The Steel Guitar Forum

Paddy Long wrote: the biggest issue would be trying to sell it if you wanted to upgrade in a few years!

Here we go again.

Herb Steiner wrote:Stuart
No problem with the left-handed strings. Just turn'em around and they'll prob'ly work.

Here's an interesting corrolary, though, for those of y'all who are fishermen.

Using a right-handed baitcasting rod/reel combo, the rod is cast with the right hand, then the rod/reel is moved to the left hand and the reel is cranked with the right.

On a spinning rod/reel combo, the rod is cast in the right hand, kept in the right hand, and the reel is cranked with the left hand.

Just a convention, is all, but interesting in a non-interesting kinda way.

Yes, this is a reel drag

I used to toss spoons from a baitcaster and hated switching to a spinning reel for that reason. Now the rivers all seem dead and there seems no pointin even goin fishing anymore. way to go america

And fly fishermen can swing all ways – left, right, wet, or dry.

But, back to the regularly scheduled topic: left handed motorcycles.

Doesn't it follow if your going to play left handed, you'll need to have left handed charts as well? I don't recall seeing any left hand sheet music. Unless I've had one to many, that is.

Ken, that was underhanded.

Yes Jeff,this was probably before your time but my 1937 Indian Chief was, according to todays standards,a left handed machine.I beleive the throttle was the left hand grip and the shift lever was on the right side.My next bike was a Harley,it took a few minutes to analyse the opposite set up but fortunately I was able to adapt.

Bert Berthold wrote:before your time but my 1937 Indian Chief was, according to todays standards,a left handed machinefortunately I was able to adapt.

I had a '48 Chief with suicide shift and it was like playing a PSG, both hands and both feet were always doing something. (Lefty that plays right) Second the nomination to call Roy Thomas at Pedalmaster. Super nice guy!

Here is one of the 7 lefty MSA's that Bud Carter built. This one was built in '73. I remember Jerry Anderson telling me that they were putting pieces in front of a mirror to see what they were suppose to look like. I'm still playing it today. The white MSA is a 74 model that I bought from someone, which was right handed at the time. I built the new endplates myself on an old milling machine. The rest of it was a matter of drilling new holes and turning it all around. It took me many hours. It plays and sounds just as good as the double neck.
Roy

Bob,

That Lefty that Chuck Back is building is mine. I am going to bring him a case of asprin for the trouble he has gone through. I tried to learn to play right handed years ago and I recall the migrane head aches I would get after a good half hour. I just put it up and said forget it.

I really believe unless you start at a very you age playing right handed when you are left hand dominant that it is an obstical that is almost insurmountable.

As a weapons instructor in the military I used to have to train officers and soldiers marksmenship. I often ran into left eye dominant right handers. This was a massive problem as the aiming projection shifts dramatically in the opposite direction. Even with intense training and eye patches I never saw one individual who reached any level of competency, who suffered from this affliction. I reckon that I was quite lucky that my dad an Army Sniper taught me marksmenship when I was too young to even support the weapon and perhaps trained my eye dominace at a very young age to be right eyed dominant and shoot with my right hand. Unfortunately this skill no longer servers me in my line of work. I can first handedly attest to the ability of the human mind to program itself, however, this dimisishes with age and all but disappears at advance stages of mental development (perhaps 30 years of age).

As a lefty I often wonder why a disproportionate number of great musicians (regardless of if they play lefty or righty) and politicians are left handed.

Makes you wonder.

I have been very fortunate as I found perhaps the holy grail of guitars and I dread taking it out of the house. I think I have a one of a kind, a Left Handed Emmons Push/Pull. I have never seen another. That is why I am getting the Desert Rose as my work horse

The disadvantages we face as leftys are perhaps the stimuli that fosters exceptional traits in the famous leftys of the world.

Think about the minute challanges we face daily, scisors, can openers, door handles, etc, all of these challanges have to stimulate the brain in some magificant way that creates an individual of stellar attributes. Just look at how many left handed steel guitarists play right handed. I have never seen one right handed person play left handed.

Makes you think...

m.

Years ago Shot Jackson built two left handed D10's for a friend of mine, AND they were strung up with the small string inside!. After the second one Shot told him, "never again" It almost "whupped his butt". Oh, by the way, did any one think about the left handed bar? The round end would have to be on the opposite end, like the ball ends.I need something to do with my spare time! Lonnie

Matthew Prouty wrote:...I can first handedly attest to the ability of the human mind to program itself, however, this diminishes with age and all but disappears at advance stages of mental development (perhaps 30 years of age)...

...and that's the crux of the matter very well put. Our ability to learn decreases as we age. It's reckoned that it's almost impossible to learn another language fluently after about 13 yrs. of age, and the same applies to most of our basic functions.

First off everyone is born Right Handed some of us just over some it.

Yes, Chuck and I are both left handed - one day in the Desert Rose shop there were 5 guys that were steel players (I am more accurately an owner) but 4 of the 5 were left handed.

I was 6 when I started with an Ohau lap steel and was not given a choice - that is the way they are built and you use both hands any way was what I was told.

I think there was a thread on the forum Leftys that play Right handed.

David Wright you are correct - some people can be driven crazy and others are close enough to walk

David I am A lefty or Righty But play Right handed. but have wonted to try a left handed guitar.
Everyone have a great day.

Thanks Charlie

An interesting discovery is that the majority of other species of apes are right-handed, adding weight to the fact that we are all related.

Paddy Long wrote:Tommi Grasso in Sydney Australia plays a LH Emmons Le Grande III so I guess Emmons can do one if your really desperate ..... the biggest issue would be trying to sell it if you wanted to upgrade in a few years!

Im think Tomi's Emmons started as a right and he and Alan tomkins reversed and converted it to as lefty but he may have more info on that if he reads this thread,he would have an interesting opinion on the subject at least