Trouble with new bar size?

Wayne Carver · From: Martinez, Georgia, USA

Hello I currently play my 6 string lap steel with a 2 3/4" long by 3/4" diameter bar. I am currently making a 10 string console so I have been playing with a 3 3/8" x 7/8" bar. It seems very big and awkward. The first time I used it I dropped it. It is harder to pick up to move to another fret or to make single note runs. Just wondered if I should pick it up to go up the neck and when making single note runs. Will it feel more natural after I get use to it. Is this the size most use for a 10 string?
Also I noticed that earlier bars were smaller and some were coated with a hard plastic. Why did players get away from them? Although now I see some coated ones like the Red Rahaj on the market.

Cliff Oliver · From: San Antonio, Texas, USA

It's just a matter of what you are used to.

I can't use that teeny bar, 2 3/4" X 3/4", like you use now. I use the one you are trying to move to. I think you will like the bigger one, eventually. It will make you feel more "manly".

Who says size doesnt matter?

Jeff Strouse · From: Jacksonville, Florida, USA

I tried a larger (7/8" diameter) and longer bar a few years ago, but found it too awkard and heavy for quick manuvering...especially with reverse slants. I went back to the 3/4" & 2-3/4 length. You might try a 2-7/8" length...it's a little longer but not too cumbersome.

It's not the size, it's what you can do with it

In fact, the Master of Touch and Tone himself uses the smaller bars.

Anyway, that's my 2 cents....hope it helps.

Wayne Carver · From: Martinez, Georgia, USA

I'll just experiement with both and see what happens. I just read on an earlier post that I should try blocking with my right hand and just slide the bar to where I need it without lifting it. I might add that I started on a Dobro first with a Stevens bar.

HowardR · From: N.Y.C.-Fire Island-Asheville

Here are two options;

You can try the Red Rajah or Phoenix bar. I prefer the Phoenix bar (black color) as it seems to have a more durable coating. They are also recessed in back for easier reverse slants.

Carter Steel Guitars sells two and three grove bars for 10 and 12 string necks. The Sacred Steelers, who are constantly moving their bars and hopping around with great speed, use them.

[This message was edited by HowardR on 18 March 2003 at 08:17 PM.]

Aaron Schiff · From: Cedaredge, CO, USA

I use a 3/4 inch round Hawaiian BJS bar, a 1 inch round 10 string Pearse bar and a Shubb Pearse #2 dobro bar. I get the best tone from the heavy 10 string bar and it is the second easiest to control. The dobro bar is the easiest to control when doing fast slants, hammer ons and pull offs. I find the 3/4" BJS bar the most difficult to control and hold onto and the tone is the least pleasing to me. I keep thinking I would like a bar built like the Shubb-Pearse dobro bar, with the mass of the round 10 string bar and the finish quality of the BJS.

Wayne Carver · From: Martinez, Georgia, USA

I tried an older coated bar and it didn't have quite the sustain of a stainless but maybe a new type like a Rahah would. I did like the way it slides on the strings with hardly any noise. I put my lap steel on a stand at about the same height that my console will be and I had better control with the bigger bar. I wondered if thay made a round bar with grooves in it for a better grip. I think i'm getting the hang of hanging on to the bigger bar though.

Gary Slabaugh · From: Scottsdale, AZ

When I bought my first 2 steels on ebay they ended up coming with a Stevens, it was ok, buth then I got a 3/4 - 2 3/4, better for most things. I have some nerve damage in my hand so I recently got a 7/8 x 3 1/8. It took some getting used to but I like the additonal control and it is easier to vibrator by just rocking it a little. I still use the other bars but that 3/4 feels like a cocktail weenie now.

David Mason · From: Cambridge, MD, USA

Jim Burden at Bullet Bars can make you any size you want out of 303 stainless steel for $25. I had a similar problem, moving from 6 string lap steel to 10 string pedal steel. I had him make me a 3 3/8" by 3/4" bar so I could get the length, but with the smaller diameter. I have since moved up to a 7/8" bar, but the other one helped a lot in the beginning. www.bulletbars.com

Jeff Strouse · From: Jacksonville, Florida, USA

I also get my bars from Jim. The $25 includes shipping, plus, you get a bar made to order. His turn around time is fast, too.

Gary Slabaugh · From: Scottsdale, AZ

I got my 7/8 x 3 1/8 from Jim also. I almost went with a 3 3/8 but went a bit short and it works fine on both 8 and 6 string. Love the indentation that he machines in the end. The additional weight of the larger bar also makes it easier to play than the cocktail weenie.

Aaron Schiff · From: Cedaredge, CO, USA

Cocktail weenie???? ROTFL! That is what my little round BJS Hawaiian bar seems like. I love it!

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