posted 08 August 2000 01:48 PM         

This guitar was built back in 1978 by Bud Carter and it still sounds as good as the day my dad took delivery of it. I recently have re-done some of the copedent and have hooked it up stereo through 2 Session 400s. What a sound!!!... And it sure looks mighty pretty on the bandstand. I must say, Reese and the boys knew what they were doing. IT RULES!!!

Ric..

MSA D-12 Vintage-XL. 8/5..E9th/B6th.. Hardrock Maple. Triple raise/lower. Green finish.. What a guitar...

[This message was edited by Ric Epperle on 11 August 2000 at 08:10 AM.]

I'd reccommend it to anyone looking for a steel in that price range.

But, (there's always a but), my back hurts just thinking of lugging that D12!

Merry Christmas Ric!

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j0e

are you playing without finger picks or just posing for the camera?

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my best to ya'

posted 08 August 2000 02:15 PM         

As far as the weight? I don't worry about it. I have a couple of teenage boys who pack my gear for me..

Joe. This picture was taken back in December... They've taken the tree down by now, I'm sure.....

[This message was edited by Ric Epperle on 08 August 2000 at 02:17 PM.]

posted 09 August 2000 06:01 AM         

I've never owned one and don't want one.

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Franklin D-10
Fender Nashville Tele
A Country Musician

posted 10 August 2000 06:12 AM         

The reason most believe the MSA is too heavy, is because of the weight of the case itself. Thirty years ago we were under the impression that a case was to be built so as to best protect the instrument. To accomplish that, they had to be heavy, thus the MSA guitar was considered heavy.

It is true that many MSA guitars weigh more than most others setup outside the case, however, only a few pounds seperate the MSA from others.

We felt (and I still feel the same today)the aluminum rail support around the body which integrated the entire guitar, was worth a few extra pounds.

I believe this is a contributing factor as to why so many are still in use today and functioning perfectly the way they were designed to do, many of which are between 20 and 30 years old.

posted 10 August 2000 07:27 AM         

I recall one night during the 1977 DJ Convention in N'ville, at a steel jam in some hotel. I remember that Speedy, Curly, and Lloyd Green were playing. Anyway, there was a new MSA lacquer cabinet D-10 sitting on the stage. Paul Franklin Sr., at that time working as manager of Music City Mfg... in other words, Sho~Bud ... hauled me over and said "look at this. This is the guitar we should be building!"

He pointed out several things such as the way the pickup was mounted, how the changer fingers were machined, and several other technical things, which, after a few drinks for both of us, went over my head. But what struck me was the fact that Paul Sr., who even then had a great reputation as a steel mechanic and builder, was so discouraged about the product he was hired to assemble and so high on MSA's. I think shortly after that he began building the Franklin guitar.

Mechanically, for its time, the MSA was the smoothest operating guitar in the business. When most steels in those days looked like they were built by the village blacksmith underneath, the MSA was total precision. The steel industry in general probably took about 10-15 years to get to the general mechanical quality that MSA's had in the mid-70's.

The complaints I hear about the MSA guitar are basically two: they're heavy and they don't sound like either a Sho~Bud or an Emmons. The first issue Reece has already addressed. As far as the tone of the guitar, Bud Carter told me years ago that it was a decision to not make a guitar that aped either of the major manufacturers products but instead sounding like its own instrument.
As many of you old-timers might remember, several limited output guitar builders in those days basically built knock-offs of the Sho~Bud. Not MSA, however. Also ZB was a guitar unto itself, just to keep the record straight.

If the tone of an MSA is not to your liking, many of the later models with the wider Super Sustain pickups can be retrofitted with modern day pickups like George L's or Lawrences, and they sound like a hot modern guitar. The MSA's from the late 60's-early 70's are harder to retrofit since the pickup slot is narrower than most modern pickups would allow and so requires some surgery to the tailpiece to fit them.

Tonally, I prefer the lacquer finish MSA's to the mica finish, but that is my personal preference. In my guitar dealing business I've sold several MSA's to students and customers of mine and they were very easy to set up. In fact, I sold a really beautiful SS model to Darvin Wilhoite that I really should have hung on to, but oh well, agua under la puente as they say.

IMHO, Bud Carter is one of the greatest steel mechanics and creative thinkers about the steel still working in the business, also Gene Fields, and Paul Sr.

[This message was edited by Herb Steiner on 10 August 2000 at 07:30 AM.]

For those of you that don't already know:
L.T. plays an S-10 MSA, 3P+4K, original pickup. He even plays stuff that people swear is C6, but it's not. He's straight E9.
(unless he's playing his non-pedal guitar).

And yes, he's everything they say!

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j0e

posted 10 August 2000 03:28 PM         

1> MSAs are heavy
2> MSAs will be the only things left standing after a nuclear strike.

It is rumoured that the new Aluminium-Hulled Canadian warships are lined with MSAs so as not to suffer torpedo damage if attacked

====

The above is meant as humor, in that the MSAs were so well built as to be nearly indestructable. You may find old MSAs, scratched up MSAs, even abused MSAs, but you will almost never find one where the guitar is unrepairable. The fit on these guitars in incredible.

[This message was edited by Randy Reimer on 10 August 2000 at 05:35 PM.]

posted 10 August 2000 03:52 PM         

As far as tone;
I use a Goodrich 7A matchbox, Edwards light pedal, Digitech stereo chorus, and an Ibanez analog delay, running stereo through two amplifiers. I get just about any tone I want out of this beauty including a good Nashville sound (according to my ears, anyway).

I also am inclined to believe in Reese's philosophy about the color of the instrument.
Mine is a beautiful green,(my favorite color), and this sets me in the right frame of mind when I play.

Rick Collins,
My E9th tuning is,

F#..............13
D#..............17
G#..............11
E...............14
B...............17
G#..............24w
F#..............26w
E...............30w
D...............36w
B...............38w
G#..............46w
E...............56w

B6th is,

C#..............15
G#..............12
F#..............13
D#..............15
B...............17
G#..............22p
F#..............26w
D#..............30w
B...............38w
G#..............46w
E...............56w
B...............76w

I have the Emmons setup with Paul Franklin additions on my E9th and standard C6th setup with a couple of additions on my B6th.

Whenever I get a notion to change anything on this guitar, it is very easy to do it.

P.S. My other site is down right now, so I'll re-post my picture when it comes back on.

[This message was edited by Ric Epperle on 10 August 2000 at 03:55 PM.]

posted 10 August 2000 06:34 PM         

Ric, I agree with you - the green color is absolutely beautiful and makes you feel good before you even play a note. I recently bought a green MSA S-12 from Al Marcus (Ric -I think you were interested in that one too). Unfortunately, UPS dropped it somewhere between Michigan and Texas. The guitar came through with only minor cosmetic damage, but the case was shattered. Luckily, I have Bud Carter nearby to fix it for me, but it just goes to show how solidly made these guitars are.

Very solid, well built, beautiful, great sounding (with the new pickup technology) - what more could you ask for? When my teacher, Reece Anderson plays his green MSA S-12, it sounds as sweet as anything I've ever heard. Thanks, Reece, for building such a great instrument for so many people to enjoy!

[This message was edited by Gary Peaslee on 10 August 2000 at 06:36 PM.]

posted 13 August 2000 06:52 AM         

It's beyond my comprehension why anyone would wait almost TWENTY YEARS then make an unprovable accusation on a public forum.

The fact you have my home address, phone number and live only a few miles away and could have easily contacted me personally, most certainly casts a shadow on the credability of such an accusation while making your misguided intent suspicious.

posted 14 August 2000 03:30 AM         

MSA produced and sold thousands of guitars, therefore there are thousands of cancelled checks made out to MSA, so the possibility you may have a cancelled check is meaningless.

The fact you have kept a specific check for almost 20 years proves you are astute at keeping records, so surely you have something else as proof.

IF someone were to do what you claim was done, a law suit would or should have been filed for recovery. Do you have a copy of a legal filing or anything else as proof?