Source for 7-string tailpiece?

spinality

Does anybody know of a source for a 7-string gypsy-style tailpiece, either a stock item or a fabricator capable of building these in small quantities? Ideally somebody already building tailpieces like Gallato would offer this option (http://luthierssupplies.com.au/product_ ... d044e8b777), but one would think a good metal shop could do something. I am probably not interested in an ebony tailpiece or other high-mass solution for the reasons discussed elsewhere on this site (dampening effect). I have been talking with Shelley Park about exploring a 7-string project, but a quality tailpiece is proving difficult. Thanks if anybody has a good idea.

frater

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIbHw-t9Q1o

Ken Bloom

I made a wooden tailpiece for my seven string which is mainly ebony but with two small maple inserts for a deco design. It is not massive and works just fine. To do it the way Selmer did it, you take a regular tailpiece, split it at the top so you can spread it, and then fold a piece of brass over the spread and braze it in. They then inserted the same stud that they usually used but did it from the bottom. You can see them in the Charle book. I would think that this is something any competant sheet metal worker could do for you. A simpler but less elegant solution is to just add a stud to a regular tailpiece. For my next seven string I am planning on doing the Selmer style solution. I have discussed this with a friend of mine who is a blacksmith and a metalworker and, to quote him "it's not brain surgery".

bbwood_98

Hey Ken,
i would be curious to see those instruments! I have a Del arte 7; and its great. It has an ebony tailpiece and a nice dark rhythm sound (which is the goal!) and does not seem to suffer for it (its pretty loud). When do you get off pilot mountain? I might be in durham and Chapel hill (and perhaps greensboro) late in the year. Perhaps you could post some photos?
b.

Ken Bloom

I'll see if I can figure out how to post photos of my beast. If you're going to be here in North Carolina, give me a call. I'm in the phone book here in Pilot Mountain. I plan on building a second seven string when I get a chance so I can make some different mistakes. Why repeat the old ones? I really like having that extra bass string and the guitart is loud and relatively even from top to bottom which is what I wanted. I do play with a few folks over in Chapel Hill and Carrboro so let me know when you're going to be down this way and bring that Seven with you!

Ken

David F.

I have a friend in Port Townsend who is a precision metal fabricator; you should contact him: Matt Houle, email <!-- e --><a href="mailto:matthoule@bicyclespecialtiesonline.com">matthoule@bicyclespecialtiesonline.com</a><!-- e -->. I hae asked, and he's open to discussing the project.

spinality

David F. wrote:

I have a friend in Port Townsend who is a precision metal fabricator; you should contact him....

Thanks! Excellent -- and my neighbor, too. (I'm in Gardiner.) -- Trevor

Ken Bloom

If he is willing to do one, maybe he'd like to do two. I would like to use something much more Selmer-like on my next project.

Ken Bloom

spinality

David F. wrote:

I have a friend in Port Townsend who is a precision metal fabricator; you should contact him: Matt Houle, email <!-- e --><a href="mailto:matthoule@bicyclespecialtiesonline.com">matthoule@bicyclespecialtiesonline.com</a><!-- e -->. I have asked, and he's open to discussing the project.

Matt says (in an email to me) that he might indeed be interested in this kind of project:

Matt Houle wrote:

As you can probably guess from my e-mail address, I am in the business of making bicycles and bike parts, not guitars or guitar parts. However, after looking at the photo you sent as well as a similar photo on the stewmac.com web site, I believe that I can make something similar. I can't give you a firm price at the moment, although I can tell you that my shop rate is $50/hr and I would guess that it might take me anywhere from 3-5 hrs to fabricate and polish.

So for anybody interested in pursuing this, it sounds like Matt could be a good resource. I am not quite ready to move ahead on my own project (I must first figure out more about the guitar I want to build); but it is good to know that there seem to be options for addressing the 7-string tailpiece problem.

Ken Bloom

If he takes an existing tailpiece and does it the way Selmer did it, it would cut the cost down A LOT. All he would have to do is to saw the tailpiece in half at the top, spread it about 3/8" and then fold over a piece of brass and braze it in place. He would then install a stud for the string which can simply be a piece of rod with a hole for the string and then rivited to the the piece which was folded over. Take a look in the Charle book at the seven string tailpieces they used on Hawaiian guitars. It's' much easier than doing one from scratch and more authentic as well.

Ken Bloom

spinality

Ken Bloom wrote:

If he takes an existing tailpiece and does it the way Selmer did it, it would cut the cost down A LOT...Ken Bloom

Right, I did point that out to him (and I appreciate this option being spelled out here). On the other hand, a luthier who finds this thread looking for a custom fabricator may be more interested in a resource for making bespoke items from scratch. (I guess a bicycle shop is a good place for bespoke design, eh?)