New BenRom steel

[Bent Romnes]

Here we have my newly completed steel number 4.
This BenRom has 4 pedals and 5 knees.Make sure you check out the detailed pics here as well:
http://s389.photobucket.com/albums/oo33 ... ct%20%204/

[Steve Conway]

Bent, that steel looks stunning!! Hope you will post something to let us all hear how it sounds. Take care.
Steve

[Ken Byng]

Great job Bent - congratulations. A brilliant job.

One or two questions - the roller nut would appear to be set higher than would normally be seen on a pedal steel. Was this to accomodate the Alumitone pick-up, or to decrease the amount of hysterisis at the machine head assembly?

Also, does the extra height of the strings above the fretboard cause additional parallax issues?

[Bent Romnes]

Steve, thanks. Will yo be in Norway in August by chance?

Ken, The height of the strings above the neck is 3/4"... a very standard measurement. Several commercial steels use this.
Nt sure what you mean when you say paralax. I got this from dictionary.com " par·al·lax
   [par-uh-laks] Show IPA
–noun
1.
the apparent displacement of an observed object due to a change in the position of the observer.
2.
Astronomy . the apparent angular displacement of a celestial body due to its being observed from the surface instead of from the center of the earth (diurnal parallax or geocentric parallax) or due to its being observed from the earth instead of from the sun (annual parallax or heliocentric parallax). Compare parallactic ellipse.
3.
the difference between the view of an object as seen through the picture-taking lens of a camera and the view as seen through a separate viewfinder.

Is it #1? where the eye of the player gets thrown off re fretboard/bar placement. In that case I have not experienced a problem, since I have the same distance on Red and are used to it. The buyer has a well known brand now and it is the same distance on it.
The Alumitone slid in there easily, under the strings, minus the mounting plate. I didn't need it because I have my own plate in the cavity.

[Ken Byng]

Bent - it might just be an optical illusion on the picture. Yes - parallax affects the angle of the eye / bar in relation to the fret positions on the neck, and can be affected by seat and body positioning in addition to string height.

Irrespective of the string height, it is an impressive piece of workmanship. Guys like you, Martin Weenik and Dave Wheelhouse who are manufacturing bespoke individual instruments are to be encouraged and congratulated for having the tenacity and the love of the instrument inspiring you to make ever improving designs.

How do you find the tone of the Alumitones over more conventional pickups?

[Steve Conway]

Bent, wont be in Norway this year as I am working on new material with a new band. Hope to be there next year, God willing!
Take care my friend.
Steve

[Bent Romnes]

Ken, yes, I had a guy here comment on the string height as well, and we came to the conclusion that it could be an optical illusion caused by the camera angle.
Thanks for your kind words and for putting me at the same level as Martin and Dave. Your Dave Wheelhouse is more than a builder. He is an artist and a craftsman in the truest sense of the word. I am thrilled to have made his acquaintance on the net and hope to learn more from him in the future. Martin Weenick is also in a class by himself. Not only does he build beautiful steel guitars but he is a great teacher, morale booster and friend. We have been in phone contact since my last 2 projects and I have learned a lot from him.
I am a very lucky man to have two friends like that push me along and just encourage me along the way.

As for the Alumitone...I believe it to be brighter and clearer than a humbucker. In some instances it reminds me of a single coil. It has LOTS of volume.
I will be trying the Tonealigner as well before I deliver this guitar, so we'll see.
If it hadn't been for the hum, I would have put one of my homemade single coils on it. I like the tone in those the best. But I believe the hum is not as bad in England and Norway as it is here, with the 220V/50HZ electric supply. So maybe I'll give him one of mine just to try out.

Thanks for your kind remarks, all of you!

[Bent Romnes]

Hi all, Now you can hear what the Blue BenRom sounds like. David Hartley played it during our weekend together in Norway. http://benrom.com/index.php
Go through the clickable buttons and see all of what I got so far on my new site.