Wokka's baritone scale lap steel build

[andrewdosborne]

Looks awesome Woks hope you enjoyed your Bunnings visit lol

Sent from Android Nougat

[Chuck]

The fretboard is an interesting area on these seeing as you don't ever touch it! I actually dragged my half-completed one out last night and had a play... I'm thinking I might get a piece of perspex to mark fret locations so as not to cover the wood underneath... It could also be an option for you?

Here's a repost of my surf-inspired one:

[Simon Barden]

Are you planning to play it in the bath, Chuck?

Personally I'd put a fretboard on it. I can't play slide well enough to warrant making one of these (however tempting the idea is) but if I did, I'd want to be looking at something I recognised, and not be distracted by pretty-looking wood stripes.

[Chuck]

Are you planning to play it in the bath, Chuck?

That or mount some skateboard trucks underneath like one of those Cole Clark ones!!

Personally I'd put a fretboard on it. I can't play slide well enough to warrant making one of these (however tempting the idea is) but if I did, I'd want to be looking at something I recognised, and not be distracted by pretty-looking wood stripes.

You're probably right. I can't play slide well enough either - this thing is probably more about aesthetics than usefulness (something that's never stopped me building anything before!!)

[cade711]

I admit I didn't quite get the concept of lap-steels when I joined the forum but after watching some demo's by Robert Randolph over the weekend I can certainly see the appeal. This looks like it's going to be pretty cool Wokka

[keloooe]

I admit I didn't quite get the concept of lap-steels when I joined the forum

I feel the same cade, lap steels never really got any attention from me but this forum has made me more inclined to have one...

[corsair]

You can do stuff on a LS that you cannot do on a guitar; even some modern(ish) rock music was done on one - One of these days by Pink Floyd being the most famous and the reason I have a very old, NZ built Commodore lap steel!

The stringpack on a LS is quite flat and the tonebar works on them all without tilting whereas a normally tuned and intonated guitar has the stringpack following the contour of the fretboard, i.e. slightly convex, which means you have to tilt the slide to get to either edge. I play slide in standard tuning on the D, G and B strings, occasionally going to the A but try to avoid using either E, simply because I'm not good enough to do it easily and make it sound OK!!

Wokka - I hear you but gee; that sure is a pretty laminate.... I agree you'll need some sort of position marking, especially for a baritone tuned a perfect fourth below. I have enough trouble with standard pitch - LS tuned to a chord is great because once you've found your root, the rest you can slide into!!

[dave.king1]

High Hopes by Pink Floyd is a great example of lap steel in a rock environment as is a lot of David Linley stuff behind Jackson Brown.

Robert Randolph plays pedal steel which is a very different beast altogether

[Fretworn]

Mr Randolph has also started playing lapsteel. He even has a signature Peavey Powerslide.
https://peavey.com/products/index.cfm/item/669/118861

[wokkaboy]

cheers for the feedback and suggestions everyone !
I'm in 2 minds now to use a fingerboard or not. I started cutting fret slots for white cable ties yesterday and got about 7 of 28 frets done, it's not that easy as I don't have a saw wide enough for the width of a cable tie.
I might look into putting some marker on the laminate and drilling the fret dots into that.

@ Simon, in hindsight it would have been easier to shape the tuner slots before gluing but in the end I got there, used a dremel with a guide to clean up the edges.