Re: Tom Stone

Glen Peterson wrote:
>
>How can you make up your mind if you don't know what he's selling, or for
>how much? Do you have a flier for his system?

Yes, I have his complete packet of info. Somewhere. I would have to dig it
up.

>
>How are the kits priced?

About $350. Includes enuf stuff for 4 fret boards. $50 for enuf materials
for an extra fretboard.

>
>Can you describe them?

1/10" thick. 4 layers: steel, flexible magnet, some sort of hard plastic
material. The frets are mounted on this, and then the fret flanges are
covered with more plastic material. All layers have adhesive on one side.
Just peel off the backing.

>
>How long did it take you to get yours?
>

I did not order a system yet. Took about 3 weeks to get the info.

>What's your take on the overall quality/worth of the system?
>

Not sure. There have been recent tuning posts that said that it was a good
system.

>The more I think about designing a new system for William Sethares, the
more
>I think I am going to be a customer of Mark's instead of a business rival!
>No sense re-inventing the wheel. If you can answer some of these questions
>it will save me weeks of waiting for snail-mail.
>

Good point. Perhaps you could just do the luthier work for Sethares -- that
is removing old frets, planing down the neck, etc. Or even you could put
the whole system together for those of us who do not want to get our hands
dirty.

Darren Burgess
Gainesville FL

Would anyone on this list like to comment on Mark Rankin interchangeable
fretboards?

Are you satisfied with it? What are it's strengths and weaknesses? How
long have you had it? How durable is it / how long do you expect it to
last? Is it fairly priced?

Especially is there anyone in the Boston area with one of these? Could I
make an appointment to see it and evaluate it for myself?

I am a luthier and I have considered developing my own system, but if his
system is high quality I'd rather sell his product than compete with it.

---
Glen Peterson
Peterson Stringed Instruments
30 Elm Street North Andover, MA 01845
(978) 975-1527
http://www.organicdesign.org/peterson

In TD 370, Message: 5, Glen Peterson wrote:

> Would anyone on this list like to comment on Mark Rankin interchangeable
> fretboards?
>
> Are you satisfied with it? What are it's strengths and weaknesses? How
> long have you had it? How durable is it / how long do you expect it to
> last? Is it fairly priced?
>
In reply:

As I said earlier, I think these interchangeable fingerboards are excellent.
They stay put when in use, but are easy to swap out/in. Being flexible, the
action is fully adjustable. Mine show no signs of wear after about 5 years
(but I don't play a lot), and I expect them to last for decades. Considering
the high quality of the materials and the lack of alternatives, I would say
the prices are very fair. Mark Rankin is to be commended for providing this
technology.

One could quibble that the feel of the plastic surface is not as sensual as
a fine wooden fingerboard, true. And if the top plastic layer is not
properly burnished down, the edges may peel a little and/or chip off, but
that is avoidable by good workmanship (at least so far, in my experience)
and is only cosmetic at any rate.

For heavy players, if you tend to wear out the frets on your guitars, that
may be a problem here: I have no idea how hard it would be to replace frets
on these fingerboards, but at the minimum you would need to get more of that
special "derby hat" fret wire and a new top plastic layer to cover them up,
which is much more hassle than pulling frets out of wood and hammering new
ones in.

David Canright DCanright@NPS.Navy.mil
Monterey, CA 93943 USA http://www.mbay.net/~anne/david/

Hi! I've been using Tom Stone's fingerboards in concerts & recordings since
1978!! All versions, including the first non-magnetic ones (what a
headache!)
I just had a new fingerboard made from a Rankin kit just last month, and
travel with about 10 at a time. The only drawback is the change in tdhe
sound of the instrument, seeing that the acoustic response of the neck is
severely compromised. The high frequencies are somewhat quenched by the
magnetic material, and the sustain is a bit dampened - but the ease of
changeability and portability far outweigh those considrations for me..
I have a luthier here in Los Angeles put together the kits after I have
carefully tuned the fret placement witha dummy fret and a Peterson Strobe
tuner.
You can hear the result on Bridge Records JUST WEST COAST from 1994.

Please let me know if you intend to market/manufacture the fingerboards, as
Mark Rankin (bless his soul) is very difficult to get in touch with, in this
electronic instant gratification age of ours!

john

>From: "Glen Peterson" <Glen@OrganicDesign.org>
>Reply-To: tuning@onelist.com
>To: <tuning@onelist.com>
>Subject: [tuning] Re: Tom Stone
>Date: Wed, 27 Oct 1999 23:59:46 -0400
>
>Would anyone on this list like to comment on Mark Rankin interchangeable
>fretboards?
>
>Are you satisfied with it? What are it's strengths and weaknesses? How
>long have you had it? How durable is it / how long do you expect it to
>last? Is it fairly priced?
>
>Especially is there anyone in the Boston area with one of these? Could I
>make an appointment to see it and evaluate it for myself?
>
>I am a luthier and I have considered developing my own system, but if his
>system is high quality I'd rather sell his product than compete with it.
>
>---
>Glen Peterson
>Peterson Stringed Instruments
>30 Elm Street North Andover, MA 01845
>(978) 975-1527
>http://www.organicdesign.org/peterson
>
>
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