Carter Starter pedal steel guitar

Pedal, lap, Hawaiian, resonator ... anything played with a bar
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Andy Keen
Posts: 60
Joined: 8 Jun 2010 7:38 am
Location: Oregon, USA

Carter Starter pedal steel guitar

Post by Andy Keen »

I'm selling my first guitar because I upgraded to a more expensive pro model. It's a carter starter with a case. It's got 3 pedals and 4 levers. Much more information is available at the carterstarter.com website.

There are two small problems. The horizontal bar that holds the pedals together doesn't have anything holding it, so after playing it for a while it slowly wants to slide out one end. You have to push it back in. I'm not sure if this is a design flaw or some piece was missing when I got it, but I would go anywhere from 1-4 hours of playing without worrying about it depending on how hard I was playing.

The other problem is that the LKL (left knee left) lever needs to be re-tuned more often than everything else. This seems to be a manufacturing issue because the "stop" for the lever (the stop is the thing that prevents the lever from extending any further than it should) is a round-headed screw. I think with normal operation that design will eventually strip the tip of the lever and create the issue with re-tuning. As a (somewhat successful) fix/re-design/work-around, I replaced the round-headed screw with a metal plate that creates a firmer point of impact for the lever.

Just to be clear: I'm only offering what is in the pictures (the case and pedal steel guitar). There is no volume pedal included, no instructional material, no finger picks.

My asking price is $575 + actual shipping costs. Thanks for looking.

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Greg Albright
Posts: 17
Joined: 7 Feb 2010 5:00 pm
Location: Montana, USA

Carter starter LKL

Post by Greg Albright »

The problem with the LKL stop can be remedied quite easily. First, you can replace the stop screw with one that has a larger, flatter head. This helps quite a bit, but if you exam the way the lever hits the stop, you'll see that only the tip of one of the angled sides of the lever actually makes contact, so it can wear down. I removed both left levers and had a small square welded into the end to create a flat surface about a half inch on each side that now makes contact with the stop screw. For about 10 bucks the problem goes away permanently.
Ransom Beers
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Joined: 2 Mar 2010 2:31 pm

Post by Ransom Beers »

The metal they used in those guitars is so flimsy the reason they need to be tuned all the time is because the pressure you put on it bends it.I had one,ended up rebuilding the whole undercarriage,after that it was a pretty decent guitar,especially for tone.
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Howard Hughes
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Joined: 11 Mar 2009 1:03 pm
Location: Roanoke/South Norfolk, Virginia - Now Living In Junction City, Kansas USA

Carter Starter PSG

Post by Howard Hughes »

Hay Andy,

WELCOME To The Steel Guitar Forum :!:

& Good Luck With Selling Your PSG.

Thanks, ♫Howie♫ :whoa:
Last edited by Howard Hughes on 13 Jun 2010 3:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
Italia Maranello Gold Sparkle Guitar/6-string Lap Steel Guitar (LDG-Green)-Custom Made By Andy Hinton, (August 10, 1933 - July 3, 2011). "RIP My Friend!!", "I Think Of You Everyday & Really Miss Our Talks!!"/Coated Finger Picks By Andy Hinton/"KEEP ON PICKIN"/Blessings!/ "May You Always Have Love & Wealth To Share, Health To Spare and Friends Who Care!"/Your Fan & Friend - From The Land Of OZ - ♫Howie- "The Wizard"♫ ☺ ♥
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Andy Keen
Posts: 60
Joined: 8 Jun 2010 7:38 am
Location: Oregon, USA

Post by Andy Keen »

@Greg: Thanks very much for the tip. For some reason I didn't even think about taking the lever off and welding the tip, I was just focusing on the stop thingy. I might end up keeping this guitar as a backup if it doesn't sell.

@Ransom: I agree that the metal on the lever's is not very strong at all, but I haven't had problem with the other metal parts. And you're right, the stock pickup does sound good.
Ransom Beers
Posts: 1579
Joined: 2 Mar 2010 2:31 pm

Post by Ransom Beers »

I believe they used E-66's on those guitars.Parts were made in China,the reason they were so cheap.Best thing about them is the tone.
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Andy Keen
Posts: 60
Joined: 8 Jun 2010 7:38 am
Location: Oregon, USA

Post by Andy Keen »

Well I guess I should drop the price down a little bit to attract some more interest. How about $525 + shipping?
Amanda Scarborough
Posts: 2
Joined: 19 Sep 2010 8:11 am
Location: Florida, USA
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Post by Amanda Scarborough »

is this still for sale?
amanda~
well behaved women rarely make history~
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