Lousy Service

[sabatica]

lap STEEL guitar always gives a cleaner tone and more sustained note with STEEL.

Its weight enables the player to "fret" the note more accurately and stay in tune in a band scenario.

Everything else is marketing hype. I've tried several bars over the years from steel/ceramic/glass etc.

Steel is Real.

Hope that helps.

[WineRider]

lap STEEL guitar always gives a cleaner tone and more sustained note with STEEL.

OK don't completely agree but I have noticed the following:

I have a badly damaged left wrist (doesn't necessarily make me a bad person) and I find it difficult to use a heavy bar at times. So I experimented and had 3 bars made:

1. Brass 18mm diam. which is the equivelent size to 45/64ths." and is used by quite a few pickers.... But I find this one has beautiful sustain and tone but too small for me. Not for me!!!
1. Brass 20mm diam. This has a lovely tone and and sustain, it starts to get too heavy after a while, but I like playing with it.

1. Steel 20mm Diam. Has a brighter tone (just) compared to the brass slide, and I can't tell the difference in sustain to the brass one. This also gives me problems after a while, but again I quite like playing with it.

The stoneware 25mm diam. Is crap on tone and sustain plus it makes a lot of noise on the strings when sliding. But I understand it isn't noticable to paople listening. It's light to use so more pressure is required, and it has a good feel. But I just don't like it although my wrist loves it.

CAN'T WIN. CAN I ????

Now question 1: If steel is all important to tone/sustain why are bridges and nuts made out of varying compounds: Nut: bone, plastic, brass, ally or steel. Bridges: bone, plastic, brass, ally, steel or carbon? Both my bridge and nut are made from wood with steel insert, personally I can't tell any difference at all, plus none of us use the same setup as to amps. stomp boxes, reverb or echo and volume pedal.

Question 2: Who is right, who is wrong or is it as I have decided my choice as to what I like as my sound and my music?

WineRider. The clinically dead but analytically sound or I was the last time I found it!

[sabatica]

Hi Gretschnut,
Top service could possibly come from where you say, but for me the site is too expensive for me. Price shouldn't dictate whether or not you get good service and also in this instance Gerry Hogan doesn't list the Tone Bar in question. I haven"t looked into buying from UK much because the cost of p and p is in many cases prohibitive. I do have some good suppliers in the UK for strings and picks etc. But heavier items are cheaper from the States, which really annoys me, also postage from the States usually gets to me here in France quicker than from the UK...why I don't know.

Maurice

CUSTOMS in the UK want to charge you LOADS. Sad really for us lap steelers as they are trying to protect local businesses but for us we have no known good UK lap steel manufacturers that don't charge an arm and a leg.

Once asked for a quote from a luthier herring his starting price for a lap steel was £700 for a 6 string instrument. I laughed and got one built in the Custom built in the US and shipped over for $600 US.