Steel Guitar Builder

Long journeys begin with single step they say, so.... I recently purchased a CD, containing blueprints, drawing, pictures, ideas etc from a seller on e-bay, and I have spent a couple of weeks studying them to try to come to grips with the complexity of a pedal steels makeup. I have decided, for better or worse, I guess to try to construct an SD-10. My reasoning is that if I can't build a single neck model, a double neck probably wouldn't meet with any better success. And if I can't play a single, a double neck would not improve things there either. As I reported in my personal sheet, I cannot play a PSG, nor have I actually even seen one in person, but I stand in awe of the music that the guitar and those of you that play can produce and I would dearly love to just play some simple tunes. In my own defense, I do have some resources that I can access that will be of great assistance. First I have what I would refer to as at least moderate woodworking skills and tools. Building the cabinet doesn't intimidate me. Secondly Im not a complete bumbler mechanically either.
I have studied the plans carefully and it appears that a PSG is a collection of smaller sub assemblies. I plan to focus only on a part at a time to keep from getting too discouraged as I go. The keyless tuner in my design seems to require the most precission construction abilities so I have decided to begin there reasoning that if I can construct this then I may meet with some degree of success in the rest of the project.
And Im off, the local farm supply had a length of 1" X 1/4 " alum bar, and from that I will try to produce a keyless tuner. As they say on the news ....... film at 11:00.

Hello Roger and welcome to the big adventure.
First off, congrats on starting at the tuner end. I think most builders want to build a changer first. The changer is probably the most contentious thing and the most complex thing on any steel guitar. Best left till later I would say. Good decision.
Secondly, I made the huge mistake of buying a 'how to' CD on e-Bay when I started this journey too. It was quite convincing at the start but actually turned out to be a total waste of time. It is possible that you have a better product and I am told that the latest version of the one I bought has been extensively updated. What I would say is, now you are a member here, use the other members to bounce ideas off before you spend a lot of money at any stage. It's not just the cash either, the frustration of getting it wrong can be a project killer.
There are no shortage of people with ideas here and all will be happy to help. If you produce drawings for any parts of the up coming Ro-Steel, why not post them before you start construction. I have done this and saved HUGE amounts of time and frustration. I have learned so much by asking for comment at every stage.

Regards, Allan.....