The Steel Guitar Forum

I recently took delivery of a new Williams D-10 8+5, built by Bill and Tim Rudolph at Williams Guitars here in Minnesota. It turned out so nice I thought it was worth a picture!



Since I'm only an hour away from them, I was able to visit their shop and meet both Bill and Tim. They had all the time I needed then, along with a few phone calls during the build, and after I picked it up.
They call this lacquer finish a "dark honey amber".
I personally wanted an instrument that spoke to the tradition of the steel guitar (thus the finish and inlay), but with the engineering that Williams Guitars have a reputation for for. They were actively building seven guitars (mine was #7)when I ordered mine; the wait time was ~ 8 weeks from order to delivery.
I went with Alumitones pickups on both (wood)necks, and have no second thoughts about that decision.
I looked at a lot of guitars before ordering this one; I felt the price was fair, to the point that made a new instrument a reasonable consideration.
Couldn't be happier with the guitar or the service.
Thanks Bill and Tim!
-John Ely
Minneapolis MN

very pretty and traditionally cool! someone said williams' are fairly light. is that the case with this one? i know it's lighter than an old wood emmons. mine's a tank.

Wow! When can we hear it

Super looking Williams you got there and I love the color.

I've had mine since 2006 and it plays great so I know you will love yours.

Hey John, Now you have the right Steel and you can concentrate on the music..you are going to love that changer..I have mine for over two years and have not broken any strings yet....BTW your steel looks great.

John, So glad you posted a picture of the new steel. It looks so good!

Beautiful.

Hey John, I thought you lived in Hawaii. Did you live there at one time?

Congratulations John !
she's a beauty
& i bet she sounds as good as she looks too
many moons of happiness to the both of ya's

Thanks for the kind comments; yes I AM really happy with this guitar.
Mike P, I haven't lived in Hawaii. You may be thinking of THE John Ely, the non-pedal steel player from Asleep at the Wheel.
I think he might have lived there for awhile, but I'm not sure. He now lives in a small town on the Iron Range of northern Minnesota.
He and I have spoken a few times, we both
thought it was kind of a coincidence that two guys with the same not-so-common name, both interested in swing steel guitar, now live in Minnesota.
His family are descendents of the founders of the small town of Ely, MN in the US-Canada boundary waters; my family are farmers in Nebraska who got their start when my great-grandfather from New York State homesteaded there after the Civil War.
That's probably more info than interests you, but I'm sitting in the airport in Bucharest, Romania with a few hours to kill and a caffeine buzz on.
Incidentally, I bought your theory book and think it's excellent. But not as excellent as my new Williams
Best,
John Ely
Minneapolis, MN

Very pretty guitar.... You wouldn't happen to have a photo of the underside?

What part of the Twin Cities are you located?

Robert

John Ely wrote: it was kind of a coincidence that two guys with the same not-so-common name, both interested in swing steel guitar...

That's pretty weird.

Another coincidence, there are 2 steel players named Dave Zeigler. One is a member of this forum, the other was one of my mentors 30 years ago.

My former teacher now lives about 200 miles away and we've net seen each other in almost 10 years. I'm going to have to drive out for a visit one of these days.

Beautiful guitar. Is this the color known as Dayco Brown? Looks much better than the samples on the website.

Jsaine, in reply to your question, Williams Guitars calls this color "honey amber".
I requested that mine be at the darker end of the spectrum; Bill and Tim built it exactly as I wanted it.
The photos (taken without flash) make the finish look a little "flat"; it's actually a bright lacquer finish with a lot of luster to it.
It's definitely not the Dayco Brown.

John Ely
Minneapolis MN