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Topic: Gibson EH 630 |
Jack DeMeo
From:
California, USA
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Posted 22 Jul 2020 3:57 pm |
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Hello everyone! I just joined the forum, and I am honored to be part of a community of such talented and knowledgeable steel players! 
I recently picked up a Gibson EH 630 (so the owner told me) from a vintage guitar shop in Los Angeles. It's a beautiful piece, sounds wonderful. However, information about this instrument is few and far between on the internet.
In particular, I'm wondering if anyone knows where or how I could procure a service/usage manual for the Gibson EH 630. I want to make sure I keep it in shape, making sure all the pedals are working efficiently, friction points lubricated, and screws tightened. You can see in my pictures that some of the washers/barrels (?) are looser than others.
One specific problem I am facing right now is that some of the pedals are harder to use than others - for a couple of them, I must push down very hard for the strings to change pitch. I also was wondering if there is any way to modify the pedals to make them longer and more spaced out; they are so close together that they can be difficult to play individually.
I have attached some photos for reference. If anyone has information about the EH 630, where to find a manual, how to adjust the pedals/pedal tension, or anything else, it would be much appreciated! This is my first pedal steel guitar.
Many thanks,
Jack DeMeo
Picture file
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 22 Jul 2020 5:46 pm
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If there's a better resource for Gibson steel guitars than this one, I would like to know about it.
It states there were about 114 four-pedal EH-630 Electraharps produced between 1955 and 1965 in two distinct variations. The later models featured an 8-string version of Gibson's humbucking pickup. Unfortunately, there's little if any info on setup or maintenance. Original manuals are scarce; hope you find one. |
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Jack DeMeo
From:
California, USA
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Posted 24 Jul 2020 11:32 am
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Hey Jack, I appreciate the reply. I'll see if I can get my hands on a copy of that book. But I'll assume what you told me is pretty much all it mentions about the 630, huh?
Yeah, I'm hoping someone here by chance has owned one of these or worked on one. I'm 25 and a newcomer to pedal steel scene so I'm just gathering whatever information I can get on this thing.
-Jack |
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Larry Phleger
From:
DuBois, PA
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Posted 25 Jul 2020 7:58 am
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| Several yeas ago I got one of these up and running for a friend of mine. His wife picked it up at an estate sale. Take time to study how the mechanism works. I don't know of any service manuals available for this guitar. the biggest issue I ran into was the accumulation of dirt and grime on the mechanism. Once I got that cleaned up and lubed, the rest was relatively simple. You said you were new to pedal steel, so I would like to remind you that these guitars are not really to good for playing contemporary pedal steel. The pedals were intended to change the the tuning of a single neck as opposed to having a multiple neck non pedal steel. The stiffness of the action and the arrangement of the pedals hinders the instrument's ability to be used in the same way as modern day pedal steels. That being said, they do sound pretty good for what they are. |
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