Randal Smith
From:
Nashville, TN, USA
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Posted 28 Feb 2009 11:52 am |
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Bob Simmons advertised a steel for sale in the classifieds here a couple of weeks ago. A SD-10 3&4. I bought it. Let me tell you about it.
The body is all metal. Bob had this body laying around and decided to build it out. He probably thought he had some time to finish it, but I needed it ASAP. He delivered. The undercarriage is a little rough, but that's not his fault. I rushed him. I told him I wasn't worried about how the steel looked, so much as how it played. An let me tell you, it plays like glass. This is one of the smoothest steels I've ever set down behind. The amazing thing is this: it's his economy model!! It's a pull-release changer, similar to the GFI student model. But where the GFI tunes the lowers with the keys, then tunes the opens (no pedals) at the right end of the guitar, on this one, you simply tune the guitar with the tuning keys, tune the raises exactly as you would an all-pull, then tune the lowers with the stops on the right end of the changer frame. The only drawback is that you need two different wrenches, but I think I can solve that problem by replacing the lower stop screws with ones that have a different head. This is a very minor issue.
I had do a little adjusting of the KL's to fit me, but I found this very easy to do. The mechanism is very simple and straightforward, easy to adjust if necessary. The stops are very positive, no slop. The pedals and levers work very easily as the only tension you're pulling against on the raises are the strings themselves, and releasing the tension on the lowers is very well balanced. Throws for the raises and lowers are neither too short nor too long. It's very easy to do a half pedal.
The guitar is very twangy, probably due to the metal body. I may change out the pickup and see if it will mellow it out a bit. I have found that a graphic EQ pedal in front of the amp helps. The buffered input of the pedal also helps smooth out the action of my volume pedal, which is an unexpected bonus.
I have no hesitation in recommending a Simmons built guitar. I may buy another one in the future, depending on my finances. However, if I am unable to buy another one, I believe this one will serve my needs for a long time to come.
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Randal Smith alias Smitty the Kid
Nashville, TN
Simmons SD10
Warmoth Custom Guitar
Gibson GA-20 Amp
"We have enough youth, how about a Fountain of Smart?" |
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