Sacred steel players like a bar with grooves because they lift the bar frequently, even when playing pedal-steel.
I think the story goes more-or-less like this. Sometime in the early 1970s fairly soon after Ted Beard changed from non-pedal (Stringmaster D8) to 10-string pedal steel he had the folks at Sho-Bud cut grooves in the side of a few large, heavy pedal-steel bars. He may have had more than one batch made. Something like a total of 6 or 8 bars? For years Chuck Campbell played one, often turning the bullet nose backward so he could use the square-cut end to "pick" with. (I think he's using one of those bars held backwards in the Sacred Steel doc video.)
As the bars Ted had made were lost or worn out, and more of the "sacred steel" players began to play pedal-steels with wide necks, some players were wishing they had grooved bars like Ted's custom-made bars of years ago. When Carter pursued the sacred steel market in beginning in 2001, they made up a batch of large grooved bars as part of their effort to cater to that market.
Bullet bar users? I think Ted Beard and Lonnie Bennett use a bullet when playing pedal-steel. Seems like I've seen Chuck Campbell use several different types of bars at one time or another.
Had some sacred steel type bars made.
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D Schubert
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I bought myself a Shubb "RR" bar from Elderly Instruments for about $15. That is one huge chunk of metal, just like a Stevens bar made for Andre the Giant. (reminder to self: wear steel-toed shoes until accustomed to this new toy)
Have not spent much time with it yet, but here's the initial impressions: Feels awkward at first. When I place the front end where it feels natural, the back end is poking me in the palm. It's heavy, but not that different from a 10-string round bar. The extra length covers all 8 strings, even when doing slants. In my case, I believe that it helps with blocking. And makes me more conscious of how much I rely on bar blocking, without really thinking about it.
Would still be interested in finding an extra-long contoured bar like a Scheerhorn or Lap Dawg for my 8-string playing, whether it's the "right choice" or not. I suppose that's due to too many man-hours standin' up with a Dobro, versus sitting down with a steel, over the years.
Have not spent much time with it yet, but here's the initial impressions: Feels awkward at first. When I place the front end where it feels natural, the back end is poking me in the palm. It's heavy, but not that different from a 10-string round bar. The extra length covers all 8 strings, even when doing slants. In my case, I believe that it helps with blocking. And makes me more conscious of how much I rely on bar blocking, without really thinking about it.
Would still be interested in finding an extra-long contoured bar like a Scheerhorn or Lap Dawg for my 8-string playing, whether it's the "right choice" or not. I suppose that's due to too many man-hours standin' up with a Dobro, versus sitting down with a steel, over the years.