Old Emmons Pedal Surface

Drew Pierce · Post by **Drew Pierce** » 8 Dec 2013 4:31 pm

The pedals on my old bolt-on Emmons are worn slick. Not good when I start playing and happen to have moisture on the bottom of my left shoe.

What's the best way to resurface those pedals to give them a more textured surface without altering the originality too much?

Mike Cass · Post by **Mike Cass** » 8 Dec 2013 6:19 pm

Drew, send them to me, and for a nominal fee I'll restore them to like new condition for you.
MC

mwillsteel@comcast.net

Drew Pierce · Post by **Drew Pierce** » 8 Dec 2013 6:58 pm

Thank you for the response, Mike. I know from your reputation it would be an excellent job and worth the money. But that would require me to be without the guitar for awhile and I was looking for a fix I could maybe do myself. I could always take a bastard rasp and rough them up, but I'm sure they wouldn't look too pretty when I got done.

Thought about maybe stick-on sandpaper? Probably just come off.

Scott Duckworth · Post by **Scott Duckworth** » 8 Dec 2013 7:03 pm

Lowes has stick on rough pads for steps... kinda like sand paper.

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 8 Dec 2013 7:30 pm

Drew Pierce wrote:Thank you for the response, Mike. I know from your reputation it would be an excellent job and worth the money. But that would require me to be without the guitar for awhile and I was looking for a fix I could maybe do myself. I could always take a bastard rasp and rough them up, but I'm sure they wouldn't look too pretty when I got done. Thought about maybe stick-on sandpaper? Probably just come off.

When I had my Kline, the pedals were not textured. When I would walk across the dance floor to the stage, I would get that darn dance wax on my soles. My foot would slide right off them. I went to the hardware store and got some of that stuff that you put in your bathtub to keep you from slipping. Wasn't pretty, but it worked, and nobody ever noticed it.

Drew Pierce · Post by **Drew Pierce** » 8 Dec 2013 8:26 pm

Yeah, Richard, right on. Been there and done that. Bowling alley sand? Something like that. So you know what I'm talking about. That level of slipperiness on the pedals is not good. The pedals on my guitar look awesome. So nice and shiny. But I need better wet traction.

Chris Lucker · Post by **Chris Lucker** » 8 Dec 2013 10:06 pm

I read your post to mean you were concerned about originality. They is what you wrote. If mike Cass does the work it will be factory authorized. You can send your pedals to Mike, or to the Factory. Same thing. But if you want an instant fix to restore the originality you are after, it is not going to happen. Play in dry shoes.

Eric Philippsen · Post by **Eric Philippsen** » 9 Dec 2013 12:18 am

If it's a problem, which it is, just go the route with putting some stick-on abrasive paper on. That wouldn't harm the guitars originality and removing the paper could be done with just a little naphtha and elbow grease.

Lane Gray · Post by **Lane Gray** » 9 Dec 2013 3:35 am

If you value originality and don't want downtime, I have a suggestion that will cost some extra money, but keep the guitar in service.
Buy two or three new pedals from Mike.
When they arrive, send the worst ones for refinishing.
Then you repeat til done (assuming doubleneck).
Then you can sell the now-surplus pedals or keep them til next time.

Jack Stoner · Post by **Jack Stoner** » 9 Dec 2013 5:15 am

I don't recall having a problem with the pedals on my 71 PP, that I had for 10+ years. I mostly played in cowboy boots with leather soles.

The pedals on my Franklin are smooth and I haven't had any problem with those either.

Lane Gray · Post by **Lane Gray** » 9 Dec 2013 6:07 am

Or put grip pads on your shoes....

Doug Palmer · Post by **Doug Palmer** » 9 Dec 2013 6:47 am

Have you tried taping up the pin and putting them in a tumbler. They may need to be repainted or powder coated.

Jack Hanson · Post by **Jack Hanson** » 9 Dec 2013 7:50 am

Lane Gray wrote: Buy two or three new pedals from Mike.
When they arrive, send the worst ones for refinishing.

I like that idea, but there were so many different types of pedals used on those old push-pulls that it may be tricky.

Lane Gray · Post by **Lane Gray** » 9 Dec 2013 8:06 am

Take a picture and email it to Mike. I bet he could suss that in no time.

Drew Pierce · Post by **Drew Pierce** » 9 Dec 2013 8:06 am

Jack Stoner wrote:I don't recall having a problem with the pedals on my 71 PP, that I had for 10+ years. I mostly played in cowboy boots with leather soles.

The pedals on my Franklin are smooth and I haven't had any problem with those either.

I didn't have this problem when I played in cowboy boots either. It's the shoes with synthetic sole material, which includes just about all shoes made these days except dress shoes, that tend to get slippery. Unfortunately, I can't wear cowboy boots any more.

I don't have this problem with my Zum's pedals, which are of a completely different shape and angle. The old style Emmons pedals are more rounded and have beveled edges, and in this highly polished state, they can cause my foot to want to "ricochet" off the pedal if there is any kind of moisture or whatever on the shoe. I just need more texture on them for better traction.

I appreciate the options suggested so far.

Bobby Bowman · Post by **Bobby Bowman** » 9 Dec 2013 8:20 am

Why not fold a piece of really rough sand paper (maybe 50 grit)and give the domed part of the pedal a good going over,,,simular to how you would use a shine rag on your shoes. I've done this several times over the years and it always came out really good.
BB

Tony Glassman · Post by **Tony Glassman** » 9 Dec 2013 11:33 am

I suppose you could put some #60 grit sandpaper on a palm sander and tap it repeatedly all over the pedal surface, in a manner similar to "jeweling" the top of an aluminum neck.

It would probably take less than a minute per pedal.

Drew Pierce · Post by **Drew Pierce** » 9 Dec 2013 11:56 am

I like both sanding suggestions. That wouldn't affect the originality more than playing with leather sole boots with a little sand worked into the leather, which is common. In fact, the corners of the A and B pedals on my Zum are ground off from just that kind of action. And I bought it new.

chris ivey · Post by **chris ivey** » 9 Dec 2013 12:26 pm

one of my push/pulls has smooth pedals. that's how they came. never been a problem. my other p/p has has about 5 sideways grooves cut in each pedal. don't know who did that, but they work fine too.
i don't know if you can see it in these pics.

with grooves

without grooves

Eric Philippsen · Post by **Eric Philippsen** » 9 Dec 2013 12:50 pm

Dang, those are two mighty fine lookin' lacquer push-pulls.

Bent Romnes · Post by **Bent Romnes** » 9 Dec 2013 2:16 pm

Drew, one thing you could do in cases where looks don't matter, is putting some masking tape on the pedal surface. It provides for some grip. Then, when more convenient for you, send them to Mike for restoration.

Drew Pierce · Post by **Drew Pierce** » 9 Dec 2013 3:19 pm

Those are beauty guitars indeed. Obviously, somebody had a similar problem to what I'm talking about with the top guitar and scored the pedals to give them some more texture. The pedals on my guitar (#1075 S) are like the bottom guitar -- slightly wider and more domed. They were obviously factory textured at one time, as the edges still show it. But the playing surfaces are worn as slick as if they had been buffed out with a polishing wheel.

I never had a problem until last summer at an outdoor gig where it had been raining all day. Even though we were under a canopy, the ground was soggy and the astroturf we were set up on was also damp. At first I was more concerned about getting electrocuted, but quickly discovered I basically couldn't play at all for the slippin' and slidin' on the pedals. It was like somebody had put Vaseline on the pedals.

After I got a towel and dried everything off it was OK and I was able to play the show. But I had to repeat the process after each break.

Henry Matthews · Post by **Henry Matthews** » 9 Dec 2013 3:33 pm

Both my P/P's have slick pedals and every one I ever owned had slick pedals. I thought the shinier the better. I like them that way so my shoe soles won't stick to pedals. I wear rubber soled shoes so they dont ever slide off either.

Drew Pierce · Post by **Drew Pierce** » 9 Dec 2013 6:13 pm

I liked the slick pedals just fine until I played them with wet shoes. When I wore Tony Lamas all the time, I remember the leather soles being stickier on the pedals when they were damp. Just the opposite of most modern footwear.

In any case, I sanded the pedals lightly with extra-coarse paper as suggested. It feels good to play and for the time being I think that will work fine. If it doesn't, I'll send 'em to Mike.

Thanks to all for the suggestions and input.

Frank Sprague · Post by **Frank Sprague** » 9 Dec 2013 9:12 pm

Couple of ideas for ya - check with a local saw sharpening shop - the one here in town would resurface the heads of framing hammers to restore the "waffle" pattern - same thing as the surface of the pedals but could be less aggressive . .
If I were doing it myself I'd lay out the lines with a sharpie - either as a grid or horizontal depending on the original , put it in a vise with small pieces of wood on the jaws to protect the pedal . . Cut score lines with a hacksaw maybe 1/16"(?) deep , then use a small triangle file to make the grooves . . Assuming they are aluminum - it cuts easy , but you'll need to clean the file often with a "file card" when it loads up . . don't mess with any tape , you won't be happy with it . .

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Old Emmons Pedal Surface

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