The Steel Guitar Forum

Hello,

I'm a beginner. I've only been playing for about 3 months. I have a Fessenden D-12. It has 8 pedals and I think 8 knee levers. It's been going really well especially the last two weeks. I have this issue though - if I really want to get into playing the knee levers I have to sit well forward on my chair (or move the chair closer to the steel) and this makes it hard to operate the volume pedal (goodrich L120) I have the vol. pedal as far forward as possible (to the pedal rack bar(?) and can't seem to push my heel down comfortably. Also, sometimes my knees will accidentally lean on a lever pushing a string out of tune while i'm playing. How do I resolve these problems? Should I be sitting forward all time in position to play any knee lever at any time or should i move around on my chair to reach for the levers with knees? Keeping in mind that when i sit forward close to the steel, I have difficulty operating the volume pedal (it's much easier if I sit back a bit and my leg is stretched out a little)..

I hope that all makes sense! Would appreciate any help anyone can offer. Thanks in advance from Australia..

it's important to get a comfortable position Chris
you don't have to be too close to the steel
i keep a bit of distance so i can check my feet on the pedals every once in a while
usually on pro models, like yours, knee levers can be adjusted for good action & a good fit
if you're not comfortable on the volume pedal, maybe the steel's too low ?
are you a tall fellow ?
last but not least, position your belly around the 14th fret & keep your right arm close to your body
don't waste energy movin' your pickin' hand around too much - dig in to the strings before you pick & consecrate the energy on the fingers

Hey Chris,

It sounds like whatever you're sitting on may be too high. Or maybe the guitar is too low. Or vice versa. There should be an inch or two clearance between the bottom of the guitar and your legs when you're in the playing position. You should be able to adjust the knee levers so they're not so close to your legs. If you're unusually tall or short you might not fit comfortably behind a standard height steel guitar.

Chris, I have the same problem. But mine is also compounded by having short tight tendons in my legs. I found that wearing boots with a heel helped. I also added flags to a couple of KLs that were too far forward. Good luck.

Most of us sit with the belly about a handspan from the back of the guitar.
and about an 80° bend to the right knee.
This isn't necessarily what's *right*, just what's common.
Your knees might not be adjusted optimally