Pedal height setting

[Mcneilwaeasteel]

Perhaps this rambling will help others who are or have been in a similar “ Pedicament “
I’ve been steeling some time in the last week practicing and adjusting my guitar, it’s a Mullen y’know and it is perfect in every way according to Mr Gamble, but I was never happy about the pedal height set up and trolled different sites looking for information about setting pedals up.
I read a quote from somewhere that Ron Lashley had recommended that on leaving the factory, Sho Bud pedals should be adjusted at a set height from the floor, with B pedal 3/4” then A and C both set to 1”.

My guitar was placed on a smooth level floor and the pedals adjusted accordingly, and as the actress said to the bishop what a difference 1/2” can make, the guitar was totally different with a very light touch and a lot easier to play!
But things were still not right with me and my foot pressure was still uneven and not raising the strings properly making the guitar slightly out of tune, I was still tinkering about adjusting rod lengths under it like a pit mechanic adjusting pedals in attempts to
“ fine tune” them when I played.
Then reality hit me when I realised it wasn’t the pedal height that mattered, it was the pressure points on the them when fully engaged that were important, so safety hat on and down below again to set pedal hight when fully depressed !
again once more into the breach dear friend!
Eureka I’ve now got it!
I can depress the pedals a lot easier now reaching the right notes and also switch from A pedal to B and even C, getting the difference between them just right so that I can hold B and waggle A on and off in combination, I can feel each pressure point when my foot is on the pedal and it’s fully depressed.
In a day I’ve become so proficient that I can now depress that mysterious C pedal at last, what’s it for?
I’ve still got to find out what that one does?
Hopefully this missive will help others or even provide food for thought from other pedlars with more edumecation about these matters!
Perhaps now I will set about brushing up on me English and pronuncikation!

[JohnDavisStringsHere]

One man's C pedal is another man's A pedal re Emmon's V Day ...... Gordon always set the E to F# pedal a little higher than the other two and it makes sense if you think about it as it requires a lot more travel...

[coolsteel]

Interesting, it's all about attention to detail.

[Mcneilwaeasteel]

Richard, here’s a bit more detail for you!
Further to a post on another site, Matt Kidney (Posterboy) has kindly allowed me to repost this here

I’m 6’1”. I use a standard pack seat height. Seems to work for me.
I have standard emmons set up.
I use flat rubber bottom shoes.
I did this on my first Mullen G2 it was perfect. When I got my 2nd Mullen discovery I set it up exactly the same and it worked just like the G2.
Process:
Set B where you get a comfortable pull with your heel down and your foot isn’t uncomfortable meaning not angled up too much. You can freely move left and right. For me, the B pedal was about 7/8 from the floor all the way down.
Here is the tricky part.
A height works off B pedal height.
Loosen nut and start with A a little higher than B. Squeeze Both AB then use E lever. Then rock off A see if you can cleanly play those strings without 5 or 10 strings altered. They should be open and sound in tune.
Now do the same thing with A down and F lever and check if 3-6 strings are in tune open.
You may have to go back and adjust B a turn or 2 to get that right. One rotation does more than you think. It might take a while. Keep all the nuts loose while your doing this.
One you can comfortably play B-E clean, then A-F clean.
B pedal height is probably good.
A pedal is close.
Part 2 A pedal.
Squeeze A half pedal and see if you touch B at all. If you don’t then you probably pretty well set. If you do touch B, then you may want to raise A one turn.
But if it screws up those other changes don’t do it. Just get use to angling you foot to the side and doing half pedal that way.
C pedal.
I just set it a little above B I bounce back and forth from AB to BC till I get it where that it smooth. If C is so low that when you squeeze both BC and A is way over your foot, then raise C a couple turns.
When you press All 3 down by hand, you should see a V shape. They are all going to be within a half 1/2 inch of each other. The B pedal is the the key.
That worked for me on 3 guitars.
Older Fessenden
2 brand new mullens.
Hope that helps.
Oh and if I try a heel shoe like a cowboy boot, My set up is trash. I have raise guitar and reset the pedals.

Above was the method used by Matt who is 6’1” and as I’m a good 5” smaller I found it worked for me, seat position and leg length come into the equation and we are all going to get a different range of settings that can are playable and comfortable.

Regards my final setting a lower C pedal than A & B suits me better, as I’ve got to be different, when fully depressed my foot level was uneven, when higher the side of my shoe hit the pedal first, after following Matts advice on setting the pedals, I ended up with all the pedals to high for comfort, so I turned the rod lengths back one turn at a time on each of the three pedals keeping the same pull distance between the pedals and lowering them all together until I reached a height that was most suitable for me, if it helps anyone my final pedal set up is given below with pedals set at the following distance from the floor.

Pedal. A. B. C.
Open 1 1/2”. 1 1/4”. 1 1/8”.
Fully depressed 1”. 5/8”. 1/2”.

My guitar feels totally different and has now become a pleasure to play, after all it’s a Mullen Royal Precision and despite rumours to the contrary from Hunners & Co “ they don’t come any better!”

I hope this post helps others find settings that suit them better and thanks to Matt for his response to my problem.
I’ve got lot’s more problems but I won’t open up that can of worms yet!