The Steel Guitar Forum

Chris, I guess the choice is up to the person spending his money. Right now, I prefer to buy the Rittenberry. And, there is nothing wrong with a mass produced guitar; I have owned a few Carter guitars, and liked them. I own one right now, great guitar, made better with the addition of the Tommy Young mod. One of the things I don't like about the shallow bodied guitars, GFI and Carter, for example, is that I need them to be raised about one inch to fit me properly. I've owned keyless guitars, I have one right now, I prefer keyed. That's my opinion.

I can't say that I have owned a GFI, but I have played several in Jim Palenscar's shop. I agree they are light, almost too light. But as I compare the construction between a GFI and my Ritt there is no comparison. The GFI has a light aluminum frame while the Ritt has the traditional Emmons styled wood cabinet. Both have similar undercarriages. The necks on the GFI are rather shallow and are painted whereas the Ritt's are thick polished aluminum. Ultimately I went with Rittenberry because it has the punch, fulness & note clarity of the very best Emmons guitars (push/pull?). I didn't feel I got that playing a GFI. Plus the Rittenberry just plain looks GOOD! If weight was the only issue I'd agree with the GFI fans, but my Ritt with 9 & 9 still weighs only 47 pounds - light but not feather weight.
I play a lot of 6 string guitars as well as steel and I find that you can EQ any giutar to sound good.
But if you can get a guitar to sound excellent with minimal EQ that guitar is a real keeper. I get that from the Ritt.

The only other guitar I might even consider buying these days would be Show Pro.

My Mullen sits in the case now that I own a Ritt. (I still love you baby!)

Does Rittenberry have a website?

Geo

George...
Check out the purdy blue lacquer front on the picture page!

www.rittenberrysteelguitars.com

Steve Spitz wrote:QUICK:
Somebody call Ralph Mooney, Norm Hamlett, Ronnie Miley?(with Charlie Pride) and Mike Sigler, and let them know they chose the wrong Steel
guitar.

Go with the GFI it is a great tool.

Thanks Roger, I was hoping that it would show weight and prices. Those are very nice guitars.

Geo

George, give Gary a call or shoot him an email. He'll give you all the info you need.

or, flip-a-coin.

Unlike gambling halls, either side of the coin, in steel halls, is a winner!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW4Q4dUa ... =1&index=5


sounds good to me...

First thing, the steeler for Charlie Pride is Ronnie Miller (not Miley).
I have a Rittenberry and would like to have another, but I already have a Franklin.
There is nothing wrong the with GFI; I have watched and listen to Ronnie and Mike Sigler and they they sound very good. Now, there is another thing! I think that Ronnie used a Walker system, not sure about Mike. There are three things that make up the tone; 1. Ronnie Miller's talent, 2. his guitar and 2. the amp.
Just listen and then pick and choose. Most of the guitars today are being built by great builders!
Look and see who the players are: Paul, Tommy W, Mike Johnson, Sonny Garrish, Weldon Myrick and the beat goes on and on.............

If You Want something that's gonna make you look good, go with a Ritt. you want something thats easy to carry around, stays in tune, don't break strings, has a kick butt tone, and dependable with the very best customer service around.... Then go with a GFI. I am still using one on the road, Beleave me i do abuse it in every way, so does the stage crew and roadies..
I'm not sure there is a bad guitar out there being made right now!...They all are good and have special features... it is really up to the player... I could be playing any guitar i wanted... And over all of them i Pick GFI.
As a matter of fact , i personally own 4 of them, and they are all my favs.
Mike S.

Mike,
The first line in your thread, "If you want something that makes you look good, then buy a Ritt", is in really bad taste; and is a slap in the face. Gary Rittenberry builds a great guitar and will style it the way you want it.
As far as beautiful guitars with great tone, take a look at the "Sho-Pro" or look at Mike Johnson's new guitar. Jeff builds a great guitar!
I am sure that you didn't mean to say it that way, but, I think a message to Gary would be in order.
But, if that's the way you feel, then just let it be and we'll go on our way..........

I've had a lot of different steels over the last 3 years,
and the best I've found is my new Rittenberry. I haven't
played out since 1984, and since my accident back in 2007,
I'm learning from the start again. The Ritt is the finest
built and easiest playing one out of all of them I've had.
I think the 1st line should read "If you want something
that makes you look good, and sound better, then buy a Ritt".
My friends all say it sounds better, and I play a lot better.
That's just my 2 cents worth, and all new steels are good.
Carl "Lucky" Kilmer

Carl claims:

I've had a lot of different steels over the last 3 years,
and the best I've found is my new Rittenberry. I haven't
played out since 1984, and since my accident back in 1997,
I'm learning from the start again. The Ritt is the finest
built and easiest playing one out of all of them I've had.
I think the 1st line should read "If you want something
that makes you look good, and sound better, then buy a Ritt".
My friends all say it sounds better, and I play a lot better.
That's just my 2 cents worth, and all new steels are good.
Carl "Lucky" Kilmer

Hmmmmm.

Interesting, Carl.

Why is your Ritt. the "best".

What are the mechanical advantages over other "more established" guitars that you see?

Is the looks of you Ritt a driving factor?

How does the engineering of your Ritt compare to the more "experienced"(i.e. in business longer, more research and developement and such)builders?

You say it is the "finest" built.

Have you looked under the hood of an Excel, Kline, or a Whitney?

How about a GFI?

Descibe, if you will, how your Ritt is the "finest built" guitar, and how you came to that conclusion.

In what way does your Ritt "sound" better?....

Just curious.

Chris,

I believe the origin of this post was to compare/contrast two great models:
GFI and Rittenberry. Kline?Excel?Whitney? I do not think these brands should even be considered in this post. If Karl gives his opinion from his personal experience, take it at face value. If you have never played a Rittenberry, I do not believe you are qualified to question his opinion. Lets not get off topic, and only those with direct experience with these two brands should be commenting on build quality/tone/reliability/playability.

I find it draining when posts turn into the same old rhetoric about who is best. Play what you want to.

I have owned GFI and played Ritts. You could not go wrong with either brand.

Dustin, Very well spoken, this not a place to argue the issue.

Chris, What I said was that "The Ritt is the finest
built and easiest playing one out of all of them I've had".
Yes I've seen the underside of them all, and some are very
well built, and also beautiful, while some are not either one.
Some play very smooth and easy, while others are hard to play.
Have you looked at the way the Ritt is built, or played one.
There are many newer guitars being built, and how long they're
in buisness don't mean much. The builders pride and perfection
in his product is the main thing that counts most of all to me.
Like you and I, everybody has their choice of cars and guiters,
and my choice is the Rittenberry, and I'll soon have another one.
Again, this is my opinion, and 2 cents worth. Many others agree.
We can all consider ourselves lucky. We still have a choice.

Carl "Lucky" Kilmer

Dustin:

Chris,

I believe the origin of this post was to compare/contrast two great models:
GFI and Rittenberry. Kline?Excel?Whitney? I do not think these brands should even be considered in this post. If Karl gives his opinion from his personal experience, take it at face value. If you have never played a Rittenberry, I do not believe you are qualified to question his opinion. Lets not get off topic, and only those with direct experience with these two brands should be commenting on build quality/tone/reliability/playability.

I find it draining when posts turn into the same old rhetoric about who is best. Play what you want to.

I have owned GFI and played Ritts. You could not go wrong with either brand.

If you have never played a Rittenberry, I do not believe you are qualified to question his opinion.

I have played both brands, and I could give you the pros and cons of both. I chose the GFI keyless for obvious reasons.

The Kline, Excel, and Whitney mention was to distinguish between the average guitar, and the exceptional guitar.(as far as engineering)

I asked Carl to describe why he believes his Ritt is better than a GFI?

That's a fair question.

The Ritt is very similar to many other brands as far as innovative technology goes.

For instance, the Ritt is very similar to a Rains, which is similar to a Fessy, which is similar to a Derby, which is similar to a Nashville etc, etc, etc.

Question is: Why does Carl believe that a Ritt is a "better" guitar than a GFI?

How is it a better guitar?

Is it better engineered?

Carl again:

There are many newer guitars being built, and how long they're
in buisness don't mean much.

Really?
Surely you do not believe that!

There are many newer guitars being built, and how long they're
in buisness don't mean much.

But, it can mean how long they will be in business!

Consider the @mmons guitar. What are they cranking out each year? Two. Three.... Who knows.

Point is: With todays technology available, people have a much broader range in which to choose from.

Chris, I would like to hear why you believe the GFI is better than the Rittenberry. If it's a fair question for Carl, it's a fair question for you.

i`m into steel playing just 3 years now and may not be too qualified, but i play guitar for 35 years and have owned several old martins, fenders and some older gibson banjos etc.
the older i get the more i appreciate affordable good working musical instruments.
i understand the hype about custom made instruments and can feel the vibe
that goes along with the big names and brands.

i`m very lucky though about my GFI for it works flawless. that`s very important especially for a beginner! i went to the GFI
shop last year and got some upgrades done on my guitar real cheap and had a great time there.

i`m sure same thing would have happened at rittenberry`s

Roger says:

Chris, I would like to hear why you believe the GFI is better than the Rittenberry. If it's a fair question for Carl, it's a fair question for you.

Excellent Roger! I was hoping someone would ask!

Well, in my, (as well as many others) opinion, there are many advantages of owning a mechanical marvel such as the GFI.

(1) Tone.
Gene uses die board in his guitars. (some folks innocently through ignorance use the term "plywood")
This die board is laminated with epoxy, and is the same material used in machine punch presses. It is super hard and stable, while providing the perfect resonance platform to magnify the strings vibrations, creating much more fuller and sustaining single note/chord passages. "Birdseye maple", while appealing to the eye, is not nearly as consistant as the die board, so there will be slight variations in timbre from one guitar to the next.

(2) Welded aluminum frame.
This frame ensures that the dieboard is stable. Obviously you want your sounding board stable, as to allow superior resonance. The welded, machined frame is the best way to insure this occurs.

(3) Stainless steel fingers.
Far superior to aluminum in that there will be no grooves carved by the strings. Increased vibration/sustain as a direct effect of simple physical laws regarding hardness.

(4) Extruded aluminum legs.
These legs are about a third lighter, yet as strong as, if not stronger than the typical "microphone stand" legs used for years.

(5) Optional keyless tuner.
Where do we start? So many advantages that it would take volumes to list them all.
A few of the major advantages are:
(a) Much less string vibration(energy) is lost
A lot less when compared to the "alligator" keyheads. Like it or not, those long keyheads soak up vibrational energy, and rob the guitar of sustain. This is not my idea, but rather another physical law.(this is what some folks refer to as "overtones") I, however, refer to it as lost, chaotic energy!

(b) Near nonexistant string breakage
We all like that do we not? With almost no string length between the keyless tuner and the nut, the changer fingers do not have to rotate as much, causing undue stress on the ball end of the string. The results? Strings usually go flat before they break!

(c) Quick restringing time
When your strings go flat and you want to change them, it takes less than half of the time as a "conventional" keyhead.

(d) Solid, non roller nut
Talk about sustain! The solid nut does not soak up the strings vibrational energy nearly as much as a nut with rollers. There is such a minute amount of string travel over the nut, that it is not necessary to have rollers. After all, rollers, even with the closest tolerances cannot be as stable as a solid nut. (Another physical thing.)

I could go on and on, but you get the point......

Yeah, the more you look at a GFI, the more you come to appreciate!

GFI guitars are cutting edge IMHO.

Of course there's those of us who sleep with both.....



















I love them all, and like I tell my wife....There's no two the same, not even on the same body

I love each of them as individuals, and also appreciate them all in a group

Very good looking guitars!

I had the awesome pleasure to spend around two hours with Gene Fields,Gary Rittenberry,Roger Crawford and Lynn Owsley in Mount Vernon In April. Gene is a pioneer in the Steel world as is Gary R. The GFI is a fine steel and Gene has a unique Idea about building steels and I would not be ashamed to own one but if your picky about tone,cabinet drop and playability the Ritt can't be beat. Gary builds every steel himself. There are things Gary does to get the tone he gets that no one but him knows about.
If I had to compare a Ritt to any other Steel It would be Zum.

True Bill.
When I said:

For instance, the Ritt is very similar to a Rains, which is similar to a Fessy, which is similar to a Derby, which is similar to a Nashville etc, etc, etc.

I should have included Zum, Franklin, Mullen(pre-bent crossrod), Emmons(all-pull) and Carter for the simple fact that they all use very similar(often almost identical) technology.

Not saying they are bad guitars at all.

Just not as progressive in the technological area.

Bill reveals:

I have owned a few Carter guitars, and liked them. I own one right now, great guitar, made better with the addition of the Tommy Young mod.

made better with the addition of the Tommy Young mod.



Yikes!

So, you felt you had to have TY do an adjustment on your Carter?????



Wow......................



Whew!



Anyway, I say go with the GFI. You'll be way ahead on technology, have a guitar that sounds amazing and sustains for days, and you won't spend time and money seeking un-needed "adjustments"