#1
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Dobro surgery
I post this in case other Dobro players have similar problems. I recently purchased an OMI Dobro squareneck which I was told was a 1986 Model 60, but which a friend concluded was probably a 1976 Model 27. Regardless, I found that the tone quality was fine when playing open strings but the lowest wound strings sounded dead when barred. So some invasive work was needed. As it turned out, my friend was correct about the year. After removing the cover, spider bridge, and cone we saw the finish date pencilled on the inside of the body: 2/17/76. We also noticed what may have been the cause of the deadness of the lower strings: the cone had been glued to the body. Whether this had been done at the factory or by a previous owner I do not know. Perhaps someone out there in Reso-land can tell me about OMI's construction methods. We scraped away the glue and re-assembled. The dead tone of the lower strings had improved and overall the sound quality had brightened considerably. A happy ending so far.
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#2
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might want to look at this vid for homebrew cone/well fitting to finetuning. It'll probably take such a fitting or possibly a new cone to reach its full potential, but you are well on the way. Takes guts to mess with cones and such but it's well worth it.
Here is some info on Dobro serial numbers: 1974-1979 OMI Dobro: Y (#)### D configuration. Y is last digit of the year (if this number is "3" it is actually 1974). D is body type: D=wood, B=brass, M=steel or mandolin.
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I only play technologically cutting edge instruments. Parker Flys and National Resonators |
#3
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I have a 1976 60D model. My cone (and bridge saddle) was glued but by the time I got around to operating, the cone glue had dried out. I did carefully sand the dried glue from the rim before replacing the cone.
I replaced the original saddles with new, taller ones. This along with a new cone really enhanced the tone and volume. I did not use glue on the cone or the saddles. BTW, the proper cone diameter for this model is 10 1/2". Most "modern" cones are 10 9/16 which require some alteration. |