6139 Sho Bud Conundrum

[Cameron Kerby]

I have recently got my hands on this Sho Bud 6139. It came standard with just (2) knee levers, both on the right knee for raising/lowering E's. I am in the process of converting to a 3x4 with E's on the left but currently waiting on some parts. I have been noodling on it, playing with E's on the right and have ran across a problem. The right knees were positioned very close together and my thigh is wide enough to not fit between the knee levers without having one or the other engaged at all times. I have never ran across this on other guitars, so my thinking is that it was built to fit someone of smaller statue or really liked the levers snug to his/her leg.

Going forward I need to move one knee lever to widen up some space. Does anyone have recommendations on which knee lever assembly may be easier to move or typical measurement rules to play by?

[Gaylen James]

Hey Cameron, looks like you could flip the levers around 180 degrees or put on straight levers. You wouldnt have to move anything and it is totally reversable

[Tony Prior]

Right Knee Left, it can be moved to a new position easily. Remount the cross shaft and STOP block. It looks like in the photo you have about 1/2 of rod available for the two strings, 4 and 8. That may not be enough so you will need to acquire or manufacture TWO rods . Once you measure for placement you will know. This is a very easy move , just make sure when you drill the new holes you mark the drill bit for depth so you don't DRILL TOO DEEP

Don't try to change the location of the Right Knee Right.

[Jon Light]

RKR is not going anywhere further to the right so there's really no decision to be made.

You will need two longer rods but otherwise there is nothing beyond what you see. Figure (carefully) where you want RKL, remove the hardware and reinstall.

[Craig A Davidson]

Michael Yahl makes teardrop levers with the set screws so you can open up the space on them.

[Bob Carlucci]

Michael Yahl makes teardrop levers with the set screws so you can open up the space on them.

Thats how I would go as well.. Had them on a few Buds, and they work fine...

[Douglas Schuch]

An alternative to buying new teardrop levers with the set screws - you could get a dremel tool, or even a hack saw blade, and very carefully cut the slot in the teardrop part of the knee lever to allow it to swing a little more. Check it often - a little bit removed there makes a much bigger difference at the end of the lever. I'd cover the area around it with masking tape so I could not accidently scar it.

[Cameron Kerby]

I understand the shape of the teardrops are a concern, but these were placed so close together my knees are in the base of the lever as well so Tony's plan may be the only viable option unfortunately. For relocating the RKL, what would be some typical measurements between knee and lever? Also, would anyone have any how to's for drilling and moving components inside the cabinet for the cleanest look? Thanks!

[Jim Cooley]

Michael Yahl makes teardrop levers with the set screws so you can open up the space on them.

Thats how I would go as well.. Had them on a few Buds, and they work fine...

I installed Michael's teardrop levers on my LDG. They worked great.

You said your knees are in the base of the levers. Do you mean the tops of the levers where they attach to the underside of the steel? Do your quads (fronts of your thighs) hit the botton of the rear apron? I might be picturing it all wrong, but I wonder if you are sitting too high or if the steel is too low for you (steel's legs too short?). Depending on your type of seat, maybe you can lower it. I have a folding piano bench that I use when I don't use my pack-a-seat. It has several height adjustments. If your seat height is good, maybe the steel is too short for you and needs to be raised a little.

Then again, like I said, I might be picturing this wrong.

[Tucker Jackson]

How close the knee levers are to your knee is also affected by where the lever stops are set. It looks like you have some screw length on RKL. If you screw in that stop (and then retune the changes),that should give you a little more space to wedge your knee in there before it engages. They may be touching the side of your knee as they hang, but that's fine as long as they aren't engaging until you move right or left

[Ian Worley]

...what would be some typical measurements between knee and lever?...

6" to 7" between the inside faces of the levers is pretty typical. Adjust that to what is comfortable for you. If it's close you could start by moving the rear mount bracket and stop bracket over just one screw hole each so you would only need to drill a couple of new holes. You might consider replacing the vertical front apron mount with one of the little L brackets. There's no magic to the apron mount; drilling and screwing new holes straight into the top is much easier to deal with than screwing into the back of the apron. You can buy a drill bit with depth stop at a hardware store/Home Depot, it's just little set collar that clamps onto the bit with a grub screw. Screws are #8 x 1/2" pan head, hardware store item also. If you wanted to plug the unused screw holes for cosmetics just use some #8 x 1/4" or 3/8" screws.

[Tony Prior]

I understand the shape of the teardrops are a concern, but these were placed so close together my knees are in the base of the lever as well so Tony's plan may be the only viable option unfortunately. For relocating the RKL, what would be some typical measurements between knee and lever? Also, would anyone have any how to's for drilling and moving components inside the cabinet for the cleanest look? Thanks!

I've done this on a few Sho Buds where the levers were either too close together or too far apart ! Its a very easy mod.

[richard burton]

Before you start drilling holes etc try what Tucker Jackson suggests, it's the easy option and will probably fix the problem.

[Cameron Kerby]

Ok, I've taken a few measurements to build off of what Ian's suggested dimensions were.For reference, I measured my Pro 2 (My daily rig) and from the center of the lever to lever, it measures 6". Very comfortable. This 6139 was standard at 4 1/4" center to center. Had to pull them apart to get my knees between them and when trying to play, both are attempting to engage. After backing the set screws out as far as possible, I can get it it 4 3/4" apart center to center. Still quite uncomfortable and somewhat awkward with the levers pointed that far outward..

I'm start to believe my only option may be to re drill new holes.