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Buddy is in Hospital

Mon Sep 14, 2020 11:53 pm

Now that I have your attention, I would just like to say that my old Emmons ( Buddy) has been admitted to Dr Bob's hospital for some long overdue work to be carried out. He was involved in a Two Bus / One Car accident 9 or 10 years ago, and has never been out of the case in all that time.
Bob is adding a 4th lever and setting the copedant the same as my Mullen.
I honestly can't wait for the end result. Up untill the bus fracas it was one of the busiest guitars in Scotland, it has seen a lot of service, depping and a shed load of recording work.
I do love my Mullen, which I would not part with, but honestly, I can't wait to hear the old guy again.
Asleep at the steel

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Tue Sep 15, 2020 8:32 am

Willie, for a minute you had me worried I thought the Mullen was in for the chop.
It will be good to hear how the Emmons sounds after a visit to Dr Bob's surgery.

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Tue Sep 15, 2020 12:36 pm

And the award for the "Best Attention Grabbing Topic" goes to....................................(long pause)..........................(very long pause)....................Willie Gamble :lol:

Nice one Willie, I'm sure Bob'll rejuvenate your old gentleman, once he gets his mitts on it :lol:

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Tue Sep 15, 2020 9:37 pm

Roy, rest assured, my Mullen is going nowhere, both Bob and I are great fans of the Emmons push pull and had spoken about the old fella regularly, I eventually plucked up the courage to broach the subject with him re setting it up the same as the Mullen, so it will be set up permanently in the house for practice.
Danny, I have asked Bob to do as little cosmetically to the guitar as I am rather proud of all his battle scars, but I am confident that it will play sweetly.
They will both be with me untill I pop my clogs

Asleep at the steel

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Wed Sep 16, 2020 7:22 am

Hi Willie.
For many years my D10 push pull just laid in its split cases, forgotten and while it wasn't uncared for, it hadn't been touched. One time, I set it up and restrung it. Five minutes of playing it gave me a re-connection with it. Quite simply, I'd forgotten just how great my p/p sounded. It was astounding. But........it didn't have those modern changes that I'd grown to love. The only thing I'd done to the guitar up to then of any significance was to replace some of the 1/8" pull rods with titanium rod that I got from India on eBay.

I put the (now) standard 1st, 2nd and 7th string raise on RKL along with the 9th string and 2nd string lower on RKR. I also installed a half stop device that my friend Clem Schmitz made and sent me for the second string lower. The guitar originally came with a Crawford Cluster on the left knee, so I removed two of those levers. I bought some longer, polished levers from Michael Yahl that were made on his CNC machine from aircraft grade aluminium, and sold the black anodised shorter ones that were on the guitar originally. Two or three levers had always been difficult to reach. I made some polished aluminium flags for those levers, and Bob's your uncle - problem solved. A lever kit from Billy Knowles for LKV lowers my 5 and 10. No sweat. I have a number of modern extended length Emmons-style bell cranks that shorten the lever travel on a couple of levers. The old gal has 5 levers in total. I might put the Franklin pedal changes on pedal 4 sometime, as I have it on my other guitars.

The guitar's previous owner, the late Ron Mawn, had put ball bearings and washers where the shafts went into the cabinet for pedals 1, 2 and 3. I put a tiny dab of molyb grease on those bearings and replaced the rusted steel washers with stainless ones. The pedal action is superb on E9. I replaced some springs in the guitar that had rusted slightly, put some additional shock springs on here and there, and balanced some of the pulls to start and finish together. Lastly I took the single coil pickups off that sounded great (but hummed a little on some gigs) and put Lawrence 705 pickups in.

The result is that I have an Emmons push pull that has gone to the top of my herd in terms of tone and playability. I'm sure that Mr Adams will get your guitar looking and sounding wonderful too Willie. My Emmons looks as though it has just come out of the Burlington factory. Its immaculate, and while I don't have the emotional attachment to mine as you do with yours, I'm as proud as Punch of it as you will be I'm sure.

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Wed Sep 16, 2020 8:55 pm

It's still in A & E for assessment Willie, it will be going up to the ward in the next 48 hours when the consultant has come out of rehab! Davie's old MSA is now on its feet and has been played for the last 2½ hrs., it's running sweeter than the Waverly ever did. (She said,' That sounds much better than I thought it would!') Goodness! I Near fell off my seat! Sorry folks, just another case in outpatients.

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:38 am

bob adams wrote:It's still in A & E for assessment Willie, it will be going up to the ward in the next 48 hours when the consultant has come out of rehab! Davie's old MSA is now on its feet and has been played for the last 2½ hrs., it's running sweeter than the Waverly ever did. (She said,' That sounds much better than I thought it would!') Goodness! I Near fell off my seat! Sorry folks, just another case in outpatients.


I'll definitely be getting up to Scoootland with the Show Pro for some extra goodies fitting and a service.

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Fri Sep 18, 2020 6:38 pm

bob adams wrote:It's still in A & E for assessment Willie, it will be going up to the ward in the next 48 hours when the consultant has come out of rehab! Davie's old MSA is now on its feet and has been played for the last 2½ hrs., it's running sweeter than the Waverly ever did. (She said,' That sounds much better than I thought it would!') Goodness! I Near fell off my seat! Sorry folks, just another case in outpatients.


At least your lady listens to your playing Robert! :lol: :lol:

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Fri Sep 18, 2020 6:49 pm

Now that did make me smile Kenneth, surely your good lady is your number one fan??? :D :D

Re: Buddy is in Hospital

Fri Sep 18, 2020 7:42 pm

If she’s anything like Pauline ‘she’s heard it all before’ :lol:
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