ZB steels - good or bad?

Glen Derksen · From: Alberta, Canada

It's just that I have heard both negative and positive things about ZB's. What's the concensus?

Danny Bates · From: Fresno, CA. USA

Never owned one, but I sure love the way they look and sound!

Joe A. Camacho · Posted 6 Nov 2008 9:22 pm

ZBs are great, a little stiffer than modern steels, but the tone kills me.

Glen Derksen · From: Alberta, Canada

Well, yours sure looks nice, Joe, and I've always liked the sound of Tom Brumley's ZB steel(s).

richard burton · From: Britain

Click here
'NUFF SAID

Ken Byng · From: Southampton, England

I've had 2. Great tone, limited mechanical capability for modern multi-pulls, beautiful big maple bodies, heavy weight, stay in tune well.

The pros outweigh the cons in my view.
_________________
Show Pro D10 - amber (8+6), MSA D10 Legend XL Signature - redburst (9+6), Sho-Bud Pro 111 Custom (8+6), Emmons black Push-Pull D10 (8+5), Zum D10 (8x8), Hudson pedal resonator. Telonics TCA-500, Webb 614-E,

Steve Broatch · From: Newcastle, England

Sound great, look great, feel great.

A nightmare to work on.

Joel Meredith · From: Portland,Oregon, USA

richard burton · From: Britain

Here's a positive:
Because of their mechanical limitations, and downright awkwardness to work on, ZB's are usually not as expensive as their Emmons/ShoBud counterparts,
even though the ZB tone is superior to both (IMO)

It helps if the ZB owner has a good mechanical ability, as these instruments can be made to play effortlessly, but it takes that valuable commodity, time.

Kevin Hatton · From: Buffalo, N.Y.

Glen, do not get one unless you plan to work on it yourself or have a good ZB mechanic work on it. I have never seen a used ZB that didn't need a ton of work unless it previous went to a ZB mechanic's shop. They MUST be set up properly.

Alan Miller · From: , England, UK.

I had a ZB some years ago, it was a wood body covered in a black plastic coating.
mechanically it was a little heavy and the undercarriage looked like a scrapyard .
It must have been a student model because the ZBs on this forum are definitely much better looking instruments , it stayed in tune ok though.

Ken Byng · From: Southampton, England

Brian Herder · From: Philadelphia, Pa. USA

Richard, sounds great.. is that an SD-11? Kevin, do you, or are you ever going to make an 11 string? Nothing comes close to the ZB Custom tone for me.

Barry Blackwood · Posted 7 Nov 2008 5:25 pm

Great tone, stays in tune well. I agree with all that is said about the mechanics. Mine always had very stiff pedal action that I was never able to improve no matter what.

Duncan Hodge · From: DeLand, FL USA

Well Glen,
ZBs are the best sounding steels I have ever played (and I've played a bunch). They are almost impossible for us mortals to work on, but once they are properly set up then you are good to go for years, if you libricate them.
The main problem with ZBs, and I'm only just starting to have this problem lately, is that if you buy a ZB and then happen to sell it to someone like... say...just for the sake of argument, a guy whose name might be possibly Joe A. Camacho, then:
FOR THE REST OF YOUR MISERABLE LIFE YOU WILL REGRET IT AND JOE CAMACHO WILL CONTINUALLY POST PICTURES OF YOUR OLD ZB ON THIS FORUM AND STUBBORNLY REFUSE TO SELL IT BACK TO YOU MAKING YOU FEEL LESS THAN, AND CAUSE YOU TO SPEND THOUSANDS ON THERAPY! b0b, I want you to ban Joe A Camacho from this forum because he makes me feel really stupid and dumb.
Have a nice night all,

Duncan
_________________
"The Edge... there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over."

Benton Allen · From: Muscle Shoals, Alabama, USA

Hey Duncan!

What do think makes Joe act that way?
I agree, Joe has got to go! Laughing

Cheers!
Benton

richard burton · From: Britain

Brian,
Yes, it's an SD11, but I only have it strung as 10, as, after many years of playing tens, an extra string totally throws me Shocked

Joe A. Camacho · Posted 8 Nov 2008 5:42 pm

Duncan Hodge · From: DeLand, FL USA

Joe, you are a wonderful guy who has been a real pleasure to deal with over the years. I hope that you know that I am just funnin' with you. In all honesty, I truly hope that you are enjoying my former ZB, it is a fantastic sounding steel, and weighs only slightly less than a truckload of bowling balls. I wish I had kept it, but if I didn't sell it to you I wouldn't have my Fulawka, so I guess the balance of the world is just fine. If someone other than me had to own it, I'm glad it was you.
Glen, If you can lay your hands on a ZB in good condition I would recomment that you give on a try.
Duncan
_________________
"The Edge... there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over."

Glen Derksen · From: Alberta, Canada

Well, I can hold my own when it comes to working on car engines, so maybe maintaining a ZB wouldn't be too bad. I wouldn't want to spend too much on one even if they are collectable.

Mike Shefrin · Posted 9 Nov 2008 7:41 pm

Glen,
Here's an alternative you may want to consider. Forumite Kevin Hatton is building ZB "replica" guitars on custom order. These guitars have the exact same ZB parts such as the pickup, the changer, fretboard, tuning head, pedals, endplates, and everything else except the undercarriage which houses modern mechanics that are very easy to work on. These guitars look, sound, and play like the original ZB guitars that Zane Beck built. They also weigh considerably less than the original ZB's. I know all this because I bought the first one Kevin built, and I play it as much as I play my Emmons push-pull. Kevin's prices are also reasonable. I recommend to you and anyone else looking for the "ZB sound" without the mechanical hassles to try one.

Here's the link to Kevin's website of the ZB retro guitar. CLICK HERE

Here's some photos of my ZB retro

Kevin Hatton · From: Buffalo, N.Y.

One more caveat. The price I charge to properly set up a ZB is $250.00 per neck. That does not include repositioning knee levers or installing new adjustable knee levers which are $150.00 each. So as you can see to get into a ZB that hasn't been properly set up you are looking at a minimum of $500.00 plus shipping. With new knee levers you are looking at $1100.00. I am referring ALL of my ZB work to my buddy Greg Jones down in Kentucky at this point because I am occupied building the new ZB replicas with modern mechanics. Greg is a master ZB mechanic and can make a ZB play beautifully. They take alot of work. The good news is that after they are properly set up they stay that way for years, unless someone who doesn't know what they are doing gets underneath one and screws the guitar back up which I have seen many times. Unless a ZB is properly set up you will curse it. The difference is niight and day.

Donny Hinson · From: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.

Bob Hamilton · From: California Central Coast

What Kevin said. They are solid once set up, but too many shade tree mechanics have made a tweak here and there, not realizing they are affecting other strings, and they just give up on the guitar. They look simpler under the hood than they really are.

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