The Steel Guitar Forum

Don Fritsche, at BMI, says according to the serial number my D10 is from 1980 and that surprises me since I figured it was at least five years older. So that's pretty cool.

But it also has back leg peculiarities I've never seen on another pedal steel of any kind.

You can see in the photo that the adjustment clutch handles are way up high on the legs, making height adjustments from the seat easier, instead of being placed down near the floor where they'd be a lot harder to get to and adjust.

Maybe legs like that are a lot more common than I thought, and I just never noticed them before. But I haven't noticed legs like that in any other PSG photos I've seen here at the Forum.

Okay, the photo didn't upload. Let's try it again (and, yes, I do use the same Shubb SP2 bar for both dobro and pedal steel).

I've never seen any legs like you describe.

But, it just looks like the big part of the leg is shorter and the insert is longer.

That's the way they're made, yeah. And they were with the steel when I bought it. They're just as sturdy as the legs on any other PSG I've had over the years, they just make more sense than the conventional kind.

I'm just curious as to why they aren't more common.

Don,
I can't see them too well in the picture, but it looks as though someone needed new legs so they cut off the lower portion of two mic stands, relocated (or made) the threaded insert into the shortened end, inverted them and screwed them into the back of the steel.
Do they look like that when you look at them up close?
It really would make adjustment easy.
Dave

My old D10 which is 60s vintage has the traditional legs where the inner and outer are full length and you could, if you wanted to, raise it right up and play standing, although you would need a second set of pedal rods if you wanted to use the pedals. I have sometimes thought of saving some weight by chopping of the unused portion of the inners.

I now realise you would lose more ounces by shortening the outers - could this be what someone has done here?

It only surprises me that it's not more common, since those steel legs are a tad heavy. But, since they're Atlas mic stands with a threaded plug in the base end, it would take a moment of out-of-the-box thinking to say "hey, I don't need all two and a half feet of the outer leg."

some one can correct me if i am wrong, but i believe that bmi, msa,etc, used to make legs like that. the purpose was the adjustment of the legs was easier when sitting at the guitar....jack

zb used shorter uppers, but not that short i don't think.

They're sure easier for me to adjust. I'm 6', but my son - who's learning PSG on his own Maverick - is 6'4", and he has to raise the back legs when he plays my BMI. So we re-adjust the legs quite a bit.

I just measured, and the outer sleeve is nine and a half inches from where the top threads into the guitar body to the far end of the clutch handle.

If I had to get on my knees, or sit on the floor and hope I got it right, every time we changed the back leg length the charm would wear off in a hurry!

Maybe offering back legs that can be adjusted while the player is sitting upright might be an interesting feature for you PSG builders to consider.

All I know is that it works for me!

Don, that's a nice BMI. I think that I remember seeing either a "Rustler" or a "Clark" with similar rear legs many years ago.

this has made me think about how i do it.
sitting on my seat, i lean over and reach down to the clutch and adjust it quickly. my steel's legs are the standard type and it's no big deal.

My S-12 Mullen has the "raised-clutch" style of back legs and every time I go to level it out on a stage, I've already reached past the clutch and almost to the floor before I remember which guitar I'm using!

chris ivey wrote:this has made me think about how i do it.
sitting on my seat, i lean over and reach down to the clutch and adjust it quickly. my steel's legs are the standard type and it's no big deal.

Same here, it's no biggie to me, either. I think the clutches are at the bottom for all 4 legs purely for aesthetics...it just looks better. That said, I think Fender had the right idea with their legs on the 400's. Ditch the adjustable legs, recess the threads, and then you can just unscrew the leg for adjustments.

Donny, I doubt it was aesthetics.
It's easier. Pedal steel legs are mic stands. Always have been.
To shorten them is an extra step and not generally worth the bother.

Lane Gray wrote:Donny, I doubt it was aesthetics.
It's easier. Pedal steel legs are mic stands. Always have been.
To shorten them is an extra step and not generally worth the bother.

Lane, it sounds like you've never "made" a leg?

Well, it's like this...microphone stand tubes have a threaded end at the bottom that must be cut off anyway to make them into legs. Last time I checked, it costs no more time or money to cut off a foot or so than it does to cut off a few inches.

Less orders, less inventory, less mistakes in orders. All are a business points. One leg pattern. Make a front leg make a back leg. It would make for a business decision. Would make it much easier to adjust on lumpy stage floors without having to stand on your head to adjust the a back leg to solid up the steel.

My old ZB had high adjusters on the back legs. It was very sturdy and I found that feature convenient on uneven stages.

Zane Beck began that practice with his
ZB guitars and continued it with BMI.
He said that he could get more back legs
per mic stand by cutting them that way.
~Rw

Excel guitars. Checkout the rear legs. Lightweight and easy to adjust.

My old 80s ZB from Wally Murphy has those rear legs,they don't seem as sturdy as the newer ones...