Backwards copedent on Emmons p/p

[Tom Higgins]

I acquired an Emmons D10(1970) and it has the C6`th pedals reversed,ie,10`th string C to A drop is on pedal 4,A to B raises are on pedal 8,etc.Looks like it`ll be a real PITA to change everything around,but I`m too old to adapt to this setup.I`m thinking the easiest way out is to strip it out and reassemble from scratch?

[Jon Light]

From my limited experience with P/Ps (extensive work on three guitars) my observation is that, same as with my much stronger skills with all pull guitars, with good planning, lots of thought and visualization ..... just a generally strong sense of knowing what you mean to do before you start in ..... it is not so daunting. You will need to remove shafts to get your bellcranks count right. You will need to remove rods in the process (when it applies, you can loosen the cranks and 'lay them down' to slide under rods). With good strategy, you can at least reduce the amount of disruption. Be sure to note any multiple changes on a rod so that you don't have to remove the rod to insert additional barrels and springs that you forgot about (no, I've never done this cough cough). But no question, sometimes just stripping it is easier than going through contortions trying to limit the amount of disruption. Of course, copious notes and photos will aid you in reassembling things properly.

[Jerry Overstreet]

Always good information from Jon.

I appreciate that you think getting used to the reversed pedals is not an option, but I would suggest you at least give it a try.

I guess it would depend on how ingrained the changes are to you.

Having the boo-wah pedal next to 5 has it's advantages and a lot of folks don't really use the whole tone raise of strings 4&8 common on pedal 4 a lot.

Everybody's different though. Good luck in setting the guitar up to suit you.

I'll offer one more thought: Push Pulls are a different beast and changing the set-up can be daunting. One particular aspect is the adjusting of linkage on strings that both lower and raise.

As someone who has done lots of set-up work on many all pull guitars, with only limited experience on push-pulls, I wouldn't want to make any major setup changes on a push pull.

I would just seek out a tech that is familiar with them.

Best of luck.

[Jon Light]

Thank you Jerry.
I absolutely agree re: raise/lower linkages. There is a big difference between getting it so that "it works" vs. getting it so that "it plays well". I am much more in the first category and I admire the skill and artistry of those in the latter.

In the event that you might find yourself in a situation where one of these would save you a ton of time and trouble, Clem Schmitz's slip-on cranks are everything you want them to be.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/284014347779?h ... Sw3dtdZrXW

[Tom Higgins]

Thanks to both of you.My first plan was to let an expert go through the guitar,reconfigure,adjust,etc,but was quoted $2k,give or take depending on what he found.Probably worth it,but not doable for me at this time.I`m reading and re-reading the P/P Methodology and Practice booklet,but there will be more HELP! requests coming.

[Bob Watson]

The great steel guitarist, Big Jim Murphy, who was an amazing steel player on both necks, had his C6 set up like that, completely backwards to the "normal" set up. I won't say it was common, but it wasn't unheard of. Unless you play a lot of C6, I would bet you could become comfortable with that set up sooner than you would think. I used to sit in on Murph's steels occasionally and I would only use the "diminished" pedals when I played C6. I was surprised at how much music I could find with that limitation. You might even find aspects of that set up that you like. You could at least try that while you are saving up your money to get it changed over by a P/P mechanic. On the other hand, if you do change it over yourself, you will probably never need to hire someone else to work on it again. Best of luck to you trying to figure out how to deal with this dilemma.

[Alan Bidmade]

Why did you buy it?

[Tom Higgins]

I don`t get the question.I bought it to play it.

[Paul Sutherland]

Look at Jerry Gleason's C-6th copedent in the links. He has the set up you have described. I've never played such a set-up, but I would certainly give it a try for a good while before trying to change anything.