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Topic: Home Made Dirt Cheap Practice Neck |
Justin Brown
From:
Chicago, Illinois, USA
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Posted 14 Nov 2004 7:14 pm |
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I made this practice 10-string steel out of about about $6 worth of parts from Home Depot:
10 eye hooks @ 50 cents each,
about a buck worth of steel bar cut into two pieces,
four 1-cent nails (to hold the "bridge" and "nut" in place), and a piece of scrap 2x6 scrap they gave me for free. I'm not particulary handy with tools, but it only took about 2 hours to make, including stringing it up.
The string spacing and scale length matches that of my MSA Semi Classic. I made it 'cause I'm just starting out on PSG and needed a way to practice blocking and right hand technique around the house (my guitar stays at my band practice room)... and I was surprised to find that it actually sounds pretty nice. It has good sustain, even in the very high register. And those eye hooks, believe it or not, actually hold the thing in tune pretty well.
Now I'm thinking of adding a pickup. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to make one on the cheap, so it would match the rest of it? I guess I need a magnet and some thin wire, huh?
Also, do any of you have suggestions regarding the design?
Here are a couple pictures of the monstrosity: http://www.palliardmusic.com/practice.steel.3 http://www.palliardmusic.com/practice.steel.2 |
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Paul Arntson
From:
Washington, USA
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Posted 14 Nov 2004 10:02 pm
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Justin!
You should put a link to this on the non-peddlers also! I love it!
When I was a teenager in the 60's I actually gigged rock n roll shows with a 6 string like that (danelectro pickup). It was my "Weyerhauser Engineered 4 Square" 2x4 guitar. Got a lot of laughs until they heard it. Then the only thing that got laughs was my playing.
One cool idea to experiment with for pickups would be to get a couple of those "piezo disc" electronic beeper elements. They are the same stuff that piezo pickups are made of, and you can find them for $1 or less in an electronics surplus shop. They are brass color and about the size of a 50 cent piece. You could put one under each side of the bridge and I bet you would get some kind of tone out of it. Might be weird, but hey...
I was just looking at rewinding a pickup on one of my steels and the wire costs a minimum of $25. Might as well use a pair of cast-off 6 string pickups and overlap them. Framus did that on some of their 8 strings. Or you could find an old Teisco with gold foil Ry Cooder pickups and when you were tired of them sell em for big $ on EBay. Those guitars can still be found for like $30.
I've used enough space here. Somebody else's turn.
Let us know what you wind up with. I love this!
-Paul |
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Travis Bernhardt
From:
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 14 Nov 2004 10:33 pm
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Awesome. I've never tried it, but you might consider:
Make your own piezo pickup.
And this.
There are resources for building magnetic pickups, but you'll have to spend some money, based on what I could find. And you wouldn't want to do that! 
-Travis |
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Ed Naylor
From:
portsmouth.ohio usa, R.I.P.
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Posted 15 Nov 2004 8:51 am
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| Justin- Send me your mailing address and I will send you FREE "El Cheapo" fretboard.I like your inovative skill. Ed Naylor Steel Guitar Works. |
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Justin Brown
From:
Chicago, Illinois, USA
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Posted 16 Nov 2004 7:45 am
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Thanks, Ed. I really appreciate it. I just emailed you my info.
I bought a 6-string Japanese P/U for 5 bucks at a pawn shop yesterday... If it sounds OK, I'll grudgingly invest in another and put them in end to end to cover all the strings. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 16 Nov 2004 8:43 am
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How about getting some 1/4" round bar magnets, and then drilling a hole under under each string and gluing them in? Then, just wind some fine wire around the magnets and glue it in place. (You can glue some plastic washers near the top of the magnets on each end, and that way the wire wouldn't slip off.)
Yes, it will work! |
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Roy Thomson
From:
Wolfville, Nova Scotia,Canada
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Posted 16 Nov 2004 9:11 am
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Auto harp keys would take a lot less space on the board. They are about 10 cents each.
You do need a tuning wrench which is less than $10.
Great idea Justin!
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Jennings Ward
From:
Edgewater, Florida, R.I.P.
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Posted 16 Nov 2004 10:16 am
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WISH I HAD THOUGHT OF THAT BEFORE I WASTED MY MONEY........JENNINGS
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EMMONS D10 10-10 profex 2 deltafex ne1000 pv1000, pv 31 bd eq, + |
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Tommy Mc
From:
Middlesex VT
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Posted 16 Nov 2004 2:46 pm
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| I have made those peizo pickups before. It's amazing that they work, but the do sound like cr*p. Also they are not very responsive. I think the magnetic pickup is a better idea. I built one once using a magnet and wire I unwrapped from an old power transformer. |
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Gerald Pierce
From:
Maydelle, Republic of Texas
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Posted 18 Nov 2004 11:23 am
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| Autoharp keys sounds like a good idea and the price is right. I did a lot of searching and couldn't find a source for them, new or used. Anybody know where to find them? |
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Justin Brown
From:
Chicago, Illinois, USA
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