What machines do I need for this project?

Grizzly has a lot of guitar making apparatus, maybe poke around there. I'm wondering what that chunk of aluminum for key head would cost. As far as tolerances go, you have room on everything but fretboard (this is true on guitars, I don't know about steel guitars as the strings do not hit the frets (?) They do have jigs at Grizzly so frets are positioned correctly. Do you adjust intonation on a steel guitars? I've been a guitarist for 40 years but never touched a steel guitar. This sounds like one heck of a sizable hobby, but welcome to the club! Subscribing to see where this goes.
 
If it's for your own use, or just for fun, my suggestion would be to get with the designer...all the easier if it's you...and really think through what you can realistically make. There is always a way to design lower complexity parts, especially for low volume, and especially for personal use where you can dial up the labor content.
 
Thanks for all of the replies!

Unfortunately, the construction of a pedal steel guitar has almost nothing in common with regular guitars. Would you believe that gluing counter-top laminate (formica) to the body is important for the tone? It's a different beast for sure. It's more of a mechanical device with little guitar bits on top than the other way around.

I simply couldn't budge on the design- it would diminish my passion for this project. This is the "Stradivarius" of steel guitars.
 
Hi and welcome,

With the price of pedal steel guitars you could definitely justify the project were you going into business. Is anyone making them out of billet right now and how does it affect the tone/playability?

Certainly getting a few cast by a foundry would be an option if that worked for your design, then you would just have to finish the parts which would be do-able on a manual mill of sufficient size.

I do pretty much feel like @MrWhoopee here that trying to build this as a first project is beyond ambitious. Not saying you couldn't do it but if the goal is building guitars you will be time and money ahead working with a well equipped shop vs. trying to do it yourself. Nothing you're likely to buy for less than $50k is likely to provide good results and the time it will take to get up to speed will be measured in years.

I've built a couple of bass guitars but about the only thing I can think of that would be harder than building a pedal steel is playing it well. That's a real art....

John
 
Another thing to consider is we have some very talented members here with all kinds of machines. You might consider posting this in our can you make section.

www.hobby-machinist.com

CAN YOU MAKE SOMETHING FOR ME?

You need a part or some tooling. You can't or don't want to make it. Maybe someone here can do it for you.
www.hobby-machinist.com www.hobby-machinist.com

John
 
matthewsx said:
Hi and welcome,

With the price of pedal steel guitars you could definitely justify the project were you going into business. Is anyone making them out of billet right now and how does it affect the tone/playability?

Certainly getting a few cast by a foundry would be an option if that worked for your design, then you would just have to finish the parts which would be do-able on a manual mill of sufficient size.

I do pretty much feel like @MrWhoopee here that trying to build this as a first project is beyond ambitious. Not saying you couldn't do it but if the goal is building guitars you will be time and money ahead working with a well equipped shop vs. trying to do it yourself. Nothing you're likely to buy for less than $50k is likely to provide good results and the time it will take to get up to speed will be measured in years.

I've built a couple of bass guitars but about the only thing I can think of that would be harder than building a pedal steel is playing it well. That's a real art....

John
Click to expand...
John,

A lot of studio work in Nashville is done with instruments made from billet parts. By the early 2000s, every builder converted to billet because good quality castings without pits could no longer be sourced. Tone is affected, but the resonance and sound quality are still held within the design. Playability is completely unaffected. I traveled to Nashville a few years ago to meet the man who built my steel guitar. We talked an entire afternoon about it's design and construction, and he answered all of my questions about it. His son is the most successful session player in the world, and he also played a major role in the development of the instrument's design. Mr. Franklin knew of my intention to replicate his design, and he supported it. He also knows I'm not interested in forming a business with his design. I have a good enough job- don't want more work.

Could you help me understand which parts of the design-manufacture process are too ambitious? I don't disagree with you, I just need to understand which aspects are problematic so I can address them properly beforehand. Building a pedal steel is not as complicated as it seems. I've repaired and rebuilt them for 3-4 years now- they're much simpler than regular guitars. A guitar build would seem more daunting to me.

In what ways would a PM940-V w/ CNC conversion produce poor results? What makes a $50k machine necessary? Remember, sand castings have pretty loose tolerances- in the realm of +/- 0.030".
 
TXSteel said:
In what ways would a PM940-V w/ CNC conversion produce poor results? What makes a $50k machine necessary? Remember, sand castings have pretty loose tolerances- in the realm of +/- 0.030".
Click to expand...

I don't think it would produce poor results. But that is a small machine, and doing large work on a small machine is a PITA. On the other hand, doing small work on a large machine is no problem.

Let's put this in perspective. My $50K machine would machine the neck you show in about 30 min, and the keyhead in about 15 min. My $7K machine would do the neck in about 90 - 120 min, and the keyhead in about the same or maybe a bit longer due to tool changes. Both machines have a 32x14 work envelope. But they are really different machines.

Do you need a $50K machine? Absolutely not. But I think you need something a bit larger than PM940-V. Something like the PM-1054-TV would be a much better size for long parts.

I am a real fan of buying used machines. I picked up my, mechanically near new, CNC knee mill for $1000, and put another $6K into it in controls upgrades and extensive modifications. It was a 25 year old machine when I bought it. About 1000 lbs heavier cousin of the PM-1054-TV, but the same size and work envelope. 4V frame vs. the 3V frame
 
What he said ^^^^

Jim is the man for all things CNC around here IMHO.


John
 
JimDawson said:
I don't think it would produce poor results. But that is a small machine, and doing large work on a small machine is a PITA. On the other hand, doing small work on a large machine is no problem.

Let's put this in perspective. My $50K machine would machine the neck you show in about 30 min, and the keyhead in about 15 min. My $7K machine would do the neck in about 90 - 120 min, and the keyhead in about the same or maybe a bit longer due to tool changes. Both machines have a 32x14 work envelope. But they are really different machines.

Do you need a $50K machine? Absolutely not. But I think you need something a bit larger than PM940-V. Something like the PM-1054-TV would be a much better size for long parts.

I am a real fan of buying used machines. I picked up my, mechanically near new, CNC knee mill for $1000, and put another $6K into it in controls upgrades and extensive modifications. It was a 25 year old machine when I bought it. About 1000 lbs heavier cousin of the PM-1054-TV, but the same size and work envelope. 4V frame vs. the 3V frame
Click to expand...
The PM1054-TV is $5000 more than the PM940-V. Is that necessary when my largest part is 26" long, and the X-travel of the PM940-V is 30" after CNC set up? Machining times aren't too relevant. I can spare the extra time doing a hobby.
 
If that machine really has 30'' travel with the CNC setup then I guess it would do the job.
 
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