The Steel Guitar Forum

Just bought a brand new SD10 Fessenden and wondering if there is a break in period for a brand new steel? I'm into my 2nd week playing it in my room, usually between 1-2 hours each session, and a good portion of that time is spent tuning and retuning the darn thing, strings and pedals/levers! I'll get it close to perfect, play around for 10-15 minutes and it starts sounding sour again, and it's back to tune time. I'm a little miffed, I had a Carter Starter before this for a year and 1/2, and that thing stayed in tune extremely well, think I only had to retune 2-3 times, it was set it and forget it! Not with this Fessy! Will it settle in or am pushing the panic button too soon?

i'd say give it a week or so. anytime you get a different steel you're going to hear things a little differently. get your open tuning set, then dial in your changes...then try not to mess with the changes much.

Thanks! Yeah, I figured I would whine about it here before I whined about it to Jerry, I already pestered him for parts to modify my copedent! He's great, got back to me right away with that and another question I had, great customer care! I will give it more time and hopefully it will settle in.

......also don't play it over 80 bpm for the first 10,000 notes.

You might try lubing the changer, light machine or sewing machine oil works well (avoid using WD40). I once had a similar problem with a new guitar and this solved it nicely.

Having NEVER owned a "Fessy", perhaps my comments are out of place, but....
In 2008 I purchased a NEW Carter SD10. I arrived at my house 99%, in tune, and after I tweaked it, It stayed in tune, playing 3 to 4 hours a day.
Does your music room have a humidity problem ?
If so...That my be the culprit
Rick

I did not have this problem when my Fessy was brand new, five years ago (nor since). But both of the last two comments may be useful. When I picked my steel up from Jerry, I asked how often I should lube it, and he said, "as often as you can stand to" (or something to that effect).

Secondly, the cross shafts on Fessies need more side to side play than on some other brands, and humidity could certainly be an issue with that. Also, as with any all-pull guitar, make sure there is some slack on the pull rods.

Finally, check that the tuners are good and tight in the headstock. All of my steels have had some slippage there at times. I keep a dedicated wrench in my seat to tighten up any loose ones at string-change time

FWIW: if you've already been adding rods and such underneath, there may be some owner-initiated error. I speak from my own misguided experience; I usually spend many hours undoing the wrongs I've done after I change the copedant before the guitar is playing perfectly again.

Dan

The Fessys I've had, two, both required very little tuning, I played the d-10 almost every day for a long time, it stayed in tune very well. A few details might make it easier to figure out. Have you changed the strings? Exactly which strings go out of tune, and in what direction do they change. Have you made any changes or adjustments to the pedals or knee levers? I see you did make some changes to the copedent, what did you change? Are those the strings you have problems with now?

Thank for all the input guys! All the strings seem to go out of tune, and the pedal/lever tuning goes out as well, not a whole lot, but just enough to irritate me, I have a very accute ear. I have not changed strings yet, maybe I need to do that? I have not changed anything underneath yet, only adjusted pedal height, checked and lightly oiled (3in1 oil) cross shafts and they are fine, no binding, and oiled the pedal mechanism. Humidity not a problem, I'm in So. Cal. I will check the tuners today, and lube the changer and anything else that needs it that I haven't done yet. I let it sit for a few days, haven't played it since Thurs, so I'll mess with it later today, see if it's any better.

Are you using a tuner, if so which one? Describe the method you are using to tune, ET, JT. It you use an accurate tuner, and the correct system, it only takes a couple of minutes to tune the guitar.

Are your pedals bottoming out on carpet?
You may be overtuning the nylons to compensate.

It doesn't happen often but I've had one or two bad string sets that just kept stretching forever. Once I changed strings, the problem disappeared.

Judging by your description of the problem....I would replace strings before doing anything else.......Paul