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Topic: How Many Pedal Steels Exist? |
chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 4:10 pm |
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so the carter pro models may number 2300.
the emmons push pull estimate is 5000.
there must have been alot of professional era sho-buds because i've seen lots...then into the super pro era, a bunch more.
msa probably produced more than anyone because i've seen more of them than anything in my life.
emmons all pull, zum, dekley,...mci, emci..
jch, rains, rittenberry, gfi, fender,...
all this adds up to what? maybe 20,000 pedal steels?
we've got 30,000 members on the forum.
(oops..actually 13,000)
how many electric guitars exist? ...10 million?
steel players are still a small specialty group, and their treasured tools are still limited and special.
Last edited by chris ivey on 15 Apr 2013 10:16 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 4:14 pm
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oh yea...zb....quite a few units...
mullen..a whole bunch..
kline, williams...they still don't make huge numbers add up.
lots of smaller builders that don't even add 100 to the mix.
thoughts on the matter? |
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Dick Sexton
From:
Greenville, Ohio
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 4:26 pm And many more...
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Derbys, Marlens, Anapegs, Fulawkas, Cherokees, then all of the one or two off, on and on. Where are they all?
Correct... Thanks Bent!
Last edited by Dick Sexton on 15 Apr 2013 5:10 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Bent Romnes
From:
London,Ontario, Canada
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 4:53 pm Re: And many more...
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| Dick Sexton wrote: |
| Derbys, Marlens, then all of the one or two off, Anapegs, Falawkas, Cherokees, on and on. Where are they all? |
Dick, the Fulawka is more than a one or two - off. They number in the 2000+
_________________
BenRom Pedal Steel Guitars
https://www.facebook.com/groups/212050572323614/ |
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Ray Montee
From:
Portland, Oregon (deceased)
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 5:05 pm Say whaaaaaaaaaaaat?
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| Did anyone mention BIGSBY and/or WHEELER or Clinesmith? |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Dick Sexton
From:
Greenville, Ohio
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 5:15 pm Did anyone mention BIGSBY and/or WHEELER or Clinesmith?
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| I did Ray... "On and on!" I assure you, no dissrespect ment to any builder great or small, mentioned by name or not. There are builders, then there are the rest of us... |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 5:25 pm
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this isn't to mention every last brand, just to get a concept of approximately how many basic useable fairly modern-day steels there are in the big picture.
doug may be right! but i'm thinking less than that.
it's ok doug...you can win the prize anyway!
...let's see...where did i put that...? |
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Larry Bressington
From:
Nebraska
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 6:12 pm
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I'd say a at least 100,000, there are so many makers, like Ronnie Bennett in the UK, and hundreds more all over the world that don't have global household names like the Sho bud etc
_________________
A.K.A Chappy. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 6:38 pm
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Emmons, MSA, Sho~Bud, Fender, Harlin, and Carter all number well up into the thousands, so I'd hafta agree with Doug!  |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 6:55 pm
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I've heard from reliable sources that the Big PSG manufacturers only made (or make) 200 to 300 pedal steels a year. That would be Emmons, Sho-Bud, MSA, and Carter in later years. I know that Carter made Loads of student models. I see them all over the place. I would guess that the smaller manufacturers probably make less than 75 pedal steels a year. Some only make a few each year. So it's Not the HUGE industry that many of us steel geeks think it is.
_________________
My Site / My YouTube Channel
25 Songs C6 Lap Steel / 25 MORE Songs C6 Lap Steel / 16 Songs, C6, A6, B11 / 60 Popular Melodies E9 Pedal Steel
Last edited by Doug Beaumier on 15 Apr 2013 9:29 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 8:09 pm
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i just can't believe 100,000...
how many franklins..couple hunnert? |
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Ian Worley
From:
Sacramento, CA
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 9:22 pm
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| there are actually only 13,000 forumites, but how many of us have two or three or four or..? and how many have met their demise? How many buried in closets since grandpa passed away? Don Blood's Sho-Bud serial# tally alone is over 18,000 http://www.donblood.net/page5.php. Most of them live (or have died) east of California. I've never seen one in a music store around here but there are many in existence. It's a really good question. ~60,000 - 70,000 since 1960? We'll never know. |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 9:55 pm
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| you're right on the forum member numbers. i screwed up on that. |
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Brett Day
From:
Pickens, SC
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Posted 15 Apr 2013 10:07 pm
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| David and Harry Jackson are building steels like the Sho-Bud-the Jackson Steel, which started in 2005. |
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Tony Prior
From:
Charlotte NC
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 3:51 am
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32,314
but I could be wrong... 
_________________
Emmons L-II , Fender Telecasters, B-Benders , Eastman Mandolin ,
Pro Tools 12 on WIN 7 !
jobless- but not homeless- now retired 9 years
CURRENT MUSIC TRACKS AT > https://tprior2241.wixsite.com/website |
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Roger Rettig
From:
Naples, FL
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 7:31 am
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Ray wrote:
"Did anyone mention BIGSBY and/or WHEELER or Clinesmith?"
If you read the thread you'd know the answer, surely?
_________________
Roger Rettig: Emmons D10, Quilter TT-12 & TT-15, B-bender Teles and Martins - and, at last, a Gibson Super 400!
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 8:19 am
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as i said, all makes and models don't necessarily have to be named (though i know you love those , ray!). i'm more curious about the approximate rough estimate of basic gig-worthy pedal steels circulating.
the shock factor comparison to how many electric guitars are out there should be very telling about what a very small niche steels have in this world society.
from within our steel forum world it looks to be a fair size community, but from outside of it, it may seem very tiny.
it would, of course, be very interesting to have a true tally of just how many steels were ever made by each company and individual, but i don't think that's possible at the moment.
thanks for everyone's input.
with bent's six beautiful BenRoms added in i think tony has the number right. but i already gave the non-prize to doug because he was first to offer a number! |
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Niels Andrews
From:
Salinas, California, USA
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 8:45 am
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Can you leave out Fender?
_________________
Die with Memories. Not Dreams.
Good Stuff like Zum S-12, Wolfe Resoport
MSA SS-12, Telonics Combo. |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 9:00 am
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i did mention fender in the first post, but you can leave it out if you want.
...i also think that for any one, two or three man operation to put out, say, a thousand steels is a huge task. i can't even imagine the constant plugging along that would take! (even a hundred for that matter)
getting a rough estimate of the total msa's would be interesting....reece? i mean...what a major influence he has been (as a builder 'and' a player)...and still offering absolute state-of-the-art steels. |
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Leo Melanson
From:
Massachusetts, USA
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 9:50 am .. and where are they
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What percentage of all the pedal steels in the world are in the USA?
What percentage of those are in the Nashville area?
_________________
Boston area country musician
Mullen G2 player |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 9:51 am
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This thread is about pedal steels... but I'll bet that close to 200,000 Lap steels were made. Gibson made 15,000 BR-9 models alone. That's just one of their many models. Valco Co. built thousands of lap steels for Supro, Oahu, Silvertone, National, and others. Sold door to door by salesmen and at stores like Sears, Mongomery Ward. Then there was Fender, Rick, and others. And other manufacturers in Europe and Japan. Heck, there were probably a half a million lap steels made from the 1930s to today!
_________________
My Site / My YouTube Channel
25 Songs C6 Lap Steel / 25 MORE Songs C6 Lap Steel / 16 Songs, C6, A6, B11 / 60 Popular Melodies E9 Pedal Steel |
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Jan Viljoen
From:
Pretoria, South Africa
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 11:43 am pedal steels
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I have been reading a lot about pedal steels and musical instruments in general lately and I also came to the conclusion that there must have been about 100 000 built.
I also read somewhere about two years ago there are about 60 000 players in the USA only. I am sure not all are playing professional though. That's the elusive desire of all.
It is a fact that Gibson built 15 000 BR 9's after the war.
We have at the most 10 pedal players in South Africa.
Let the games begin!
_________________
Sierra S10, Stage One, Gibson BR4, Framus, Guya 6&8, Hofner lap, Custom mandolins, Keilwerth sax.
Roland Cube 80XL, Peavey112-Valve King and Special, Marshall 100VS. |
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Lee Dassow
From:
Jefferson, Georgia USA
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Posted 16 Apr 2013 1:15 pm How many pedal steel guitars exist
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Dont forget about BMI. Don Fritche must have built about 5000, of them. I've owned 2. T.L.
_________________
2015 Mullen D-10 Royal Precision 9x8,-1990 BMI S-10 5x5-1972 Silver face Fender pro Reverb amp,-1965 Fender Super Reverb Amp,- 1966 Fender Showman Amp Two 15" JBL speakers,- 2006 65 Fender Twin Reverb reissue Amp,- 1982 Peavey Session 500 amp,-1978 Peavey Session 400,Goodrich Volume Pedals,John Pearse Steel Bars, |
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