Goodies for my pedal steel

Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

I've been busy in the shop...

Music rack...

Arm Pad...

Probably $50 in all of it, a little time, and pure enjoyment...
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Alan Brookes · From: Brummy living in Southern California

...another good investment would be to install a CD player into the body of the pedal steel, so that you could slip in a CD of Buddy Emmons or Jerry Byrd and mime the bar-work. Laughing

In all seriousness, your music stand is great but I can't read music. Embarassed

Mike DiAlesandro · From: Kent, Ohio

Scott, nice work on the music stand, the only suggestion I have is to add some type of retaining, sliding clips to secure your notebooks. I had a drunk knock my clipboard repeatedly off my stand unto my lacquer body guitar recently!!! It wasn't fun to watch

Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

I normally only use the music stand at home, and if it goes out, it's either church or a church function...

Alan, I can read music, but for steel, I read tab... Very Happy

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I may, in fact, be nuts. However, I am screwed onto the right bolt... Jesus!

Howard Steinberg · From: St. Petersburg, Florida , USA

Hey Scott - What tool do you use to attach the plastic pipe with rivets? I need to do a repair on my tab rack. Howard
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Justice Pro Lite (4-5), Justice D-10 (8-5)x2 , Quilter Steelaire, Hilton Pedal, BJ's bar.

Dick Sexton · From: Greenville, Ohio

Scott, One of my projects I give you credit for. You may not have been the first to come up with this, but it was a good idea. Thanks.

Erv Niehaus · From: Litchfield, MN, USA

Howard,
It looks like pop rivets and there's a tool to install them.

Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

Yes Howard, it is a "good" pop rivet gun. The tip will fit in the slot cut out in the conduit (although it is tight). This is the gun I use...

I bought it at Lowes...

http://www.lowes.com/pd_74119-412-RHT300_0__?productId=1194941

Also, I use 1/8" diameter rivets. If you want the clamp to swivel, use one rivet in the center. If you want it stationary, use two rivets, one above the other.

If you look at the back of the music stand, those clamps swivel, the pad clamps do not.

If you want the rivet to look flat on both sides, after you "pop" the rivet, use the left over mandrel from the rivet to drive out the remain part of the mandrel in the rivet. Then, place a large punch in your vise, place the "head" of the rivet against it, and hammer the other side flat.

Standard rivet...

Flat rivet...

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Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

Dick,
I made another one of the amp stands yesterday for my wife's keyboard amp (Behringer K1800FX).
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Dick Sexton · From: Greenville, Ohio

Scott, it works like a champ. 3/8 birch ply, piano hinge. Wala! Laying it out and determining the correct angle took the longest time. I need one more. Think I'll drill some 2" holes to make it lighter. I just slip it behind the amp on my handcart, seat on top, all goes in at once. Thanks for a great idea.

Howard Steinberg · From: St. Petersburg, Florida , USA

Thanks Erv and Scott
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Justice Pro Lite (4-5), Justice D-10 (8-5)x2 , Quilter Steelaire, Hilton Pedal, BJ's bar.

Bobby D. Jones · From: West Virginia, USA

Great pad attachment and music stand. Have you considered some Velcro straps to lock the music stand. So someone cannot pop the music stand off if they catch it on their clothes. Do not want to pull it off and hit your tuner on the floor.

Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

Bobby, the clamps made from 3/4" conduit are very strong. It takes quite a bit of force to pull them off. Plus, where I play, it's not too much of a problem.

For those looking the "clamps" are a length of 3/4" conduit (1" x 2 for the music rack, 2" for the pad). You cut between 1/4 and 1/3 third of the side of the conduit away so that it will clamp on but stay there.

Here is a shot of the other side of the clamps...

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Joshua Gibson · From: Arizona, USA

I love how You did the back pad attachment Scott! I just got an S-10 BMI, How big of a pain was it to make that setup?,

Josh.
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Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

Not hard to make. The side to side dimension is the center to center point of your guitar legs. The height of the pad needs to be about 1/4" below the strings.

As suggested elsewhere on the forum, my pad does not have foam in it, but does have a couple extra layers of the vinyl under the upholstery.

My pad is upholstered all the way around, so that it protects the top of the guitar. You need to make sure the pad when assembled clears the key heads and changer.

The wood is a 1/2" x 3-1/2" board. You may need a board that is thicker if your guitar has a raised neck (my GFI does not).

The aluminum running along the bottom of the pad is a 1/16" thick 1" x 1" angle. The top edge is pointed away from the guitar. The uprights are 1/8" thick 1" wide aluminum bar.

The clamps are conduit sized so that the inner dimension is close to the outer dimension of your guitar's legs. I saw between 1/4 and 1/3 of the round away, so it will snap on to the leg, be firm, but relative easy to remove.

I can fold the uprights along the angle, and can put my pad in my case with the guitar.

I'll post some more pictures shortly.
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Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

As promised, some detailed pics of the pad...

With the "uprights" folded.

With uprights extended (upside down) and guitar side facing. (shows small patched of fuzzy Velcro for padding)

One of the uprights, showing Velcro for padding, and the PVC conduit clamp.

Uprights extended, ready to snap onto guitar.

Showing pad to key head distance.

Full top view with pad on guitar.

View under pad from end of guitar...

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Howard Smith · From: Callison, South Carolina, USA

Nice work Scottâ€¦.looks very useful.
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Jason Lynch · From: Essex, United Kingdom

It's a bit.............Pink?
Laughing

Kenneth Kotsay · From: Davie/Ft Lauderdale, Florida

How about a cushion pad that covers the C-6th neck on a D-10 pedal steel, sort of like the single red cushion pad you have on your post (photo), not as thick but something that would protect the C-6th strings and with the ability to rest your wrist on.

Hope this explains what I'm requesting.

KEN

Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

Kenneth, I don't make the pads (except for myself) but I'm thinking maybe a pad with 2 uprights of some kind to sit on either side of the C6 fretboard. Below is a drawing of what you might do. The pad is the part in red.

Here is a drawing looking under the pad from the changer end of the C6 neck. The top surface of the pad (the wood or what ever the pad is attached or upholstered to) would need to be thin, like a blank of Lauan or paneling.

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I may, in fact, be nuts. However, I am screwed onto the right bolt... Jesus!

Kenneth Kotsay · From: Davie/Ft Lauderdale, Florida

Scott, thanks for the reply, I been thinking about the C6th pad for a long time, right now I have a towel over the neck. I want a board that is padded & thin and will stay in place with a tight fit. Can be any color.

You would think someone out is Steel Guitar Land would have thought of this pad & began to market it, there would be lots of takers.

Got to go, it's Turkey time.

KEN

Brian Henry · Posted 22 Jun 2014 1:09 pm

Hi Scott,

This weekend I got busy and updated my GFI SM10

1. I installed a white MSA fretboard

2. I removed the black key heads and cheapo tuners and made a new key heads and inserted some good sperzil tuners

3. I shortened all the legs as it was way too tall and made both back legs adjustable. I got 2 x 5/8" threaded bolts and cut them and they work like a charm

[url]

I was quite horrified to discover that although this guitar is less than a year old, the roller nuts did not move. The black paint was hindering them. It looked like the whole bridge had been dipped in black paint. I used some aircraft stripper and eventually got them moving freely.
Here is a picture of my pro guitar

I like all your mods. What else have you in mind for your GFI.

Regards
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Brian Henry · Posted 22 Jun 2014 1:13 pm

Sorry Scott here is the other picture

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Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

Nice work Brian. I'm planning on doing my keyheads soon. And nice finish on the MSA!
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I may, in fact, be nuts. However, I am screwed onto the right bolt... Jesus!

Emmett Roch · From: Texas Hill Country

Excellent ideas.
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