| Author |
Topic: A very interesting (but crude) home made D-6 steel....... |
Jerry Hayes
From:
Virginia Beach, Va.
|
Posted 14 Jul 2010 5:13 pm |
|
I've been meaning to get some pictures of this "thing" for a long time now and I finally did it tonight.....
A friend of mine here locally (Southeast Virginia) by the name of Dan Munford plays with a couple of different bands on a steel of his own design and construction! This solid pine guitar was made with a couple of two by sixes, two Stratocaster pickups, some cheap tuners, several pieces of angle aluminum for the nuts and bridges, some wiring and a toggle switch.
You'd be amazed at how good it actually sounds. Dan is a pretty dang good player and gets some great sounds out of this guitar. He has the outside "neck" tuned to E6th which is B C# E G# B E low to high and B6th which is..... B D# F# G# B D# on the inside neck.
I remember a few years ago when I first met him, I was asked to start doing a regular Friday night gig at a local Eagles Lodge and when I got there Dan was set up with his "rig" and I saw it and thought to myself "This is gonna be one fun night" with some sarcasm. But when we started playing I was amazed, everything we through at him, in any key, any style, he actually played something that fit and played it well........
Here's some shots of Dan and his "steel" for you to enjoy.........JH in Va.
_________________
Don't matter who's in Austin (or anywhere else) Ralph Mooney is still the king!!! |
|
|
 |
J. Wilson
From:
Manitoba, Canada
|
Posted 14 Jul 2010 6:49 pm
|
|
Brilliant. There's much to be said for simplicity isn't there! Just goes to show you it's not the instrument that counts so much as the musician.
_________________
If Music Be the Food of Love, Play On. -Shakespeare
___________________________________________
1941 Ric B6 / 1948 National Dynamic / 1951 Bronson Supro / Custom teak wood Allen Melbert / Tut Taylor Dobro / Gold Tone Dojo / Martin D15S / Eastman P10 |
|
|
|
Mark Lavelle
From:
San Mateo, CA
|
Posted 14 Jul 2010 7:54 pm
|
|
I've always believed that function is more important than form, but experience has shown that pure function can look pretty good, too. Thanks for continuing to prove me right! 
-- Mark
_________________
http://www.harmonicappliances.com/ |
|
|
|
Jeff Evans
From:
Cowtown and The Bill Cox Outfit
|
Posted 15 Jul 2010 12:59 am
|
|
| Getting booked at McDonalds: Priceless. |
|
|
|
norm mcdaniel
From:
waco tx
|
Posted 15 Jul 2010 4:55 am
|
|
Thanks for the pictures. This young fellow could well be my idol. I love the simple design and it makes me feel like building yet anothe lap steel
Norm McDaniel |
|
|
|
Bill Hatcher
From:
Atlanta Ga. USA
|
Posted 15 Jul 2010 5:05 am
|
|
Here is one I made on the same theme. I was suprised how good it sounded. Have made a couple of these and sold them. Want to try a triple neck next.
 |
|
|
|
David Mason
From:
Cambridge, MD, USA
|
Posted 15 Jul 2010 8:03 am
|
|
And why wouldn't it sound good? Because we're used to evaluating things by how much they cost, rather than by what they do?.... Here is a titanium framing hammer:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Stiletto-Tb15Mc-Titanium-Framing-hammer-Curved-Han-15oz-/250586455529
Only $279! It drives nails! Leo Fender's ironclad design parameters were:
1) It could be built out of cheap stuff
2) It could be built by cheap semi-skilled labor
3) It could be built with current furniture-making equipment
Worked out OK. |
|
|
|
Bill Hatcher
From:
Atlanta Ga. USA
|
Posted 15 Jul 2010 9:09 am
|
|
| David Mason wrote: |
And why wouldn't it sound good? Leo Fender's ironclad design parameters were:
1) It could be built out of cheap stuff
2) It could be built by cheap semi-skilled labor
3) It could be built with current furniture-making equipment
Worked out OK. |
I met Leo Fender one day at a NAMM show.....for a luthier/tinkerer like myself it was like meeting Moses! That guy was a manufacturing genius. I never will forget him giving me 30 minutes of his time to just talk. He was so nice!! |
|
|
|
Jerry Hayes
From:
Virginia Beach, Va.
|
Posted 15 Jul 2010 9:10 am
|
|
I asked Dan about his fretboard(s) and how he got them right. He said he found a program that you could enter the scale length and it would calculate the position of each fret. He then just drew them right on the bare wood with a Sharpie. His playing is kind of on the order of a Jerry Byrd style. I'm going to try to get a little video of it at some point and post it on here when I can figure out how to do that.
He also has a single 6 which was the first one he made which also sounds good. He's currently working on a D-8 which will be up and running sometime in the near future I hope.......
Bill H....Nice work on that guitar, let us know when the triple neck is finished......JH in Va.
_________________
Don't matter who's in Austin (or anywhere else) Ralph Mooney is still the king!!! |
|
|
|
Chase Swan
From:
Largo, Florida
|
Posted 15 Jul 2010 12:06 pm
|
|
| That is a fabulous guitar! Bet it sounds awesome! Is he using an old bakelite bar or a tribotone maybe even jade? |
|
|
|
Rick Winfield
From:
Pickin' beneath the Palmettos
|
Posted 16 Jul 2010 12:48 am Beautiful
|
|
I like this type of thing. Making your own, comes straight from the heart ! I was trying to make a practice board, and it developed into a 12 string lap. It's kinda "folksy looking", but has it's own soul. Of course my next one will be improved.
I never thought of using Pine, but I see the Alumunim bracing appears to work well.
Thanks for sharing
Rick |
|
|
|
Bill Hatcher
From:
Atlanta Ga. USA
|
Posted 16 Jul 2010 7:08 am Re: Beautiful
|
|
| Rick Winfield wrote: |
I never thought of using Pine, but I see the Alumunim bracing appears to work well.
Thanks for sharing
Rick |
The alum angle on the edge just keeps the edge of the pine from getting beat up. It is so soft it will dent and splinter if the edge gets hit. It really adds no strength to the neck, just protects it. |
|
|
|
Jerry Hayes
From:
Virginia Beach, Va.
|
Posted 16 Jul 2010 7:12 am
|
|
Chase, his bar is a small bullet shaped thing and is kind of a turquoise color with some lighter color(s) swirling through it, it's not metal so it could be bakelite, I'm not sure what color they usually are...
Rick, I've used pine myself but never thought of making an actual lapsteel with it. Years ago when I had my old ShoBud S-12 and was trying to learn the B6th universal side of it, I made a practice neck after seeing the one Paul Franklin had in one of the old Steel Guitarist magazines. The one I made was out of pine and it was a 12 string neck and tuned to B6th. I just put a couple of six string single coil guitar pickups on it and had it on a TV tray in my music room to practice on as my 'bud was left at the club six nights a week. I wanted mostly to learn how to do some single string stuff on the 6th tuning. I might make another one someday but it'll be a while yet..........JH in Va.
_________________
Don't matter who's in Austin (or anywhere else) Ralph Mooney is still the king!!! |
|
|
|
Gary Stevenson
From:
Northern New York,USA
|
Posted 16 Jul 2010 6:42 pm
|
|
| Ah pine:the poor mans wood of choice.Its amazing how good pine wood sounds.There is a guy by the name Of Kelly in New york city building Telecasters out of pine from reclaimed apartment houses.I built a quicky 6-string for my trip to China and I was amazed at how well it sounded.Same as the post above, I used aluminum angle for bridge and nut. not pretty but sounded great. |
|
|
|
Tom Pettingill
From:
California, USA (deceased)
|
|
|
|
Jerry Hayes
From:
Virginia Beach, Va.
|
Posted 17 Jul 2010 5:36 am
|
|
Some nice instruments there Tom, is that one of the Duesenberg benders on one of them?.....JH in Va.
_________________
Don't matter who's in Austin (or anywhere else) Ralph Mooney is still the king!!! |
|
|
|
Rick Winfield
From:
Pickin' beneath the Palmettos
|
Posted 17 Jul 2010 5:51 am Maple
|
|
Gotcha Bill.
I used maple, since I was worried about the wood warping. Two pieces of 1x6 glued and screwed together.
Gonna try the pine next time. Both of yor pix look GREAT ! I like the angled nut and bridge pieces, as well as the hand drawn fretboard.
Jerry- I intended a "practice board" like Mr. Franklin,but now I've got Reece's C6 on it. Used zither pins for the tunng keys,got an old MSA pup,BSG supplied the nut and bridge, Tom Bradshaw the "glue on" fretboard.
Rick |
|
|
|
Tom Pettingill
From:
California, USA (deceased)
|
|
|
|
Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
|
Posted 22 Jul 2010 5:19 am
|
|
Ain't nothing crude about that guitar, man. A simple design that works has its own beauty.
_________________
***WARNING: the above commentary is probably Chris' OPINION, and therefore, he thinks he's right. |
|
|
|
And nothing wrong with pine for tone, it can sound quite good. Really the only downside is it can be pretty soft.