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Author Topic:  Sticking leg?
John Swain


From:
Winchester, Va
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 5:18 am    
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My 93 Legrande had a lot of wear when I got it and twice I've had a front leg stick where I couldn't unscrew it. Luckily a band mate with stronger forearms got it apart. The leg sockets are loose and will probably need helicoil inserts someday, but is there some "anti-seize" compound or graphite, Vaseline, or oil I can use to keep it from locking up ?
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Richard Stoops

 

From:
Ohio, USA
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 6:47 am    
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I just use a little oil occasionally ... just a couple of drops and it makes the threads feel a lot smoother and no sticking.

As for the Helicoil, I had to do that on a Wilcox PSG that had a stripped hole (leg wouldn't stay tight). Worked fine and felt more solid than the other leg holes. Be careful though and don't try to drill the hole all at once. Use several steps with progressive larger bits before the tapping hole. This should keep the angle of the leg as it was originally.
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Dick Wood


From:
Springtown Texas, USA
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 11:39 am    
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I had that happen to me on my new Williams several years ago and I got a 1/2-13NC tap,ran it in and out a few times and never had the problem again. Probably just a rough thread or two down in there that needs to be cleaned up.
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Thomas Stone


From:
San Francisco
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 3:32 pm    
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Use an anti-seize compound. They're a mixture of a high-grade lubricant and metal particles such as copper, aluminum, nickel, etc. Available at hardware stores, auto supply stores, bike shops, or amazon.
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Bill Moore


From:
Manchester, Michigan
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 5:13 pm    
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At your local Dollar Tree store, you can buy a 3-pack of rubber mesh jar openers. It's just a circle of rubber mesh about 6" in diameter. Put a couple in your case, if a leg sticks, use a pair of them, one in each hand, to twist the leg. Smile
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Donny Hinson

 

From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 5:16 pm    
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Oiling occasionally is good advice. You can also rub a bar of soap on the threads of the leg and socket. Winking
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Dick Wood


From:
Springtown Texas, USA
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 5:37 pm    
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And it will smell good too Donny...LOL
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Ron Hogan

 

From:
Nashville, TN, usa
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 6:48 pm    
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John, if you have “sticky legs” I can’t help you!!
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Lee Baucum


From:
McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier
Post  Posted 10 Dec 2019 7:27 pm    
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I, too, keep one of those soft mesh jar openers in my pac-a-seat for when a guitar leg is too tight and my hand can't grip it well enough.

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I've also got a rectangular piece of the same material (shelf liner) to put under my volume pedal, when set up on a smooth, slick floor.
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Lee, from South Texas - Down On The Rio Grande

There are only two options as I see it.
Either I'm right, or there is a sinister conspiracy to conceal the fact that I'm right.


Williams Keyless S-10, BMI S-10, Evans FET-500LV, Fender Steel King, 2 Roland Cube 80XL's,
Sarno FreeLoader, Goodrich Passive Volume Pedals, Vintage ACE Pack-A-Seat
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Dave Magram

 

From:
San Jose, California, USA
Post  Posted 18 Dec 2019 10:56 am    
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Hi John,

Rather than over-tightening the steel guitar legs and possibly damaging the threaded portions, I discovered a better solution to keep steel guitar legs firmly in place: O-rings for plumbing.

There is a wide deep groove on most pedal steel guitar legs between the threaded portion and the leg itself, and that groove on my Emmons guitar is 3/8" in diameter.

I popped a 3/8" internal diameter O-ring into that groove on each guitar leg ("#7 O-ring": 1/2" OD x 3/8" ID x 1/16" thick).
The O-ring compresses when the leg is tightened and keeps the leg from loosening while playing, yet it is very easy to un-tighten the leg when packing up.
O-rings are available in most hardware stores for about 25 cents each, and last for many years.

I also occasionally put a tiny dab of grease or Vaseline on the leg threads to reduce the wear of metal on metal when threading and un-threading the legs, but it is the O-rings that are keeping the legs tight.

- Dave


Last edited by Dave Magram on 5 Feb 2022 6:25 pm; edited 3 times in total
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Steve Spitz

 

From:
New Orleans, LA, USA
Post  Posted 18 Dec 2019 4:19 pm    
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My Infinity came with flat plastic washers where the leg meets the body, similar to Dave’s O ring idea.
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Bobby D. Jones

 

From:
West Virginia, USA
Post  Posted 19 Dec 2019 1:40 am     Sticking leg?
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Aluminum is very grabby metal when contacting another aluminum or metal part. About every 3rd string change I do some little extras. One of them is Rub the threads on the legs and the top contact edge of the leg with bees wax, A rub with a candle or paraffin will work good too.
It does not make a mess like many oils, grease or antiseize does, When tearing down and setting up.
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Tommy Auldridge


From:
Maryland, USA
Post  Posted 21 Dec 2019 6:39 am     O rings
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Dave suggested the O rings. I went and got them yesterday. Works great. Thanks, Tommy.....
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Jerry Overstreet


From:
Louisville Ky
Post  Posted 29 Dec 2019 11:10 am    
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Thanks for the O-ring tip Dave. Put 'em on and they work just great.
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Dave Magram

 

From:
San Jose, California, USA
Post  Posted 5 Feb 2022 6:13 pm    
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Just to clarify my post above...

Danco 96724 "#7 O-rings": 1/2" OD x 3/8" ID x 1/16" thick seem to work the best.

-Dave
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