RIP Mr.Dusan Papic (Promat guitars)

Ned McIntosh · Post by **Ned McIntosh** » 17 Jan 2017 12:35 am

We have lost yet another uniquely-talented builder of the pedal steel-guitar. No ordinary steel-guitar, and no ordinary builder, either.

He built metric push-pull guitars which are regarded as the equal of the best push-pull Emmons produced. No other builder anywhere has done that, and now his skilled hands are forever still.

Into every steel-guitar he put his love for the instrument. Truly hand-crafted, each one a tribute to his skill, now these steels stand as his monument and our arcane little musical community is united in grief and diminished by this terrible loss.

To Mr Papic's family and friends I offer my heart-felt condolences. We also bear Damir Besic in our thoughts, for it was he who recognised the quality and value of Mr Papic's work and became his champion. To Damir I also offer my condolences on the sudden loss of a close friend.

RIP.

Pat Moore · Post by **Pat Moore** » 17 Jan 2017 6:16 am

My deepest condolences to his family & friends! I never met him, but his reputation always preceded him. His steels are as good as they get, and they will always be his lasting legacy!
We have all lost a great person, and I wish much strength to Damir in his difficult time, as I know they were close.
Pat Moore

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 17 Jan 2017 6:56 am

thank you my friends... here are few more pictures you may like

son Slobodan testing a new Promat SD10 before shipping to France

another son Sava, working on guitars

one of Dusans favorite photos, with one of his heroes on Promat

Dave Diehl · Post by **Dave Diehl** » 17 Jan 2017 8:03 am

Nicely said Ned. Your words are right on target.

Mickey Adams · Post by **Mickey Adams** » 17 Jan 2017 2:56 pm

History is passing before our eyes so quickly now it seems..
RIP...Mr Papic...

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 17 Jan 2017 3:04 pm

Mickey Adams wrote:History is passing before our eyes so quickly now it seems..
RIP...Mr Papic...

I just thought about that today... you are so right my friend... in the last couple years we lost a lot of good people in our small steel guitar community ...

Bruce W Heffner · Post by **Bruce W Heffner** » 18 Jan 2017 4:58 am

Sorry for the loss of your friend Damir. Anyone who would build a high quality pedal steel guitar in the push pull mechanism had to be a true lover of the music.

Bruce

Roy Carroll · Post by **Roy Carroll** » 18 Jan 2017 7:21 am

So Sorry Damir,
Please pass on the regrets to the family. I know their loss is huge. I spoke with him about my Promat, His was a labor of love for sure! Great guitar, Great builder and Great Innovator! The attention to detail is unsurpassed. He will be missed.

Allan Thompson · Post by **Allan Thompson** » 18 Jan 2017 11:08 am

So sorry to hear of Dusan's passing. I spoke with him many times via email, he was a lovely man.
R.I.P. Dusan.

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 18 Jan 2017 7:51 pm

I dont think anyone knew he didnt feel good, he was very private person...he was working on D10 lefty for a customer in US, guitar is 70% finished, parts are all done ,and guitar is ready for assembly...this is Promat #27 ,and it will be finished and delivered, but after that I don't know, that could very well be the last Promat ever built...

Andy DePaule · Post by **Andy DePaule** » 19 Jan 2017 12:33 am

A sad truth that it may be the last at #27. Maybe his sons will take up the effort?
I never had a PP guitar but those that he made were so beautiful in the photos I saw.
The other sad truth was something I think many of us have thought of recently. That is how many wonderful people in this community have passed away in the last couple of years.
Again Damir, sorry for your loss.

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 19 Jan 2017 8:19 pm

thank you Andy,he will be missed...I still remember years ago when I first brought a Promat to US, one of the coments was that Promat looks like it was made "out of parts from Lowe's, using a hammer, and a file" ...I can't remember who was a idiot who said that, but it's not important at this point...loosers like that never discouraged Dusan to keep making high quality instruments...

Andy DePaule · Post by **Andy DePaule** » 19 Jan 2017 9:28 pm

Dumb people have no idea of all the skills a person must learn and master as well as the tooling and supplies required to even start a project like a pedal steel guitar.
Least of all can they spot a master craftsman when they see one. Just stupid and you can't fix stupid.
I'll bet you are going to treasure that last Promat you brought back. It looks to be one of the finest I've ever seen by any builder.
I loved the colors and the gold tuners with the polished aluminum parts.
I'm sure it plays as good as it looks.

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 19 Jan 2017 9:34 pm

it plays great. Henry Matthews went through it, and did service and adjustments ... last weekend friend of mine, Gary Morse had a chance to look at it, first thing he said after I opened the case was "this is work of art" ... we'll be taking it to his studio, for some pickin'.... thats going to be fun

Dave Diehl · Post by **Dave Diehl** » 20 Jan 2017 12:52 pm

As I was playing my Promat two nights ago at a job, I looked down at the guitar and thought about all the things Dusan and I had talked about, the experimental things we tried on other guitars which always proved to improve the tone, the metal composition of guitar parts, and so many more things, I realized that I had lost more of a friend than I realized. There probably were very few weeks that went by since I bought my guitar in 2008, that we had not talked on some issue. He was also a very patient man. Communicating, given his English, was not always easy for me but he always patiently re-explained things until I got it. As for the comments on the workmanship, I am a Mechanical Engineer and I will argue with anyone that the parts and workmanship of my Promat will match or supercede any other guitar out there. I believe many of the negative comments ever said were because this was not an American made guitar. But comments were always all positive about the fine work they saw. I remember playing a job once where I was playing my Promat and a gentleman who was standing in the audience came up to me afterwards so excited going on and on about "I have heard so much about those Promat guitars but had never seen one and man you just made my day". He went on raving about how great it sounded as well. Just a testament to these fine instruments Dusan "hand" manufactured. I will miss this man so.

Joseph Torres · Post by **Joseph Torres** » 20 Jan 2017 8:33 pm

I'm sorry to hear of the lose of your dear friend, my condolences to you and his family. Prayers for the family and may he rest in peace.

Joseph Torres

Mirko Tomic · Post by **Mirko Tomic** » 21 Jan 2017 4:47 am

My dear friend Damir,I can*t explain how much i*m, sorry
becasue our dear Mr.Dusan Papic passed away.I knew him since 1987 and we were really close friends.We were every week on the line,about PSG and music in general.He was unique person.Last time I saw him was two months ago when I tested his guitar which is now in your posesion.He will live through our playing on his guitars.

Ron Grant · Post by **Ron Grant** » 23 Jan 2017 6:24 am

I am the very proud owner of the lefty #27 [day set up ] 8 floor-- 7 knee. it will never be for sale.

Jimmy Douglas · Post by **Jimmy Douglas** » 8 Feb 2018 7:17 am

Very sad and shocked to just learn that Dusan has passed away. My respects and best wishes to his family and friends. A very nice gentleman.

Sincerely

Jimmy

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 8 Feb 2018 10:33 am

Dave Diehl · Post by **Dave Diehl** » 8 Feb 2018 1:39 pm

Mr. Papic had engineering ideas which would have done a lot for the Pedal Steel Guitar. But those ideas passed with his passing. He was VERY proud of his work and one of the most patient and brilliant people I ever dealt with. I owe him a lot for what I learned from my discussions with him. I played my Promat on a job last night and it played and sounded as nice as any other guitar out there.

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 8 Feb 2018 2:01 pm

my problem with Promat is that I donâ€™t like push pull mechanics, but after playing over 500 different steel guitars I just canâ€™t find anything that sounds better... $:\$

Dave Diehl · Post by **Dave Diehl** » 8 Feb 2018 4:55 pm

I'd rather work on a Push Pull anytime over an all pull. Mr. Papic studied these mechanics in more depth than anyone else I know and knew so much about material theory and their responses.

Ian Rae · Post by **Ian Rae** » 9 Feb 2018 3:56 am

Damir's probably best placed to answer - how did Mr Papic get into building steels in the first place? Did he spend time in the States (like Mitsuo Fujii)?

Godfrey Arthur · Post by **Godfrey Arthur** » 9 Feb 2018 8:56 am

Godspeed Mr.Papic

Sorry for your and our loss Damir.

The Steel Guitar Forum

RIP Mr.Dusan Papic (Promat guitars)

ProMat

A sad truth

Dumb people

Damir Besic