carter steel issues?

Charles Bell · Post by **Charles Bell** » 24 Feb 2020 3:12 am

i have been looking at a couple of used carters..one is a magnum d10, the other is a standard model carter d10. i have heard lots of different opinions regarding the "dogbones" and their tendency to wear down and even break..i notice that the magnum doesn't use these- it has pullers that look a very similar to emmons 14 hole..can we hear from carter owners out there?

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 24 Feb 2020 3:20 am

Never had an issue other than SIZE. I owned and played Carter D10s for well over a decade, weekly gigs, they are robust, very reliable, very stable. My only complaint was the size of the dog bones, not that they didn't function properly or failed.

They are brass , if someone is wearing them out to the point of breaking , man thats a lot of pedal and knee movements ! Not hundreds, not thousands, probably millions !

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 24 Feb 2020 3:55 am

Buy that Carter with confidence.. The dog bones are available, not expensive, and rarely break for most people, despite thousands of hours of playtime, thousands of practices and thousands of gigs.
Carter made a very good, very dependable, great playing, great sounding steel guitar.

if you don't grab one of those carters you mentioned, believe me, someone else will.. they don't stick around long when put up for sale, and most buyers have no worries about those brass dog bones.. bob

Gene Tani · Post by **Gene Tani** » 24 Feb 2020 4:09 am

I like my Carter.

Bill Liscomb's bones https://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=354435

I haven't installed them yet but they're nicely made and now you don't have to order pull rods that exactly fit your crossshaft, makes life a lot easier.

The other thing that is annoying is stripped Torx screws. Mine were fine but apparently that's a common thing.

Also i have a pile of pickups I'm going to try, Truetone, tonealigner and a Lawrence w/2 rows polepieces. But it sounds good with the Geo L E66/10-1 combo

Bill Hatcher · Post by **Bill Hatcher** » 24 Feb 2020 5:11 am

if you are looking at a D10, look up under the guitar and check for cracks at the screw holes around the changer. EVERY carter i owned had these cracks. its a well known flaw in the design. the wood will warp/pull up behind the changer over time. ask me how i know.... carter offered me a free body to replace one of mine, but the only color they offered was white...because it wasnt a popular color and they had some extra ones. the problem can be fixed....ask me how i know...but it is a tough repair that involves removing the changer, routing through the cracks right up to the mica and spicing in maple. the cracks separate with the wood warping under tension and cannot be glued, hence the wood splice. i seem to remember that the C6 neck is where it happens the most as that neck is a bit thinner.

David LeBlanc · Post by **David LeBlanc** » 24 Feb 2020 5:36 am

I have a well worn , 2002 D10 Carter. As stated above, great pro steel. No issues at all other then the dogbones being small when changing your tuning set up. Once set up, no problem. And they are not that bad either. Just a bit small. The dogbones would not be an issue for me at all . I would buy another one.

Ian Rae · Post by **Ian Rae** » 24 Feb 2020 6:24 am

Those replacement bones are like the ones I "invented" when I was building my own steel.

Imagine my surprise when I bought my Excel and found the same thing!

chuck lemasters · Post by **chuck lemasters** » 24 Feb 2020 7:13 am

I have a 2004 Carter SD10. Tuning of both strings and pedals are as stable, or more so, than any other guitar I have owned. It has minimal cabinet drop, is light in weight, plays effortlessly, and sounds good. As far as tone goes, my Carter has a thick midrange, is not extremely bright, similar to a SKH Emmons I once owned. I have to admit my other guitar, a Rains, fits me better. The compact size of the Carter, along with knee lever placement, has me seated closer to the body, changing the angle of my foot on the volume pedal. Carter's front apron isn't as tall as most other guitars, nor is the neck as thick, making the overall height a bit less than some other guitars. I addressed these issues by extending the legs and pedal rods by about three quarters of an inch and moving the left knee levers closer to the back apron. As a preventative measure to the dog bone issue, I installed Bill Liscomb's replacement bones. I found there was not enough wear on the brass bones to have warranted replacement, as the old bones would probably have lasted longer than I will. A little lubrication goes a long way. If you want a reasonably priced, light weight, good sounding guitar, consider a Carter.

Howard Parker · Post by **Howard Parker** » 24 Feb 2020 7:48 am

18 years and never replaced a dog bone.

ymmv

hp

Bill Miller · Post by **Bill Miller** » 24 Feb 2020 9:11 am

I bought a Carter third hand and I played the daylights out of it for many years. Never had a issue with the dogbones. One thing that may have been a factor is that I'm a firm believer in lubricating. At least twice a year I go through the undercarriage and lubricate all points of friction, dogbones included, with a single drop of Tri-Flow. And I lube the changer and roller nut every time I change the strings...every three or four months.

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 24 Feb 2020 12:56 pm

I have broken 2 dog bones on my 1999 Carter. Both times on a gig.

Gene Tani · Post by **Gene Tani** » 24 Feb 2020 1:14 pm

Also when you're looking at Al Brisco's price list for parts, remember they're Canadian dollars. I've bought a few batches of parts from him, the prices converted to US $ were reasonable, as was shipping, and shipped to me fast from Ontario.

I just checked my cabinet, i don't see any cracks around the changer mounting screws. Also, ther've been threads talking about how the ones Bud Carter built were different from John Fabian's but I don't remember details.

If i had to change anything, I'd swap the LKR and RKR for Mullen or some by Doug Earnest, but i'm not swapping anything except Torx screw heads and bones. And putting 2" wide paddles on the levers makes them comfortable and gives some needed length.

[later edit to add] I don't have pullrods to put Bill Liscomb's bones on yet but i decided to look at the ABC pedals. My Carter seems to be very lightly used, judging from changer fingers but A and B's bones were starting to show wear. If you're sticking w/factory bones it's good to pull them, clean/lube/rotate them every once in awhile.

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 24 Feb 2020 3:17 pm

Gene Tani wrote:Also when you're looking at Al Brisco's price list for parts, remember they're Canadian dollars. I've bought a few batches of parts from him, the prices converted to US $ were reasonable, as was shipping, and shipped to me fast from Ontario.

I just checked my cabinet, i don't see any cracks around the changer mounting screws. Also, ther've been threads talking about how the ones Bud Carter built were different from John Fabian's but I don't remember details.

If i had to change anything, I'd swap the LKR and RKR for Mullen or some by Doug Earnest, but i'm not swapping anything except Torx screw heads and bones. And putting 2" wide paddles on the levers makes them a lot more comfortable.

Also remember that Brisco has a $40 minimum.