The Steel Guitar Forum

What are the most inexpensive 6-str lap steel
made today, made in quantities and sold commercially?
Also is there any books or tapes on playing fake jazz chords with no slanted bar only straight bar (chords with only 2 tones in them which substitutes for 3 tones) in the lap steel C6 tuning?
Also blues and jazz scales on lap steel C6-tuning.
Kind regards
Henning

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I see they're selling new Morell "student" models at eBay for around $120. I don't know what the quality of these are though.
As for books check at Brad's page: http://www.well.com/user/wellvis/steel.html

Musiciansfriend.com has an Artisan EA-1 for $79.99. I don't know how good it is but it sure is cheap. I'm sure it would be good enough for a beginner to expierment on. You would also have to consider shipping cost.

Check out the Gold Tone, made like the Oahu Tone Master...good solid, good workmanship, long sustaining lap steel. 25" scale length, 3/8" between the strings..about $300
on the net sans case.

For $200 more you can get a George Boards, very, very nice.

"Musiciansfriend.com has an Artisan EA-1 for $79.99."

Trouble with Musiciansfriend is that they don't ship outside the US. So for us Europeans they're not an option, unfortunately.

I've got a new Gretsch G2700 in stock at the steel store on my site- they're really pretty decent guitars, great finish and a cool retro vibe.

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C'mon by and visit!- www.markvanallen.com

My Band: www.sugarlandmusic.com

A friend of a friend called MusiciansFriend to order the Artesian. MF no longer carries it and will not special order.

The Artesian had a great starter price of $79.00, but the chord was in the wrong place and in the way.

Cheap can mean two things...Cheap in price, cheap in quality. I have seen really "cheap" steel guitars...one is nothing but a plank of wood with frets painted on and only one control. I won't mention the name, but how they could have the audacity to market such crap is beyond me. Anyway, if you want a nice custom built guitar, (6, 8 or double), at a very reasonable price, I can highly recommend Elva West in Anaheim CA. I have 4 of his TRADEWIND guitars. Each is well made and very reasonable in cost. He will even make the body according to your sketch, if you desire. You can contact him at: elvawest@hotmail.com ... He's retired and a very nice person to know.

Henning, the tuning you're looking for is The Leavitt Tuning, that my friend Bill Leavitt created back in 1990. From low to high it's C#, E, G, Bb, C and D. You can play 3, 4 and 5 note chords with NO SLANTS. All the hip Jazz chords, min9, Dom7 b9 etc etc. I've got over 70 arrangements of jazz standards in this tuning as well as my own CD. E-mail me and I'll send you the song list and other information.

19.march.2003
Thank you guys. Very helpful.
Kind regards
Henning
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
Henning Kock
(pedal steel guitar, piano, keyboards, vibraphone)
Henning K. Music
111 Aarhusvej
DK-8300 Odder
Denmark,
Europe
phone +45 8654 2959
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e-mail address: henningkmusic@hotmail.com
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webpages:
pedal steel guitar: www.geocities.com/Nashville/1520 www.steelguitardanmark.subnet.dk (information)
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piano & keyboard: www.sitecenter.dk/henning-kock www.danskmusik.com/dmfbook/selskab/html/henning_kock.html
.........
and for musical instrument products wholesale (to dealers): www.henningkmusic.subnet.dk
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The rock-bottom lap steel may be the Sonica some of which have sold on eBay for about $150. I've never seen or played one but they can't be very high quality.
http://www.sonica.org/guitar/lap-steel/various-colors/ <FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Andy Volk on 19 March 2003 at 05:03 PM.]</p></FONT>

To my eyes the Sonica and the Artisan look like the exact same guitar. You sure can't built it yourself for that price!!

The Sonica guitars are made in China.
The same guitar is sold under at least two other brand names on eBay.
Feedback on "Harmony Central" is mostly negative.
Blake

Those Sonicas look to be decent student guitars...(nothing to write home about). The pickups appear to be the type you can purchase at most any music store. I don't know the pricing of these guitars. They look a lot better than that piece of lumber I mentioned (above) which, around here they are asking just under $400.00....highway robbery! At best, those cheap pieces of lumber are worth under $100.00 tops. (I won't mention the name of this garbage, however it does start with an "M").

...

Scott, I agree about 'being made in China'...it can be a gamble. Sadly, US and Canadian manufacturers have put the gun to their own heads which is why there is so much unemployment. On the up side, (and there is an up side), selective goods which are made in China do have quality which I am sure the parent American and Canadian companies insists upon. I refer to Canon cameras, I bought one and it is very well made. I also bought a TEAC combination phono/duo-cassette/5 disc/AM-FM unit which has an excellent sound and is very well made. The prices are low, and frankly I feel guilty buying this 'slave-trade' merchandise, yet it is difficult these days to find anything made in Canada or the US at a reasonable price...all the big manufacturers are locating in China, or so it seems.

Jeff, I'm happy you have discovered the TRADEWIND guitars made by Elva West. He will build any guitar to any design a person would desire....just send him a sketch like I did. His pickups, as you mentioned are all hand wound although, for some 6 string student models he will often use a standard pickup available in most music stores. I took my double 8 to NZ a few years ago. The kiwis down under really liked the nahi nahi sound of that guitar. The nice thing, it fitted into my largest suitcase....I just packed my clothes around it and it arrived safely.

edited

The Sonica and the Artisan seem to be the same, right down to the triangle stickers on the back.

The Morrell student one I have

red sparkle, has Bill Lawrence single-blade humbucker from '76. Cheap axe, sounds great unlike stock-crap pickup. Few minor chips

$80 good first try guitar. It got me started cheaply.<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Chuck Fisher on 08 December 2003 at 10:54 PM.]</p></FONT>

I own the Artisan steel from the Musician's Friend.

It's okay to learn on, but I'm looking forward to getting a new instrument that's better quality.

I think they build those Artisans start to finish in about 10 minutes time.

I didn't know Canon cameras were made in China -- I always thought they were made in Japan. But, I haven't really been keeping up with that stuff.

Tom...times are a-changing. A lot of merchandise which was formerly produced in Japan is now coming out of China. Even HONDA is producing cars made in China!