Sho-Bro question

Darryl Hattenhauer · From: Phoenix, Arizona, USA

I just got a roundneck 6-string sho-bro (for Spanish) from out of state.

http://209.85.141.104/search?q=cache:rNW9iqGJ94kJ:www.lownotes.net/products.php%3Fq%3DGretsch%2BShoBro+sho-bro+case&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=5&gl=us

The action is 1/4 inch high at the 12th fret, and the truss rod doesn't need adjusting (no relief problem with the neck). Tightening and loosening the screw on the bridge does nothing. What should be done to correct the action? (My apologies for the ign'ant newbie question. I'm just a dumb banjo player.)
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Rick Abbott · From: Indiana, USA

Darryl,

If I'm not mistaken the Sho-Bro is a lap-steel. It is meant to be played in the bluegrass dobro style. The high action enables the player to use a steel (slide) to play it.

Rick
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RICK ABBOTT
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Darryl Hattenhauer · From: Phoenix, Arizona, USA

Rick,

I think a roundneck can be played either way. You can put a big metal nut on a roundneck to raise the strings for lap style. I'm going to spend the evening at Brad's Page of Steel to find out.

Maybe somebody had such a nut on here and then took it off without lowering the action at the bridge. The action at the nut is normal for Spanish style, and there's not enough bow in the neck to account for the high action. Maybe there is no way to lower the bridge and I have to put in a lower saddle. If there's not some way to lower the bridge/saddle, then maybe it needs a neck reset.

Erv Niehaus · From: Litchfield, MN, USA

You can always file down the bridge to lower the action.
However, this will reduce the pressure on the cone and might lower the volume of the instrument and, also, could result in some rattles.

Darryl Hattenhauer · From: Phoenix, Arizona, USA

Erv,

Always good to hear from you.

I've been cruising the net to see what I can learn, and apparently the legs on a spider bridge can be slightly bent to lower the saddle slot. Also, there is a spider bridge available with an adjustable saddle slot.

I'm surprised to find out some of the things about how a reso is engineered. For example, it looks like the only way to lower the saddle of a biscuit bridge is to file it down. And apparently all biscuit bridges come in the same height. Also, I haven't found an ebony-capped biscuit saddle. I also expected that biscuit saddles could be metal, bone, etc.

In addition, it's a lot harder to tell if a reso needs a neck reset if you want to play it Spanish.

It also looks like reso luthiery, like steel luthiery, is a lot harder for a beginner than banjo, mando, and guitar luthiery.

This old dog is learning some new tricks.
_________________
Steel crazy after all these years.

$100 reward for info leading to the purchase of a fender D8 white, yellow, or butterscotch.

Bryan Bradfield · From: Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada.

The pictured instrument is a Spanish style instrument.
1/4" at the 12th fret does not (in my opinion and experience) indicate that this guitar was used for Hawaiian style playing. It's a bit high for Spanish and a bit low for Hawaiian.
If you have tightened and loosened the screw at the bridge, you may have done some damage to the cone by tightening too much. Damage will be apparent by a change in the appearance of the cone. The "smoothness" of the cone shape will have been altered. That screw is meant to merely adjust the tension between the spider-web bridge and the cone for tone purposes. It is NOT a height adjustment screw.
Height is adjusted by either reducing the height of the spruce saddle inserts, or by replacing them with taller inserts to increase the height.

Darryl Hattenhauer · From: Phoenix, Arizona, USA

Thanks Bryan.

I'll look at the cone and see if I damaged it. But I don't think I turned the screw enough to damage it because I could tell the tone was changing quickly as I turned the screw but the pitch was constant.

dh

Bryan Bradfield · From: Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada.

Good observation. Since you quickly saw what was happening, I suspect that you are OK.

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