ilovefuzz.com

https://reverb.com/item/1502078-bill-mo ... ingerboard



Unsigned.

Un-mando'd.

But well boxed.

white MF-102 for under $180--

https://reverb.com/item/13950225-moog-m ... itar-pedal

Chankgeez wrote:If you're goin' for Eharps, this one's not as much of a deal, but it looks way wicked

https://reverb.com/item/13938283-1950s- ... nd-case-81

Agreed *WAY* wicked (as one says in Boston)

GC in my area has a cheap as shit lapsteel for sale but I don't quite understand them. Are they supposed to be super rigid? Like, you can't depress the strings at all barely to touch the frets. Is that normal?

the frets on a lap steel are only there as position markers. you never touch the strings to the fretboard-analogue, you slide on the strings with a chrome bar.

dubkitty wrote:the frets on a lap steel are only there as position markers. you never touch the strings to the fretboard-analogue, you slide on the strings with a chrome bar.

Interesting! This one is from the 50's. I'll have to go give it a closer look. Thanks!

here's a pretty good look at Lindley playing lap steel:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAbbgSKUZB4[/youtube]

Jwar wrote:

dubkitty wrote:the frets on a lap steel are only there as position markers. you never touch the strings to the fretboard-analogue, you slide on the strings with a chrome bar.

Interesting! This one is from the 50's. I'll have to go give it a closer look. Thanks!

I almost thought you were joking at first Jwar

...but if anyone could touch those strings to frets it's you

I'm always amused in a charmed sort of way when I run across old lap steels with actual frets--seems like a lot of over-building when lines will do....

Dandolin wrote:I'm always amused in a charmed sort of way when I run across old lap steels with actual frets--seems like a lot of over-building when lines will do....

Depends on how your workflow is set up. For frets you just cut the slots on a gang saw and hammer in fretwire. That fits in with the build process if you have other fretted instruments coming off the production line. If you have one product that needs a printed set of fret markers you need to prep the board surface for paint, add finish, then print the fret markers, then clear coat. That's a dramatically more complex and time-consuming process that might not fit in with anything else you make. It also means the fret markers can then wear off over time.

Hmmm--some good points. I do see a wide variance in "construction" of vintage lap steel fingerboards--from fretted, to painted-on, to thin metal sheeting with graphics painted on or embossed, to "frets" either cast or molded all in one with the metal or bakelite body, to laminated paper or paper under lucite or other clear methylacrylate (pick your brand name: acrylite, lucite, plexiglass, perspex).... I don't really know much about the workflow, shop size, degree of automation, or other details. Some of these companies, not just Gibson and later Fender, and especially the Chicago-based ones made a lot of instruments in both quantity and variety....

The fretted lap steels may very well have been an expression of shop efficiency, though some may have been vestiges of techniques employed for a long time on other instruments.

The decorative and functional variety is one of the most charming aspects of vintage lap steels for me....

There is also the marketing angle where frets, even if you weren't using them, might be pitched a sign of quality. "The company does all this extra work because they care about quality when they could just use a sticker like Company X" or something along those lines.

whoismarykelly wrote:There is also the marketing angle where frets, even if you weren't using them, might be pitched a sign of quality. "The company does all this extra work because they care about quality when they could just use a sticker like Company X" or something along those lines.

I could definitely see this being the case in some instances. I wonder too, if some were doing it out of habit, then realized, "oh wait, these things don't even need actual frets." Would be interesting to see the progression with specific companies over time.

I agree, whoismarykelly. Jero--based on what I've seen looking at models by many of the biggest players--Gibson, Fender, Rickenbacker, National/Supro/Oahu, Harmon--the trend was away from hammere-in frets over time.... Chankgeez might have something to useful to add

Frets or fret markers: all the same to me as long as I can tell where I am when I'm looking at the neck.

What's even more important to me than that is knowing exactly where all the harmonics are. Fancy designs on the "fretboard" help in that regard.