Observations on pull/ release steel guitars..

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 6 Apr 2014 11:07 am

I can only speak about the few I have seen... Mainly marlen and the old Maverick.. Most of what I have observed comes from steady gigs with my old Marlen S 10.... I had a LOT of concern about this guitar.. I was not sure what to expect at all.. Worried about the weird balancing act these guitars do between raises and lowers, worrind about it breaking strings as some old dinosaurs do, worried about a million things like what if I have to make a quick repair on the job etc...
I have been playing it steadily since late last summer.. It has yet to break a string, even the high G#..
it has stayed perfectly in tune for the past several months, about as good, or perhaps even better than the MSA Classic I was gigging with..
I mean wood body or not, as far as tuning is concerned this thing just stays in the same place on open strings, and on each and every pull, and never varies.. Guys told me this before I started using this steel, but I had my doubts..
Yes it is not easy to work on compared to most all pull guitars, but I guess once they are set, they just stay that way... Really was an eye opener, playing an ancient pedal steel, and the first thought I had about it after several gigs, was that I have yet to even tune it up, as it simply hasn't needed it.

I will say this.. i would never again hesitate to buy ANY well made P/R steel guitar... This system works to perfection. This is a good thing for those of us that like the system, as most seem scared of it, as I once was, and it keeps prices low... ..

I am really impressed with this pull system, and can see why so many guys are liking the Zum Stage I .. The P/R really does have a lot going for it, once you understand it... bob

Ian Rae · Post by **Ian Rae** » 6 Apr 2014 1:15 pm

Without ever having played a modern steel, I'm already a big fan of the old ones. I have a pull-release D10 which appears to be a copy of a ShoBud Permanent and was probably made c. 1960. I acquired it in non-working order, not realising that it was originally built as a pro guitar. I reworked the underside to a better standard, replacing the bent wires with rods and proper pivots. I added mechanism to raise and lower the strings necessary to provide E & F levers, and a 3rd string lower on the C6, so now it's a fully functional 8x5.

I'm a beginner and it's the only steel I've ever owned, so I've nothing to compare it with, but the tone is pleasing and the sustain seems more than adequate. Above all, although it's a bit fiddly to tune the extra lowers, once it's all set I never have to touch anything. I put this down to the changer fingers being one solid lump, and the maple body having heavy steel runners inside each apron. When I break a string, I'll change them - but it's been six months. (One exception - I have changed the high G# because it was beginning to sound fizzy.)

I want to tear it down and give it a proper clean and tidy, but I'll have to get a second instrument first. Meanwhile I really enjoy learning on it, and if something sounds out, I know it's me

Frank Montmarquet · Post by **Frank Montmarquet** » 6 Apr 2014 1:45 pm

Is there some place with a good explanation of how a pull release works? I have no idea. I have a push pull and an all pull, have never seen the under side of a pull release.

memphislim · Post by **memphislim** » 6 Apr 2014 3:10 pm

My Marlen pull-release guitars, in addition to amazing tone, have zero cabinet drop and no hysteresis. I think the one piece changer finger must have something if not everything to do with it as the rest of the guitar is functionally like any all pull guitar. The only compromise I have found is the fourth string knee raise must have a little slack in it to allow the lower, just like on a push pull. After a minute of playing it I don't even notice it. Bob is right, once set up, no tuning issues and and they play so easy it's scary. Just a joy to play.

Lane Gray · Post by **Lane Gray** » 6 Apr 2014 5:18 pm

Frank, here is a thread with a diagram showing the EARLIER Marlen changer (later, they put a threaded end on the lowering rod, so the neutral note could tune at the endplate).
http://steelguitarbuilder.com/forum/vie ... 9&start=20

Stephen Gambrell · Post by **Stephen Gambrell** » 6 Apr 2014 7:34 pm

There was a great thread on tuning those older Marlen pull-release guitars, too. I got a Marlen a few years ago. Somebody had taken the C6 neck off, so it was a home-made SD-10. Lane, and all the rest of my bluegrass pickin' pals---I sinned. I traded a 1943 Kay M-1 bass for it.
I got the guitar home, opened the case---And I had no idea what I was looking at. Screen door springs, wood screws, bolts, phillips head screws, flat-head screws...
I was blessed to have Charles Reece, probably the BEST push-pull guy on the planet, after Mac Atchison passed, for a friend. A well-known builder AND player in Texas told me that Charles Reece built a better push-pull than anything that came out of Burlington-- I've seen him ripping and tearing parts out, and putting parts back in--with the end result being a better guitar. It took nearly a whole day, and two pots of coffee, but when he was through with that little Marlen, it was a great box. Light weight, good tone--right pretty finish, too. Shoulda kept it....