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Author
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Topic: Steel Guitar Bars.. 1" 7/8 or 3/4.. ??? which?
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Bob Carlucci
Member From: Candor, New York, USA
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posted 09 January 2004 07:19 AM
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I am most comfortable with a 3/4 as thats whatI had played for years. A few years ago I was given a 7/8 and have been using it on gigs most weekends. I got used to it ,but it still feels heavy to me and it does slow me down a bit. I want a nice shiny new bar and have been wondering if I should try a 1"... I'm very interested in what most of my collegues here use on a regular basis. It would seem to me the 7/8 is the best compromise. Will the 1' bar really provide noticably better sustain than a 7/8? bob |
Roger Crawford
Member From: Locust Grove, GA USA
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posted 09 January 2004 07:24 AM
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Bob,
BJS, and I assume others as well, offer a 15/16th's bar that falls nicely in between the 7/8ths and 1". It doesn't seem like that small of a difference would be noticable, but it really is. That's the size I have really gotten comfortable with. |
Rex Thomas
Member From: Thompson's Station, TN
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posted 09 January 2004 08:30 AM
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Having said that this is VERY much a taste issue & that this is all MHO from my little corner of the office/practice room, the 7/8 is the all around choice for me. I have both the 15/16 & 1". Now my 15/16 sounds LOVELY, it does sustain more, the tone's a little darker & I'll use it on certain songs from time to time, but I default to the 7/8. The 1" doesn't work for me.
If the 7/8 is heavy to you, the 15/16 & 1" will be more so.
Roger's right. The 15/16 does fall nicely in between. I really like mine, & a lot of guys on here default to the 15/16.
Give it a try. |
Tom Olson
Member From: Spokane, WA
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posted 09 January 2004 08:58 AM
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While we're on the subject of bars -- is there any difference in tone/sound between a chrome bar and S/S bar of the same diameter? I would think that the chrome, having a greater "surface hardness," might provide greater sustain and brighter tone, but that's strictly a guess on my part. Thanks.  |
Jimmie Brown
Member From: Fayetteville, NC, USA
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posted 09 January 2004 10:44 AM
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WHAT TOM SAID |
Eric West
Member From: Portland, Oregon, USA
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posted 09 January 2004 11:08 AM
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I was surprised to learn that some of the "Early greats" used 3/4" inchers.I've always used a 7/8ths, as Bud C suggested, and used himself, and Used to think Don West's 1 Incher looked "clubby". As far as "sustain", it's kind of like "horsepower". There's a school of thought that a smaller radius gives more because of the smaller "contact point" of the strings. There's one that says that weight and therefore inertia of a bigger bar takes less of the vibration "into" the bar, and "gives more" to the strings. I'm more of the latter "school". As far as the surface, the Bullseye Bar with its' high rockwell number dense "plating/coating" on the SS bars has got me sold. It's much like the BJS bar I've tried, but with just a touch more nose radius definition, ( my preference), and so far I havent seen a single wear scratch in the surface. Incidentally I ordered a 15/16 by mistake, and before I knew it I liked it as well if not better than the 7/8. If nothing else I switch back and forth from time to time, going to the lighter 7/8 for single string "fast stuff". Kind of like taking weighted boots off to run, ( not that I run much any more.....) Though my SS bars are polishable and get polished a lot, the Bullseye seems to be the quietest on the strings consistently. The coating is more inert. Kind of like a friend of mine says " Slicker than Deer Guts on a Doorknob". For my ProIII Sho~Bud the standard 10 string width is perfect. If you go to the site, check out the "accolades" page. Give Jerry a call at the number too if you have any questions. Your results, as they say.. EJL[This message was edited by Eric West on 09 January 2004 at 11:09 AM.] |
Donny Hinson
Member From: Balto., Md. U.S.A.
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posted 09 January 2004 02:24 PM
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quote:
Will the 1' bar really provide noticably better sustain than a 7/8?
In a word, no. If a 7/8" is too heavy for you, you certainly wouldn't like a larger "standard" bar! What you could do is order a larger one (larger than 3/4", that is), and request that it be drilled out to make it lighter. Be advised, though, that this makes the bar a little "nose heavy", and you might notice that. I know I'll get some flak, but I don't think one player in a thousand can actually "hear" any difference in a 3/4" bar, and a 15/16" inch bar (though they do "feel" a lot different). Guys like Emmons/Hughey/Franklin/White can hear the difference, but it'll be years (or decades) before you or I have to worry about it! |
Larry Robbins
Member From: Fort Edward, New York, USA
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posted 09 January 2004 02:41 PM
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Plain ol 7/8" Dunlop that a good many of us probably started out on and Ill bet many still use. ......or did you mean steel guitar bar & lounge...  ..clink..------------------
Sho-Bud ProII
"there's been an awful murder, down on music row!"
[This message was edited by Larry Robbins on 09 January 2004 at 02:42 PM.]
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Bob Carlucci
Member From: Candor, New York, USA
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posted 09 January 2004 03:01 PM
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The 7/8 bar I use is not really too heavy.. but I think its about as heavy as I want to go. I just want to replace my rusty old "war club" with a shiny new chrome "slippery" one. I don't know who made this bar but its PLAIN steel!!... No chrome no stainless and it gets rusty! .. I have to use Mothers on it and polish it before gigs.... BTW... Is the Dunlop bar stainless or Chrome ??/ bob |
Rex Thomas
Member From: Thompson's Station, TN
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posted 09 January 2004 04:57 PM
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Here ya go, Donny:
FLAK! FLAK! FLAK! FLAK! FLAK! FLAK!Sorry, Bob.
The 7/8 Dunlop bar I have that's now a sitar bar is chrome.[This message was edited by Rex Thomas on 09 January 2004 at 06:49 PM.] |
Don Walters
Member From: Regina, SK, Canada
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posted 10 January 2004 01:09 PM
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What Roger said about size and feel. As far as sound goes, what Donny said.[This message was edited by Don Walters on 10 January 2004 at 01:10 PM.] |
Reggie Duncan
Member From: Mississippi
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posted 10 January 2004 04:08 PM
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I played a 7/8ths for years and when I tried a 1" there was a noticeable difference in sustain. The size was more than I wanted to handle, however. So, Bill Stroud sent me a 15/16ths to try. The result was that I never went back to the 7/8ths. The sustain of the 15/16ths was noticeably better. THE BEST SIZE AND BRAND, IMHO. |
Roger Rettig
Member From: NAPLES, FL
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posted 10 January 2004 09:43 PM
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I have fairly big hands - when I switched to a 15/16th from my old 7/8th one, I felt more comfortable with it straight away. I recently bought a second one so I'd never have to resort to the old bar again!I can't say that I noticed a difference in tone, but I love the more secure feeling it gives me as it 'fills' my hand more. RR |
Franklin
Member From:
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posted 11 January 2004 05:31 AM
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The bigger bars are slightly more difficult to play in tune. I have both. Paul |
Herb Steiner
Member From: Cedar Valley, Travis County TX
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posted 11 January 2004 09:10 AM
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I play BJS 7/8"s but I'd like to try a 15/16. I also have a stainless bar made for me by a friend in Houston who has an electropolishing company. Definitely a different feel than the chrome BJS'. It plays best on nickel strings, I've found.I also have Joaquin's last bar and it's a Dunlop 12-string bar, 1"x3.75". Way too big for me and my baby hands. ------------------
Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association
[This message was edited by Herb Steiner on 11 January 2004 at 09:11 AM.]
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W Franco
Member From: silverdale,WA. USA
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posted 15 January 2004 02:16 PM
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I don't know if Herb remembers telling me this in StLouis but it makes sense to me. You want your bar to be harder than the strings your are playing on so it slides easier. If you use stainless steel strings a chrome bar might be a better choice. With nickel strings the stainless is good. I really do like the tone i'm getting with nickel strings and my Bullseye stainless 15/16 bar. I am liking the sound of the larger bars more and more. |
Jody Carver
Member From: The Knight Of Fender Tweed~ Dodger Blue Forever
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posted 16 January 2004 07:24 PM
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Herbster writes and I quote.................
I also have Joaquin's last bar and it's a Dunlop 12-string bar, 1"x3.75". Way too big for me and my baby hands.
Herb,thats a keeper I wouldnt let that one out of my sight. |
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