Wood Body Steel Guitars?

[Terry Wood]

I'm curious how many are playing Wood Body Steel Guitars?

Just recently after many years of playing Mica Steel guitars, I'm starting to go back to playing the real Wood Body Steel Guitars. The tone is a lot different.

Lloyd Green, Jimmy Day, Pete Drake, Ralph Mooney, Bud Charleton, Doug Jernigan, Russ Hick, Hal Rugg, Curly Chalker, Bobby Black, Julian Tharpe, Jerry Byrd, Shot Jackson, Bud Issacs and even Buddy Emmons and many others all played Sho-Bud Steel Guitars years ago. Their sound or tone was awesome. I have been listening and studying this recently.

Your thoughts on this would be appreciated!

Thanks!

[Andrew Roblin]

I agree. I play wood-body Sho-Buds and a Jackson.

[Joe Krumel]

Yep,those wood bodies did it for me.mica is great(all I can afford),but I prefer the buds I’ve owned.

[Jerry Overstreet]

I don't know if my ear is educated well enough to distinguish but I am now playing an old 70s Fender Artist by Sho-Bud that is a mahogany lacquer finish. It's been re-pickuped but I really love the sound of it.

I've owned a few finished wood guitars. Had one of Lamar Colvin's first guitars, an old SB xover, MSA Classic for a bit. The crossover was a stunning finish but the othere were all pretty plain sprayed finishes.

Then there was a Mullen PRP Blackberryburst finish that was just beautiful. I could post a photo of it but I don't want to start a trend where everyone begins posting pics. I owned a Mullen mica guitar at the same time and it definitely had a different sound but I don't know if that was owing to the finish.

The other guitars were just utility and I never worried about dinging the finish, but the Mullen was a special one I have to admit I was so dismayed by the dings and scratches me and my sit-ins were putting on it that I just sold it.

I think finished wood guitars are just more elegant in general but as I stated earlier, I don't know if I can really hear the wood quality any more than I can distinguish among other finishes and of course all brands and guitars vary in tone anyway.

[Ricky Davis]

[Erv Niehaus]

Most all pedal steels have wood bodies.
The mica is just applied over the wood.
Erv

[Bob Jennings]

The sound is also in the hands, fingers, feet, knees and Heart of the Steel Player. But I like the actual wood with its grain showing thru the stain--

[Terry Wood]

I have played and owned both the Wood Body and Mica Steels. As Erv posted it's true all Steels have Wood Body's. However, the Mica Steels have mainly plywood or other cheaper woods used in their construction. The Sho-Buds, MSAs, Jackson's and others have all Wood Body's and usually Maple Woods. There is a difference in tone. Lloyd Green told me that he preferred Wood Body Steels over Mica, because of the sound and the resonance in sound. After listening over and over to him and other the Pros sounds, I am beginning to lean that way. As mentioned earlier Lloyd Green, Jimmy Day, Doug Jernigan, Pete Drake and others had something unique in the sound of their Steel Guitars. It's true that a lot of it has to do with the players and their talents and abilities, but I think these are all some things to consider. Like everyone else, I am always looking and listening to various things.

[Erv Niehaus]

The mica Emmons steel sure didn't have "plywood" bodies.

[Dennis Detweiler]

I don't believe that mica vs wood has any drastic difference in tone or sustain. The same goes with metal vs wood necks. Buddy Emmons experimented with wood neck vs metal neck and the only difference he concluded was when he tightened the neck mounting screws on the metal neck, he lost sustain. I found the opposite effect with the wood necks on my MSA guitars. I loosened them to a snug and lost sustain. I tightened them down and gained much sustain. I'd bet, a tightened metal neck would also be more subject to temperature change and staying in tune? The advantage of mica is durability and less work and less cost in manufacturing a stain/poly or lacquer finish. The beauty of a good clear finish over wood far outweighs a mica body. I've played an Emmons natural finish guitar and mica finish side by side and heard no tone difference and I'm finicky about tone. I'm sure if it's there, it can be compensated with a slight adjustment on the amp. If mica has a beneficial tone effect, you'd think there would be several mica body Fender or Gibson guitars?

[Dennis Detweiler]

Also, my late father hand built a single 12 string steel using oak for the body and neck. It has ultimate sustain, but yikes, is it heavy!

[Douglas Schuch]

I've owned two 70's era Sho-Buds (lacquer finish), two Zumsteels (mica over maple), one Stage One (mica over rock maple ply), and two MSA Millenmiums (carbon fiber bodies). While I did not own all of them at the same time, the Sho-Buds, '84 Zumsteel, and MSA's did all overlap. I did A/B testing of them all. My conclusion was that the MSA's sounded the best, but only very slightly. But they had interchangeable pickups - if I put a pickup in similar to those on the other guitars, they all sounded the same. To my ears, the Alumitone pickups gave the MSA the slight edge.

IMO, the body of a pedal steel does not affect tone enough for me to be able to distinguish between them. Pickups, I can tell a very slight difference. I certainly don't think a properly-applied finish will affect tone, at least to my ears. Apparently not to the ears of the greatest steelers going, as Buddy E, Paul F, and others have played both and never have stated that they think it affects tone. But it's easy to test - find two guitars, one lacquered, one laminate. Same builder and model, same pickups, and record them. Post the files, and see if people can hear a difference. But I note that similar tests, but with different brands of guitars and pickups never produced a clear demonstration that even steel players can tell which is which.

Here's a good video demonstrating how little difference in tone comes from VERY different pedal steels.

https://youtu.be/Fpn55HVAoEg?si=FLNce_v-9ucNdGO8

[Rick Trolinger]

I have one of each. I have a Birdseye Maple Flynn D-10 and a BMI D-10 with mica finish. They each have a different tone, but they also have different pickups. I like playing the Flynn more, but the BMI with split cases is easier to carry out to play.

[Joe Bill Moad]

I am learning on a BonSan D-11 and a Magnum D-10 pro select. The Bon San is a wood bodied guitar and single coil pickups. The Magnum is different but they both sound great to my ears. I hear the potential in both axes but I like the vintage sound that truly both exhibit. If I were to keep one or the other it would be hard to part with either. But as the saying goes: Everything I own is for sale.

Respectfully

Joe Bill Moad
Oklahoma

[Jim Pitman]

I had there was a back story to adding formica to the body of a wood PSG:
It was discovered that if you lay a flat backed electric guitar like a telecaster on a Formica counter top and give it a strum it's volume is amplified tremendously.

[K Maul]

It was discovered that if you lay a flat backed electric guitar like a telecaster on a Formica counter top and give it a strum it's volume is amplified tremendously.

Quite a discovery!
I’m using spare parts to rehabilitate a Sho~Bud Crossover (that was totally messed up) into an SD-10. That cast aluminum frame/ wood wraparound design gives it a rich sustain that sounds unique to me.
At least I THINK that’s what does it!

[Dennis Detweiler]

Jim, I wonder if Fender experimented with applying formica to the back of a Tele?

[Lee Baucum]

Hmmm. I see this topic was started by a member whose last name is Wood.....

[Jerry Overstreet]

Regardless of the controversy, stained, finished wood bodies just have a superior look. Some of the ones I've seen, including one of my own, are just absolutely stunning finish.

OTOH, mica covered bodies are tough and nearly indesctructible which makes them great for utility instruments.

I don't think there's enough difference in the sound to matter if one is playing out a lot with other musicians.

If I wanted one to sit in the house and look beautiful, I'd choose a nice finished wood body.

If I'm on the road or a busy player doing steady work and going from place to place, I think I'd have more peace of mind with a mica covered cabinet.

I know years ago when I was looking for a good utility D10, I just wanted a decent black mica Mullen, Zum, Franklin etc. and ended up buying a Mullen sight unseen. Couldn't have been happier. It was just what I needed and was looking for.

[Jack Wilson]

Not all plywood is cheaper than sold wood

[Erv Niehaus]

That's why Buddy came out with the Emmons guitar.
The mica could take a licking and keep on ticking.
Erv

[Terry Wood]

I appreciate all the comments on this topic. Not trying to persuade anyone either way. I find both Steel types are great.

Alot has to do with the construction or building, also the pickups, the strings, amps and of course all the players themselves.

This is something that fascinates me. I'm also thinking of the early Bigsby Steels, Sho-Buds, MSA's, and other Wood Body Steels.

Thanks for he comments and input.