The Steel Guitar Forum

So, I just got my first dobro (thanks again to everyone for their advice) and now I need some thoughts on tone bars. I have really big hands and I've had trouble with tendinitis over the years. I have mostly addressed this issue by using very thick tone bars. For lap steel, I currently use a Paloma stone bullet bar. It's over an inch wide and really helps me play without squeezing the bar.

Now, I need something similar for dobro. I've tried a Stevens bar and it was horrible. I also tried a lap dawg and it was better, but still too narrow. At the moment, I have one of the shubb bars, the hardwood/steel ones. It's got good thickness and is a bit lighter, so it's easier to play and more comfortable, but I want to know what else is out there that might be very wide/thick and ergonomic.

Side question: what is the best way to hold the bar to reduce hand fatigue? I see people put their thumbs toward the back end and hold the bar with the tip of the thumb and the fingers, and I also see people put the thumb more towards the front end of the bar (nearest the high strings) and hold the bar more in the palm. Is one way "better"?

Thanks in advance!

I just use the Paloma for everything... even have the big one for PS. Are you missing pull-offs? What is the problem, exactly? Paloma makes a Stevens-style too.

That's it exactly, I want better control for hammer ons and pull offs. The Paloma is okay, but I want something I can grip a little better. Do you think the Paloma Stevens bar would make a good dobro bar?

fwiw,

Jerry Douglas has huge hands and uses a Beard "2010" steel. He has said that he'll flip the bar around and play with a different angle end and it sort of "refreshes" (my words) his hand muscles.




Additional specs HERE!

Howard Parker wrote:fwiw,

Jerry Douglas has huge hands and uses a Beard "2010" steel. He has said that he'll flip the bar around and play with a different angle end and it sort of "refreshes" (my words) his hand muscles.




Additional specs HERE!

I too have big hands. The Beard bar Howard mentioned is really nice. I bought it because of the dual angle thing and it actually is quite refreshing.....

I am either really qualified to answer, or so hopelessly promiscuous as to be useless:



For a few years straight, I only used 1.25" X 3.375" bars. I have a few homebuilt delrin ones, a hollow steel one, a fine leaded crystal one from Diamond Bottlenecks... I am mystified by those who say a 1" bar is harder to mute behind than a .875" one - I just put my hand down, there, it's muted. One nifty trick to "improve" a Stevens-type bar, Shubb-Pierce SP-1 etc., you can slice open a piece of rubber fuel line, vinyl tubing etc. the long way and slide it on there.

An awful lot depends on what it is you're trying to get to. I believe that the "perfect" bar for rapid single note lines is going to be different that the "perfect" bar for slow, slithery, slanty chord work. And rather than try to compromise both for an in-betweener - I'll just use two bars.(?) You can set them right there, why not. Like using the Ferrari to get catfood and the Humvee to get the dogfood.

Rex Krueger wrote:That's it exactly, I want better control for hammer ons and pull offs. The Paloma is okay, but I want something I can grip a little better. Do you think the Paloma Stevens bar would make a good dobro bar?

I actually haven't tried it... I'm using the longest bar Paloma makes in the smaller (still huge) diameter... it's easier to palm for me, it just fits better.

Like Dave's picture above, you gotta get 'em all! I play mostly 8string Dobro, which I treat as an acoustic steel, so I'm happier with a bullet-style bar anyway. Good luck on your hunt.

Pete Grant plays incredible Dobro using a large pedal steel bar.