Birdseye Bender Belle

Lap steels, resonators, multi-neck consoles and acoustic steel guitars

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Tom Pettingill
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Birdseye Bender Belle

Post by Tom Pettingill »

Here is a fun one I thought I'd share. Its the final revision of my Southern Belle model with some nice birdseye and a Dusenberg multibender bridge.

Some basic specs
24.5" scale
Select quartersawn African mahogany
Birdseye maple fretboard and custom trim package
Custom hand wound BG-Pups pickups
4 Way rotary switching

And some pics

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George Piburn
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Rock N Roll

Post by George Piburn »

Super Yummy , :) As with all of your instruments. Bravo ! :D
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chris ivey
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Post by chris ivey »

luv the knobs!
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Tom Pettingill
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Post by Tom Pettingill »

Thanks Mr Boards and Chris :)
luv the knobs!
Its a small detail, but one that I think adds nicely to the overall project. They are kind of a pain in the butt to make, but after they are done I'm always glad I made the extra effort.
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Carl McLaughlin
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Birds eye

Post by Carl McLaughlin »

Beautiful looking guitar.Is it possable to put the bender set up on an 8 string??.I am interested, and what string would be bent and the tuning if using C6..Carl :D
Now have a SX 6 string lap in G,.A Tele plus telecaster, Larrivee acoustic.Also have a Fender resonator guitar with new Quarterman cone and spider,and an Allan tailpiece.Playing through a Fender Super Champ XD,using a little delay on the amp and a Harmonix Holy Grail Echo pedal,set on Hall turned to about 1pm.Just got a Fender Dual 6 Stringmaster style. Bought a Yamaha FGX5 Recently and love it.
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Lynn Oliver
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Post by Lynn Oliver »

Since I got off the DL I haven't been on the forum much, but I can see your guitars continue to look better and better. Gorgeous!
Stephen Abruzzo
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Post by Stephen Abruzzo »

Sweet looking Belle Tom.

What tuning is she in? Which BG pups did you use?
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ebb
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Post by ebb »

is it for sale?
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Tom Pettingill
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Post by Tom Pettingill »

Thanks all :)

Carl ... Its a subject I've pondered on several occasions and have concluded that with a little work, it could be used on an 8 string. It would require a little milling / shaving down of the outside shoulder to make room for a little satellite / mini bridge to carry the other 2 strings. It does not need a lot taken off, a couple millimeters would do.

Lynn ... good to see you around!

Steve ... Its in an open E with the benders set to raise #2 from B to C# and #3 rom G# to A
The pickups are based off of Bryans A3 RockWind set. Basically they are built like a 50's style Tele set with the oversize Alnico 3 magnets, but wound to have less twang and more of a focus on a big and rich full voice.

ebb ... sorry, but it is not available. It was a custom order and is spoken for.
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ebb
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Post by ebb »

put me first in line when the owner wants to sell
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HowardR
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Post by HowardR »

swwwwwwwwwwweeeeeeet!.......you are really putting out some great builds.....
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Steve Ahola
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Re: Birdseye Bender Belle

Post by Steve Ahola »

Tom Pettingill wrote:Here is a fun one I thought I'd share. Its the final revision of my Southern Belle model with some nice birdseye and a Dusenberg multibender bridge.
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For a minute there I thought that was my kitchen faucet on your geetar! :whoa:

Steve Ahola
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Tom Pettingill
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Post by Tom Pettingill »

Thanks Howard Image ... its been a fun journey and a wonderful opportunity for me to bring these instruments to life.

Steve ... LoL ... thats a German tone dispenser ... not a Grohe ;)
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Mike Neer
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Post by Mike Neer »

Lovely guitar, Tom. I think that Duesenberg would drive me nuts in that position, as I tend to like to hover over the bridge sometimes with my right hand.
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Carl McLaughlin
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8string

Post by Carl McLaughlin »

Hey MIKE I SENT YOU A PRIVATE MESSAGE,DID YOU RECEIVE IT??? CARL :?:
Now have a SX 6 string lap in G,.A Tele plus telecaster, Larrivee acoustic.Also have a Fender resonator guitar with new Quarterman cone and spider,and an Allan tailpiece.Playing through a Fender Super Champ XD,using a little delay on the amp and a Harmonix Holy Grail Echo pedal,set on Hall turned to about 1pm.Just got a Fender Dual 6 Stringmaster style. Bought a Yamaha FGX5 Recently and love it.
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Tom Pettingill
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Post by Tom Pettingill »

Thanks Mike and yea, those bender bridges are not everyone's cup of tea. I can definitely see their appeal for some players and they are a lot of fun to play with. The good news is that the palm levers easily fold back and out of the way if you want / need.
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Mike Neer
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Post by Mike Neer »

Don't get me wrong, Tom, I'd love to mess around with the benders, but I think it would make me have to change my technique too much. Very cool and well made unit, though.
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Tom Pettingill
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Post by Tom Pettingill »

Hey Mike, no, I totally understand and am myself in the same camp. Like I mentioned, while I can see the appeal and usefulness, they are not my personal cup of tea either.

I had someone asking about the inlay so here is a little more about it and a slightly better pic.
The fret markers are made from laminated sheets of .016 aluminum and .030 black fiberboard. The dot bezels / surrounds are thin wall aluminum tubing and the black dots were cut from some leftover pickup bobbin fiberboard.

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Mike D
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Post by Mike D »

As usual, a stellar job. Hard to go wrong with beautiful materials, design and execution.
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Tom Pettingill
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Post by Tom Pettingill »

Thanks Mike Image
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Carl McLaughlin
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Bender

Post by Carl McLaughlin »

:D I am also interested in purchasing ..price w/ case..Carl
Now have a SX 6 string lap in G,.A Tele plus telecaster, Larrivee acoustic.Also have a Fender resonator guitar with new Quarterman cone and spider,and an Allan tailpiece.Playing through a Fender Super Champ XD,using a little delay on the amp and a Harmonix Holy Grail Echo pedal,set on Hall turned to about 1pm.Just got a Fender Dual 6 Stringmaster style. Bought a Yamaha FGX5 Recently and love it.
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Carl McLaughlin
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Southern Belle

Post by Carl McLaughlin »

:D Got my ordered,can hardly wait.Also ordered a Hatton tweed case for it..christmas all over ..Carl
Now have a SX 6 string lap in G,.A Tele plus telecaster, Larrivee acoustic.Also have a Fender resonator guitar with new Quarterman cone and spider,and an Allan tailpiece.Playing through a Fender Super Champ XD,using a little delay on the amp and a Harmonix Holy Grail Echo pedal,set on Hall turned to about 1pm.Just got a Fender Dual 6 Stringmaster style. Bought a Yamaha FGX5 Recently and love it.
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Tom Pettingill
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Joined: 23 Apr 2007 11:10 am
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Re: Southern Belle

Post by Tom Pettingill »

I'm excited to build one of my babies for you Carl :) ... and good call on the Tweed, Kevin does a great job on his cases Image
David Keller
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The Fretboard detail is amazing

Post by David Keller »

The two tone frets, Aluminum/Black/Aluminum are amazing.
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Tom Pettingill
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Post by Tom Pettingill »

Thanks David :) .. its a little bit of a pain to do, especially the logo, but I really like it a lot. This is the second time I've done it, first was the prototype and we are going to do Carl's like this one too.

Here is a pic of it on the zebrawood Belle prototype

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