The Steel Guitar Forum

Thank you Larry!!

Can someone go into detail on how the Excel Superb changer works, or point me to a thread or other reference source?

Also, how does one SOUND? I want big bold tone like a ZumSteel, will an Excel get me there?

Are there other U.S. Dealers besides Scotty's Music in St. Louis? Are they still a dealer, or has that changed with Scotty's passing?

Can someone go into detail on how the Excel Superb changer works, or point me to a thread or other reference source?

Also, how does one SOUND? I want big bold tone like a ZumSteel, will an Excel get me there?

John they sound as good as the any other top line steel..long sustain and tone..guitar is solid and in tune...go to the links and click on Fuzzy then on English...lots of cool pics and info..Larry

John, check with Bill Stafford in Gulfport, Miss. Don't know if He is a dealer, but I know He is very close to Mitsuo. Bill is a Forum member and a super guy. Good luck

I just did a Google search for 'Bill Stafford' & 'Excel Pedal Steel' and it returned all sorts of links to FB videos of him playing an Excel.

One is of a 14 string and the other I just watched is of a 12. I think I have a good sense of what they sound like now.

Marty, this is the one you want. when you order one, order one for me.

John check out Mark Chesnutt Live on YouTube His Steel Player plays a EXCEL. Sounds GREAT.

Bob that color is remarkable. Please post more pics of it!!

Marty Broussard wrote:Bob that color is remarkable. Please post more pics of it!!

I found this one on the Excel web site. I really like how compact the keyless tuner is. I would like to set behind one for a few minutes just to try it on.

Do these Crossover models function 100%? Or do they have the trade off of having a more versatile copedent/tuning while losing stability in tuning and playability? Do they play well? I am thinking that if They are top notch, as they appear to be, and have the ability to be both Full E9 and C6th on a single neck then they are the guitars to have! I am super interested in trying out an Excel crossover.
Does anybody know of one Near me that I may be able to try out? Thank you all.

No, there's no drawback. It's such a simple mechanism.

The only thing I'd say, is that you loose a LITTLE bit of feel on the Right knee levers, due to the the hardware attached to them )to effect the knee lever function change)
But the stop is still solid, and all that.

The main thing that allows it (besides the obvious need to re-tune) is all the raise and lower hole options on the fingers.

In This post Carl Dixon included photographs of the changer components with an explanation of the funtionallity http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=154891
My Uni12 is like this but is slightly later and the string tuners are now metal hex nuts instead of the knurled finger tuning wheels.

weight is 37 lbs in the case....long scale...no string breakage and excellent tone....very advanced changer that pulls string in line rather than rotating finger on the axle, tuner tool is located right on the top...the same tool is used to tune the string at the key head and the nylons which have a small hex shaped center hole that accepts the tool. Amazing guitar.

A beautiful guitar for sure.

Yep this one right above is the same era as my guitar and the tuning mechanism which Mitsuo seems to redesign every 4 or 5 years,is just like this one. The strings attach to vertical sleds which travel up and down with a worm drive. This particular design works real well and the vertical aspect makes for a very short tuning head. I once saw a Lamar keyless steel with a tuning head almost exactly like this. One interesting and very unique feature going on with the Excel Superb fingers and cams is that the holes in the fingers that the 3/8" axle goes thru are not round - the holes are elliptical in shape. What this means is the the raising and lowering motion is a subtle combination of rotation and fore/aft horizontal sliding motion - similar but not exactly like an Anapeg changer. There is a little - but much less - cam rotation and therefore bending and metal fatigue of the string as in most other changers where you're virtually bending the string back and forth when you raise and lower it - till it breaks. This lateral string pulling action is much easier on the string and is probably the main design element that keeps the guitar from ever breaking any strings. Quite an accomplishment with a 25.5" scale and something my 25" Sierra keyless Session U12 could not deliver. 3rd strings (.011 G#) lasted about twice as long on my Sierra as they did on 24" keyed steels in the 70s-90s but the Excel changer actually breaks literally zero strings ever. None. And what a joy that is......

Considering buying an S-10 similar to this steel in the upcoming year:

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... e6fa86455a

I believe this is not a 'Superb' model. Any thoughts or concerns from the other Excel owners about a non Superb model like this? Wondering if the Superb is one of those situations where 'for a few hundred more' you have all sorts of added features you just can't pass up.

Also, just out of curiosity what amps are you pairing up with your Excels?

So now that I'm in love with the Red Guitar I posted. The question is, how would you order a new one now that Scotty has passed? I think he was the only dealer in the States.

Bob go to the Fuzzy site..there is the contact info...I have been ordering direct from Mitsuo for the last few years as Scottys came to an end...I just ordered a new S10 from Mitsuo, 1 month build time..he usually answers emails in a day..Tokyo is 19 hours ahead of us in Hawaii, so I get his emails around 4pm here...FYI the price of a new S10 Starts at $2850.00, 3/4...Extra pedals are $120 each, shipping it to the USA is $210-1 week, $150- 2 weeks....great guy to do business with..Larry

Larry, thanks for the information. I'll send an emal and see what I can find out.

Here is mine along with my Dynalap lap steel.

I dug up this old thread and wanted to show mine that I purchased this summer...not sure when it was built, but I really love the sound of this guitar with my Quilter MicroPro mach2 amp thru a 12 inch speaker cabinet:

ru a