The Steel Guitar Forum

What kind of Steel do you play?What kind of steel do you wish you owned?

Hawaiian not Hawaiin.

I play a 1960 Fender Triple-8 Stringmaster and a 1958 Fender single-8 deluxe. I wish I had my new steel ready; but soon enough. Never had any inclinations of playing any other non-pedal steels other than those three.


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Ricky Davis
http://hometown.aol.com/sshawaiian/RickyHomepage.html
http://users.interlinks.net/rebel/steel/steel.html
sshawaiian@aol.com

Electric-30's Bakelite Rick..have one, 7 string would be nice...
Acoustic- late 20's Weissenborn Hollowneck and '28 National Tricone squareneck...have one of each...
Guess I'm a lucky guy,
Aloha,
Mike<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by mikey on 17 January 2000 at 01:08 PM.]</p></FONT>

Own presently a '50's Eddie Alkire 10 string lap steel with a superb tone.

Also my pride and joy; a pre August 10, 1937 Rick bakelite 7 string in mint condition.

Looked the world over for almost 40 yrs to find one. Finally a kid in Montana called me and said he had found it! Cost me $925.00. That is a lot of money! But would pay it again.

It plays and sounds good. Does not have 100% of the famous Jerry Byrd "moan". But comes close.

Tom Brumley, Wayne Tanner and I had been searching all over for our 7 strings. Oddly enough we all found ours within a year of each other.

Wayne's has the best "moan". Mine is second and Tom's hardly has any at all. Tom tried every way to trade with me. But 'ain't nobody gonna git thisun'!! .

Incidently, no one knows why some Ricks have the moan, and others don't. The best one in the world to my knowledge is the one JB played on "Hi FI Guitar" and "Steel Guitar Favorites". It hangs proudly now in the Country Music Hall of Fame, in Nashville.

One of these days, in the dead of night, this dude gonna go up to Nashville, and steal that sapsucker.

Not really folks. HE never permits joy with ill gotten gain,

carl

I own a Fender D-8 Stringmaster and a Melobar Rattler.

The "to-die-for" tone I hear on my favorite Hawaiian songs usually turns out to be a Rickenbacker frypan, so I guess that would have to be my #1 choice for Hawaiian music.

-Bill

A 1952 Fender Dual Professional and a 1956 Stringmaster T-8. I also acquired, just this Saturday, a pre-8/10/37 Rickenbacher Model B6, with chrome plates. A beautiful guitar. I also play two old California Dobros, a Model 55 from 1928 and a Model 75 from 1937.

Probably my favorite tone is from my 1937 Dobro electric lap steel (Note: the picture in the link is not the one I own). It's not in the greatest shape, and I had to put new tuners on it, but it really sings.
Here are some other guitars I currently own:
<UL>
[*]1940's National Havana, wood body, arched back, refinished, new tuners and neck reset in 1991, serial number 2635 G </LI>
[*]1951 National Dynamic - serial number V33763 </LI>
[*]Early1950's Fender Deluxe 8 lap steel, yellow finish, eight strings, serial number 7007 </LI>
[*]1955 Fender Deluxe 8 (Stringmaster type) lap steel, three legs, white finish, serial number 0090</LI>
[*]Early 1950's Fender Champion lap steel - yellow pearloid, serial number 1953 </LI>
[*]1939 Gibson EH-100, sunburst maple top, serial number 5GE-2088 </LI>
[*]1940's Rickenbacher Model B, black Bakelite with white body plates, no serial number </LI>
[*]Rickenbacker model 105, circa 1959, red body, heavily modified </LI>
[*]1960's Magnatone Varsity, blue pearloid (mother of toilet seat), serial number 35999</LI>
[/list]


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Brad's Page of Steel:
www.well.com/~wellvis/steel.html
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars
<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Brad Bechtel on 17 January 2000 at 10:40 AM.]</p></FONT>

1946 Gibson BR-4 six string lap (mahogany sunburst, top and back binding).

1956 Double Eight 24.5" Fender Stringmaster.

Prewar Hourglass shaped Oahu six string lap.

1931 National Duolian green-crinkle finish
resonator (better for blues than Hawaiian). This guitar is my one 'little old lady' find.
It did belong to a LOL who bought it new, tried a few lessons and then kept it in a closet for 45 years. I've had it for 25 years.

Out of all of them, I currently prefer the Gibson. It has that pre-war midrange sound that I love. I like the wide string spacing of the Gibson compared to the Fender. My slants are more in tune and easier to grab.

What do I want?
1940's era Fender console trapezoid pickups (more mellow than a Stringmaster I hope).

1930's Rickenbacker Frypan in MINT MINT condition for $40.

1930's Rickenbacker Bakelite (see Frypan for pricing information).<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Gerald Ross on 18 January 2000 at 06:02 AM.]</p></FONT>

1951 Blonde Gibson Console Grande 8/7

Pre 8/10/37 Rickenbacker Electro 6 string Bakelite w/chrome plates

2 early 60's Supro Studio lap steels (pickups say scream-o-rama!!)

1 no-name (but must be of National/Valco/Supro heritage as it is the same body shape/pickup etc. as above) grey MOTS lap steel

1936 Gibson EH-150 7 String lap steel - coming soon to Buy and Sell Forum near you

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Greg Simmons
Custodian of the Official Sho~Bud Pedal Steel Guitar Website
shobud.cjb.net

My current gig steel is the excel jb mdel dbl 8

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Apart from my 1951 Fender Triple 8 (the one with the trapezoid PU's) I would like to have a non pedal Bigsby or maybe a triple neck with one neck with pedals.
Maybe a Rickenbacker Double 8 console...

Current Lap Steel is a early 50's Fender Champion 6 string. This thing screams!!! Old Tele type pickup with flat polepieces. Very light and resonate. Others I have owned are an excellent Gibson Console Grande D-8 got it from Dana here at the Forum and also just sold a great sounding 1957 Stringmaster D-8 to Bob Hoffnar.

I really like this little Champion steel for slide playing tuned to open E lots of fun!!

Lap Steel(s) I would most like to have would be a really nice Rickenbacker Silver Hawaiian or a Fry pan or Bakelite Rickenbacker "Panda" with the 6 strings thru the body design.<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Mark Davis on 17 January 2000 at 03:11 PM.]</p></FONT>

I just purchased a Fender Champion. It's in the mail. I played one in Japan. It really sang out. Became a must have, and my first lap.

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www.mp3.com/PeggyGreen
cdbaby.com/green
www.ontonet.com/mpriv/music/PeggyGreen.htm

I own a '56 stringmaster 2x8 short scale, a mid-50s Fender DeLuxe 8, a near mint '46 or '47 National New Yorker and a '29 Tricone squareneck. The New Yorker is my least favorite--great harmonics, but the tone is thin. Love that Stringmaster.

Someday I hope to own a 7-string pre-war bakelite Ric. Recently I held a new 10-string Sierra lap (owned by sacred steeler Johnny Dudley of Ft. Lauderdale, FL) but didn't get the chance to play it. Dang!

I know this asks about types of steel, but the subject was for Hawaiian Players...Is everyone saying these are the instruments for playing Hawaiian Music?..or just what they are using generally? I'd be suprised to see so many Hawaiian music players out there!!!!
Aloha,
Mike

I own a Bear Creek Weissenborn, a Regal Resophonic and a 1937 Gibson EH-150. I used to have a '52 Fender Custom and I kinda miss it but man, that thing was heavy!

1935 Gibson EH (metal body). Sounds like Charlie Parker's alto sax. Especially thru an EH-150 amp.

1928 National Resophonic Style 2 tricone...acoustically, nothing comes close to it!

Lap steels I own are:

Early '30s short scale "Ric Frypan" 6 string
1938 "Ric Bakelite" 6 string
Early or mid '30s Gibson EH185 6 string
1961 (I think) Fender dual 8 Stringmaster
Regal square neck Dobro (mid '90s I think).

All these steels are playable and are used from time to time depending on the style of music I'm supposed to play. My favorites are the "Frypan" and (or the Bakelite for the Jerry Byrd sound). Would like to have a Triple 8 Fender Custom (approx '48 thru 53/54 vintage and a 7 string Bakelite and a 7 string Frypan.

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kd...and the beat goes on...

<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Kenny Dail on 19 January 2000 at 11:06 AM.]</p></FONT>

I've got a 1965 D-8 Fender Stringmaster 24" as well as a Mint 1951 Ricky 8 string G-Deluxe which is the fanciest model of the Silver Hawaiian body style.Of the two,I'd say the Ricky was more fun to play and has the creamiest tone you ever heard,but if I was gonna really play a gig of that kind of music,I'd have to play the Fender.I also have a mint mid 60s black & white Supro S-8 on 3 legs that also sounds lovely.I recently checked out Bobby Black's Sierra lap steel and they would be a wonderful alternitive to ANY of the sought after "classics" that everybody's lusting after. -MJ-