The Steel Guitar Forum

I Would appreciate some information on fessenden's.
Wheres the ser.#located,are there difference's depending on the year of manufacture, likes and dislikes, locating parts,ect.
Thanks,Gary.

CHECK THE LINKS ON THE FORUM JERRY IS LISTED THERE HE IS IN VERMONT. GREAT GUY TO DO BUSINESS WITH AND A SUPER GREAT STEEL
ED KELLY

I did not think of using the links. Thankyou.

I have bought parts for projects straight from Jerry. Always fast and great service.

a winner steel!

jerry is a straight honest person and he builds a super great steel!!!

Excellent steels.

Jerry is one of the best people to deal with will always answer your call or call you right back, and his guitars are fine guitars and you can also change set up with the flip of a dime. pedal action is fast and smooth. you can not go wrong with one.

Great Guitars , and Jerry Takes care of Buisness .Randy G.

Very happy with mine,
excelent steel,
cheers

I bought a second hand Fessenden D-10 (9 + 8 ) and I have only a ShoBud Maverick to compare with but the Fessenden is beating the ShoBud on all accounts.

I have had some friends, that have played Pedal Steel for more than 30 years, test it and they all are jealous!

I have been in contact with Jerry with a lot of questions and I always got an answer!

If you need to buy any parts then Jerry is the Guy!

This is the best buy I have ever done!!

// Anders

Great guitars!

I'm happy with mine,,Look at that bar slant.

Love Mine....Jerry's a great guy as well.

Robbie Bossert

Another happy Fessenden owner here.

Wheres the ser.#located

Something that looks like a serial number is stamped directly into the wood on the underside of mine.

are there difference's depending on the year of manufacture

I can't say for sure, only having played my 2006 model and looked at someone else's 2007, but from pics I've seen I think he's been using the same design for quite some time. Only the decal on the apron has changed as far as I can tell.

likes and dislikes

I like the tone, pedal action, look, and simplicity of the undercarriage. I "dislike" (using the term loosely here) securing the ball end of the string on a post rather than in a slot (harder to change quickly on a dark stage) and the fact that the ends of the posts of the tuning machines for the sixth and fifth strings nearly touch, making those strings marginally harder to put on and take off.

I have had similar good luck with getting parts quickly from Jerry.

I just bought a second hand Fessy off the forum and I have to say it is one fantastic guitar. The pedal action is great and the tone is even better that the Derby I sold. Another thing about the Fessy is that there is a great guy standing behind the guitars he builds. I just can't belive that there aren't more people playing!

I just bought fellow forumite Mike Perlowin's red Fessenden U-12. I can hardly wait! I'll keep you posted on how it sounds when it arrives. Stay tuned

Clete

Gary, I am very happy with the D10 Fessy I purchased on the Forum. It was easy to make the few changes I wanted and I have had no problems with it so far. I play it through a Peavey Nashville 1000 and love the sound. I would recommend Fessenden steel guitars to anyone. John

Hey Clete,

You're a little bit ahead of me, I just bought the black mica Fessy D12 9X9 from Cameron Parsons (originally built for Jim Smith and subsequently sold to David Dunn, from whom Cameron then bought it.) Seems I am the 4th owner, and this fine steel has finally escaped the relentless gravitational grip which the state of Texas seems to have on steel-guitars!

Speaking of the long trip from the South to the Southern Hemisphere, it took just 3 days to get from Texas to Sydney, Australia, but (6 days later!!) it still hasn't managed to hitch-hike the last 40 miles from Sydney to Wollongong. My patience is being sorely tested, but whilst I wait I still have my blonde sausage-quilt maple Carter D10 to amuse myself with - another part of my "Texas connection". Actually, I note with interest the Fessenden is one of relatively few steels made outside Texas, or its neighbouring states.

Very much looking forward to hooking up my very own Fessy to my little Nashville 112 and seeing how it sounds.

The very first SD10 I had was a Fessy. I didn't have it very long but I liked it quite a bit while I did. It was an easy player and easy to work on as far as changing the set up.

JW

Hey Gary! Where in MD are you? I'm an old DC/VA boy and come from a long line of pig farmers just north of Baltimore.
Out of all the steels that I have sold, my old black Fessy D-10 with Pittman pickups is the one that I miss the most. I really wish that I hadn't let that one go. I hear that it is very happy and living in France now. I'd buy another Fessenden in a minute.
As an aside to Ned M... since you have that beautiful new Fessy D-12 I suppose that you won't be needing that "old" blonde Carter of yours. I bet it's sitting there in the closet, crying softly, and wishing it had a new home in Florida.
Duncan

My Fessenden D12 9X9 arrived via Fedex (undamaged!!) this morning. Unpacked it and looked at the undercarriage...wow, there is a lot going on down there! Beautiful engineering and obviously easy to adjust or change if you feel the need.

Set it up and plugged it into my NV112. Full volume-pedal and crank up the amp volume without picking any strings...no hum at all from the BL712s. You little beauty! (Australian expression).

The strings needed a tweak here and there (it had been on a long journey!) and then it sounded like you expect a steel to sound. Bell-like highs, rich and full lows, clear mid-range, harmonics ringing out cleanly. I'm really enjoying the extra strings on the C6th neck in particular.

Doesn't black formica look good! I'll give the whole cabinet a good polish to bring out the sparkle, but looks like I just got me a real keeper.

And, I'm sorry to disappoint you Duncan, but the Carter is currently co-existing quite happily with the Fessy and it may well turn out to be a marriage made in steel-guitar heaven. Now I have "Blondie" and "Blackie". Dark and Light. Yin and Yang.

My Fessenden D12 9X9 arrived via Fedex (undamaged!!) this morning. Unpacked it and looked at the undercarriage...wow, there is a lot going on down there! Beautiful engineering and obviously easy to adjust or change if you feel the need.

Set it up and plugged it into my NV112. Full volume-pedal and crank up the amp volume without picking any strings...no hum at all from the BL712s. You little beauty! (Australian expression).

The strings needed a tweak here and there (it had been on a long journey!) and then it sounded like you expect a steel to sound. Bell-like highs, rich and full lows, clear mid-range, harmonics ringing out cleanly. I'm really enjoying the extra strings on the C6th neck in particular.

Doesn't black formica look good! I'll give the whole cabinet a good polish to bring out the sparkle, but looks like I just got me a real keeper.

And, I'm sorry to disappoint you Duncan, but the Carter is currently co-existing quite happily with the Fessy and it may well turn out to be a marriage made in steel-guitar heaven. Now I have "Blondie" and "Blackie". Dark and Light. Yin and Yang.

And that's what happens, folks, if you hit the "submit" button twice!

It's ok Ned....that guitar is pretty enough to see twice.