Movin', not groovin'

Dave Marshall · Post by **Dave Marshall** » 10 Apr 2006 3:03 pm

I am a novice. I built my own E9 12-stringer. It weighs about 30 pounds. It is 3ft long and 7-1/4 inches wide, made from oak.

I adjusted the A/B pedals to have maximum travel for easy action. Also the closest holes to the crossbar were used on the bellcranks where possible.

My problem is that the PS moves across the room when I push the pedals. Does this happen to anyone else?

So far my solution was to tie a rope around me and the PS. Maybe a sheet of plywood on the floor with a 1x2 stop strip on it would work!

BobG · Post by **BobG** » 10 Apr 2006 3:47 pm

What are you using for legs? Are they rubber tipped? C'mon' post some pictures..
I've never seen a steel with seat belts

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Bob Grado, Williams D10 (lefty), Peavey 1000,
Profex ll, POD XT

Dave Marshall · Post by **Dave Marshall** » 11 Apr 2006 4:33 am

Bob G:

Thanks for the reminder. I had bought nylon feet by mistake. After replacing with rubber, its like the thing is glued to the floor. Such a simple solution. Should have thought of it myself!

You can laugh at my color-coded homemade cardboard fretboard instead now!

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 11 Apr 2006 5:00 am

I would sure like to see photos of the steel you built. A solid body has always had an appeal to me.

Michael Garnett · Post by **Michael Garnett** » 11 Apr 2006 5:02 am

Seat Belt?

Glad you got it figgered out.

Ray Minich · Post by **Ray Minich** » 11 Apr 2006 5:34 am

the PS moves across the room when I push the pedals. Does this happen to anyone else?

Not if you own a big old D-10 Dekley. Heavy enough to leave dents in concrete...

Larry Strawn · Post by **Larry Strawn** » 11 Apr 2006 9:21 am

I wouldn't laugh at any thing some one built,, that's an accomplishment in it self, just building it!

Common' post some pics..

Larry

John Ummel · Post by **John Ummel** » 11 Apr 2006 12:06 pm

We want pictures!

Dave Marshall · Post by **Dave Marshall** » 11 Apr 2006 5:48 pm

OK ... I will take some pix, but where do I dump them to reference

{IMG}http://whatever{/IMG} ?

Be aware that I have not seen a comercial PS except in pictures. I built it by studying the net, and copied Carter's pull-pull assembly that I made from aluminum bars and angle. I made the tuning nuts from our diabetic cat's old insulin syringe bodies. Takes a 6-32 tap just fine.

Due to so many strings (12) I got lost all the time so I color coded the right end of the fretboard. Strings 4 , 8 & 12 are red, 3 , 6 & 11 are blue, 5 & 10 are green. The other (to me) oddballs are black. I offset the colors for parallax

For some reason I relate colors to keys, so I color coded the frets also, skipping the b's & #'s except for Bb.

I made the original fretboard out of bristol board but it got warped a little with the humidity last summer.

I retired 2 years ago and had made the PS a few months prior to that to see if I could. Then I moved to the boonies (4-1/2 acres of jackpines)where the nearest hardware store is 60 miles away. (Check New Liskeard on mapquest ... I live 6 miles from Gowganda, Hwy 560 West on Lost Lake)

I was fixing the house last year, and cutting logs for the wood stove, so the PS was idle and out of tune since a few weeks ago when I took it apart and overhauled some of the glaring obscenities (such as flexible stops).

I bought Mac Knowles PS Builder's Manual, (3+2) but there are a lot of approximations in it. I think I got my knees a bit out of optimum location.

Another thing is that an 8 inch board is really 7-1/4", then take off 1-1/2" for front and back, then another 1/2" for crossbar mounts, and I am left with 5-1/4 inches to cram reversers, pulls for 12 strings, 4 pedals and 4 levers.

You guys have been a great help in overcoming some difficulties in copedents and mechanical stuff, and I really appreciate your interest.[This message was edited by Dave Marshall on 11 April 2006 at 06:50 PM.]

Dave Marshall · Post by **Dave Marshall** » 12 Apr 2006 8:30 am

OK ... I had to sign up for a photo dump place.

Here are the pix. The dangling thing is the cord on the camera. I also edited out shots of my wooly sox in a couple of them. I used rubber bands to hold back the levers to get some shots.

Dave Marshall · Post by **Dave Marshall** » 12 Apr 2006 8:32 am

Dave Marshall · Post by **Dave Marshall** » 12 Apr 2006 8:36 am

I wound the pickup myself ... about 5000 turns of wire. You will see tape on the end where the cover started to lift. It is hummy since it is a single coil. May replace that when I can play better.

There is a birch extension on the finger end since I had to stretch the return springs further than there was room for.

Also I had to add "lower" return springs not mentioned in anything I read. I forgot to take a shot of them at the tuning nut end.

Some of the fingers are not pull-pull where they were not used for any pulls. Since I originally installed them I shuffled them about to handle a copedent change..[This message was edited by Dave Marshall on 12 April 2006 at 09:55 AM.]

Ray Minich · Post by **Ray Minich** » 12 Apr 2006 9:54 am

Gotta hand it to ya, that's a pretty piece of work, and creative with the materials! What stamina, what persistence...
I still have the napkin I drew the sketch of an MSA finger on in 1977. It's in my "cheat sheets" book at work. Forunately I stumbled upon an SD-10 lookin' for a home before I had to resort to the milling machine. Then the Forum came along.
Nice job![This message was edited by Ray Minich on 12 April 2006 at 10:55 AM.]

Dave Marshall · Post by **Dave Marshall** » 12 Apr 2006 5:54 pm

Thanks, Ray.
By the way, the rollers are battery post knobs.