My new 14 string Fender Stringmaster

Mike Perlowin · From: Los Angeles CA

Several years ago I picked up a totally thrashed D-8 Stringmaster, damaged beyond the point of restoration. So I experimented and made two seperate unusual single neck instruments out of it. The other half of the former double neck is now an 8 string guitar with a Hipshot Trilogy bridge, capable of producing 6,651 different tunings.

This one has been converted to a 14 stringer, with 7 double courses an octave apart like a standard 12 string guitar. (I usually use a 7 string open chord tuning on a lap steel). It has a set of tuners from an old Ernie Ball 14 string guitar that I bought from Jim Palanscar in January of 1999, and a new nut, tailpiece, and bridge that were custom made for me.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it, but it sounds awesome.

[This message was edited by Mike Perlowin on 27 May 2000 at 07:40 AM.]

jjjohnson · From: TEXAS

mike,
we should always remember, in our principal, we have "a pal." And there is "a rat" in separate.

Chris DeBarge · From: Boston, Mass

Mike,
How's about posting a sound clip or two? And a picture. Sounds fascinating!

(hope I didn't spell anything wrong)

Mike Perlowin · From: Los Angeles CA

Chris, I don't know how to post pictures or sound clips, but I'd be willing to take a picture and record something on the guitar and send it to somebody who does.

I have to admit, it does look a little strange. The tuning pegs stick out a couple of inches past the wood. But it works fine, and as I mentioned earlier, sounds great.

Now I have to figure out what to do with it.

Bob Kagy · From: Lafayette, CO USA

Mike, sounds like an innovative idea.

It provokes lots of questions. I hope you're game for a few?

What kind of string spacing did you end up with? (1) string pair to string pair center, and (2)center to center in a pair?

Can you do slants with any kind of acceptable intonation? I'd guess you couldn't do the "hockey stick" slant? (where you're on the same fret for 2 adjacent string pairs, but on another fret for 1 or more additional pairs)

Does your picking technique have to change to get both strings in a pair ringing? I ask because in my imagination, my finger pick angles would have to change from what I normally do to make that happen?

What tuning do you use?

Sorry this turned out to be long, I hope not annoying, but it's an exciting move on your part; I hope you can move it forward so that it has some kind of personal payoff for you. I'd easily be in agreement with your comment on how awesome it could sound.

I can just hear "Walk Right In, Sit Right Down" playing on a 14 string lap. Cool. Congratulations on a very nice idea

An afterthought: I hope you could use the thickest neck for the 14 strings - sounds like the pounds of string tension almost doubled!

[This message was edited by Bob Kagy on 27 May 2000 at 11:51 AM.]

[This message was edited by Bob Kagy on 27 May 2000 at 11:52 AM.]

Jon Light · From: Saugerties, NY

[This message was edited by Jon Light on 27 May 2000 at 05:01 PM.]

Jon Light · From: Saugerties, NY

Too cool, Mike.
An immediate question comes to mind--do you have to use extreme bar pressure to avoid buzz with those mismatched gauged pairs? Or are the nut and bridge slots compensated?

Mike Perlowin · From: Los Angeles CA

First thanks Jon for posting the pictures.

To answer all the questions, I use an open A tuning (Low to high) A, E, A, E, A, C#. E. I will only be able to play this instrument in the key of A. My non pedal playing is based around the Mississippi bottleneck blues style, which I played for years before I ever took up the steel.

This means I can't do bar slants, even on a standard 6 or 8 string non pedal instrument. I am just beginning to learn the C6 (or rather B6) on my pedal steel guitar.

The string spacing on the instrument is a little weird. If you look at the pictures, you'll see that the courses are not parallel. They are closer together at the bridge than at the nut. Having them very close at the bridge allows my right hand to pick pretty much the same way as I would on a single string. I have my regular 12 string guitar (not my S-12 pedal steel) set up this way too for the same reason.

However having the strings close together also makes them rattle. By separating them a little at the nut, they ring freer and sound richer.

The bridge and nut are now compensated for the difference in string height. Originally they were not, and the instrument was unplayable, because the bar would actually clear the thinner strings, which would ring out open. I had to take it back to the repariman/luthier who did the actual work.

I've only had this guitar in working condition for one day. It going to take some getting used to, but I think I've got myself a real fun toy.

BTW, I wouldn't recommend thrashing a Stringmaster in good condition to do this. The one I made this out of was already toast, so I didn't feel bad about taking it apart and messing around with it further, and possibly destroying it completely.

[This message was edited by Mike Perlowin on 27 May 2000 at 05:53 PM.]

Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

Mike, I've always wondered what such a double-strung steel would sound like. Yes, tape some sound clips (or put them on CD) and either mail them, or email them to me and I'll post them with a link for folks to hear.

Bob Kagy · From: Lafayette, CO USA

Very nice pictures. The pictures and the answers nicely explain all my questions. Thanks very much.

I'd also like to hear it and I hope you'll give us an occasional update on what directions this goes in.

Thanks again

Jim Palenscar · From: Oceanside, Calif, USA

looks like something I'd like to do-- great job Mike-- know where I can find a 14 string tuner? :~))))

Jason Odd · From: Stawell, Victoria, Australia

Hey Mike, that's cool.

But what's with that carpet?

Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

Nice guitar... for a liberal.

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