My First Lap Steel

Sonny Jenkins · Post by **Sonny Jenkins** » 3 May 2007 11:35 am

Here is my first feeble attemp at building a lap steel

Post by **Brad Bechtel** » 3 May 2007 11:55 am

That's not very feeble, Sonny. Please go back and try again, and this time, make more mistakes!

Nice job, actually. What kind of tuners are those? What tuning are you using?

Tom Pettingill · Post by **Tom Pettingill** » 3 May 2007 12:00 pm

Nice job Sonny!!

Randy Reeves · Post by **Randy Reeves** » 3 May 2007 12:07 pm

Sonny. beautiful guitar. I like the resemblance to a PSG. nice looking eight stringer.
black lacquer?
did you make the hardware?

gorgeous workmanship. bet it sounds wonderful.
here is my order..one please.

you should be a proud papa.

Bill Hatcher · Post by **Bill Hatcher** » 3 May 2007 12:29 pm

VERY nice!!

Did you make the keyless tuner? If so, tell us how it works.

Carroll Hale · Post by **Carroll Hale** » 3 May 2007 12:30 pm

congrats on a fine job.....first or whatever....looks very professional and I am sure will have a quality sound....I have been pondering on building one for myself....any suggestions on plans, parts, etc....

from a fellow Texan.....piney woods of east texas.
ch

Sonny Jenkins · Post by **Sonny Jenkins** » 3 May 2007 1:03 pm

Hey thanks guys,,,the reward for all my labor,,LOL. The keyless tuner is one that Lamar Colvin made for me when he built my PSG. It's the same style that Joe Kline used,,which I like very much. That and the knobs are the only things I didn't make. Fret board is that acrylic material they use for name plates,,bridge was made from an old knee lever that I had. The strings are through the body and I used pop rivot barrels for the ferrels to keep ball ends from pulling through. Paint is about 6-8 coats of enamel,,,lay on a coat,,sand it down with 1500 grit,,lay on another coat,,sand it down again,,etc. I spent about 10 years making silver/turquoise jewelry back in the days when it was popular,,,and I've restored (from ground up, including painting) several mid-60s mustangs,,,so,,,it's just a matter of making parts and painting!!
To me it sounds very good,,,I do plan on building another one,,,my wife wants me to biuld one that is pearlized white with black powder coated hardware. And myself being partial to natural wood (Ihave some nice curly maple, some claro walnut, some mesquite,etc),,I'm sure I'll make some more,,LOL.
Thanks again for the compliments,,,makes it all worthwhile,,,,

Tom Taylor · Post by **Tom Taylor** » 3 May 2007 1:10 pm

That's beautiful Sonny. If I were you, I'd try my hand at a six-string, and maybe loan it indefintely to your neighbor here in San Antonio...

Bill Creller · Post by **Bill Creller** » 3 May 2007 1:57 pm

Great job on that project Sonny.

Now you will get the"bug" and want to build more....and more, and...,Well, you know what I mean

Regards BILL

Jude Reinhardt · Post by **Jude Reinhardt** » 3 May 2007 3:05 pm

Dang, I'd Waltz Across Texas nekkid if I could build a steel like that. That is beautiful, thanks for sharing.
Jude

Sonny Jenkins · Post by **Sonny Jenkins** » 3 May 2007 4:39 pm

Brad,,I've got it tuned to an A6 right now,,lo to hi = 6 1 3 5 6 1 3 5 but will probably tune to a B6 with the same intervals so it will be more familiar when going from B6/E9 uni.

John Ficken · Post by **John Ficken** » 4 May 2007 9:45 am

Wow, Sonny! That came out just beautiful! See gang? Another closet Craftsman pops out with playable art!

Sonny Jenkins · Post by **Sonny Jenkins** » 4 May 2007 9:53 am

Thanks John,,,unfortunately the pics don't show the lines of it,,,the body is beveled between the tuner and the pick-up,,giving it a smooth, comfortable feel,,,

Gary Shepherd · Post by **Gary Shepherd** » 4 May 2007 1:22 pm

Looks pretty good to me. I have all the stuff to build one but I've never taken the time to do it. Got a CNC machine set up and I have plenty of aluminum. I hope my first one comes out looking as good as yours. How does it sound?

Randy Reeves · Post by **Randy Reeves** » 4 May 2007 1:31 pm

Sonny, your lap steel reminds me of a tuxedo.
love the black and white two ply you have going.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 4 May 2007 7:32 pm

Nothing feeble about it. It looks very professional.

Stu Schulman · Post by **Stu Schulman** » 5 May 2007 5:32 pm

Sonny,That guitar is incredible looking.I was wondering if you can tell us how you made the fingerboard? very cool looking!

Sonny Jenkins · Post by **Sonny Jenkins** » 5 May 2007 7:15 pm

Hey Stu,,thanks for the compliment. The fret board is acrylic material used for name plates,,black laminated on white. I glued two layers together so I had black, white, black, white. I marked out the fret positions, and with the help of a miter block, sawed through the first layer of black (very thin),,,then drilled through the black to mark the positions. I got the material from a trophy/awards shop here and it is not as hard as I would like. I'm going to find some of the stuff they make pick-up tops/bottoms out of,,it is harder.

Stu Schulman · Post by **Stu Schulman** » 5 May 2007 7:30 pm

Sonny,You are way talented,I don't have any of those abilities so it fascinates me to find out how you did this,Thanks,Stu

Joe Harwell · Post by **Joe Harwell** » 5 May 2007 7:38 pm

Love that penguin tux.
Very impressive, Sonny.

Could you give more details on the bridge and nut?
Brass?

I'm very surprised how well the keyless tuner fits into your design aesthetically.

I'm not for sure, but I think you can get that sign material in different thicknesses.

Those white fret lines really stand out.

Sonny Jenkins · Post by **Sonny Jenkins** » 6 May 2007 7:18 am

Hey Joe,,,thanks for the kind words. Lamar had put a 3/16" brass rod "cap" on the tuner,,so when I made my bridge I grooved it to receive an 1/8" brass rod. I thought the tuner was a little bulky for the design,,in fact I started to cut the side flanges off. When the tuner was made I had no idea of a design in mind. I am making my own (a more compact design)for the next one.
I need to find out where these pick-up builders get the material they use for the top and bottom of the pick-up???

Ron Whitfield · Post by **Ron Whitfield** » 7 May 2007 11:49 am

Somehow I missed this thread, but super nice layout, Sonny.

Scale length?

What is the overall length?
I really appreciate a shorty like this.

The nut and bridge look terrific.

Will you be building more with this excellant Lamar style of tuners?

Does Colvin make these as needed, or have a small stock reserve?
Is he an SGF member?

Keep up the great work, and thanx for sharing the pix!

Sonny Jenkins · Post by **Sonny Jenkins** » 7 May 2007 1:35 pm

Hey Thanks Ron,,,I'm enjoying it,,took it over to our Senior Citizens Center today,,we have a 5 hour jam there twice a month,,it sounded great (I didn't sound too good,,but it did,,LOL)

It's a 22 1/2" scale,,overall length is 27". I am starting on another one that will have the same type of keyless tuner, but it will be more compact.

Lamar built this tuner for me when he built my universal,,,and as far as I know he builds parts as needed. This tuner is different from the one he puts on his guitars. I had a Kline at the time and this is a Kline style tuner,,,which my new one will be very similar,,,just more compact,,not as bulky. I'll try to post some pics of it when it is finished,,probably sometime after Mother's Day.

Thanks again for the interest and kind words.

Danny James · Post by **Danny James** » 7 May 2007 1:52 pm

This is for Sonny Jenkins.

You can buy material for the top and bottom of pickups called Forbon from Stewart McDonald Co. They have it in their catalogue in 6" X 6" sheets and in two different thicknesses. It is a hard cardboard like material. It can be drilled and machined. A lot of drum cases were made of it. I have seen it in old movie reel cases as well.

I have used plexiglass, Lexan, and also circuit board material from Radio shack.

Forbon is what a lot of the guitar companies use.

I think Jason Lollar who makes a lot of pickups uses it.

Curt Langston · Post by **Curt Langston** » 7 May 2007 2:34 pm

Sonny, are you kidding? Thats a great job on the lapsteel. Nothing "feeble" about it. And Keyless to boot! What do you want for it?..................Seriously, good job man! You need to go into business!

Most excellent! Smart design, brother!

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