Mississippi rookie in need of pull rod

John Scanlon · Post by **John Scanlon** » 3 Dec 2009 11:17 am

Hi everyone. I'm a long time six-stringer, but have only been hacking at the PSG for less than a year now, learning what I can from the old Winnie Winston book, as well as Mickey Adams's wonderful book and YT vids. I've been watching the forum here for some time, but I just now joined yesterday. I'm in central Mississippi and I'm excited to see several Mississippi steelers on here I hope to connect with at some point.

I am in need of a replacement pull rod and nylon hex nut for the 4th-string-lower lever (LKR, or "E lever" as I understand it) on my student PSG that lowers the E strings 4 and 8. String 8 mechanisms are fine -- I need only to replace the ones for string 4.

I bought my PSG used from an individual, and so don't have it registered or have any warranty. One problem is that, frankly (and unfortunately), I have not had the most pleasant of experiences dealing with the manufacturer on this issue (and have discovered I'm not alone) and was wondering if there was another route I could go. On all-pull guitars, are several kinds of pull rods and hex nuts interchangeable? If so, where could I get a replacement set? Anyone have any particular recommendations?

Thanks, and looking forward to being a part of this forum.

Jerry Overstreet · Post by **Jerry Overstreet** » 3 Dec 2009 12:25 pm

You may not find an exact replacement part for that student guitar anywhere other than the mfg. but there is an alternative if you can live with some alteration.
Parts can vary sizewise and by configuration, but generally rods can be made from welding rod or modified from another brand of steel. Adding a pull rod should not be a major problem for someone familiar with the pedal steel pull train. There must be somebody close enough for you to visit that would have some parts lying around and the knowledge to help you do this.

Hopefully, they will see your post and come to your aid.

BTW, welcome to the forum and happy steelin'!

Mickey Adams · Post by **Mickey Adams** » 3 Dec 2009 2:25 pm

Im going to call Carter for you John..they are here in Dallas...Let me take a copy of this email to John and see if I can get a couple rods and cranks from him...I want to see you get this thing running!...Will post results.Mick

Mickey Adams · Post by **Mickey Adams** » 3 Dec 2009 2:37 pm

Ann Fabian will be happy to assist you with the parts order now John. She suggested that you call her directly..

John Scanlon · Post by **John Scanlon** » 3 Dec 2009 3:02 pm

Thanks, Jerry and Mickey! Wasn't trying to make anyone on here do any leg work. (I also wasn't trying to call the manufacturer out on the floor - I'm just trying to figure out the best way to get my guitar fixed). And I don't need the replacement rods to be exact replicas of the originals - I just want them to work.

While I don't want to wait until Jan. 10, it's not a big deal if I have to - I have plenty of material to work on without the use of the lowered 4th string, especially since the same note is always available on an unaltered string 2. It seems most E lever exercises I'm utilizing right now only apply it to the 8th string anyway.

My issue is this - when I am tuning the E lever, the 8th string lower comes into tune just fine, but the 4th string lower gets *almost* within range and then ... POP!! The hex nut gets pulled loose. I can screw it back on and tighten it again, and then the same thing happens. This has happened several times. Perhaps there is another remedy besides replacing the pull rod, but it seems hopeless to this beginner.

The good folks at Music City Instruments in Magee, MS, referred me to Billy Carr on here. So I contacted him next. He surmised there was too much tension on the 4th string lower when the KL was engaged, and so advised me to loosen the 8th string lower at the tuning nut to see if that enables the 4th to lower without trouble and eliminate possible over-adjustment. Makes sense. My problem with trying to employ this remedy, though, is that then my 8th string lower becomes flat, making the E lever totally useless. (Right?) At least now, I can still use it for the 8th string. Or am I doing something wrong? I'll be the first to say that user error is highly probable.

Sorry for the long post - thanks, y'all.

Mickey Adams · Post by **Mickey Adams** » 3 Dec 2009 3:05 pm

If you will call me, I will help you reset the lever travel...This will eliminate the issue John...Mick

John Scanlon · Post by **John Scanlon** » 3 Dec 2009 3:10 pm

Will do this evening, thanks!

Andy Hinton · Post by **Andy Hinton** » 3 Dec 2009 4:38 pm

John & Mickey; Sounds to me like all John needs is a new nylon tuning nut. It's threads are stripped & only a new untapped nut will fix that. Good luck & happy pickin'. Andy H.

Mickey Adams · Post by **Mickey Adams** » 3 Dec 2009 6:07 pm

Yep Andy I agree...Well see if we can turn it around and have that work. I want to make sure its not locking up the changer as well...If need be I can send him a few hex nuts too!!>..

Russ Little · Post by **Russ Little** » 3 Dec 2009 8:35 pm

Mickey,
as I told you before ,
you fit texas like a glove
only problem is after all
youve done for the osg community
now if you try to leave someone
will chain you up LOL
keep up the good work Brother
God will bless you
Russ

John Scanlon · Post by **John Scanlon** » 4 Dec 2009 8:39 am

Yes, it appears Mickey's (and Andy's) diagnosis was correct - the problem was the nylon hex tuning nut. That seems so obvious in retrospect, but it sure had me baffled at the time.

Per Mickey's suggestion to me last night, I swapped the stripped hex nut with another from a lever I never use, at least not currently (H lever or "X" lever as the manufacturer calls it - lowers the 5th B string). Now, it seems to be working fine, and actually, the H/X lever also seems fine now. (head scratch)

If the problem arises again, I'm going to try and hunt down more nylon hex material at a local hardware store. Beyond that, I'm going to take Mickey up on his offer to send me some of his extras..............

I know this goes without being said on here, but I just want to echo Russ's comments and say that Mickey deserves all the accolades he receives and more. He went above and beyond the call of duty to help out a 2-bit hack from Mississippi fix this problem to the detriment of his own day yesterday. He said he was helping me b/c I bought his book and this is the included online support that came with it - even though it certainly wasn't related to my use of his teaching materials - maybe that's true, but I think it's just because he's a nice and helpful guy. Thanks, Mickey.

I'm already glad I joined the forum, and thank everyone for the warm welcome.

Bill Ford · Post by **Bill Ford** » 4 Dec 2009 10:35 am

John,
As a temp,quick fix if it happens again, cut a piece of aluminum foil aprox. 1/8"X 1/2",wrap it over the end of the pull rod and install the nylon over it ,that may tighten the threads enough to get you by till you can get new nylon tuner nuts.

John Scanlon · Post by **John Scanlon** » 4 Dec 2009 10:50 am

Thanks, Bill - sounds like a great temp. remedy to have in the pocket in case I need it.

Jerry Overstreet · Post by **Jerry Overstreet** » 4 Dec 2009 12:11 pm

Glad you're getting it worked out John. I thought from your first post that you were just wanting to add some missing parts.

Another temp cure for a stripped nut that I have used is to flatten the nylon tuner half that screws on the threads with a plier or a hammmer. Not a cure but will generally get you through a night til you can change it out.

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Mississippi rookie in need of pull rod

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