Crazy to mod a '56 nFender Deluxe 8?

[Marc Stone]

Am I going to be hauled before the court if I mod a '56 Deluxe 8, already refinned in a distinctly non Fender martian green with a replaced fret board by drilling it for string through?

And maybe even pulling the original pickups in favor of a George L 10.5 I have in the drawer? Really like the fat Sierra SL8 sound ala Darick Campbell, but they are hard to find. Kicking myself now that I see Bob Stone sold one a few months back and I missed it.|

Thx!

[Allan Revich]

Am I going to be hauled before the court if I mod a '56 Deluxe 8, already refinned in a distinctly non Fender martian green with a replaced fret board by drilling it for string through?

And maybe even pulling the original pickups in favor of a George L 10.5 I have in the drawer? Really like the fat Sierra SL8 sound ala Darick Campbell, but they are hard to find. Kicking myself now that I see Bob Stone sold one a few months back and I missed it.|

Thx!

If it was unmodified, yes, you would be tried and convicted in the court of lap steel lunatics. But since this one is already several steps removed from original condition, I don’t see any reason why you should feel reluctant to keep going with it.

Please remember to post before and after photos!

[Walter Webb]

It beats cutting up an early 50s National Grand T8 on a table saw, to make three S8s...

[Nic Neufeld]

On the string-through mod, I think a jury of your peers would surely vote to acquit. The swapping out of the pickups is a bit tougher...I assume this is a Stringmaster style? You'd have to heavily modify the bridge plate and also rout out a new pickup route for that, and by the time you've done all that there'd be precious little connecting it back to its original Fender heritage.

That said...if they've already refin'ed it and it doesn't have the original fretboard, its hard to make the historical preservationist argument!

[Jack Hanson]

If you decide to carry through, please share your results. I'm seriously considering performing a similar operation on my decidedly non-original candy apple red Studio Deluxe.

[Marc Stone]

OK I may actually go for it. Especially given that I have an extra bridge plate…

[J Fletcher]

Sounds like you really want a Sierra, I wonder if the mods will get you much closer to that sound . Deluxe 8's have a light weight body and I think that accounts for their lack of beefy tone. I think the Sierras are quite a bit heavier.

[Douglas Schuch]

I will diverge from the majority opinion - DON'T DO IT! Here is why: if I were looking for a "player's" lap steel of that model, while non-original finish might reduce the price, I can be sure I will get the expected tone. But change other things, and it's value plummets - the odds of finding someone who wants exactly the unique combo you have are slim. Instead, buy a Jimmy Hudson kit and set that up how you want - and then you have two lap steels! His kit for the Stringmaster style does not come with a pickup - so you are not spending money on something you don't need.

Just an idea.

[Francisco Castillo]

Go for it man !!
Please I'd love to see pics.... before, during, and after.

Aloha nui.

[Bill Sinclair]

Nice Deluxe 8's seem to be selling for as much as D8's these days, sometimes north of $1200. I haven't seen even a refinished one go for less than $800 recently. Here's my take from a value standpoint: Do a nice job of installing the string through ferrules and you've turned an $800 guitar into a $700 guitar, maybe even still an $800 guitar to the right buyer. Cut up that bridge plate for a pickup and you've turned an $800 guitar into a $350 guitar. I was going to suggest making up your own plate and setting the original aside but then you said you have a spare bridge plate, which is an unusual spare to have. If you decide to do it, I would cut and build up the spare plate and just leave the original plate intact, with the pickups and original wiring intact. Then make sure whatever routing you have to do stays inside the lines.

[Nic Neufeld]

Instead, buy a Jimmy Hudson kit and set that up how you want - and then you have two lap steels! His kit for the Stringmaster style does not come with a pickup - so you are not spending money on something you don't need.

This is actually a pretty good idea I think...leave the vintage Fender unmolested (ok, with a green refinish maybe you can't call it unmolested, ha) and build what you are actually after from the ground up.

If you want an even cheaper solution, try one of those SX 8 string lap steels...already has more of a soapbar rout, the existing pickup is junk (IMHO), and could probably be tweaked fairly simply to be string through body.

[Mike Christensen]

I would say if you are going to keep it to play do it. It is no cherry anyhow. If ya dont like it the way it is it is no good to you anyhow so either sell it or mod it as long as youalready have it. Not the end of the world.

[Stephen Cowell]

Sounds like you really want a Sierra, I wonder if the mods will get you much closer to that sound . Deluxe 8's have a light weight body and I think that accounts for their lack of beefy tone. I think the Sierras are quite a bit heavier.

The Deluxe 8 lacks the four long screws behind the bridge that set the Stringmaster bridge plate against the body... the Deluxe only has the plate screws around the edge to attempt this.

The Guit-Steel has string-through routing... there is a solid block instead of ferrules on the back side.

[Bob Stone]

Marc,
Speaking as an owner of several Sierras (presently I own one), I don’t think the mods you propose will result in tonal qualities approaching those of a Sierra. A George L pickup should fatten it some, but there is no comparing the mass of the Fender to that of a Sierra.

I continue to wonder about sustain of a strings-through design vs anchoring to a good bridge plate design. Is it really that much better?

When compared to any Fender, played acoustically (not plugged in) Sierras sound dull. I have observed that a tuner clamped to my Sierra does not respond nearly as quickly or accurately as when clamped to my 1953 Fender Dual 8 Pro, and the Fender is much louder acoustically.

In my opinion, the tone of every steel guitar is greatly influenced by its acoustic properties (unplugged). A pickup can change the tone somewhat, but the influence of the acoustic properties is strong. For example, I recently installed a Steeltronics single coil pickup in my Sierra. It’s an improvement, in my opinion, but still sounds like a Sierra. I wish the bass strings “cut” as well as my Fender, but alas it’s a Sierra, not a Dual Pro.

If you are looking for a Sierra you might try a Wanted to Buy listing on this Forum. It worked for me.

Wishing you all the best in your quest.

[Marc Stone]

Thx for all of the input everyone.

At this point I think the most modification I would do would be string through. And maybe flip the wiring on the pick ups so that the nect pick up is the dominant part of the blend with the bridge being added in, as opposed to current wiring where the bridge pickup is always full on and you are blending in the neck. Maybe even have a rewind or replacement for the bridge pickup since it’s a little weak/shrill.

I went up a good bit in string gauge and that helped. If I want a guitar w one of the George L’s I can see the benefit of starting from scratch

As Bob noted swamp ash (pretty sure that’s the wood on my fender) abd walnut are worlds apart sonically. I’m still kicking myself for not taking Chuck and Darick on their offer to hook me up back when they were working w Sierra. As for the bite on the low strings - I always found Darick’s sound to be balanced, and he could def make the low notes growl and punch.

That said, I think reversing the pickup blend, in addition to the heavier strings, may get me closer to where I want to be.

[Marc Stone]

Thx for all of the input everyone.

At this point I think the most modification I would do would be string through. And maybe flip the wiring on the pick ups so that the next pick up is the dominant part of the blend with the bridge being added in, as opposed to current wiring where the bridge pickup is always full on and you are blending in the neck.
I went up a good bit in string gauge and that helped. If I want a guitar w one of the George L’s I can see the benefit of starting from scratch

As Bob noted swamp ash (pretty sure that’s the wood on my fender) abd walnut are worlds apart sonically. I’m still kicking myself for not taking Chuck and Darick on their offer to hook me up back when they were working w Sierra. As for the bite on the low strings - I always found Darick’s sound to be balanced, and he could def make the low notes growl and punch.

That said, I think reversing the pickup blend, in addition to the heavier strings, may get me closer to where I want to be.