New 8-string build

Larry Phleger · Post by **Larry Phleger** » 21 Jul 2011 4:39 am

Beautiful job! Could you please let us know the site for the online fretboard calculator you used?

Jerry Gleason · Post by **Jerry Gleason** » 21 Jul 2011 12:03 pm

Larry, I believe it was this one:

http://www.ekips.org/tools/guitar/fretfind2d/

Most fret calculators only give you the numbers, but this one can model the entire fretboard and save it as a drawing. Very handy for making a lap steel. I used it as a template for creating my own designs in Photoshop. From there, you can make all kinds of nutty designs, but in the end, I found that simple is better.

Printing out the basic lines from the fret calculator is also useful as a saw guide for slotting a wood fretboard.

Jay Fagerlie · Post by **Jay Fagerlie** » 21 Jul 2011 1:14 pm

Now we want to hear it!

Jerry Gleason · Post by **Jerry Gleason** » 30 Jul 2011 1:18 am

I finally had some time to record a little something with this guitar. I cobbled together a kinda dreamy (but not very polished) version of an old classic. It's a large video file, so be patient if you have a slower connection.

When You Wish Upon a Star

Hope you enjoy it.

Vick Griffin · Post by **Vick Griffin** » 30 Jul 2011 5:14 am

Gorgeous. I'm constantly amazed by the talent I see when people build their own musical instruments. I am not worthy...

Bob Russell · Post by **Bob Russell** » 30 Jul 2011 7:09 am

Jerry Gleason wrote:I finally had some time to record a little something with this guitar. I cobbled together a kinda dreamy (but not very polished) version of an old classic. It's a large video file, so be patient if you have a slower connection.

When You Wish Upon a Star

Hope you enjoy it.

I could listen to that all day, dude. Beautifully done!

Jeff Spencer · Post by **Jeff Spencer** » 31 Jul 2011 3:34 am

Man oh man, that was supurb. You sir have the gift!
A coffee over the sustain at the end - does it get any better!!

Jerry Gleason · Post by **Jerry Gleason** » 31 Jul 2011 10:15 am

Thanks, folks, for the kind replies. This has been a fun project, both making the guitar and doing this little video. I have remixed the audio track for better instrument balance since I first put it up.

Now it's on to making a nice case for this guitar.

Jerry

admin · Post by **b0b** » 31 Jul 2011 12:49 pm

I love the intro, Jerry! Also, I got a kick out of the ending - it sustains so well that you could go have a cup of coffee!

Beautiful playing throughout, on a beautiful instrument. Thanks for posting it.

Mike Neer · Post by **Mike Neer** » 31 Jul 2011 6:57 pm

Jerry, I really liked that. And lovely guitar, too. Salud!

Jerry Gleason · Post by **Jerry Gleason** » 31 Jul 2011 10:34 pm

Thank you, Mike, and b0b. You guys are making my day!

For anyone interested in technical details, I recorded the steel direct, with no volume pedal, through the DI input on my Hamptone mic preamp. There is almost no EQ on the steel, just a very slight boost on the high end. No other sound processing besides reverb. I don't pay a lot of attention to video, I just kept a camera rolling while recording the sequences, and stitched it all together afterwards.

Jeff Spencer · Post by **Jeff Spencer** » 1 Aug 2011 3:53 am

Thanks Jerry for a great post. Now the tuning - C6th or a modified version???
Thanks Jerry.

Jeff

Jerry Gleason · Post by **Jerry Gleason** » 1 Aug 2011 9:52 am

Jeff, the tuning on that guitar is C13, a slightly modified C6. Low to high- C, Bb, C, E, G, A, C, E. This tuning is used by Barney Iasacs and other Hawaiian players. I find it to be a versatile tuning for all types of music. The low C requires a heavy gauge string, but that also means that with the same string gauges, I can easily retune to the B11 tuning that I like. I just buy a 10-string C6 set for pedal steel and leave out the first and ninth strings.

Thanks,
Jerry

Jeff Spencer · Post by **Jeff Spencer** » 2 Aug 2011 3:06 am

Thank for your willingness to share all about this whole experience of yours. This is what makes this forum such a great thing for the steel guitar and its' devotees.

Regards

Jim Mitchell · Post by **Jim Mitchell** » 2 Aug 2011 4:54 am

Now that I retired I have a lot to do

I invented a Vertical sawmill

This was a limb of a Mapel tree we cut into slabs

I have a lot of steel guitars to make