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Topic: Added 2 Knee Levers to my Fender 400 for $20 |
Dennis Montgomery
From:
Western Washington
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 8:30 am |
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Adding knee levers to an old Fender 400 cable pull is a project I've been considering for a few days. Couldn't find any after-market products so decided to go full on DIY 
The materials included an aluminum bar for the levers, cabinet hinges to attach the levers to the body, 50lb picture hanging kit hooks for the fingers, 2 small pulleys, 100lb thin steel wire to connect the fingers to the pulleys, 3/16" galvanized to attach the pulleys to the levers, 2 Fender Strat replacement bridge springs to adjust the overall cable tension, a large screen door pulley, 6 locking clamps & a few small lock washers. Everything cost about $20 at Home Depot and the Strat springs were a couple bucks at my local music shop. Necessary tools were basic shop stuff (including cutting blades and drill bits that can get through aluminum) but nothing hardcore like butane/propane torches or silver solder. Spent about 20 hours on this including building the 1st prototype, making improvements and rebuilding the final version.
The levers are activated by pushing out, so the left lever was a simple pull on the bridge fingers. The right lever pushes out in the same direction as the bridge so I looped the 3/16" cable around a large pulley to handle the required 180 degree change in direction. Clamps behind the levers set the play before engaging the pull while Strat springs engage the end of the cable to keep the tension consistent. Of course once the hardware was in place, a nice coating of dry teflon lube spray keeps everything moving.
And now, a disclaimer for anyone considering the exact same approach. I don't play in a band so can't comment on the road-worthiness of my design, but for a studio instrument I've found the tuning and pedal/knee adjustments to remain stable. If I were to be loading, transporting and unloading my 400 frequently, there are some minor design changes that I would implement to increase the stability.
Working on a '67 Fender 400 is like working on a '67 Corvette...adapt, improvise, overcome 
_________________
Hear my latest album, "Celestial" featuring a combination of Mullen SD12 and Synthesizers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhh6b_xXTx4&list=PLfXm8aXRTFz0x-Sxso0NWw493qAouK
Hear my album, "Armistice" featuring Fender 400 on every song:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2Pz_GXhvmjne7lPEtsplyW
Hear my Pedal Steel Only playlist featuring Mullen G2 SD12 on covers like Candyman, Wild Horses, Across the Universe & more...
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2f0JOyiXpZyzNrvnJObliA |
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Rich Peterson
From:
Moorhead, MN
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 9:46 am
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| That's pretty much the way the PSG first evolved. Use whatever is available. |
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Jason Duguay
From:
Massachusetts, USA
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 10:18 am
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Nice work Dennis. Steel guitars and especially the Fenders are such a wonderful platform for this type of thinking. Are you playing E9?
Also, never thought I'd see a Rollins quote on this forum. Damaged was huge record for me.
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Ralph. Mooney. |
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Dennis Montgomery
From:
Western Washington
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 20 Mar 2016 5:03 pm
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| Good job, Dennis! That's even more elaborate than the levers that were on my first Fender, a 1000. Also, keeping it all-cable themed makes everything harmonized, and lets you get into the "feel" of playing with cables. |
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Dennis Montgomery
From:
Western Washington
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Dennis Montgomery
From:
Western Washington
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Posted 21 Mar 2016 8:05 pm
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| Donny Hinson wrote: |
| Good job, Dennis! That's even more elaborate than the levers that were on my first Fender, a 1000. Also, keeping it all-cable themed makes everything harmonized, and lets you get into the "feel" of playing with cables. |
Thanks Donny
Did your 1000 have cable pull levers or where they adapted from a modern PSG? I searched the net and have found a few people over the years who have talked about designing a 4 lever kit for the 400, but it seems no one ever got it to production...so...I had no choice but take a shot myself. That's what I really love about my 400, the cable pull design is so easy to hot rod 
_________________
Hear my latest album, "Celestial" featuring a combination of Mullen SD12 and Synthesizers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhh6b_xXTx4&list=PLfXm8aXRTFz0x-Sxso0NWw493qAouK
Hear my album, "Armistice" featuring Fender 400 on every song:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2Pz_GXhvmjne7lPEtsplyW
Hear my Pedal Steel Only playlist featuring Mullen G2 SD12 on covers like Candyman, Wild Horses, Across the Universe & more...
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2f0JOyiXpZyzNrvnJObliA |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 22 Mar 2016 6:27 am
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They were cable-pull, Dennis, with both moving left, and no springs were involved. I had one lever on each neck, and I used that configuration for about 8 years.
The levers had "flags" on the ends, and they looked like this:
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Dennis Montgomery
From:
Western Washington
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Posted 22 Mar 2016 11:48 am
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| Donny Hinson wrote: |
They were cable-pull, Dennis, with both moving left, and no springs were involved. I had one lever on each neck, and I used that configuration for about 8 years.
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Cool...both pulling left was my original idea since a direct pull on the scissor fingers is the simplest approach. Then I started thinking from a playing standpoint that both levers pulling to the outside would be much more comfortable and intuitive (maybe because I've already owned a few 10/3/4's).
I've had to improve the design of the large pulley that enables the right lever direction change. Still using that large screen door kit pulley, but now I've moved the spot from the wood to under the metal frame. Also put a 3/4" socket from an old tool set between the frame and the pulley to keep it rigid when pulled. Before, the pulley didn't move much but the whole assembly bent which I figured would eventually cause the screw to bend and break.
As far as the springs, I found that if I don't keep the cables at a minimal tension that the levers sort of collapse/fold in. I had lots of Stratocaster bridge springs laying around because I replace the factory 400 bridge springs with the lower tension Strat springs for every pedal/lever I do a flat on.
Here's a couple pix...
_________________
Hear my latest album, "Celestial" featuring a combination of Mullen SD12 and Synthesizers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhh6b_xXTx4&list=PLfXm8aXRTFz0x-Sxso0NWw493qAouK
Hear my album, "Armistice" featuring Fender 400 on every song:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2Pz_GXhvmjne7lPEtsplyW
Hear my Pedal Steel Only playlist featuring Mullen G2 SD12 on covers like Candyman, Wild Horses, Across the Universe & more...
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2f0JOyiXpZyzNrvnJObliA |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 22 Mar 2016 6:12 pm
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Dennis, my levers were pretty husky compared to yours, and they were adjusted so that the "resting" position was at a slight angle, and that was enough for the weight of the levers to keep the cable taut. When I put the guitar in the case, I just held the cable end and folded the lever down, then the friction would keep the cables from going slack (which kept the loops from coming off the changer fingers when the guitar was transported). All in all, it was an elegantly simple arrangement that worked just fine.
One suggestion to you is that you round those sharp corners on the knee levers, for aesthetics...and for saftey's sake. |
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Dennis Montgomery
From:
Western Washington
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Posted 22 Mar 2016 8:14 pm
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| Donny Hinson wrote: |
Dennis, my levers were pretty husky compared to yours, and they were adjusted so that the "resting" position was at a slight angle, and that was enough for the weight of the levers to keep the cable taut. When I put the guitar in the case, I just held the cable end and folded the lever down, then the friction would keep the cables from going slack (which kept the loops from coming off the changer fingers when the guitar was transported). All in all, it was an elegantly simple arrangement that worked just fine.
One suggestion to you is that you round those sharp corners on the knee levers, for aesthetics...and for saftey's sake. |
Ah, that makes total sense. My levers are 1/8" aluminum so have very little weight/mass so gravity doesn't help...they rest wherever they like without my strat spring tension fix. Even worse, without this tension keeping the cables taut the clips would just slip off the fingers. Also, unlike your old 1000, my design is definitely not travel friendly. To lay the pedals flat I'd have to loosen the clamp behind them that defines the travel and even then, the cable runs through a hole in the upper center of the lever so it still wouldn't lay completely flat. Luckily I'm not good enough to play with anyone so travel is not a requirement 
Oh ya, I did round the bottom edges of the levers smooth so I wouldn't bleed all over the pedals
_________________
Hear my latest album, "Celestial" featuring a combination of Mullen SD12 and Synthesizers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhh6b_xXTx4&list=PLfXm8aXRTFz0x-Sxso0NWw493qAouK
Hear my album, "Armistice" featuring Fender 400 on every song:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2Pz_GXhvmjne7lPEtsplyW
Hear my Pedal Steel Only playlist featuring Mullen G2 SD12 on covers like Candyman, Wild Horses, Across the Universe & more...
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2f0JOyiXpZyzNrvnJObliA |
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