China made lap steel s

[Johnie King]

How many China made laps do you own? Would u recommend them for a beginner? Do they sound good? Is the finish shinny? Can u Oder them Online? Do they Hold there value?

[Ron Hogan]

They make some good quality stuff.

https://goldtonemusicgroup.com/goldtone ... lap-steels

[Jack Hanson]

Personally, I have no desire to have one, for two reasons:

1) There are still (thankfully) a few small American builders who construct instruments of far superior quality for not a whole helluva lot more money. And they deserve support, especially from this community.

2) There are plenty of classic vintage American instruments in the marketplace, and most will hold, if not appreciate, their value. Often they will need minor repairs which are not extremely difficult. Plus, they can often be picked up for a song and refurbished rather cheaply. If someone is intimidated by working on instruments, lap steels are an excellent gateway drug. Since they're not Stradivari fiddles or the Sistine Chapel, no big whoop if you ding one up a little while in the process of whipping it back into playing condition.

[Bill Groner]

I don't have any Chinese lap steels and the reason why is I like to build my own stuff. I have access to a pretty well equipped machine shop. If I didn't have that and had to rely on my limited equipment I have at home, my lap steels would not come out as well as they do. I don't have anything against some stuff made in China. Look at this video by Mike Holland.......he sure makes that "Gold Tone" sound great. I'm pretty sure the Epiphone lap he plays is made in China as well. I think it's 80% player, 20% lap steel. I sure like the look of that Gold Tone....Chinese wood or not! BTW, I like Chinese food too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qL-ifTe9Reg

[Frank James Pracher]

I have a decent little collection... only one Chinese made steel (a Recording King someone gave me). It's a serviceable thing.. I keep it around in case my son or one of his friends wants to try their hand at it...

To answer the other questions.. It sounds OK.. adequate..

I would say the finish is matte...

You could gig with it as is.. and with a better pickup it might come alive.. but you could easily pick up something American made ( or vintage Japanese ie.. Guyatone, Teisco, etc) with a bit more personality for what you would have in it...

It's not just about the sound.. it's the history and the aesthetic as well..

[Scott Duckworth]

I have two Rogues. One is tuned traditional E6, the other the same but A6. I had planned to marry them into a D6, but that hasn't happened yet.

They do need a replacement metal nut. The cheap plastic one dulls the sound. It helps if you make the new nut with the same string spacing as the bridge, so that the strings are parallel, instead of tapered (my preference, you can make it your own).

I also chose to remove the volume and tone pots, as I used a volume pedal and external EQ.

Why did I buy them? Disability and no money for a good quality steel.

The tunings...

[Phillip Vaught]

you get what you pay for

[Brad Bechtel]

How many China made laps do you own?

I've probably owned ten or so in the past decade, and played many more.

Would u recommend them for a beginner?

Depends on the instrument and the beginner.

Do they sound good?

Some sound great, some not so great.

Is the finish shiny?

Some have a shiny finish, some a more matte finish. Depends on the design and the builder.

Can u Oder them Online?

As with most things today, yes, you can order them online.

Do they Hold there value?

They're not generally considered collectible, so I would say if you're looking to invest in lap steel guitars, look elsewhere. (Then again, if you're looking to invest in lap steel guitars, talk to a doctor.)

If you have questions about specific lap steel brands or models, let us know. There's a huge difference between the Asher Electro Hawaiian Junior and the Rogue RLS-1.

[Jack Hanson]

if you're looking to invest in lap steel guitars, talk to a doctor

Possibly the best advice I've ever read on this Forum.

[Ron Simpson]

[Ron Simpson]

To make a short story long, my father was in route home from Korea after the Korean war. The ship stopped in Japan to take on fuel, during which the troops had shore leave. Both my father and a buddy purchased a steel guitar.

During the second leg of the journey, his buddy got into a game of chance, but luck was not on his side. I guess luck was still not on the buddy's side since my father came home with two steel guitars. The better of the two is shown in the photograph. It is a Teisco and it is not for sale. It has too many memories in our family.

Ron

[Ron Simpson]

PS Yes my father was left handed.

[Johnie King]

try One of these Zking lap bodies very reasonable price an add your parts. You won’t need a nut an bridge mine come installed An are 6061 aluminum. All are set up for electro socket for input Jack. Key holes drilled,pot holes drilled. Pickup routed. Ground wire installed. What have I left off o h strings.

[Bill Creller]

I have a Rogue, that Bobby Ingano sent me, for my grand daughter to learn on. Very short scale, and doesn't sound very good. Wasn't aware that they are made in China. I wonder why the scale wasn't 22.5 instead of some odd-ball length... Chinese Junk isn't just the name of a boat..

[Erv Niehaus]

This one is kind of unusual, it was made in Australia.
A fellow had them for sale on ebay some years ago.
It's a nice little square neck lap steel.

[Bill Groner]

Did you buy it Erv? It's a nice looking steel.

[Erv Niehaus]

Bill,
Yes, I bought it.
It was priced quite reasonable.
Erv

[Brad Davis]

Some people like to hot rod the Rogue steels. I have one somewhere and was far less than impressed. Not that I expected much, but shorter than usual scale, cheap chintzy hardware all around, didn't sound good at all.

I think the Rondo's are a good value and you don't necessarily have to start upgrading parts. The RK/Johnson steels were okay, and are worth considering a pickup and electronics upgrade if you like to tinker. None of these start with or hold much value, so that should not be the focus. If you're looking at something nicer and more expensive like the Gretsch or Gold Tone, as with most decent Chinese instruments it will possibly retain at least maybe 60-70% of what you paid for it. But at that point I'd be looking for clean vintage American lap steels or considering one from a builder.

[K Maul]

SX makes some good ones,too. However, I’d prefer a Z-King. I have one and will buy another before long. His designs and workmanship are excellent.

[David M Brown]

I have a Rogue, that Bobby Ingano sent me, for my grand daughter to learn on. Very short scale, and doesn't sound very good. Wasn't aware that they are made in China. I wonder why the scale wasn't 22.5 instead of some odd-ball length... Chinese Junk isn't just the name of a boat..

The 6 string Rogue with soft case and legs is not a bad deal - but you do have to replace the bridge, nut and change the scale to 22.5 using one of Georgeboards conversion kits.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lap-Steel-Guit ... 2787572492

http://www.georgeboards.com/kits.html




My rogue had a decent pickup, so I left that stock. After using the conversion kit, it is now a very useful, cheap "beater" steel I can use at the beach, music camp, etc.

[Paul McEvoy]

I have a rogue and it got me started but it’s impressively awful. Tuners are horrendous. Pickups bad. Nut is bad. Bridge is awful. That’s pretty much everything.

[G Strout]

I bought a Rondo SX Mahogany 6 string from Kurt when they first appeared. The bridge was a wrap around and I didn't care for it.I also got rid of the "Fender style" bridge cover. Bought an aftermarket bridge on eBay and drilled holes for a string through the body setup. Replaced the tuners with an older set of Grover's that I had laying around and later mounted an old Gibson P-90 in place of the Chinese strat type pickup. (Required routing) I then changed out the entire electronics using Bourns pots and an "orange drop" cap. (Required more routing and new pick guard installed.)
I don't use it very much these days but it is my go to Blues Lap. I keep it tuned to a G6.
BTW ...originally they came with a hard shell case....
which I love. No modifications were made on the case....lol Works GREAT!!!!

[Bill Groner]

G Stout....can you post a couple of pics of your finished project? I would love to see your mods.

Thanks!

[Tom Campbell]

Returned a SX 8 string a couple weeks ago. The 1" thick body is too thin for an 8 string...if it were a pedal steel I guess you would refer to it as "cabinet-drop".

[Andy DePaule]

Brad said, "Not generally considered collectible"...
I beg to differ, I got one of those Fender reissues a year ago and it's been collection dust almost ever since!
Has just about the worst tone ever and the fake looking pickup to really disappoint.

There are many forum members building lap steels who could do a much better job for a buyer.
Thats my 2¢ worth, and you don't even owe me the 2¢.