New owner of Fender S-10

Tony Wilson · From: Kentucky, USA

Through some serendipity, I became the owner of a Fender S-10. From what I’ve read here, this was a student model made for Fender by Sho-bud, similar to the Sho-bud Maverick. I bought the Winston book, which was really helpful in getting the pedals/lever set up and in tuning.

I know the 3+1 set up is not considered adequate for a professional pedal steel, but for a lap steeler (like me) curious about pedal steel alchemy, I think it is OK. I can always invest in something better down the road.

If you guys have any tips re the S-10, especially on learning to play this guy, please pass them along. I’m working through the Winston book, and am considering the ‘Lessons with Troy’ series.

Thanks for sharing all the great info on this forum,
Tony

Bob Carlucci · From: Candor, New York, USA

First off, listen to LOTS of songs with pedal steel.. Practice constantly.. If you can do 8 hours a day, do it.. If you don't put a lot of time in, you will likely not proceed the way you want. You need to be as dedicated and single minded as you can possibly be.

the winston book is a great starter resource.. Most of us started with that one.

the little fender you bought is a pretty decent little guitar, better than a maverick. You can add 3 more knee levers to it when you feel the need.. the parts are readily available. If nothing else, you can play it for a year or two, and sell it for as much or more than you paid... .. good luck..bob
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I'm over the hill and hittin'rocks on the way down!

no gear list for me.. you don't have the time......

Steve Spitz · From: New Orleans, LA, USA

That was my first steel. Payed $100. For it from some crazy Cajun who didn’t play it. I learned how to play on that. I learned a ton on that steel. I was hooked.

Enjoy it !!

Chris Walke · From: St Charles, IL

3 levers and a knee make for lots of possibilities. You'll gain a lot of traction with that start. My first steel only had the 3 pedals and lever - the lever didn't even work, so I gigged regularly with only the ABC pedals. There's quite a bit there.

Look around on YouTube. I don't think you'll go wrong with Troy's lessons. Also look for some of the free stuff. I think when I started I found something called ABC's of Pedal Steel, which quickly got me making sounds and changing chords. Anything to get you playing.

K Maul · From: Hadley, NY/Hobe Sound, FL

Ben Keith said that three pedals and the one knee lever (to lower the Es) is all that he really needed to make a million a year. If you use your head and have good instincts you can get lot of music out of that Fender.
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KEVIN MAUL: Airline, Beard, Clinesmith, Danelectro, Evans, Fender, GFI, Gibson, Hilton, Ibanez, Justice, K+K, Live Strings, MOYO, National, Oahu, Peterson, Quilter, Rickenbacher, Sho~Bud, Supro, TC, Ultimate, VHT, Williams, X-otic, Yamaha, ZKing.

Tony Wilson · From: Kentucky, USA

Thanks for all the comments. I think this Fender is going to be a fun learning experience; it’s definitely a different experience from learning lap steel. It also seems to be well made for a student guitar and the pickup has great tone.

I picked this up at a garage sale for $200; the owner was a guitarist who bought it for a project but could never get the hang of playing it.

Tony

Bob Jennings · From: Indiana, USA

Get the Up from the top A & B pedals from Jeffran College and the E9th Chord Dictionary from the same place--both are worth their weight in Gold.

Bob Jennings

Jamie Kitlarchuk · From: Alberta, Canada

I agree with Bob on the Up from the Top A & B pedals from Jeffran. That will get you started really quickly. I have an extra copy (brand new), if you're interested send me a PM.

Tony Wilson · From: Kentucky, USA

Thanks for the recommendations re the Jeff Newman DVDs. I wasn’t familiar with the Jeffran materials; there’s certainly a lot of useful stuff there, I’ll look it over 👍

Tony

Bob Russell · From: Virginia, USA

I have one of those, and I used to have a Maverick many years ago. I can tell you without a doubt that the Fender is better built than the Maverick! It's certainly not the latest and greatest and it won't do many of the things modern guitars will do, but it'll take you a while to find all the music that's available in that 3 and 1 setup.
Once properly set up, it will hold tune pretty well and will play reliably. The pickup may be the weakest link; Tom Brantley made a great replacement for mine. Don't expect much sustain in the upper registers, but then again, when that starts to matter much to you, you'll probably be ready for a better instrument. Enjoy yourself!

Barry Blackwood · Posted 23 Mar 2019 8:12 am

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