Playing slide question

mcollett · #1 February 12th, 2006

Good morning Kirk, moderators..........uhhh, good morning everone.
I just finished checking out Kirks web site and link to the Bottleneckguitar.com site.
Very cool stuff. Playing slide is a mid-term goal of mine, start in a year or so I guess. Can I get some opinions from people who play slide about what is a good guitar to start with. Once I have an idea then I can keep my eyes and ears open for a good deal if one were to present it'self.
I think tri-cone wood body resonators sound VERY cool. But that doesnt mean they're good to learn on. Is it better to find an old Fender Bullet and an old Crate amp?
I guess it boils down to; Hey Mike, just pick up a Knock-off Stat or ?, throw some ____ gauge strings on it, pick up a slide, tune to _______ and where some strings out getting use to the new toy. OR I could let the pros give some advise here.
What say you SLIDE GODS of the net

Let's pretend you like me and want me to start off on the right foot with the right tools.
Hope this is an interesting question and I posted it well.
Thanks,
Mike
FYI: Currently own a Breedlove accoustic with light gauge strings.

allthumbs · #2 February 12th, 2006

I am not a slide god, but I have played slide for a while. You can play slide on any guitar. The heavier the strings you use, the better tone you get and the easier it is to not have the slide crash into the frets. If you can have just one guitar for slide you can go with very heavy strings. I use a 13 set with a 16 gauge for the high E. If you have only one guitar then 12s or 13s. Lighter than that and you have to start beefing up the tone with fxs.
Fender resos are not well regarded.Johnsons are very popular in the lower end price range. They need work though. Filing the fret edges, upgrading the cone and doing the mushroom mod. I would wait til you have a feel for the style you want to play before you buy a reso. Tri-cones are pretty hash and brassy so you need to make sure this is the sound your after.
Kirk plays Dropped D only. For open tunings and tons of info on slide go here. Hope this helps.
http://www.bigroadblues.com/cgi/dcforum/dcboard.cgi

strtblstr · #3 February 12th, 2006

I bought my son a really cheap clasical guitar and he never really got going on it, and being so cheap the strings were rather high on the fret board so nstead of lettig it sit and go to waist I tuned it to E,A,E,A,C#,E and I mess around with it for slide. I'll post something on the recording section so you can here what it sounds like.

mcollett · #4 February 12th, 2006

Thanks for the discussion.
Seems like a cheap (relative to whatever one calls cheap) electric may be the way to go.
Then just set it up for slide and leave it.
Thanks for the Blues link "Thumbs", I'm really hoping to get proficient at playing the blues.
To me nothing sounds and good or looks as cool as an old dude playing the blues.
I'm only 44 so I have forever ahead of me.
Has Kirk finished his slide DVD? Are there any DVD lessons for the blues (beginner) that are in the "you can't go wrong buying this one" catagory?
I work at a machine shop so I can make any kind of slide I may want. But I have a bottle of Merlot in the cabinet that may be destined as my first

. May take a few months but I'll let everone know how Rabbit Ridge Winery works out.
Please keep the topic active, I'm learning from all.

Mike

allthumbs · #5 February 13th, 2006

heavy solid brass slides like Kirks' give great sustain. Glass is a smoother mellower sound. I have a custom heavy leaded glass dropped D slide as well as Kirks. For 0pen tunings, you want a slide that covers all six strings. Dropped D and standard tuning only needs a slide long enough to cover 4 strings since a minor 7th chord has the most strings that line up.

mcollett · #6 February 13th, 2006

Thanks again AllThumbs but still haven't got any advise on a guitar for slide.
Just like most brands and models feel different, what brands or models have proven to be a solid starting point? I'd rather buy once and I have time to find a decent deal.
Mike

allthumbs · #7 February 13th, 2006

For electric any guitar that has a mahogany body. You want density for sustain. There really isn't one brand suited for slide. Lots of players like strats and others like guitars with humbuckers. Some like LPs. It is a matter of what your ears like. The nice thing about slide is that you can find some cheapy guitars that are not great for regular playing , but are great for sliding. Kirk plays a strat for slide BTW.

bluesguy · #8 February 13th, 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by allthumbs

The nice thing about slide is that you can find some cheapy guitars that are not great for regular playing , but are great for sliding. Kirk plays a strat for slide BTW.

Its my understanding the Hound Dog Taylor, one of the most interesting slide guitar players from the 50's/60's, would pick out the funkiest looking & cheapest guitar he could find at the pawn shop and use that for slide playing.

mcollett · #9 February 15th, 2006

A couple of the young jazz guys at work said I should scope out a Squire. Something of a Chinese Strat for about a buck and a quarter! Not bad and dirt cheap.
Hey it's as good a start as any.
Thanks to all.
mlc

allthumbs · #10 February 15th, 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcollett

A couple of the young jazz guys at work said I should scope out a Squire. Something of a Chinese Strat for about a buck and a quarter! Not bad and dirt cheap.
Hey it's as good a start as any.
Thanks to all.
mlc

While a squire51 is a great bargoon axe, it may be too twangy for slide. Try before you buy. Trebly sounding guitars can have a weak bass and you want to be able to howl and growl.