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Post by lexluthier on Oct 15, 2021 18:45:50 GMT
Hey vastapol, I’m feeling like a brother from another mother here! Our experiences and feelings in conclusion seem to resonate in sympathy.
My very first post on this forum was about this guitar and I was in a right panic! Bought of eBay, from Germany, it arrived not as described to say the least. I had payed over £700 for it knowing it had a few problems, which seemed fair and all stuff I could deal with. It was interesting to say the least what was not revealed in photos. Sold in the hope that the buyer would be too naive to notice, the seller, a ‘Doctor’ no less, lucked out and had his eBay reputation dangled above him like the sword of Damocles while I ripped him a new one and offered to take these ‘parts’ off his hands for less than half the original price. I hate bullies and con artists. In the end it give me a great education solving the puzzle of this guitar, and my first real inside look at how a Tricone works.
My ears prick up anytime I hear Continental on the forum(or elsewhere else, I’ve Pavlov-ed myself!) so I know there are many threads and references about them that don’t seem to get picked up on later down the line when the subject re-emerges. This goes for many subjects of course, and Michael, I raise my hat to you sir for having the patience to keep repeating answers to so often asked questions.
I have had these thoughts before, why do guests not make better use of the search function? Many rightly speak of this forum as a great resource and it is, and a marvellous archive for the future. As someone on the dyslexic spectrum, I have to admit I find the search function a little ‘clunky’ and hard work.
I have had the thought more than once that on certain subjects it would be great collate information to the general consensus of at least the forum members, and, to deal with them most objective way possible.
I’m thinking ‘Best Knowledge’ on certain subjects like for example, a company’s history and what we can plot out about their instruments manufacturing evolution. EG, Continental or Brasher or many other lesser known brands often discussed here(we can rest easy creating a single point information source for National, I believe someone already has covered!😄)
Or, best practice(s) on general Resonator set up and maintenance. How many times do the kind and patient members of this forum go through the usual check list when someone in need asks the question ‘why is my resonator buzzing’. “Have you checked our the checklist first?” would be a great start and a great time saver for all.
I’ve no idea if any of this is feasible but two funerals in one day makes me think about the knowledge at least that is lost when people pass on.
Enough for now, Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Oct 14, 2021 19:50:56 GMT
Hi! I tried to make the curved neck stick on my Continental tricone work somehow before making a new one and it’s held for six years so far….., and I’m holding my breath less than I was!
I’ve described this in some previous post but again the screw isn’t need, the hole it leaves in the neck stick can either be flooded with a thin super type glue(just to possibly substantiate the neck dowels), drilled clear and dowelled, or, remove the neck dowels completely and replace. The dowels in my neck stick were loose in the neck, not in the stick, so I only had to do the former and refurbish the dowel holes in the neck.
That looseness to the neck/stick allowed quite a few degrees of deflection, so that certainly may account for these neck angle problems spoken of. My tricone has a strange flat area where neck meets body, like it was made for a larger square type neck. Or, they didn’t quite know what they were doing when ‘redesigning’ this guitar, weren’t sure how they were going to fit a neck on a curved body and came up with ‘an efficient solution’. The whole neck screw thing shows they were not totally clued in.
So even after re-fixing the neck/stick assembly and getting the neck angle ‘right’, I had a gap under the back of the heel that in truth was how it left the factory, Continental had filled it with an almost appropriately coloured hard wax! As my example is somewhat of a trainwreck to look at anyway and I thought maybe just a ‘bitsa’ factory second, I just packed it out, with Ebony no less. If you can’t hide it, make a feature of it I once heard someone say. If gwoone has a model with the same features as mine, you will probably have to pack it out too dude. Otherwise vastapol describes the problem very well and sounds very similar to my own experience.
vastapol, do you think the tops came out of the factory warped or twisted, or do you think they may have compressed afterwards. Mine has certainly folded in a little under string pressure but rebuilding the thing seems to have stabilised it and it stays in tune better than any guitar I own, or have owned!
All these problems AND it looks like hell. But it’s still a mile better than any oriental one I’ve heard and until something better comes along, and that may have to be another Continental, she’s staying!
Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Oct 6, 2021 1:58:31 GMT
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Post by lexluthier on Oct 6, 2021 1:56:17 GMT
Hi! That measurement over and above the scale length was said to be 1/8'' as the rule of thumb in th'old days. Google informs me that's 3.175mm. I don't find 1/8'' to be quite enough personally.
The treble side of the bridge needs to be at least 1/8'' further than the scale AFTER the bridge is angled for some intonation. That angle is.....
....while I was looking up what that angle traditionally is on say a flat top,('cos I suddenly wasn't sure, it may be 3 degrees?) I found this, which explains exactly what I was going to try and convey, only better!
Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Sept 25, 2021 14:10:39 GMT
You consider Gibson a luthier, lexluthier? We can ask the question from point 3 to a few forum members, don't you think? Semantics Ask away, we’ll see if anyone can be bothered to reply Out
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Post by lexluthier on Sept 25, 2021 10:25:05 GMT
I have yet to meet the first woodworker, cabinet maker or luthier who makes his own plywood sheets, but I can't wait to visit his workshop! You can purchase plywood in a hundred types and qualities. Depending on the number of layers, thickness of the layers, gluing and types of wood, the options are: birch, pine, poplar, mahogany, beech or.. all kinds of tropical junk. Have you ever think about what happens after a hundred years with plywood? How do glued layers from 1930 evolve (taking into the glue quality of that period)? Yes, indeed, about the same as the other glues on a guitar of that age. That this affects the sound needs no explanation. But no problem, because I've talked to just about all authorities on resonator guitars over the past decades and they all assured me that this was also the intention of Mr. Dopyera.. Point 1. Try getting out more then, or google! How the hell do you think Gibson makes an ES range guitar for example, out of ‘plywood’? Point 2. Where did I mention woodworker or cabinet makers making their own plywood sheets? Point 3. ‘Have you ever think about…..’ Well yes I have actually, as have many others no doubt! Have you ever ‘‘think’’ about how patronising and self righteous you are? I doubt it.
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Post by lexluthier on Sept 25, 2021 0:19:47 GMT
Hi! So, the guitar you see in my thumbnail icon thing is a Gold Tone Paul Beard signature series PBR-CA. The point is it’s made of solid woods with a laminated sound well.(A non laminated or solid wood sound well would be madness and just asking for trouble!) What Mr Beards thoughts were when designing this series is unclear, I do have a vague memory of them being spoken of as being ‘sweeter’ in tone and a more for intimate settings or for the solo player to enjoy. Whatever.
Mine is ‘sweet’, some may argue insipid if they heard it, it’s certainly not a canon! Listeners tend to like it a lot in a small room when it’s being tickled to produce an airy Ballard or the like. Ask it to step up to a bigger room and some manhandling and it would be lost and certainly easily drowned out by other instruments. That’s kinda counter to what resonators supposed to do.
Resonators were made to project and Pete is right, it’s about stiffness! (Good)Plywood resists vibrations keeping the sustain more in the cone instead of bleeding off into the body. Internal reflection is also better, for the same reason.
None of this is to say that a laminated body can’t sound ‘Sweet’ because they can of course, and at higher volume too. Perhaps my biggest surprise when I first started handling resophonic guitars was that they were nowhere near as brash and treble-y as I had thought they were going to be and so a body made stiffer and more internally reflective to promote more highs when ‘digging in’, makes perfect sense to me. It’s part of the designs concept.
Plywood to make furniture is, on the whole, cheaper than solid woods. Laminates to make guitars can be more expensive to produce than the cost of many solid woods as they need to be made from scratch to the requirements of the instruments and from quality materials. I would wager if we were to ask Mike Lewis or any quality maker if they use proprietary birch ply to make their instruments or if they painstakingly produce their own, with all the work that entails, I’m pretty sure I know what the answer will be. And if I am right about that, you’ve got to ask yourself why would they bother. The answer comes pretty quickly without too much deep thought.
Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Aug 12, 2021 18:17:07 GMT
Cheers for that! I hope you can get to try one someday. Wolfram used to have a try before buy option, not sure if that still so but worth a thought. I didn’t go down that path when buying mine, I spent some time thinking what would make a great slide and my engineering background got me thinking about Tungsten Carbide. So I googled it and there was Wolfram. I placed an order the same day and have never felt the need to buy any other, other than the MM model of course. It’s one of the few things in life I am actually satisfied with, which is a relief and a pleasant change for once.
Take care, Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Aug 12, 2021 12:53:05 GMT
Yep, it(they) is hopefully winging it’s way to me and I have to say, I am absolutely delighted! I’m having one of those strange periods of coincidence and synchronicity at the moment. A few weeks back I was on the verge of putting a post in ‘Tin can alley’ asking if anyone had one for sale or to at the least put the thought in some forum members mind who may have decided it’s not quite for them.
I already have the full fat Martin Simpson version, it was the only slide I owned until Michael kindly sent me a gratis Diamond bottleneck with my fantastic MM Blues in June. The Wolfram is an utterly wonderful piece of kit changed my playing life completely.
The only drawback I had with it was on lighter strung acoustics and electrics because as we know, it’s very heavy! So I have had the thought for some 4 or 5 years now that the MM model would be great, as well as the MS model, not instead of. Michaels comments now explains quite why they were recently unavailable on the Wolfram website to order(thought it was a COVID thing) I was getting tired of waiting so hence the thought of reaching out to forum members.
So imagine my delight when Mr LonelyJelly posted! Big thanks to you dude, I hadn’t spotted it at that point. And John, just so you know, my max bid was £250, I was resolute dude!
I paid £122 for the 2 just for reference(a stainless steel MS signature model was thrown into the deal). It’s not for everyone shelling out so much I know and understand, but in my world, I just got a bargain! If I lost mine today, I’d be re-ordering tomorrow without a second thought. They are fantastic.
’nuff said, Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Jun 8, 2021 14:27:17 GMT
Hi! I started with a Johnson 14 fret brass body, I thought it sounded pretty good too(once I took it apart and put it back together properly) Received my 12 fret MMBlues just over a week ago, I think you are in for quite treat. It’s a different level!
Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Apr 27, 2021 14:01:39 GMT
Hi! It shouldn’t be possible for the strings to touch the cone, do you mean the cover plate perhaps? Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Apr 25, 2021 16:53:44 GMT
Hi! Can’t post the link but put ‘National Reso-phonic factory tour 2008’ into YouTube and go to about the 31 minute mark. It’s brief but you may find it interesting. Pete is spot on, too much heat will distort the body so a lot of practice first is recommended. Good luck! Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Feb 20, 2021 23:08:03 GMT
Hi! When 'made' left handed, was the cone just rotated 180 degrees without changing the angle of the string slots? That could make some intresting noises.
Dont be fooled into thinking that where you think the rattle is coming from, actually is where it's happening. Once spent a couple of days with my head hovering over the soundwell of my tricone before realising the noise was coming from the 5th and 6th strings just touching behind the nut. Resonators resonate, everywhere! Anything loose or ill fitting will sympathetically resonate with some note on your fret board and probably feed back into the cone(s).
Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Feb 20, 2021 22:20:39 GMT
Hi! I know nothing of Viking cones so can't comment there. Golden gate cones, not impresssed, too thick, no nuances.
Get a Continental cone, can't go wrong. Chris
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Post by lexluthier on Feb 12, 2021 17:12:57 GMT
Hi! Your guitar was made in the 48th week of 2000, I think! After 1998, production seemed to be limited, after 2002 it picked up a little but with some details changed on the guitars. £1000-1200 would be a fair value, in my opinion. Currently looking at a similar 1998 model myself, just can’t get to Newcastle to buy it! Price-£1200. Chris
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