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Topic: My steel service cradle |
Ron Pruter
From:
Arizona, USA
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Posted 10 Mar 2013 9:46 pm |
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I mentioned to my freind Darrell Bircher, how nice it would be to have a clamp on device for turning the guitar over for service. DB is a clever falla, and a good welder. He coated it with, I beleive, bed liner so it wouldn't scratch. It clamped solidly on so there was no slippage or damageing forces being put on the legs. Even has 4 adjustable legs.
 This thing worked great. It was a little heavy. Best to use two people to flip the guitar. Check it out. Thanks Darrell. Ron Pruter
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Emmons SKH Le Grande, '73 Fender P/J bass, Tick tack bass, Regal high strung, USA Nashville 112. |
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Darrell Birtcher
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Posted 10 Mar 2013 10:56 pm Steel service cradle
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Thanks for the kudos and photos Ron. Glad to see it in action. I didn't even have time to give that prototype a test run before delivering it to you. Sorry about the weight, but I believe in making things stout, and I actually chose a very thick walled chrome moly tubing for the legs so that the center of gravity would be as low as possible. Wouldn't want Nancy suing me if it falls over and kills you!
Darrell Birtcher |
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Dave Hopping
From:
Aurora, Colorado
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Posted 10 Mar 2013 11:08 pm
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Cool!  |
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John McClung
From:
Olympia WA, USA
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Posted 17 Mar 2013 10:43 pm
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Mods I'd like to see:
the steel gets clamped into some kind of harness, but the steel then rotates to upside down position. Envision a game show gizmo where you put in names on cards, roll the "barrel" and pick a card from inside. That make sense?
When rolled 180°, the steel is about belt high, easier to work on. The current model is too low to the ground, imho.
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E9 INSTRUCTION
▪️ If you want to have an ongoing discussion, please email me, don't use the Forum messaging which I detest! steelguitarlessons@earthlink.net |
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Darrell Birtcher
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Posted 17 Mar 2013 11:34 pm mods
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Hey John.
Those are excellent ideas and would really take this concept to the next level. I need to build one of these for myself so I just might incorporate the improvements you suggest, though I've already cut the legs to length, darn it.
Ron wanted the legs to be just long enough so that the strings could be strummed while it was upside down. Otherwise one could just put it in the case to work on it. I figured it would be used on a benchtop, not on the floor, and so i didn't want the spread on the legs to be too great from front to back so that the average bench top would accomodate it. That also meant I had to keep the center of gravity low.
Your improvements could be done if I make the unit a little bigger and stouter. I was trying to keep it small and when broken down it fits in a small box which is handy. Actually, as I write this some design ideas have come into my head that should be fairly simple to pull off. Thanks for the concepts John. Now if I can just find the time! |
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John McClung
From:
Olympia WA, USA
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Posted 18 Mar 2013 9:23 am
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Here's a decent shot of Jim Palenscar's permanent PSG workbench:
The end near camera moves in and out to accommodate lengths of various steels. Large enough space beneath to play strings. He and his partner king designed and built this, it's very practical, though space-consuming.
I also own a quartet of risers that go between the legs and the body of the guitar, they suspend the guitar about 6 inches above a workbench. Their only drawback is they're awkward to get on and off. The should be hinged so you assemble the guitar, flip the supports down 180°, then set it on a table to work on the steel. I'll attach pix of those soon.
_________________
E9 INSTRUCTION
▪️ If you want to have an ongoing discussion, please email me, don't use the Forum messaging which I detest! steelguitarlessons@earthlink.net |
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Michael Maddex
From:
Northern New Mexico, USA
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John McClung
From:
Olympia WA, USA
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Posted 18 Mar 2013 12:07 pm
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Double wow!
_________________
E9 INSTRUCTION
▪️ If you want to have an ongoing discussion, please email me, don't use the Forum messaging which I detest! steelguitarlessons@earthlink.net |
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Darrell Birtcher
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Posted 18 Mar 2013 12:43 pm
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My head is swimming after looking at that Aussie guitar!
Thanks for all the additional info and photos. I figured that Ron and I weren't the first to crack this nut. Now I gotta go rethink EVERYTHING before building the next version. |
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