Flock it?
Moderator: Shoshanah Marohn
-
- Posts: 21192
- Joined: 16 Feb 1999 1:01 am
- Location: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
Flock it?
After studying a little about resonance in musical instruments, it occured to me that the pedal steel is the only instrument whose body is usually "flocked". The use of the flocking (and it's requisite adhesive) on the underside of the instrument seems counter to promoting a good resonance in the body. They (manufacturers) pick a wood known for its sound quality, and then proceed to to deaden it by applying this stuff. I suppose it's done for purely for visual aesthetics, so has anyone done a study to see how much resonance (sustain) we lose due to this procedure?
Whose idea was it, anyway?
(Yes, I do expect a few light-hearted responses.)
Whose idea was it, anyway?
(Yes, I do expect a few light-hearted responses.)
-
- Posts: 136
- Joined: 26 Mar 2002 1:01 am
- Location: Belmont, CA, USA
The first flocked guitar was created by Nicholas "Buddy" Claus, whose owned a combination guitar shop and christmans tree lot back in 1969. One dark December night while attempting to put an extra layer of pink flocking on a customer's tree, there was a mysterious explosion. After the police and firefighters left, Nicholas returned to his guitar shop, where he found that several of his steels, which were inverted on his workbench, had become covered in residue from the explosion. Being an adventurous type as well as a fan of anything flocked pink, he plugged one in and tried it out. The rest is history.
-
- Posts: 3190
- Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
- Location: Renfrew, Ontario, Canada
- Jody Carver
- Posts: 7968
- Joined: 3 Jan 2001 1:01 am
- Location: KNIGHT OF FENDER TWEED
- Contact:
-
- Posts: 6530
- Joined: 2 Oct 1998 12:01 am
- Location: Portland, OR USA
-
- Posts: 742
- Joined: 22 Feb 2001 1:01 am
- Location: Dodson, Louisiana, USA
- Contact:
-
- Posts: 1362
- Joined: 14 Nov 2000 1:01 am
- Tom Jordan
- Posts: 502
- Joined: 1 Feb 2002 1:01 am
- Location: Wichita, KS
I'm also just guessing...I'm with Bill that I assumed that it helped to dampen the mechanical sounds. Especially on old guitars that sent alot of cabinet noise through the pick up. My Sierra U12 has red felt glued to the underside. Since this body is a solid (and heavy) aluminum extrusion and is anodized, I wouldn't think that you would just waste time by covering it for cosmetic reasons.
Tom
Tom
- Jody Carver
- Posts: 7968
- Joined: 3 Jan 2001 1:01 am
- Location: KNIGHT OF FENDER TWEED
- Contact:
- Mike Weirauch
- Posts: 3665
- Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
- Location: Harrisburg, Illinois**The Hub of the Universe
-
- Posts: 1834
- Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
- Location: Goodlettsville, TN , Spending my kid's inheritance
- Contact:
- Earl Foote
- Posts: 371
- Joined: 12 Oct 1998 12:01 am
- Location: Houston, Tx, USA
-
- Posts: 290
- Joined: 17 Aug 2000 12:01 am
- Location: nashville tennessee
-
- Posts: 12505
- Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
- Location: Spicewood TX 78669
- Contact:
Richard, it's not felt, which is a fabric. Flocking is a sprayed material made from very short wool (or some other material) fibers that adheres to a glued or painted surface. Like paint, it must be sanded off.
Yes, the best sounding guitars have red flocking, but not because the color of the flocking is red.
------------------
Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association
Yes, the best sounding guitars have red flocking, but not because the color of the flocking is red.
------------------
Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association
-
- Posts: 1083
- Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
- Location: Marietta,GA,
- Erv Niehaus
- Posts: 26797
- Joined: 10 Aug 2001 12:01 am
- Location: Litchfield, MN, USA
- Jeremy Steele
- Posts: 586
- Joined: 1 Oct 1998 12:01 am
- Location: Princeton, NJ USA
-
- Posts: 182
- Joined: 11 May 1999 12:01 am
- Location: Peru,In,USA
I'm slowly restoring an old Miller Dbl 10 and it had red flocking.So I started calling around different fabric stores for flocking material and when the women wounder answer the phone, well you can imagine what they thought when I asked for flocking.What a hassel, until I told them it was put inside of flip open eye glass cases. They finally settle down and laughed. I found some flocking material from a company in Montana, got the flocking (red), the applictor, and the adhesive to apply it, now I'm trying to get the nerve to apply it.The guitar was originally red with yellow necks and I'm doing in in the same colors.
-
- Posts: 265
- Joined: 8 Dec 2000 1:01 am
- Location: Hueytown,AL USA
-
- Posts: 2257
- Joined: 17 Dec 2001 1:01 am
- Location: Mississippi
-
- Posts: 691
- Joined: 3 Dec 1999 1:01 am
- Location: Springfield, Missouri USA
- Damir Besic
- Posts: 12261
- Joined: 30 Oct 2000 1:01 am
- Location: Nashville,TN.
- Contact:
I bet that red flocked guitars sound better then black ones...or pink...or..hmmm
------------------
http://hometown.aol.com/damirzanne/damirzanne1.html
------------------
http://hometown.aol.com/damirzanne/damirzanne1.html
- CrowBear Schmitt
- Posts: 11624
- Joined: 8 Apr 2000 12:01 am
- Location: Ariege, - PairO'knees, - France
- Contact:
- Joerg Hennig
- Posts: 1046
- Joined: 17 May 2001 12:01 am
- Location: Bavaria, Germany
Asbestos??? Guess I can consider myself lucky that none of my two steels is flocked...
I haven´t had an occasion to look closely at many newer steels, is it really "usually" done, as Donny says? I can´t help but think that it takes away something from the natural resonance of the wood. Maybe that´s why I like the sound of my guitars better than many new ones that I´ve heard.
I haven´t had an occasion to look closely at many newer steels, is it really "usually" done, as Donny says? I can´t help but think that it takes away something from the natural resonance of the wood. Maybe that´s why I like the sound of my guitars better than many new ones that I´ve heard.