Excel Gear Shift Question

[George Madrid]

Hey Everyone,
Is there anyone out there with an excel with a gear shifter that turns E9 to C6? I really want to see one and see how it works.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

All the best
George

[Greg Cutshaw]

Here's my review of an E9/C6 Excel 12 string with lots of pictures and other info:

https://www.gregcutshaw.com/Excel%2012% ... yless.html

[George Madrid]

Hey Greg!
Very cool... and detailed. I wish I could see how the gear shift moves but this is extremely helpful.
Thank you.

Best,
George Madrid

[Steve Lipsey]

Why not ask Toshiyuki at Shoji, he's the new guy in the Excel new-company family...and had made some advances on the dual-copedent landscape (e.g., a dual direction knee lever)...
contact@shoji-workshop.com

[George Madrid]

Thanks Steve!

[Greg Cutshaw]

The gear shift activates two rows of adjustable changer pulls than can raise or lower any string. This acts much like any other pedal that raises and lowers strings. The bottom, most row of black set screws are used to perform an adjustment for the lock lever. If you look close at one of the pictures, you can see the bar that actuates this arrangement..

[Toshiyuki Shoji]

I’m planning to upload a video on YouTube explaining the Extended E9 to C6 gear shift (lock mechanism) and the knee lever changes associated with it. I think it will be helpful for others to see how the mechanism actually works in motion.

I’m very sorry, but things have been extremely busy lately and I haven’t been able to film it yet.

By the way, I’ve been wondering what the most appropriate way is to describe the mechanism that locks the change from Extended E9 to C6 in English. I’ve seen some people refer to it as a “crossover,” but I’m not sure if that’s the best term.

Also, I’ve been using the term “shift” to describe the way the knee lever functions change when the lock lever is engaged, but I’m not sure if that’s the most natural expression from a native speaker’s perspective.

Sorry if my explanation was a bit confusing.

What I mean is, I’m looking for clear and precise terms to describe two different things:

The lock mechanism that changes and holds the tuning from Extended E9 to C6, and

The way the knee lever functions change when that lock is engaged.

Since the knee lever shift mechanism can also be installed with the lock that changes E9 to B6(Universal), I want to use different expressions to clearly separate it from the Extended E9/C6 lock system.

When I asked ChatGPT about the term for the change lock, it suggested that the following expressions might be appropriate:

Crossover system

Locking mechanism

Mode lock

[George Madrid]

Thank you so much Greg, I’m starting to see it and it makes sense.

Thank you Toshiyuki you are very helpful, I’ll send you a private message a little later. I think I had a misconception of the locking mechanism. I thought the locking mechanism locked a pedal or knee lever change but I see now from Greg’s photos that it is different. Also I did not know the lock can change a levers cross shaft.

As far as terms perhaps this:
Gear Shifter - mechanism to change open tuning
example: E9 to C6
Each Tuning could be referred to a different gear, like a car.
example: E9=1st Gear. C6 = 2nd Gear

So if you want to express C6 RKL….it could be 2nd Gear RKL (2GRKL) or (G2RKL)

Maybe Knee Lever Lock for the locking knee lever system

Thanks again for all the help.

[Jared Ruari]

I’m planning to upload a video on YouTube explaining the Extended E9 to C6 gear shift (lock mechanism) and the knee lever changes associated with it. I think it will be helpful for others to see how the mechanism actually works in motion.

I’m very sorry, but things have been extremely busy lately and I haven’t been able to film it yet.

By the way, I’ve been wondering what the most appropriate way is to describe the mechanism that locks the change from Extended E9 to C6 in English. I’ve seen some people refer to it as a “crossover,” but I’m not sure if that’s the best term.

Also, I’ve been using the term “shift” to describe the way the knee lever functions change when the lock lever is engaged, but I’m not sure if that’s the most natural expression from a native speaker’s perspective.

Sorry if my explanation was a bit confusing.

What I mean is, I’m looking for clear and precise terms to describe two different things:

The lock mechanism that changes and holds the tuning from Extended E9 to C6, and

The way the knee lever functions change when that lock is engaged.

Since the knee lever shift mechanism can also be installed with the lock that changes E9 to B6(Universal), I want to use different expressions to clearly separate it from the Extended E9/C6 lock system.

When I asked ChatGPT about the term for the change lock, it suggested that the following expressions might be appropriate:

Crossover system

Locking mechanism

Mode lock

Toshiyuki,

Here are some thoughts about what language might be most clear. "Gear shift" is accurate to the appearance of the locking lever and probably won't cause much confusion, although the phrase obviously isn't technically correct in the sense that it would typically refer to the gear shift of a motor vehicle. Native english speakers use a ton of idioms so you could stick with "gear shift" or use something a little more literal like "top-mounted locking lever." You could say something like, "the top-mounted locking lever, which resembles a gear shift, is typically used to move between the E9th and B6th modes of U12 guitars, but can be used to hold in place any number of other changes." I think that'd be pretty clear to any steel player with enough background to desire that type of set up.

The term "Crossover" is already in circulation and refers to guitars that have one set of pedals and knee levers that do double-duty to activate changes on both necks. So you'd activate a switch that allows your ABC e9th pedals to instead operate as your 567 C6th pedals, for instance. Williams made some of these in the relatively recent past, but doesn't any more so far as I know. If you're describing that sort of mechanism it would be clear and accurate to say "crossover," so long as no one has trademarked that phrase and concept.

I noticed on your youtube channel that you've designed knee levers that can operate in one way moving left to right and another way when moving right to left. If that's what you're describing here then I think it'd be confusing to use the term "crossover." You might call those "dual-function knee levers" or "bi-directional knee levers" and then just describe the ergonomics of how those would be used.

-Jared

[Toshiyuki Shoji]

I really like the phrase “move between the E9th and B6th modes of U12 guitars” — it clearly conveys the idea.

However, I also think that using a term like “Crossover system” or “Crossover mechanism” might be more immediately recognizable and intuitive to many players.

When switching modes from E9th to B6th, or from E9th to C6th, there is a mechanism that changes the function of the RK. I’ve been calling this a “shift,” but I’m wondering if there might be a more natural or technically appropriate way to describe it in English.
For example, I’m one of those players—I do use a lock lever to lower the E strings to Eb, but I prefer to keep the RK function the same in both E9th and B6th modes.

Do you have any suggestions for a clearer or more accurate term?

Thank you also for watching my other videos.

You're right — bi-directional is a more accurate term than dual-direction. I'll start using that term from now on.

[Erv Niehaus]

Sho-Bud called their model the crossover.

[Greg Cutshaw]

The Excel I had with the change lever, retuned all 12 strings from E9 to C6 and also performed a Sho-Bud like crossover function for the right two knee levers. Very cool design but most impressive for it's compactness. The Sho-Bud and Williams systems were "crossovers". The Excel system I linked to above has both crossover for two knee levers only, and complete programmable open retuning with the flip of one lever.

[Toshiyuki Shoji]

I apologize for complicating the discussion, but I would like to ask for clarification.

When Sho-Bud and Williams refer to a "crossover," do they mean the mechanism by which the pedal or knee lever changes switch when the tuning is changed (re-tuned), rather than the mechanism that physically re-tunes a single neck from E9 to C6?

[Jared Ruari]

I apologize for complicating the discussion, but I would like to ask for clarification.

When Sho-Bud and Williams refer to a "crossover," do they mean the mechanism by which the pedal or knee lever changes switch when the tuning is changed (re-tuned), rather than the mechanism that physically re-tunes a single neck from E9 to C6?

Those were both double neck guitars that "shared" a single set of dual-function pedals and levers. So the crossover mechanism changes which neck is being acted upon by a given change. For instance your 1st pedal could function as pedal A on the e9th neck, but then if you activate the crossover mechanism it could be "pedal 5" on the c6 neck.

[Toshiyuki Shoji]

I’ve seen a Williams guitar with that crossover mechanism installed.
Even just managing the knee levers with a crossover system is quite a task—but when the pedals are also included, the mechanical complexity becomes overwhelming.
It’s enough to make your head spin!

[Erv Niehaus]

I've never had a Sho~Bus crossover, but from what I hear, if you don't do the crossover correctly, parts will fall out the bottom.
I hate when that happens.

[Toshiyuki Shoji]

With crossover mechanisms, the structure inevitably becomes quite complex, which can make repairs difficult in the event of a malfunction.