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Topic: What the weight of a 1983 Sierra Crown gearless |
John Roche
From:
England
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Posted 21 Apr 2007 3:18 am |
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| I am thinking of buying a 1983 Sierra Crown gearless 12 string Universal 8&5, but would like to know the weight of one before i buy .. |
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Ernie Pollock
From:
Mt Savage, Md USA
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Posted 21 Apr 2007 4:25 am Had one but,
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I had one of those, my memories are of Heavy, & REAL hard to get a 3rd string pulled up to pitch on the keyless tuner, make sure you get it all the way back before you put the string thru or it won't pull it up to G#, I had an old piece of wood I used to wrap around the excess amount of string and pull it up as tight as possible before tightning the string down. Those guitars did play nice, but were as heavy as a D-10.
Ernie  |
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John Roche
From:
England
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Posted 21 Apr 2007 4:50 am
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| Thanks for that Ernie |
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Curt Langston
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Posted 21 Apr 2007 6:23 am technique
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| Quote: |
| REAL hard to get a 3rd string pulled up to pitch on the keyless tuner, make sure you get it all the way back before you put the string thru or it won't pull it up to G#, |
Ernie, I have never had that problem, especially using a wooden dowel to wrap the string with. The Sierra keyless tuner, as with the GFI, just takes a little different approach. I would not call it hard by any means. In fact, it is not hard at all. Plus, it is a whole lot faster.
Plus, mine does not break strings even though it is a 25 inch scale...................... |
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John Roche
From:
England
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Posted 21 Apr 2007 7:05 am
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Thanks Curt, it's the weight i worried about, I have a ZB D10 and A Sho-Bud super Pro and am looking for something lighter , as I live in Spain i need to find a guitar in Europe , can't be doing with all that shipping lark.
I'm looking for a keyless 12 string Universal or keyless D10 .... |
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Dave Lounsbury
From:
Narrowsburg,NY.12764
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Posted 21 Apr 2007 7:44 am
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The weight was killer w/case 86lbs. mine was a 25" and a string eater at the contact point but I do miss the right hand grab, they did a nice job opening up the strings..
Dave
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Dave |
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Wilburn Meeks
From:
California, USA
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Posted 21 Apr 2007 8:23 am Sierra Crown Keylesds
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| I do not know what string gague the 12th string is on a universal, on my Sierra C6th 10th string called for a #68 it was almost impossible to get that gague string to go under the nut. I even had problems with a #65. The 3rd string broke about every 4th 4 hr gig. So I would just change it befor going to play. All said , the sound and pedal action are great. |
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Robbie Daniels
From:
Casper, Wyoming, USA
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Posted 23 Apr 2007 6:18 am
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I have an 86 Sierra gearless universal that was just recently refurbished by Tom Baker at Sierra and the shipping weight in the box was 71 Lbs. That would put the weight of the U12 at about 65 Lbs. in the case. Plays beautifully and haven't had a string breakage problem. Tom is a super guy to deal with and does excellent work on refurbishing Sierra's.
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Carter D12, MSA S12, 12 String Custom Made Non-Pedal, Evans FET 500LV, Evans SE200, Peavey Nashville 400, Fender Steel King |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 23 Apr 2007 10:25 am Re: Had one but,
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| Ernie Pollock wrote: |
I had one of those, my memories are of Heavy, & REAL hard to get a 3rd string pulled up to pitch on the keyless tuner, make sure you get it all the way back before you put the string thru or it won't pull it up to G#, I had an old piece of wood I used to wrap around the excess amount of string and pull it up as tight as possible before tightning the string down. Those guitars did play nice, but were as heavy as a D-10.
Ernie |
Yes, I had that problem with the old Crown model too, until I learned how to string it. You have to totally unwind the tuning screw to give it enough play, and then pull the string really hard before you lock it down. It took me a few string changes before I really had it down.
And yes, the Crown model was heavy, but it was lighter than its predecessor. My S-12 Sierra Olympic, circa 1978, weighs over 90 lbs. in the case. It never leaves the house.
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Tom Campbell
From:
Houston, Texas, USA
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Posted 23 Apr 2007 11:00 am
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| I have a Sierra Crown, U12, 8/5, gearless. Dark blue, like the one pictured above. The weight of the the guitar is not that bad, no worse than a lot of D-10s. The extra weight is in the case...20+ pounds. A light weight SKB case will do wonders for limiting the traveling weight issue. I can't for the life of me understand why steel guitar manufactures insist on using the heavy, ugly, carpet covered wood cases...it's just plain NUTS! |
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Fred Glave
From:
McHenry, Illinois, USA
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Posted 23 Apr 2007 12:28 pm
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| Same issues. My mid 80's Crown Gearless has the 3rd string issue, but like bOb said, just pull it through harder before clamping down. I don't break strings much at all. The guitar weight is not bad by itself, but in the case it is HEAVY. I'm going to be looking for a lighter case soon. |
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Whip Lashaway
From:
Monterey, Tenn, USA
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Posted 24 Apr 2007 7:40 pm
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My 1988 Sierra Stafford Elegante was 85 lbs shipping weight. Great guitar!!! Not a string eater, not hard to string up, plays like a dream, sounds like a dream. Can't recommend them enough. Good luck. Whip
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Whip Lashaway
Sierra E9/B6 12 string
Sierra E9/B6 14 string
Excel S12 8x9 blue
Excel S12 8x9 black |
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Willis Vanderberg
From:
Petoskey Mi
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Posted 25 Apr 2007 5:59 pm
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| I agree with Tom. There are great cases made by SKB that would work great for pedal steels. The model called Drum Trap case is ideal and with some high density foam it makes a great wheeled case and the weight is almost nil.Someone is missing the boat on this. A lot of potential to cut 15 or 20 pounds off case weight and even more on split cases. |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 26 Apr 2007 7:20 am
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| The newer Sierras all come with a lightweight "Wheel-Eez" case. |
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Gil Berry
From:
Westminster, CA, USA
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Posted 26 Apr 2007 9:10 pm
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I just bought a U12 9/6 "gearless" (read keyless). Shipping weight in its case including outside packaging was 69 pounds. Yes, they're heavy, but they don't walk all over the floor when you start hitting those knees with a little extra enthusiam...  Oh...and that was with the old style (plywood) case. I'm planning on getting one of those new wheel-ez ones for it... |
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John Roche
From:
England
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Posted 26 Apr 2007 10:39 pm
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| Thanks for all your replies on the Sierra , one question, are they shorter then a normal steel and by how much. |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 27 Apr 2007 7:41 pm
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The length depends on the model, and whether it is keyed or keyless. Sierras are generally large instruments, but a keyless S-12 Sierra is probably not as long as a keyed S-12 Carter (for example). It probably weighs more, though.
If you're looking for a short, compact, light weight instrument, consider GFI, Williams or Excel.
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John Roche
From:
England
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Posted 28 Apr 2007 1:24 am
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Thanks Bob.
I need to get a lightweight Keyless D10 or Keyless U12.
as my back is giving a lot of pain.
I know there are a lot of well priced steels over the sea to the USA but it getting it back to the UK without being robbed with all the tax and import duty we have to pay. |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 28 Apr 2007 8:05 am
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Sierras are fantastic instruments, but they aren't light by today's standards.
Williams makes a great keyless U-12. It's very light and compact. Your countryman BJ Cole plays one and tours with it.
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-𝕓𝕆𝕓- (admin) - Robert P. Lee - Recordings - Breathe - D6th - Video |
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Matt Hutchinson
From:
London, UK
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Posted 3 May 2007 5:44 am
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Hi John,
My guess is that it's my Sierra you're considering buying as it's on Ebay & the British Steelies site at the moment(I could be wrong). Much as I'd like you to buy it as I need the money I wouldn't recommend it if you're having back trouble. It's a great steel but heavy. Thought it only fair to warn you!
Matt |
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Glenn Suchan
From:
Austin, Texas
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Posted 3 May 2007 11:39 am
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For what it's worth, I used to own a 1983 Sierra "Crown" S14 universal, with gearless tuners and 8p/7k. Out of the case it was approximately 70 - 75 lbs. I had a ATF rated flight case that bumped it up an additional 20 lbs. Great guitar but "lightweight" is not in it's vocabulary. 
Keep on pickin'!
Glenn |
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