The Steel Guitar Forum

Is the Sho Bud Mav,with 3 pedals and one knee lever a good starter??,can it be upgraded with more knee levers easily if wanted later???.Any problems with these guitars that i should look for??.ANY info is much appreciated..
Carl

Many of us learned the basics on the Maverick back in the day... Today, they are overpriced, and are badly outclassed by other steels in a similar price range... A Carter Starter has 4 knees, and is cheaper to buy, as is a Wilcox or other lower priced pedal steel,,,

You can find a used pro model steel w/3 and 4 just a few hundred dollars more than a Maverick, and thats how I would go... If you can score the Maverick real cheap it might be worth it, otherwise get something you won't outgrow in 3 months... As soon as I was getting started, and could play a few tunes, I realized how limited my Maverick was and dumped it for a new MSA S-10 5+5... If I were you, I would get a better steel straight off...

Check out the Stage One by Doug Earnst in Branson. A great guitar at a fair price. L.B.

GREAT advise from Bob YOU BETCHA,DYK?BC.

Kudos to the Stage One. I would love to have one as a secondary. Doug Earnest is great!

Thanks to all for all the valuable info..Carl

What is overpriced? I dont think it's fair that My sale is getting shunned because of certain reviews.
I know there are a bunch of people out there that have played a maverick and Know that its not a waste of time. Sure, its one knee and that is limiting to some, But I learned on the maverick for over a year and still didnt master what can be done. It sounds super good and is affordable? I respect reviews but when its the cliche "Mavericks are no good" just because they are mavericks doesn't sit well with me.
Im sorry if I offended anyone but I can't see where any steel is a bad steel if your trying to learn , heck 3 pedals and one knee is a plenty of an arsenal if you know what your doing.
-Thanks
_Jeff

I started on a borrowed Maverick. Within 2 weeks of the time I started playing, I read about the E to F change, and from that moment till I got my MSA, I was frustrated that I did not have the change at my disposal.

Sooner or later every beginner is going to see tab that tells them to raise the E strings to F, and f they don;t have the change, they, like me, will be frustrated.

In my opinion, every entry level steel should have at least 3 knee levers, preferably 4 OR 5.

I seem to recall the time that this pull release type changer was considered "state of the art" and produced such beautiful music and sounds that are today continually being played on the most modern "hoopla doopla" guitars with "umpteen quadroopla" knees, pedals and changes. Seems that the thought is the one that has the most pedals & levers is the better player. There is nothing wrong with playing a guitar with 2 pedals and one knee. I'm willing to bet many of the "preachers" of multiple "leevers" on this forum are not capable of getting the utmost from the standard 2 & 1. Jay Y.

I have a Shobud Maverick and ,in spite of all the bad press they recieve, i really like mine. This one stays in tune,has a pretty good sound and a little bit of the Shobud mystique that reminds me of the old Porter Wagoner Show, Starday Records ,Jimmy Day, Buddy Emmons ect,ect,.

I can understand how the lack of knee levers would cramp a players style . I like what Mr. Perlowin did with a steel on his Firebird Suite record. Advanced music such as that is probaby more than the little Maverick can handle. But for a guy like me,a beginer who likes old country and blues and some experimental music my Maverick is fine.At least for the time being.

What works for me is probably all wrong for the next guy. That is good cause it keeps things interesting. I want to learn to use the Maverick to it's full potential. Money is tight and Im lucky to have come across this guitar. Some day It would be nice to upgrade and get in on some of the C 6th fun. For now,I want to learn to use the Maverick and get as much as i can out of it. Maybe bar slants can open things up.

I would like to hear about getting that contact paper off the body. there is a beautiful maple wood beneath it. And is it possible to have an E to F pedal installed on a Maverick?Chances are anything is possible but it would probably be expensive. I am happy to hear all the different opinions about the Maverick and steel in general.

Joe Buckley

Joe Buckley wrote:...is it possible to have an E to F pedal installed on a Maverick?

I was about to ask the same question. To take that thought a step further, could they be retrofitted with a modern double or triple raise changer? And if so, would it be prohibitively expensive?

I don't know about the vinyl mavericks, but if the blond wood body ones could be updated with a newer changer and more knee levers, they would be pretty decent, at least for a beginner to intermediate level player.

Joe, Thanks for the kind words about my Firebird Suite CD.

The last time I visited Coop, he showed me a new changer upgrade for Mavericks. If you have a Mav, you'll probably want to learn bar slants.

Talk about being "BRAINWASHED". Jay Y.

I had a Maverick that I picked up at a pawn shop for a couple hundred bucks to practice on at the house while my MSA D-10 was tied up at gigs. It is possible to add levers, but it is a little complicated. I used the principles I learned from servicing cable pull steels to get the pulls right. Unless you're a tech, you need to find someone to do it. It is a great guitar for the sound, and with some care, plays well. I sold mine to get a universal 12 MSA to mess with.
--Sammie

I forgot to say I added 2 levers to my Maverick, giving me 3 levers.

To those guys getting their drawers all knotted up.. Take a breath and relax.. I am not trying to keep anyone from liking or buying a Maverick.. You can learn the basics on it.. I did, as I stated. I also found out I was badly limited with it and got out fast..
If " less is better" why don't the top pros use 3 and 1 steels?


I did state it might be worth it if he could score it cheap...
They sound fine, and many will play close to in tune.
However, the last 3 on ebay sold for..

$626 + shipping
$660+ shipping
$960+ shipping
Sorry my good friends, but when a Maverick is going to set one back from $700-$1000, there are way, WAY better choices.. They are just not worth what people are paying is all I am saying... bob

I am asking $500.00 for mine. Is that outrageous? Or is it a fair asking price?
Thanks
-Jeff

That is top dollar Jeff but not outrageous in any sense, although unless it is one of the blond wood-body units with 3+1 I would expect it to move for more like $300 - $400 in todays' market.

My first PSG was a natural wood Maverick with three pedals and no levers at all. I payed the rent with it for over ten years before I finally got a guitar with knee levers, not because I didn't want them but because I chose to spend all of my money housing and feeding my family.

During those days I was often asked why I didn't get a more advanced instrument (I even lost a few potential jobs along the way due to my "beginner's" guitar not being stageworthy enough for a couple of bandleaders) but I learned a lot about what a pedal steel guitar can do with the basic three and none of the "fancy stuff" - and from start to finish it always had that great ShoBud tone. All those licks we tried so hard to learn from Brother Leon and other stars from the "golden days" of western music were played with no pedals at all so I figured I was miles ahead already. Yes it's limited without the E string changes, but there's still much more to learn on that basic guitar than most of us will ever master.

While I have since upgraded the stable to include a fully-loaded P/P Emmons, these days I still play a lot of shows with an old Pro I 3+2. Yes I miss the 2/9 string drop occasionally but the guiitar is pretty to look at, easy to pack and has total tone to the bone all the time.

It's a poor craftsman who blames his tools for a lack of technique and understanding and playing that "primitive" little Maverick forced me to learn what the hay I was doing from the git-go!

I actually picked a contact paper one dirt cheap that I tuned up a little, restrung, and rolled over for some quick cash. In retrospect, I wish I had kept it. It was ultra light, stayed in tune well and had killer tone. Yes, it was tough to play top 40 country on, but it sure made you think on your feet how to skin the cat differently with one knee lever. It really cut well in a loud band, too. I sure miss the dang thing!

Jeff Metz Jr. wrote:I am asking $500.00 for mine. Is that outrageous? Or is it a fair asking price?
Thanks
-Jeff

You will get $600 or more on ebay... of course you will have to pay lots of fees, but it will sell easily.

I started on a Fender "student model" which, I was told, was made by Sho Bud. Is this the Maverick with a different name? The one lever (RKL) lowered the 4th and 2nd strings, but I changed it so it lowered the 4th and 8th--got more use out of it that way. I played a lot of traditional country on that axe.

I started out on a '74 Maverick(all birdseye maple)with only 3 floor pedals! No knee levers and a non roller-nut.I fashioned a makeshift knee lever that dropped the 2&8 a half tone. I played it for 16 years. The tone was very good, the biggest negative was the under carriage.I paid $350 back then with a Gibson G20 amp,
Today they are too expensive $1000 or more-for that price you are very close to a model 6139(early Pro).
Didn't Ben Keith play an Emmons 3+1?
I now play a '73 converted 6140(E9)SHO-BUD 3+4. I know a couple of Hawaiian players that can do amazing things without pedals on their guitars. Granted its a C6/C13 tuning but still...
Today if I were starting out I would look into the Zum Stage One guitar!

Well, I might as well get into this fracas. I started playing steel on a maple Maverick around 74'. It had 3+1. I played the poop out of this steel and it never gave me any mechanical problems, plus it sounded like a real pedal steel.I learned about a year later, that, in order to be more proficient or contemporary, I needed a steel with more knee levers. Yes, I could do some by bar slanting, but, having more knee levers was easier and more accurate. So, a year and a half later I bought a new steel with 5+4. Having said that, I will never put down a maple ShoBud Maverick. It definitely started me down the road to this crazy world and infected me with an uncurable disease. It was perfect for its time and relevancy and it will certainly get you started, within limits. But, today, there are many other "student" model steels, that, are more adaptable to todays standards. It's really your choice. You're getting plenty of info from the forum.
BTW- I don't think the price is too high for a Maverick in good shape. On the other hand, I paid $135.00 for mine in 1974. Inflation is a killer!

3 pedals and one knee can go a long way and it will be a great starter set-up, i had an emmons for years with the same set-up. However in saying that you most likely will want to get into the other levers for the chord shapes fairly soon. It's a tough question to answer, but i'd go for it, coop can always sell you a couple of levers even if it is a student model. I see the exspence as a learning exspense, which is probably not economically correct.

Use naphtha or Zippo lighter fluid to soften and remove the glue under the contact paper/vinyl covering. It won't harm the lacquer underneath. The clear lacquer is not very heavy...just enough to seal the wood.
Back in 1978, I removed the vinyl from mine using naphtha, then wet-sanded the existing lacquer slightly with 1000-grit Wet-or-Dry sandpaper. I sprayed clear R-M automotive lacquer over the body, then hand-rubbed the finish with toothpaste and a damp rag. Toothpaste contains pumice which is also used in most fine buffing compounds used by body shops.
The results of this procedure can be seen on a Forum post called "Hot Rod Maverick" if you do a search.
PRR