The Steel Guitar Forum

Here is a fun one I thought I'd share. Its the final revision of my Southern Belle model with some nice birdseye and a Dusenberg multibender bridge.

Some basic specs
24.5" scale
Select quartersawn African mahogany
Birdseye maple fretboard and custom trim package
Custom hand wound BG-Pups pickups
4 Way rotary switching

And some pics

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Super Yummy , As with all of your instruments. Bravo !

luv the knobs!

Thanks Mr Boards and Chris

luv the knobs!

Its a small detail, but one that I think adds nicely to the overall project. They are kind of a pain in the butt to make, but after they are done I'm always glad I made the extra effort.

Beautiful looking guitar.Is it possable to put the bender set up on an 8 string??.I am interested, and what string would be bent and the tuning if using C6..Carl

Since I got off the DL I haven't been on the forum much, but I can see your guitars continue to look better and better. Gorgeous!

Sweet looking Belle Tom.

What tuning is she in? Which BG pups did you use?

is it for sale?

Thanks all

Carl ... Its a subject I've pondered on several occasions and have concluded that with a little work, it could be used on an 8 string. It would require a little milling / shaving down of the outside shoulder to make room for a little satellite / mini bridge to carry the other 2 strings. It does not need a lot taken off, a couple millimeters would do.

Lynn ... good to see you around!

Steve ... Its in an open E with the benders set to raise #2 from B to C# and #3 rom G# to A
The pickups are based off of Bryans A3 RockWind set. Basically they are built like a 50's style Tele set with the oversize Alnico 3 magnets, but wound to have less twang and more of a focus on a big and rich full voice.

ebb ... sorry, but it is not available. It was a custom order and is spoken for.

put me first in line when the owner wants to sell

swwwwwwwwwwweeeeeeet!.......you are really putting out some great builds.....

Tom Pettingill wrote:Here is a fun one I thought I'd share. Its the final revision of my Southern Belle model with some nice birdseye and a Dusenberg multibender bridge.
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For a minute there I thought that was my kitchen faucet on your geetar!

Steve Ahola

Thanks Howard ... its been a fun journey and a wonderful opportunity for me to bring these instruments to life.

Steve ... LoL ... thats a German tone dispenser ... not a Grohe

Lovely guitar, Tom. I think that Duesenberg would drive me nuts in that position, as I tend to like to hover over the bridge sometimes with my right hand.

Hey MIKE I SENT YOU A PRIVATE MESSAGE,DID YOU RECEIVE IT??? CARL

Thanks Mike and yea, those bender bridges are not everyone's cup of tea. I can definitely see their appeal for some players and they are a lot of fun to play with. The good news is that the palm levers easily fold back and out of the way if you want / need.

Don't get me wrong, Tom, I'd love to mess around with the benders, but I think it would make me have to change my technique too much. Very cool and well made unit, though.

Hey Mike, no, I totally understand and am myself in the same camp. Like I mentioned, while I can see the appeal and usefulness, they are not my personal cup of tea either.

I had someone asking about the inlay so here is a little more about it and a slightly better pic.
The fret markers are made from laminated sheets of .016 aluminum and .030 black fiberboard. The dot bezels / surrounds are thin wall aluminum tubing and the black dots were cut from some leftover pickup bobbin fiberboard.

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As usual, a stellar job. Hard to go wrong with beautiful materials, design and execution.

Thanks Mike

I am also interested in purchasing ..price w/ case..Carl

Got my ordered,can hardly wait.Also ordered a Hatton tweed case for it..christmas all over ..Carl

I'm excited to build one of my babies for you Carl ... and good call on the Tweed, Kevin does a great job on his cases

The two tone frets, Aluminum/Black/Aluminum are amazing.

Thanks David .. its a little bit of a pain to do, especially the logo, but I really like it a lot. This is the second time I've done it, first was the prototype and we are going to do Carl's like this one too.

Here is a pic of it on the zebrawood Belle prototype

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