose, California, USA
|
Posted 27 Oct 2009 5:57 pm
|
|
| Having only played for three months I could tell an immediate difference in a BJS bar over a Dunlop. Money well spent. |
|
|
|
Marcus Provis
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Posted 28 Oct 2009 2:24 pm Tone
|
|
Thanks for all your helpful suggestions guys.
_________________
Emmons Black Rock S-10, Hilton Volume, Peavey Nashville 400, Fender Steel King, Fender Champion 40, Line 6 Echo Park Delay, Bullet Tone Bar. |
|
|
|
David Hartley
|
Posted 28 Oct 2009 4:32 pm hi
|
|
Marcus, I always thought a bar was a bar..
that was until I used BJS..
I was actually working with Keith White who thought we could produce bars a few months ago, and with LED fades and colour changing tips.... We gave this up as we could not get the industrial chroming done anywhere in the UK.. It doesn't just end with this process I had the pleasure of spending a day at Bills in September this year and there is a lot of 'finishing' and 'buffing' after these get returned from their chroming..I have seen one dropped on a pedal bar and although it dented the pedal bar, there was not a single mark on the BJS bar.. In fact, John Russell 'clonked' his accidently against the steel guitar leg just tonight, NO MARK on the bar.. It is, in my opinion, a necessary part of a steel players equipment.. You really wont wish for another sort.. And as a previous posting said, if something better comes along, I will be there getting it too, but at the moment, there is not.. bar from Bill with his birthstone gem stones in the end are just what you need.. |
|
|
|
Stu Schulman
From:
Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)
|
Posted 28 Oct 2009 4:59 pm
|
|
Marcus,while you are deciding which bar to get, Jim Burden's Bullet bars are great and very affordable,and Jim Burden will custom make whatever you want.I am currently using a 15/16ths bar and it's my favorite http://www.bulletbars.com/
Stu
_________________
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. |
|
|
|
Marcus Provis
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Posted 29 Oct 2009 2:39 pm
|
|
Thanks again for all your helpful suggestions. It looks as if the BJS bars are one of the best, however, at this stage, they are a little outside of my price range, but I will certainly look at getting one in the future. I have decided to try the Bullet Bar as they are within my budget for now. Thanks for all the links, and the advice, etc; I appreciate it.
Marcus.
_________________
Emmons Black Rock S-10, Hilton Volume, Peavey Nashville 400, Fender Steel King, Fender Champion 40, Line 6 Echo Park Delay, Bullet Tone Bar. |
|
|
|
Stu Schulman
From:
Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)
|
Posted 29 Oct 2009 3:43 pm
|
|
Marcus,The bullet is a great choice top notch quality,Stu
_________________
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. |
|
|
|
Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
|
Posted 29 Oct 2009 3:56 pm
|
|
Good choice. It'll be a pleasure dealing with Jim Burden too.
When you're able, get one of the BJS bars too. The Cadillac of chrome plated bars.
Wishing you the very best of luck. |
|
|
|
Marcus Provis
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Posted 30 Oct 2009 2:07 pm
|
|
Thanks a lot guys,
Jim has been very nice to work with, and most helpful and is making my bar now. I am certainly looking forward to trying it out. I also hope to perhaps get a BJS one sometime in the future aswell.
Marcus.
_________________
Emmons Black Rock S-10, Hilton Volume, Peavey Nashville 400, Fender Steel King, Fender Champion 40, Line 6 Echo Park Delay, Bullet Tone Bar. |
|
|
|
John Bechtel
From:
Nashville, Tennessee, R.I.P.
|
Posted 30 Oct 2009 8:14 pm
|
|
I use Pearse Bars, Bullet Bars and BJS Bars. They're all fine tone-bars and although 3/4” dia. bars might be slightly more comfortable for me to hold and handle more accurately, I also notice that heavier 7/8” and 15/16” tone-bars have a better tone as well as more sustain! It's really not as easy of a choice as it might seem, to the discriminating player! I guess eventually you'll just have to try them all!!!
_________________
<marquee> Go~Daddy~Go, (No), Go, It's your Break Time</marquee> L8R, jb
My T-10 Remington Steelmaster |
|
|
|
Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
|
Posted 31 Oct 2009 6:42 am
|
|
| The bars I like to switch between are a BJS and a zirconia bar. On some guitars the chrome bar sounds best and on others, I prefer the zirconia. |
|
|
|
Herb Steiner
From:
Briarcliff TX 78669, pop. 2,064
|
Posted 31 Oct 2009 7:02 am
|
|
Marcus
Let me add something to this thread that hasn't been mentioned, though Donny Hinson alluded to it when he said you'd find your own preferences in time, regarding a stainless steel bar over an admittedly more costly chrome-plated bar.
Though some have accused me of "princess-sleeping-on-a-pea syndrome," , which bar is preferable... again, to ME... depends on the strings on the guitar, either nickel or stainless steel.
I much prefer having the bar, or its coating, be harder than the metal the strings are composed of. If the strings being used are nickel, either a stainless steel bar or one that is chrome plated is suitable.
If the strings on the guitar are stainless steel, however, I must have a chrome plated bar. The chrome plating is harder than the stainless and the bar glides over the strings.
When I run a stainless bar over stainless strings, I can feel a certain drag, or gripping by the strings, of the bar. This drag may be imperceptible to some, but to me it's a distraction that I don't enjoy.
Nickel strings have a softer tone and place less tension on the guitar. Stainless steel strings are higher tension and have a bright tone, to some folks almost "brittle." Personally, I have stainless strings on my guitar, the GeorgeL brand. But there are other excellent strings as well, such as Jagwire (VERY highly regarded here and available from b0b), GHS, etc.
My personal choice is BJS bars, though I seem to have at least one of every brand bar made, including several John Pearce bars. Again, all are serviceable; just keep them polished and avoid dropping on concrete if at all possible.
Sorry for the rant. Onward...
_________________
My rig: Infinity and Telonics.
Son, we live in a world with walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with steel guitars. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Lt. Weinberg? |
|
|
|
Pat Comeau
From:
New Brunswick, Canada
|
|
|
|
Michael Haselman
From:
St. Paul
|
Posted 31 Oct 2009 10:00 am
|
|
+1 on Bullet Bars. I too have a 15/16 and can't see needing another one in my lifetime. Jim is great to deal with.
_________________
Mullen RP D10, Peavey NV112, Hilton volume. Hound Dog reso. Piles of other stuff. |
|
|
|
Marcus Provis
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Posted 31 Oct 2009 10:12 pm
|
|
Very interesting indeed, everybody has been so helpful with their suggestions etc, it has turned out to be very educational. I will have to find out what type of strings I'm running on my steel, I believe they are John Pearce strings, not sure whether they are steel or nickel, but I will have a look. I was getting the occasional screech with the bar I was using from the strings.
Thanking all
Marcus
_________________
Emmons Black Rock S-10, Hilton Volume, Peavey Nashville 400, Fender Steel King, Fender Champion 40, Line 6 Echo Park Delay, Bullet Tone Bar. |
|
|
|
