So what colors would you buy ?

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 30 Mar 2019 5:04 am

we talk about many things here , that being strings, picks, amps, speakers, brands of Steels, years built, P Pull, All Pull, etc..

But I don't think we ever asked,

Whats your color choices, what would you buy, what would you NOT buy ?

Me:

Any of the following,

-Black
-some sort of wood gain brown Formica color
-dark wood stained body
-natural clear coated body
-dual colors that may match above
-sunburst

What would I not buy anymore

-Blues
-Reds
-pastel colors

kinda set in my ways these days !

What say you ?

Rick Barnhart · Post by **Rick Barnhart** » 30 Mar 2019 5:17 am

Clear over natural birdseye maple is my favorite

Jack Hanson · Post by **Jack Hanson** » 30 Mar 2019 5:42 am

As with a motor vehicle, the color or finish on a pedal steel is close to, if not at the very bottom, of my wish list.

(Although if the funds ever dropped out of the sky to purchase a '62 Corvette, I'd want one with the cream-colored paint job. Like the ragtop that Tod & Buz had to tool around the USA on Route 66.)

I play three old Emmons PSGs from the early '70s: A rosewood 'mica D-10, a sunburst lacquer GS-10, and a bowlin' ball 'mica GS-10. All of 'em look fine to me (even that butt-ugly bowlin' ball).

Paul Wade · Post by **Paul Wade** » 30 Mar 2019 5:46 am

1 red stain

2 black Formica

3 walnut Formica

4 green stain

5 black stain
______________________
would not buy
pink

sea green

purple stain

sea blue

Jon Light (deceased) · Post by **Jon Light (deceased)** » 30 Mar 2019 6:21 am

After having been through the custom design thing on my first pro steel 20 years ago, I got that out of my system and I'm not too picky. I do see pictures of steels and think 'that's just ugly'.

But I was all set to order a new Williams and I needed to make some choices. They pride themselves on their woods & finishes. But I knew what I wanted. A mica color of rusted iron. Rough, oxidized, raw. I saw the pattern online, I saw the guitar in my head and I even did a mock-up in photoshop and it was definitely how I going (it took some convincing to overcome Bill Rudolph's 'are you sure??...we offer such beautiful lacquer...').
Then I received an actual chip sample and it looked like crap. Not nearly as great looking as the online sample.

So I'm going to have to settle for a gorgeous two-tone dark apron/blonde deck maple guitar. Rats.
I'm still feeling so-so about this because I'm not nearly into the pride of drop-dead gorgeous as I once was. I want a killer playing machine.

Paul Sutherland · Post by **Paul Sutherland** » 30 Mar 2019 6:30 am

Give me mica wood grain or black. I'm too rough on my steels for a lacquer finish. Also, I don't want people fixated on some fancy dandy looking steel as I play. They should be focused on the music, not the instrument.

Bruce Bjork · Post by **Bruce Bjork** » 30 Mar 2019 6:30 am

Two years ago my wife said “why don’t you just go ahead and buy a Pedal Steel Guitar” her favorite color is blue, my Justice Pro Lite is blue.

Jerry Overstreet · Post by **Jerry Overstreet** » 30 Mar 2019 6:36 am

I've only ordered one new pedal steel. I chose red mica.
The others have all been used. They were what they were. I didn't have any choice with those and I never culled a used one because of it's color. I've owned colors that I like better than others, both with finished wood and mica covered.

If I were ordering a new steel today, I would choose ebony/black lacquer body and necks with inlay all around. Probably MOP.

Erv Niehaus · Post by **Erv Niehaus** » 30 Mar 2019 7:50 am

I doubt if I would ever buy a green guitar, especially a light green.
In mica, I like black, red or a wood grain.
In lacquer, it seems like any finish would do but a few years ago I bought a gospel model Rains that was custom built for a Canadian steeler and I really like it.
It features a lot of mother of pearl inlay.
The cabinet was built by Mark Giles.

Erv

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 30 Mar 2019 7:56 am

mine is almost done...

and this one is waiting on me in Europe...

Larry Baker · Post by **Larry Baker** » 30 Mar 2019 9:03 am

Red is the new black

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 30 Mar 2019 2:37 pm

I must admit, I have an old Fender that's got the black frame with gold-sparkle deck and pedal board, and it's really grown on me through the years.

I would probably avoid pink, white, purple, orange, yellow, or lime green.

Kevin Fix · Post by **Kevin Fix** » 30 Mar 2019 3:15 pm

Lacquered Sun Burst for sure. Just like Damir's That is going to be a beauty Damir!!!!

Larry Jamieson · Post by **Larry Jamieson** » 30 Mar 2019 3:18 pm

I like red... I have a red steel, car, motor cycle and Telecaster. The show Pro red and blond lacquer guitars are real nice, and I like the sunburst.
Blue would be my second choice.

Wayne Baker · Post by **Wayne Baker** » 30 Mar 2019 3:44 pm

Larry Petree · Post by **Larry Petree** » 30 Mar 2019 3:47 pm

Always black mica for me. In fact, I am looking for a very clean black D-10 LeGrande III.

Douglas Schuch · Post by **Douglas Schuch** » 30 Mar 2019 4:44 pm

Personally, I strongly dislike 95% of the fake wood laminate steels I see. I wouldn't put plastic wood formica in my house either! Black (color of my current guitar) is ok. It does not jump out at you. It's sort of a "no nonsense" color. Red is always pretty (but I usually do not like red lacquer that shows the grain?). I had a Burgundy Millie that I thought was beautiful - but finances required me to sell her.

Two-tones are usually stunning, I think. I refinished an old round-front Bud with clear top (but prevalent grain due to bleaching out the old brown) and reddish-brown aprons and necks. That was the prettiest I've owned.

Having said all of that, I think there are many surface ideas yet explored. Mickey's drum wrap Mullen was pretty, and unique. I remember a Thomas (I think?) for sale here with a Stainless wrap. Doug Earnest's new hammered metal finishes on the Stage Ones looks interesting.

Perhaps a more interesting question would be "What finish has yet to be tried, but should be on a pedal steel?"

Here's three guitars that have been listed on Reverb to inspire folks! I like the last one.

Bill Miller · Post by **Bill Miller** » 30 Mar 2019 5:59 pm

In Mica guitars I like black best. Black goes so well with sparkling chrome hardware. Dark blue and some reds aren't bad. I'm not big on fake wood grain but there a few that don't offend me. But the some of the lacquer guitars, especially the Show Pros are enough to make a grown man cry. They must be a worry though, being so fragile.

Bobby Nelson · Post by **Bobby Nelson** » 30 Mar 2019 10:04 pm

I have entertained buying an SD-10, and if I did, and bought new again, I couldn't think of anything I'd rather have than another one like this:

Ian Rae · Post by **Ian Rae** » 30 Mar 2019 11:15 pm

I have a beautiful lacquered Williams and a space-age black Excel. Don't care for much in between. I particularly don't like imitation wood-grain mica, although I know a lot of revered guitars have it.

Roger Rettig · Post by **Roger Rettig** » 31 Mar 2019 3:14 am

I've never cared for sunburst finishes on steels. It works on 6-string guitars because the shading follows the curves of the body but steels are angular and square - sunburst shading seems to me to be at odds with the instrument's lines.

Black for me - it accentuates the shiny hardware and looks quietly efficient somehow.

I do have a soft spot for Fender's custom colours - I wish they used them more often on their steels. Teles, Strats, Jags and Jazzmasters look terrific in lake Placid Blue or Sea Foam Green.

I can't stand fake wood-grain finishes on anything! I once had an Emmons like that (I got it in a trade deal) and I couldn't wait to get rid of it. It's about as tasteful as that wood-pattern kitchen wallpaper you sometimes encounter; not for me.

The first Emmons I ordered new was Sapphire Blue. It's my favourite colour for life's incidentals but it wasn't long before I found myself wishing I'd ordered a plain black guitar. The next Emmons I bought was.

Ian Rae · Post by **Ian Rae** » 31 Mar 2019 4:19 am

Having your favourite colour is fun but when it's time to sell you're restricted to buyers who share your taste.

richard burton · Post by **richard burton** » 31 Mar 2019 5:33 am

My favorite colour is red lacquer, I really dislike mica with a wood grain pattern, having said that, I have one of each

I did nearly all my gigs on the mica steel, it's ugly, but sounds nice

Roger Rettig · Post by **Roger Rettig** » 31 Mar 2019 5:47 am

Didn't Jeff Newman apply some sort of wrap to his guitars? I saw him with some outlandish colours but, unlike wood-grain mica or a tattoo, a curious 'choice' can be consigned to history in a flash.

I do also have a soft spot for Emmons' Teal Green 'mica - my wife, however, declares that such colours are appropriate for a 1950s bathroom and little else.

Jack Hanson · Post by **Jack Hanson** » 31 Mar 2019 6:10 am

Roger Rettig wrote:Didn't Jeff Newman apply some sort of wrap to his guitars?

Jeff played a rosewood 'mica D-10 push/pull all done up with International Harvester decals during a seminar for Clem Schmitz in the Twin Cities about 40 years ago.