The Steel Guitar Forum

I need a new pot, (not used) for an Emmons pedal and not the Dunlop type. I had a couple of these and they were impossible for me to work with. I just need a new pot made like the old A and B's or the PEC pots. No instant messages please. Just send an email and I'll get it.

I believe Jerry Roller sells the Million Cycle pots.
Why didn't the Dunlop work for you?

The Dunlop has the connectors at the end instead of the side like most pots are made and they're not nearly as easy to solder to and it's too tight of a fit. I can't see soldering something that is connected to the most working part of the pot and for it to get so hot. They may be ok for a Goodrich pedal but for my Emmons pedals it was too tight of a fit.

I had a problem soldering them, but tom bradshaw put leads on them for me at no extra charge.
But if they're not going to fit, then that doesn't matter.

I was in Hot Springs Arkansas Yesterday and bought 2 of them from Ronnies Guitar Shop. I have a goodrich and emmons pedal, The Goodrich pot will fit both of them. Thanks, Hope this will help. 27.00ea

Please forgive my ignorance, but what's an "Emmons style" volume pedal?

Ones sold by the Emmons Guitar Company to mount on the bracket on their pedal bar.
Like this:
http://colo.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=226901

I have 4 or 5 of the AB 500 pots...I just bend the tabs on them and pull the back off ...blow them out with a can of compressed air and then give them a squirt of WD 40....bit of messing to get them right when reassembling..to get Low..High and cut .off positions...but beats the Heck out of price of new pot and delivery to Australia !!
Tony

Tony,
I've opened these pots up and some will work for a little while maybe two gigs and then it's back to being scratchy. This pot thing is a pain!

I just googled the following (without quotes, that matters) "NOS Allen Bradley pots"
There's an outfit selling several of them on ebay.
Between 6 and 10 for audio taper, Buy It Now available.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=allen+bradley+pots

Thanks, Lane. I can see where it may be quite difficult to install a Dunlop pot in that particular pedal.

I like the bracket-mounted pedals, myself. I regret not getting one with my Zum.
If my next guitar is a Zum (I'll have to lose a pedal, he didn't want to make 10 and 7 on one neck-I'm finding a lot of that), I'll get that option.
Actually whoever makes it, I'll take the option, if available.

I evidently have better luck than some of you with the drill & clean method. I usually get months of extended life with just the Radio Shack cleaner. I've got one pedal thats still going over two years after cleaning. True, when the actual track is worn, they have to be replaced, but most of the time, cleaning is the solution (no pun intended).

I use the drill and clean. However, be sure to use the cleaner with lube. I used just a cleaner and it was really scratchy. I then used WD40 and it was OK. But, once they're bad, they're bad.

I've tried taking them apart and drilling and for me it doesn't work very long at all. I think all of these pots are bad so I ordered a new Long Life pot from Jerry Roller and we'll see how this turns out. I've got five pedals and right not the Hilton is the one I've got in my seat.

I bought 2 from Ronnie's Steel Guitar shop in Hot Spring Arkansas abut 2 years ago.

I know there have been many happy accidents, I know that so-and-so used a steel->George L's cords->pot pedal->Peavey rig and sounded great, blew 4,722.63 minds etc.; but I think that the whole monster-power-pickup->pedal->SS amp has largely evolved around the tone-changing, juice-sucking pot pedal. Compensatorily... stick a Hilton in there and you kinda rejoin the real world of effects, signal level, consistent tone and the multi-instruments->one amp, one level, one tone ideal.

By "juice-sucking", I mean that even when you get a long-life pot, you can't get full volume and zero volume at the same time - to get it to zero out, it's kicking about 80%, 85%(?) of full volume, because the pedals aren't made for those exact pots and vice-versa. So you use a 20K pickup and go all Merlinesque electronically trying to restructure your weird, comatose mids-and-highs ratio. You could maybe saw some chunks off the pedal housing somewhere (or raise the hinge pivot points? nudge the POT mounting point one mm here or there?) to get full pot travel, but don't blow that either, because one little fraction too far and the pot-stop becomes the pedal-stop - which becomes the gig-stop. Yay, Keith Hilton! Woo woo etc.

Ponder: If Hilton (& Telonic) volume pedals had been for sale in every corner music store in 1975, would the Peavey "steel amp platform" - semi-parametric EQ, 210w power section, DDT, etc. - would Peaveys (and Walkers/Webbs/Quilters) be anything like what they are? George L's pickups?

David, a pot pedal doesn't use the full range of pot travel by design. Your foot us stronger than the internal stops of the pot, so the pedal restricts you from blowing out the stops and trashing the pot. If you want a pot pedal to have full travel, use long-shaft pots and eschew the brass collar.