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Topic: A question for builders. |
Jeff Metz Jr.
From:
York, Pennsylvania, USA
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Posted 14 Aug 2015 11:48 am |
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Hey there. I've been interested in building a pedal steel for some time now. certain aspects aren't so clear to me.
Does cabinet size matter? or is it mostly endplatescosmetic after tone and weight are considered? Did you design your own dimensisons or is there a standard in the industry? thanks[/quote]
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Mullen G2 SD10 , Lil Izzy Buffer, Goodrich 120 volume pedal, Boss DD-7, Peterson Strobo flip, Peavey Nashville 112 |
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Chris Lucker
From:
Los Angeles, California USA
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Posted 14 Aug 2015 1:13 pm
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You are asking sort of a Les Paul with a stop tail piece versus Strat with floating bridge question.
Some people think the right way to make a steel guitar is to make a rock solid rigid cabinet and add parts to it.
Others think that a cabinet should be built in a bind with the parts of the guitar having structural purpose as well as mechanical -- Emmons, for example. The problem is when someone rebuilds an Emmons and they treat it like a Sho-Bud -- a cabinet with parts added to it. They lose the resonance and overtones that come with the "bind" or tension and the guitar loses the Emmons magic. It still makes noise when you hit the strings, but loses the essence.
Multi-neck Bigsbys and Emmons guitars are different from 1960s Sho-Buds or most all other guitars.
Remember, a Bigsby triple neck or double neck was three or two independent necks that did not overlap that were attached to the endplates with as few screws as possible -- two or one per end per neck. There was no attempt to make a solid cabinet.
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Chris Lucker
Red Bellies, Bigsbys and a lot of other guitars. |
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Ian Rae
From:
Redditch, England
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Posted 14 Aug 2015 3:26 pm
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Jeff asks about dimensions.
First of all, length left to right. This is the scale length (which you need to make a decision about – unless you have a strong reason not to, stick to 24") – plus the room required for the tuning head – plus the length required by the changer to avoid having anything protruding through the endplate. A keyless tuner can save you several inches, but if you’re used to a conventional keyhead, the pedals may feel too far to the right.
Front-to-back (not applicable to D or SD). If you build a single neck too narrow, the knee levers can be too close to the pedals for comfort. Depends on your personal geometry.
Height (thickness). Sufficient to conceal the mechanism. The rear apron may well be shallower than the front one.
It’s worth taking the key measurements of an existing instrument to give you a start.
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Make sleeping dogs tell the truth!
Homebuilt keyless U12 7x5, Excel keyless U12 8x8, Williams keyless U12 7x8, Telonics rack and 15" cabs |
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Stephen Williams
From:
from Wales now in Berkeley,Ca, USA
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Posted 14 Aug 2015 6:38 pm
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Don't build it too narrow like I did.
Mine was 5 3/4" width ID plus 1/2" sides. Not really enough room to attach legs. Turned out to be a big problem. I will pull it apart and build a bigger cabinet. Thinking 7" wide plus 3/4" sides will five 8 1/2" cabinet width. It is then possible to get aluminium channel 8 1/2" ID cut to 3" length on-line for end plates. I will try it.
The good news is I made everything with parts from Ace Hardware (endorsement deal? ha ha, a hacksaw and a $25 drill. |
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