Travel Lap steel?

[Rick Rienks]

I recall someone asking about a “Travel” size lap steel awhile back. While my ‘61 Supro Comet traveled well on our 2024 Queen Mary World Voyage and gave great satisfaction (imagine playing while steaming through the South China Sea). Perhaps the correspondent had less lavish accommodations in mind, prompting the notion of a smaller instrument.

Recently, while looking through the “Steel Guitarist” for May 1981 (double issue #6/#7) I spotted, on page 36, an article titled, “The World’s Smallest Steel Guitar.” The article featured photos of the two different models as well as a photo of the creator, Melvyn Reiter. With his discussion of the steps involved, the process becomes easy to visualize.

If you don’t have that issue it appears there are still back issues available. Following Melvyn’s example, perhaps you could consider your size criteria and build to the size you desire. There may others out there who, like you want larger than micro but smaller than the 22.5” scale. I hope this helps.
Best wishes. R