The definitive Weissenborn thread

[stix]

Lets hear all bout it from weissy players out there....

[speakerjones]

So I'm not a player (yet). But as seen in my "new Weissenborn day" thread, I've recently become an owner of one. I'm very interested in learning the instrument. Maybe some of you might know what Books, DVD's, etc are worthwhile...

[Thinsocks]

I guess I'm resurrecting this thread. I picked up a Goldtone Weissenborn copy about two weeks back and I can't put the thing down. Highly addictive. I'm coming home from work and not putting it away till I go to bed. So far I've only tuned it to Open D and briefly to Open G. Any other good tunings? What's a good pickup to buy? Id like to drag it out to some gigs. What do you guys use for a slide? I've tried a Dunlop tone bar, but I couldn't hang with the weight. Same deal with the Stevens bar. Although the Stevens was easier to grab. I like the sound of glass, but I can't seem to find anything with a rounded nose. Also, I have a feeling that it won't be long before I want to upgrade to a better Weissenborn copy (the Goldtone is a little boxy and stiff). Who makes a good reasonable priced copy?

[Bryan T]

So far I've only tuned it to Open D and briefly to Open G. Any other good tunings?

I like the D minor (DADFAD) and G minor (DGDGBbD). There are some great modal tunings, too, like DGDGAD. That lets you do 'behind the bar' bends on the second string for some cool sounds.

What do you guys use for a slide? I've tried a Dunlop tone bar, but I couldn't hang with the weight. Same deal with the Stevens bar. Although the Stevens was easier to grab.

I like the Shubb SP-2 the best. The chrome is better than others I've tried and the shape is great.

http://www.shubb.com/GIF/SP2.jpg

Bryan

[Thinsocks]

I like the D minor (DADFAD) and G minor (DGDGBbD). There are some great modal tunings, too, like DGDGAD. That lets you do 'behind the bar' bends on the second string for some cool sounds.



I like the Shubb SP-2 the best. The chrome is better than others I've tried and the shape is great.

http://www.shubb.com/GIF/SP2.jpg

Bryan

Thanks. I'm going to order a Shubb and then try that D Minor tuning. It had occurred to me the other day that dropping the F# down a half step (when in open D tunning) would give me a minor triad, but I hadn't ventured to try it yet. I'm still getting my bearings with playing in a different tunning. DGDGAD sounds interesting too.

[Bryan T]

Thanks. I'm going to order a Shubb and then try that D Minor tuning. It had occurred to me the other day that dropping the F# down a half step (when in open D tunning) would give me a minor triad, but I hadn't ventured to try it yet. I'm still getting my bearings with playing in a different tunning. DGDGAD sounds interesting too.

The minor tunings can be a lot of fun. You can do behind-the-bar bends to get a major triad. Additionally, combining barred notes with open strings can yield a lot of great sounds.

[slackandsteel]

I guess I'm resurrecting this thread. I picked up a Goldtone Weissenborn copy about two weeks back and I can't put the thing down. Highly addictive. I'm coming home from work and not putting it away till I go to bed. So far I've only tuned it to Open D and briefly to Open G. Any other good tunings? What's a good pickup to buy? Id like to drag it out to some gigs. What do you guys use for a slide? I've tried a Dunlop tone bar, but I couldn't hang with the weight. Same deal with the Stevens bar. Although the Stevens was easier to grab. I like the sound of glass, but I can't seem to find anything with a rounded nose. Also, I have a feeling that it won't be long before I want to upgrade to a better Weissenborn copy (the Goldtone is a little boxy and stiff). Who makes a good reasonable priced copy?

Hi Thinsocks!

Lots of guys I know like the Lazy River Weiss copies. They are not cheap but are less expensive than lots of them out there. I've got a Superior (a Mexican-made copy made for Berkeley Music) that isn't bad but the string spacing is too wide. Much better sounding than the Goldtone's that I've tried. You can hear it on my Soundclick link below. The tune is called "Water is Sweet". It's played in a C sus 2 tuning (CGCGCD low to high).

I use the Dunlop 919 bar and also really like the Tribotone bars for my electrics.

[Neer]

What do you guys use for a slide? I've tried a Dunlop tone bar, but I couldn't hang with the weight. Same deal with the Stevens bar. Although the Stevens was easier to grab. I like the sound of glass, but I can't seem to find anything with a rounded nose.

The weight of the bar is what makes it produce the tone it does. I highly recommend using a bullet nose bar. It doesn't take long to get the hang of holding on to it and manipulating it. In the years that I've been playing, I've only dropped the bar twice, and that may have been due to some other influence.

Don't upgrade until you get your bar technique together. You won't mind having all the dings on your less expensive guitar.

[Thinsocks]

Hi Thinsocks!

Lots of guys I know like the Lazy River Weiss copies. They are not cheap but are less expensive than lots of them out there. I've got a Superior (a Mexican-made copy made for Berkeley Music) that isn't bad but the string spacing is too wide. Much better sounding than the Goldtone's that I've tried. You can hear it on my Soundclick link below. The tune is called "Water is Sweet". It's played in a C sus 2 tuning (CGCGCD low to high).

I use the Dunlop 919 bar and also really like the Tribotone bars for my electrics.

Thanks for the info. Dug the tune. I was looking at the Superior copies, but I guess I'll stay clear if the spacing is wide. I'll look into those Tribotone bars too. The seem pricey, but pretty interesting.



The weight of the bar is what makes it produce the tone it does. I highly recommend using a bullet nose bar. It doesn't take long to get the hang of holding on to it and manipulating it. In the years that I've been playing, I've only dropped the bar twice, and that may have been due to some other influence.

Don't upgrade until you get your bar technique together. You won't mind having all the dings on your less expensive guitar.

Thanks for the advice. It's appreciated. So the weight of the bar is crucial, huh? I have no problem holding the bullet nose bar, but the weight is what gets me. I do like the shape though. The Goldtone has a military grade layer of poly on it, so it seems like it's going to be a worthy adversary for my initial poor technique.

[MikeT]

I like the Shubb SP-2 the best.

+1 on the Shubb, much better control than with a tube style slide IMHO. I went through a lot of slides and finally sticked with the SP-2. If you want a somewhat softer sound (and less weight) with the same amount of control, get the rockymountain (http://www.rockymountainslides.com/html/rocky-mt-rail-rock-it.html).

[Stevo57]

My two favorite bars are the Scheerhorn stainless in the reso style bar and the Diamond Bottle glass bullet nose made of lead crystal. The glass is easier to hold on to than the chrome bullets for me.

Also, see this thread for a bunch of hollowneck goodness!

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=418541&highlight=weissenborn

[Thinsocks]

My two favorite bars are the Scheerhorn stainless in the reso style bar and the Diamond Bottle glass bullet nose made of lead crystal. The glass is easier to hold on to than the chrome bullets for me.


http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=418541&highlight=weissenborn

How does the Diamond Bottle sound compared to the steel bar? I was looking at thier website the other day and was interested in maybe getting one.

[Stevo57]

For lap steel guitar, I like the glass bar the best. Really smooth, slick, warms to your hand and feels a little sticky on your fingers. Easy to hold on to. Heavy and dense which gives it a great full tone. For hammers ons and offs, faster string work, I like the Scheerhorn stainless bar. It's expensive, but I love the shape, tone, and feel of it. they make a chrome version thats a little less. Theres a used stainless for sale on the reso-nation.org website. Not mine just an FYI. Heres a couple pics of my gear:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v63/stevo57/DSC_0160.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v63/stevo57/127015.jpg

[JackD]

Great info in this thread. I'm looking into Lazy River

[MikeT]

I've got a new favorite since the inception of this thread, the Tribo-Tone:

http://www.tribotone.com/

Yes it's expensive, but I found for once all the blurb to be true.

[lamenlovinit]

For around $2000 (give or take a couple hundred) you can get a 1930s national. Just throwing that out there.

As to bullet bars if you don't want to pay a fortune for the boutique ones, and I would dearly love a Diamond believe me, the Broz-o-phonic has got to be the end all be all of inexpensive bullets. Smooth, heavy as heck, great thumb rest. A bargain.

[Diamond]

Hi Guys! Thanks for the nice words about our slides & bars....if it's okay for me to tell here ~ the new 2011 crystal glass tone bars are the best we've ever had to offer - denser, heavier glass with a stronger, tougher outer 'shell' ;)

Slide On!

Ian (D.B's)