[zao_89]

I want to get into slide guitar and im wondering, what kind of slide should I start off with? They look the same to me. And maybe some song suggestions for me also?

 

[SCREEM]

get a glass one, tune yer guitar down to open "G"....use a guitar with high string action evilGuitar:

 

[Lester B. Flat]

Crack the neck off a whiskey bottle, tune your guitar to DGDGBD (open G), and play "The Blues" by Anybody.

Seriously, some people like glass, some like brass. You want something with a fair amount of mass. (Uh oh, I'm rhyming!). Some glass slides I find are too light, so go with a thicker one. There are lots of people who play in standard tuning too. You can google for other tuning options.

For a pure tone you should mute the strings below the slide with you index finger. You'll have better control if you learn to fingerpick since slide licks are mostly cross string motions.

 

[PaulS]

A buddy of mine uses a piece from a shot gun barrel for his slide, also seen these ceramic slides for sale. I prefer regular tuning to open tunings but it limits chord work.

 

[Xanadu]

i was in a local guitar store, and there was this drunk guy with no left hand, but he was playing slide with a beer glass:food-smiley-015:

 

[Ripper]

Chunks of shotgun barrels work good, a peice of electrical conduit pipe makes a cool sounding slide. I also use a chunk of old hunting knife blade. I dulled the blade and hold it between my two fingers, spine part of the blade being used as the slide. It's not a versitile as a regular slide but sure gives some cool steel guitar sounds.

 

[Robert1950]

Whatever Duanne Allman used.:wink:

 

[PaulS]

the older corricidan bottle, a few years back I seen a place that was selling them using Duanne as a selling point. Basically thick glass. Knew a guy called Harmonica Zeke back in the late seventies his weapon was a shot glass. Readily available whereever he played......

 

[Rumble_b]

My friend uses a beer bottle most of the time. We were playing freebird the other day and he tried to use a glass slide, he couldn't make it sound good. Much better with a bottle of Blue(of maybe it was just the contents of the bottle!?) Anyways, I bought a glass slide yesterday, its much nicer sounding than the brass one I had already.

 

[devnulljp]

Anyone know where to get those coricidin-type bottles? I have a ceramic slide but I think it's a bit too heavy (and I suck, but that's another story). I'd like to try a bunch of glass ones, and Rory used the coricidin bottle so it's a good place to start.

 

[mario]

Anyone know where to get those coricidin-type bottles? I have a ceramic slide but I think it's a bit too heavy (and I suck, but that's another story). I'd like to try a bunch of glass ones, and Rory used the coricidin bottle so it's a good place to start.

Hey devnulljp,
Hope you are still enjoying the fuzz. Anyway, as far as coricidin slides I highly recommend www.rbnc.net I have bought 3 of them. The most amazing slides I have ever used for electric...I think they would be a little light for acoustic though.

 

[Milkman]

Jum Dunlop makes a line of glass slides with varying thicknesses and sizes. You have to find one that fits loosely but that doesn't flop around too much.

You can use standard tuning or open tunings. Both will work. Open tunings are great but you're stuck with that tuning even if you only want to play a slide solo in one part of the song, so many people just use standard tuning.

When using a slide, you have to position the slide DIRECTLY over the fret, NOT behind it as you would when playing normally.

Muting the strings you don't want sounding is a critical element of slide playing.

Start with simple stuff and work on playng in tune.

Slide is a bit like bagpipes. Played well it can be quite beautiful.

Played poorly and there are few worse sounds in the known universe.

It takes time and patience.

Good luck

 

[Gene Machine]

+1 to milkman

if you can find a store with the display of glass slides, sit down for a while and try different ones, different fingers.

It's a very VERY personal thing. it may take you a while to figure out what your thing is.

myself, i tried pinky, ring finger, middle finger, and both glass and chromed slides, before I fiinally settled into something that works for me.

plus, find a guy whose music you really like, for me it was Derek Trucks. I started there and branched out.

I have a DVD from Hotlicks. If your interested, PM me back. It has some technique stuff in there.

good luck, slide is awesome.

 

[greco]

Jum Dunlop makes a line of glass slides with varying thicknesses and sizes. You have to find one that fits loosely but that doesn't flop around too much.

You can use standard tuning or open tunings. Both will work. Open tunings are great but you're stuck with that tuning even if you only want to play a slide solo in one part of the song, so many people just use standard tuning.

When using a slide, you have to position the slide DIRECTLY over the fret, NOT behind it as you would when playing normally.

Muting the strings you don't want sounding is a critical element of slide playing.

Start with simple stuff and work on playng in tune.

Slide is a bit like bagpipes. Played well it can be quite beautiful.

Played poorly and there are few worse sounds in the known universe.

It takes time and patience.

Good luck

It took me a long time to sort out what Milkman has wrapped up here in a few quick comments.

I don't work at it all that much, but it is fun to try.
I certainly produced 1000's of notes that sounded like a very ill cat.

Enjoy and good luck with it.

Dave

 

[Milkman]

One more little tip.

A light touch is the way to go IMO. You don't need to press down hard with the slide.

 

[mario]

If you are really interested in playing slide, I would suggest a HotLicks instructional DVD by one of my favourite guitarist's Warren Haynes called "Electric Blues and Slide Guitar". In the DVD, he show's a lot of great tips such as the important aspect of dampening. Highly recommended!

 

[dwagar]

Dunlop makes a version of the coricidin bottle, called the Blues Bottle - at least I think it's from Dunlop.

 

[fraser]

i have one of the dunlop coricidian bottles- i think dwager is right, called the blues bottle- i find it too long and the mouth is too wide for my pinky. if i used my ring finger(or whatever you call the one next to the pinky) it would fit fine.
it does sound real good. and it was under $10.
i experimented with copper tubing until i found a length and width that worked best for me, then i started cutting my own out of bottles-
if anyone is interested i quote myself from an old post i made-

i use a dremel rotary tool, the kind that plugs into the wall, not the rechargeable one-
i also have a princess auto rotary tool set, that cost about 20$ and works just as good.
then you need a diamond cutting wheel for it- like this-
http://www.drillspot.com/products/42..._Cutting_Wheel
canadian tire wants like 25$ for it- but again, i got a set of 4 at princess auto for about 4$.
you want to be outside, or in your basement or garage, as glass will fly a bit- tiny fragments like.
i use my bathtub lol.
also i wear leather gloves n safety glasses-
i pick a bottle that is the right size- i like the mastro brand ballsamic vinagar bottle from the grocery store- first i cut the end off, where the cap screws on-
i wind the rotary tool up to a good speed, and begin to lightly score the bottle, slowly spinning the bottle, while holding the cutting tool as firmly and straight as i can.
once ive gone around once, i follow my initial cut, only applying a bit more force- after a few turns of the bottle you will cut through at some point, when this happens itll crack along the length of your cut, and the end falls off.
i then take a rough measurement against my finger to estimate the needed length- doesnt need to be perfect- and begin the same cutting process at the desired point on the neck of the bottle.
i hold the bottle in my left hand and spin it slowly, while holding the cutter rigid, i dont try to go too deep, again once you are through at one point, the rest just breaks off.
then i use a knife sharpening stone, rubbing the jagged ends back and forth on it to kinda wear it down to a uniform level. once its relatively even i then fine tune it-
ill usually sit and watch a hockey game or something, just spinning the edges of the new slide first on emery cloth, then finer grades of sandpaper until the ends are nice and smooth.

the glass that flies around during the cutting process is very fine, like little grains of sand- after the first time i did one, i started wrapping a hankerchief around my face, because i could taste it for 2 days- probably not good for ya lol.
its really pretty easy- ive made 4 in this exact fashion, and havent broken a bottle yet- but i err on the side of caution, going real slow n easy with the cutting tool.
before i figured out this method i tried all the traditional approaches, and all where failures.
ive had such good results that people want them, and ive given 2 away- i thought id like to make a bunch and market them cheaply, but its hard to find decent bottles- now that the beer store takes empty wine bottles-
i asked the little girl who works at the beer store for some, explaining why i wanted them, the manager told her it was a liability issue and i couldnt have them.
then i found the basamic vinegar- i just dump it out, costs me 3$
i hope ive made some sense, at least enough for you to follow- its really easy. if you have any questions ask away-
remember, the silicants in coloured glass are different than those in clear glass- ive read that green and blue glass sound better, in my experience it is true, i made a clear one, and it didnt sound as good as the two you see in my pic- and of those two- the black one sounds best- but that maybe just to my ears
good luck

 

[zontar]

I'd say experiment--depending on your touch and the sound you want you might be better off with a metal one. Or a glass or ceramic one may work better for you. If you know other guitarists with slides--try to borrow them, or see if you can test drive them at a store.

I'm not an expert on actually playing, but I use a chrome one--although I've tried brass--and I think I'll switch to brass.

If I used a glass or ceramic one--I think I'd break it. (Drop it or something like that.) So I'm better off with a metal one.

Like so much else about guitar--try out different options for yourself to know for sure, and do as you did with this thread--ask others. But make the final decision your own.

 

[djdeacon]

It depends on the sound you want...

If you want a pristine, Duane Allman-cum-Elmore James type sound, then glass is the only way to go. I remember J. Giels saying in an interview that the problem with Corocidin bottles is that the neck is really small, so if you've got fatter fingers, you need to look elsewhere.

If you want a funky, George Thorogood/Hound Dog Taylor sound, then you need a metal slide. They both used lengths of copper pipe (you've been to the plumbing department at Canadian Tire, haven't you?). Because this is the sound I'm after, I've used a piece of shower curtain rod for years.

A lot of guys prefer a heavier metal slide, and I'm told that the spark plug socket out of a ratchet set (back to Canadian Tire!) works well.