ZB custom on EBay?

[Ken Byng]

......Ken, can you remember any coming to UK?

Nope - never seen one Tony. Eric would have crowed about an 11 string Student if one had come through his shop. If you were lucky to get the right one, some ZB Students had wonderful tone.

[Willie Gamble]

As far as I can see, and I may be wrong, but I only see 9 fingers on the changer. I have it on good authority that ZB guitars are great guitars if and when they are set up correctly, but judging by the amount this one has been twaddled with, I personally would give this the widest of wide berths.
Asleep at the steel

[Zebedee]

I had a ZB Student 10 string, it had great tone, far better than modern steels.

Alas, it also had terrible cabinet drop.

I have a better understanding now of how to counteract cabinet drop than I had 30 years ago when I was gigging the little ZB, and wish it was still in my stable.

The 11 stringer on ebay is a bit pricey at £800, maybe £500 would be more realistic imho

[Tony Russell Davis]

This one was a great guitar for tone and quite a looker - why did I part with it??? Oh, yes - weight!

[JohnDavisStringsHere]

you got that right cousin, I used to wonder why Gordon needed so many levers until I tried to put 3 raise and one lower on one, even at that weight guitar was trying to exit stage left, still it was a great sounding steel.

[brunopietoso]

The 11 stringer on ebay is a bit pricey at £800, maybe £500 would be more realistic imho

The seller contacted me saying he could go down a bit but not as far as 500 however, based on most of the feedback I've had here I am not sure this would be a good purchase for a first time pedal steel buyer considering I wouldnt really understand what needs to be done with it (other than whats been mentioned from all the help I got here). Perhaps this would be a good project for someone with more experience or a seasoned player but for a beginner like me, might as well save up and go for something more ready to play?

[Ken Byng]

I would bide your time Bruno, if you are keen on getting a ZB. There must be many dozens of ZBs lying underneath beds in the UK, and it will only be a matter of time before a decent Student model surfaces. I had a guy bring me a ZB student that had been hand painted dark green with what looked like a tar brush. Not only had the cabinet top been painted, but also the undercarriage including all of the pull rods and cross plates! The chap wanted me to get it back to playability, and told me "I've been told that this instrument is worth a grand or more". I politely told him a few home truths about the value of the guitar with it's horrendous refinishing! .

[brunopietoso]

I would bide your time Bruno, if you are keen on getting a ZB. There must be many dozens of ZBs lying underneath beds in the UK, and it will only be a matter of time before a decent Student model surfaces. I had a guy bring me a ZB student that had been hand painted dark green with what looked like a tar brush. Not only had the cabinet top been painted, but also the undercarriage including all of the pull rods and cross plates! The chap wanted me to get it back to playability, and told me "I've been told that this instrument is worth a grand or more". I politely told him a few home truths about the value of the guitar with it's horrendous refinishing! .

Hi Ken,

You're absolutely right! I've given up on this idea and back to the drawing board it is. Thanks for your input!

[Ken Byng]

Bruno
There is one of the older MSA guitars (Classic) on Fleabay at the moment. It's a D10, and while it's in average condition for its age the MSA is built to be indestructible. It's up for £500, and that is a hell of a lot of guitar for the money. It probably will go up on its starting price, but it's worth a punt.