The Steel Guitar Forum

I noticed there seems to be a LOT of complaints about the Carter Starter. I would appreciate it if someone would post a pic of the undercarriage of one so I could see what everyone is talking about!

Be warned, it's not a pretty sight!

Believe it,I've seen one,Erv is right,it's not a pretty sight!!!!


Although I did rebuild the undercarriage on the one I had,it was worth it I think but I didn't keep it very long.They do have great tone.

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... er+starter There are a couple of shots in this old thread if that will help.

John, here is a photo of the under carriage on a Carter Starter:



Not too much to see there. It is just the guts of a plain old student guitar. IMO, there is FAR too much Carter-Starter bashing on this forum. Sure, some things could have been done better, but it was never intended as pro instrument. I hope this helps to satisfy your curiosity.

I agree, Michael. I'd rather have a Starter than a sidekick or maverick.
Full complement of levers, and it plays in tune.

carter starter is like a G.E. washing machine you better nail it down to the floor or you will spend more time learning how to chase a guitar across the floor instead of playing it.

I am no pro. I am a novice Carter Starter player and I appreciate all the support I can get. I ain't no musical genius. I have to work at it hard to get anywhere with any instrument. In grade school I played an old beat up tombone with a crappy slide, but it got me to 1st chair out of 13 players by the time I got into high school band in the 9th grade! Then I got a new one! I have been playing a Morgan Monroe reso lately. Certainly not top of the line, but with lots of practice....heck, I'm having fun and the grandkids love it! My Carter Starter? I bet that I can learn on that too... enough to entertain me and my grandkids. With lot of hard work, and if I get get good enough, I will upgrade for sure! Can't wait!! I love pedal steel!!!!!!!!! Now, if I spent thousands of dollars on a high end dobro and pedal steel, will I instantly sound like Greg Booth does with his Wichita Lineman rendition? NOT!! Good grief, that guy is good! Hmm....think I will sit up to my 'lil "starter", pop in a CD and see if I can jam.....

Joseph Barcus wrote:carter starter is like a G.E. washing machine you better nail it down to the floor or you will spend more time learning how to chase a guitar across the floor instead of playing it.

I play mine on the carpet. Stays put.

Haha now ladies, you're both pretty! Thanks for the pic and link. I started off on an old 60s or 70s fender s-10 student model with 1 knee lever. I never looked underneath much but I know it wasn't nice as the starter. Paid 700 plus shipping for the damn thing too! Strangely wish I had kept it though..

I have never seen the underside of better built pedal steel. I know the CS looks cheaply built to my eyes. But, hey, it sounds good and works for this beginner!

Joseph Barcus wrote:carter starter is like a G.E. washing machine you better nail it down to the floor or you will spend more time learning how to chase a guitar across the floor instead of playing it.

Mount wheels on your seat so you can keep up.

The Carter Starter had some real design issues, but it saw me through a year of abusive gigging. It also sounds great (to me).

I had a student, who, had a brand new Carter Starter and I thought it played really well. Of course, that was about 12 yrs ago, though. Even so, I had never seen one or played one before and I was impressed with it. Yes, it was a little too lite, but, everything worked perfectly on it and it sounded good, too. For its' time, it was a real innovative student model. Maybe he was lucky with that steel. I don't know. I haven't seen any others up close, so, I can't really judge the rest. Just a simple, straight forward approach to an entry level steel. I started on a birdseye maple Maverick with the raised neck. It was a good steel for its' time, too. I had no problems with mine, but, we're not talking Mavericks here.

John YOU are a Maverick. See you in Nov.?

Carter Starter- they work, stay close to in tune, sound good enough to practice or gig, and have the levers for a full modern copedent. And they're inexpensive. Exactly what they were designed to do.

There are a couple of frustrating aspects (like knee lever slippage) that are really easy to fix with basic tools and a little thought.
My impression is that most of the bashers really expect the performance, feel and sound of a $3K guitar.
I just don't understand that.

The CS has probably brought thousands of players into the fold who might not have otherwise made it. Go Carter.

www.myvideo.de/watch/6652563/Carter_Starter_Demo
Nuff said

Terry Crisp ripping it up at the end

Buying a guitar is kind of like buying hay.
Do you want it before or after it's been through the horse.

Erv Niehaus wrote:Buying a guitar is kind of like buying hay.
Do you want it before or after it's been through the horse.

While its still in his belly so I can watch "how its made"

Quentin Hickey wrote: Terry Crisp ripping it up at the end

Amen to that! It sure does my heart good to see a guy with 1/3 the guitar of most players play 3 times as much and 3 times as good as the naysayers.

"It's in the hands"... and the proof is right there in the video.

I thought the Starter was pretty great when I first started out. Then I upgraded to a pro Sierra, and now I have an Emmons & a Dekley. I'd bet if I went back and played a Starter now I wouldn't be too impressed. But for a student guitar, it did the job for me. Even gigged with it for two years!

Ben,
Thanks, I think! Yes, I'll be there in Nov. I'm doing a set this year. I hope I don't screw it up like last time. Hope to see you there. All the best.

I think the worst thing under there is the stops. Particularly on the knee levers. But it's not hard to put in better ones. A bracket that the bell crank finger bears against will do the trick. Tap a hole in the bracket and put a hex-head screw through it if you want it adjustable.

I think there may be two versions of the CS. Mine has the knee levers in a different place than most of the pics I've seen online.

I am the proud owner of the two most maligned pedal steels: a Carter Starer and a contact-paper Maverick. (I'm really a non-pedal player who just can't resist a bargain on craigslist.) Aside from those stops, the Carter seems much better-engineered.

I had a Maverick, and it was the worst junk I ever bought. Baling wire instead of rods, screen door turnbuckles to tune the pedals- then the fingers started breaking off.. Bad news.

The CS is light years ahead of the Maverick I owned. I couldn't get rid of it fast enough. It was frustrating enough to make a grown man scream.. and scream I did..

You haven't lived until you played a Market-Rite S-10.
$150. in kit form, 3 pedals, 1 knee to lower strings 4 and 8, hard case and a 3 volume course (which was quite good). Crude but it got the job done for me.