Question 1

How can I purchase a GFI pedal steel guitar?

Accepted Answer

GFI pedal guitars are sold worldwide through our Dealer  network and available to be ordered directly from the GFI factory for  orders in the United States.  You can get in touch with one of our  dealers regarding further purchasing information from them or visit the Purchasing page for further information about purchasing directly from GFI.

Question 2

What is the cost of a GFI pedal steel guitar?

Accepted Answer

The list prices of the products GFI has available are published on the Pricing  page of our website.  Dealers will set their own retail prices which  are generally discounted somewhat from the list prices.  Contact a  dealer for their specific retail pricing information. GFI factory direct  pricing is also listed on the Pricing page.

Question 3

Do you have any used pedal steels or take trade-ins?

Accepted Answer

No, we don't deal in any used instruments at all at  the factory.  Most of our dealers do, though. Get in touch with them  regarding the possibility of trade-ins or what used instruments they might currently have in stock.

Question 4

Where can I try out a GFI pedal steel guitar?

Accepted Answer

Some of our larger dealers will have GFIs in stock and  it would be possible to try one out there.  There are also a number of  steel guitar conventions throughout the year and we usually attend the  larger ones  and bring steels for potential players to try out.  You can  also try one at the factory if you find yourself in the area, though  what we may or may not happen to have available at the time is subject  to change.

Question 5

I don't live near a dealer, what do I do?

Accepted Answer

Steel guitar is a pretty small niche market especially when compared to the standard 6-string  guitar world.  There just aren't that many full time steel shops, and  if you happen to live near one, consider yourself lucky.  However, it is  not really necessary to live near a dealer to be able to purchase a GFI  pedal steel guitar; our dealers will ship worldwide and will be happy to answer any questions you might have.  You can also order an instrument directly from GFI.

Question 6

What is the difference between the Ultra and the Expo?

Accepted Answer

The Ultra would be considered the GFI top of the line  and the Expo a more affordable professional level pedal steel guitar.   While they share virtually all of the same mechanical features, the  main difference is their appearance.  The Ultra has a brushed aluminum  finish and clear coating as standard on the frame, pedal board and some  body parts.  The Expo has a gray hammertone coating on those parts  instead, and the main cost difference is not having to do the brush  finishing work.  Additionally, the Expo features angled rails, a wrap-around endplate look and is limited in how many pedals and knee levers are available (3 pedals 5 knees max. on an S-10 E or S-10 PE, 8 pedals and 5 knees max on a D-10 E).  The keyless tuning system is an option only available on Ultras.

Question 7

What is the difference between the Pro models and the Student model?

Accepted Answer

The GFI Student Model is our entry level steel and  while more affordable, it is very capable of performing at a  professional level. Entry level steels are generally more limited in the  types of tunings and setups they will do and how those may be changed,  if at all.  There will also likely be some other aspects of design or  component choices that help keep the cost down and they are often  lighter in weight than comparable professional models.  However, entry  level pedal steels can provide excellent musical value for the money,  and this is especially true of the GFI Student Model.  It has the same  basic tone environment as our Pro models, uses the same pickup and most  of the mechanical linkage parts are the same.  The main difference  between the GFI Student and Pro models is the changer design.  The Pro  Models utilize a triple finger, "all pull" changer mechanism and the  Student Model utilizes a single finger, "pull release" changer.  The  tuning procedures between the two changer designs are also somewhat  different and with the single finger Student Model changer, lowers can  only be accomplished on right moving knee levers, which limit its  capabilities to the standard E9 tuning with the "Emmons" setup.

Question 8

What is the warranty on GFI pedal steel guitars?

Accepted Answer

All GFI pedal steel guitars have  a limited lifetime warranty against defects in materials and  workmanship.  It does not cover normal wear and tear or any issues due  to abuse or neglect.  If we determine a particular issue is covered  under the warranty, GFI will repair/service the guitar at no cost and  will also pay for any shipping costs.  All warranty work is done at the  GFI factory.

Question 9

How can I adjust the knee lever angles?

Accepted Answer

There is a set screw on each knee lever that can  adjust the angle.  On the Pro models and the RR of the Student models,  the set screw can be found on the face of each knee lever that contacts  the leg, near the bracket.  For the other knee levers on the Student  model the set screw is located on the rear of the lever near the bracket  and is secured by a 1/4" nut.  A vertical knee lever on a pro model  will also have a locking set screw on the side face of the lever that  locks into the knee lever bracket connector that will have to be  loosened before an angle adjustment can be done.

Question 10

How can I adjust the pedal height?

Accepted Answer

Each pedal rod connector is held in place on the pedal  rod by a 5/16" nut.  Simply loosen the nut, turn the connector up or  down as desired and that will change the resting angle of the pedal.  Be  sure the pedal can travel its full range and won't be obstructed by  hitting the floor.

Question 11

How do the pedal rod connectors work?

Accepted Answer

Our pedal rod to pedal connection design is a feature  unique to GFI.  The pedals have delrin studs so there is no metal to  metal contact at the connection for quiet operation.  Each connector has  rod number stamped on it and there is more room for pedal height  adjustment than the connector used by most other steel companies.  There  is a small knurled thumbscrew that holds the connector in place on the  pedal stud.  When tightened down, the end of the thumbscrew will  protrude slightly into the hole of the connector.  Around the delrin  pedal stud there a small groove or channel that the slightly protruding  end of the thumbscrew will ride in to keep the connector from slipping  off of the stud.  When the pedal rod is hooked through the pedal crank  and oriented correctly, the connector thumbscrew should be angled toward  the player.  It takes a couple of  revolutions of the thumbscrew to  retract it enough to be able to remove the pedal rod from the pedal.   When the pedal rods are stored in the case or leg bag, we recommend  tightening the thumbscrews down to prevent losing them.

Question 12

Can I adjust the pedal/knee lever action?

Accepted Answer

When we set up the pedal steels here at the factory we  feel they have an excellent balance of pedal/knee lever travel distance  versus the force it takes to move them.  Pedal steels change the pitch  of strings using the mechanical advantage of the lever which basically  translates to the more distance a pedal or knee lever must travel to  accomplish a pitch change, the easier it is to push it and vice versa,  the shorter the travel the harder it is to push.  We don't recommend  altering the action of the pedals or knee levers unless you are  experienced working on pedal steel mechanics.  Things can easily get out  of adjustment enough to keep the guitar from performing properly if you  don't know what you are doing.  We can perform pedal or knee lever  adjustments here at the factory, which would be subject to our hourly  shop rate and the customer would be responsible for the freight charges  both ways.

Question 13

Do I need to lube/oil my GFI pedal steel guitar?

Accepted Answer

The moving parts on GFI pedal steel guitars are either  designed to need no lubrication or have been sufficiently lubricated at  the factory to last the lifetime of the guitar.  More specifically, the  parts like the pedals and pedal rod connectors have no metal to metal  contact as they move and need no lubrication at all.  Other parts like  the changer fingers are lubricated at the factory with a heavy duty  synthetic lube.  Adding oil to those parts will have the effect of  washing the heavier lube out.  Occasionally a squeak or creak can  develop in the moving parts as they settle in and dealing with that  situation is discussed in the Common Issues page.

Question 14

How do I tune the Student Model?

Accepted Answer

The GFI Student Model follows  the same basic tuning procedure as the Pro Models, though the procedure  for a string that is lowered is a little more involved.  Since that  procedure is not quite as straightforward or intuitive, a tuning chart  is included with every new Student Model that goes over the specific  tuning procedure.  The chart is also available on the Documentation page of this website.

Here is a more in-depth explanation of what is going on mechanically as we tune the Student Model:

The Student Model  changer is a single finger “pull release” system and this single finger  (per string) has to accomplish both the raises and the lowers, unlike  the Pro changer that has a three finger mechanism to do the same job.    The single finger can only move in one direction to raise the pitch of  a string and the opposite direction to lower the pitch.

Strings that will only  be raised or not changed in pitch at all by a pedal or knee lever are  tuned to their open pitch using the keys.  The resulting string tension  forces the changer fingers to stop against the back side of the hole  routed in the wood body that the changer mechanism is mounted through.   The back side of the hole functions as a stop that keeps the fingers  from moving in that direction and allows us to increase the string  tension as we tune it to pitch.

When a raise is  activated by a pedal or knee lever, the mechanical linkage ends up  pulling the nylon nut which in turn pushes the end of the changer finger  away from the stop of the back side of the hole and toward the keys.   As the one end of the finger is being moved by the nylon nut, the other  end that the string ball is hooked through is simultaneously rotating  around an axle which results in the string stretching and raising in  pitch.  The amount the pitch is raised by a pedal or knee lever is fine  tuned with the nylon nut.  When the raise is released, the finger  returns to rest at its open pitch or neutral position against the stop  of the back side of the wood hole.

Since the changer  fingers can only move one direction to raise and the opposite direction  to lower, on the strings that we want to lower, the finger is set so  that its open pitch or neutral point is partially engaged or raised.   This then gives the finger room to move backward and lower the string’s  pitch before the its motion is stopped by the back side of the wood  hole.  For example, strings 4 & 8 (normally tuned open to E an  octave apart) would be open tuned to D# with the fingers at rest against  the wood changer hole.  Then those strings are additionally set with a  half tone raise from a D# to an E by moving and fixing the fingers.   This results in a raised neutral position, allowing room for the  fingers to move backward and lower the half tone back to D#.

So on the Student Model  when you tune the strings that lower, the procedure is to engage the  lowering knee lever which releases the finger from its open pitch or  raised neutral point back to the stop against the side of the wood hole.   Then tune the open string with the keys to the pitch that it should be  lowering to (which would be D# for strings 4 & 8).  When you then  release the lowering lever, spring tension actually raises the strings  to what would be the normal open pitch or raised neutral position (E for  4 & 8).  That raised open pitch is fine tuned by using the  appropriate red colored nylon nuts.

The E's are also raised  a half tone to F by the LL and those raises are simply tuned with the  nylon nuts with the LL engaged like the other raises.

The tuning principle is  the same for the lowers of string 2 & 9 by the RR.  With the RR  engaged and held in place, strings 2 and 9 are tuned to their lowered  pitch of C# using the keys.  The RR is then released and the open pitch  of string 2, which is a D#, is tuned using the appropriate red colored  nylon nut, and likewise string 9 is tuned to its open pitch of D using  the appropriate red colored nylon nut.

One of the limiting  factors of the student model pull release changer is that the backward  motion needed to lower a string can only be accomplished by a right  moving knee lever, meaning any lowering has to be done on the LR or the  RR which limits it to the "Emmons" setup of the E9 tuning.

Question 15

How do I tune the E9 2nd string half stop feel?

Accepted Answer

On GFI Pro models, the half stop feel for the E9 2nd  string is accomplished by the RR knee lever beginning to pull the 9th  string as the 2nd string reaches a half tone.  The 2nd string full whole  tone lower is tuned with the nylon nut, then the 9th string half tone  lower is tuned also with the nylon nut.  The resulting half stop feel  for the 2nd string works out due to the choice of lowering spring  tension, string gauges, and leverage ratios in the linkage.  Altering  the lowering spring tension for the 9th string can change the feel of  the half stop but will also slightly affect the pitch of the half stop  as well.

Question 16

How can I change the height of a GFI pedal steel guitar?

Accepted Answer

Our leg design is different than the microphone stand  style legs used by most other manufacturers.  The front legs are not  adjustable and the back legs can be adjusted about plus or minus about  1/2 inch to level the guitar (just one back leg is adjustable on the  Student model).  To accommodate different sized players, we make leg  sets and pedal rods 1 or 2 inches taller or shorter than the standard  height (26 1/4" from the floor to the bottom of the back rail).  There  is no charge for a non-standard height leg set at the time of a new order.  Non-standard height leg sets for existing GFI pedal steels are available as are the corresponding sized pedal rods.

Question 17

Where/how can I get parts for my GFI pedal steel guitar?

Accepted Answer

You can order parts for your GFI directly from the factory, by email, phone, or through the website store.

Question 18

Can I get parts from GFI for other steels?

Accepted Answer

While most pedal steels today accomplish the same  things in similar ways, the specific parts are different enough that  they are not interchangeable.  It is our policy to make our parts  available only for GFI pedal steel guitars and we do not offer parts for  custom builds or project guitars.

Question 19

Where/how can I get my GFI pedal steel guitar worked on?

Accepted Answer

Most of our larger stocking dealers can also work on  our guitars and it's best to check with them regarding their particular  capabilities and charges.  We can always service your GFI pedal steel  guitar here at the factory.  We charge an hourly shop rate for  repairs/service and the customer is responsible for the freight costs  both ways.  The exception to this is repair/service that is covered by  the warranty.

Question 20

How old is my GFI pedal steel guitar?

Accepted Answer

If you get in touch with us here at the factory with  the serial number of the GFI pedal steel guitar we can tell you when it  was built.

Question 21

Where is the serial number located?

Accepted Answer

The serial numbers on GFI pedal steel guitars are  stamped into underside of the back rail near the changer.  If you are  looking at the guitar as it would be in the case, upside down, with the  front of the guitar away from you, the number would be in the lower left  corner of the guitar.

Question 22

How do I pack a pedal steel guitar for shipment?

Accepted Answer

When packing the steel for shipment, make sure nothing  can move around in the case.  Newspaper, cardboard, towels, etc. can be  used to make sure that when the lid is shut nothing inside the case  (guitar, pedal board, leg bag) can move when it is jostled about, as  will likely happen during shipping.  The case itself will then need to  be covered in cardboard that is usually secured with packing tape.   Different shipping companies will have different requirements for  packaging a shipment, and how you have the guitar packaged will likely  have a bearing on how the shipping company will handle an insurance  claim for shipping damage if that occurs, so check with them for  specifics.  Most shipping stores can package the guitar for you for a  fee if you choose.  You should insure the shipment for what it would  cost you to replace it should it be damaged during shipment.

Pedal Steel Guitars

Frequently asked questions