The Steel Guitar Forum

Asking for a friend who is looking (really)--
Do we know anyone making a sitar bar these days?

Michael Hillman of powder coated bars makes them.

Thanks. He actually told me that Hillman was what he had turned up and asked me if there was anybody else making regular steel or chromed bars. Looks like I'll tell him to go ahead and order the Hillman.

I bought a used bar from a forum member that is stainless. Not sure of the maker. Read the posts that had Paul Franklin saying he used a 1/4 inch thick aluminum piece for a sitar bar. I thought Tom Bradshaw used to carry them.

Thanks Larry. Tom's site does not currently list them.
I have no interest myself and I've never had, so I never filed, mentally or bookmarked, any info on this subject.
I've sent my friend a link to this discussion so that he can follow and decide what he wants to do.

That 1/4” aluminum stock is the best I have ever used. Paul’s Dad used to shape the top a little and sold them. Work great!

If you have a old bar laying around get a belt sander with a 120 grit belt and sand the edge of the bar flat to 1/2 inch wide flat part. I did these to a old bar to keep it rolling on the strings while I was playing 6 String. Worked well and when I used on the strings little did I know that I also made a Sitar bar.

Billy I agree but the standard seems to be 1/4 wide. Not sure how much difference that makes. I have one and use it on occasion.

I had one of my old Emmons bars milled down to 1/2” wide then polished. Here’s an example:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DJTPtaYtc6s

The Dunlop Company used to make sitar bars for me. They were identical to the #921 bars they still make and are shown on my website (www.songwriter.com/bradshaw/tone_bars.php). All the Dunlop Company did was mill a 1/2" flat edge to those bars. The bars were (and are) 11.5 ounces and 3 1/2" long, and 1" in diameter. They stopped making them since the milling of the flat edge took too much time and I didn't order enough of them to justify the extra milling cost.

So, if you chose to, you could obtain one of these bars and mill the flat spot yourself.

Thanks for that info Tom!

This easy to do if you have a belt sander and a 120 grit belt. No special tools just keep your fingers from making contact with the sanding belt.

Tom Bradshaw wrote:The Dunlop Company used to make sitar bars for me. They were identical to the #921 bars they still make and are shown on my website (www.songwriter.com/bradshaw/tone_bars.php). All the Dunlop Company did was mill a 1/2" flat edge to those bars. The bars were (and are) 11.5 ounces and 3 1/2" long, and 1" in diameter. They stopped making them since the milling of the flat edge took too much time and I didn't order enough of them to justify the extra milling cost.

So, if you chose to, you could obtain one of these bars and mill the flat spot yourself.

Did they not make them as a standard option? I have a Dunlop sitar bar somewhere that I bought from a shop in London years ago. Maybe they special ordered a batch from Dunlop too?