Wah pedals - how heavy???

robinbowes · May 2014

I wanted an expression pedal for my Vibe pedal so I thought I'd just get an old wah pedal and wire it as an expression pedal.

I soon found a mate with an old crybaby, but it was then I noticed how bloody heavy they are. I asked around and found that Vox shells are made of aluminium and are lighter. I picked up a couple of V845 shells (with the chrome pedal) and a V847 (black pedal - aluminium).

I took the guts out of the Crybaby and weighted just the case with pedal and no base plate for each of the different models. The difference in weight is staggering:

Dunlop Crybaby - 1442g (3lb 2oz)

Vox V845 - 982g (2lb 2oz)

Vox V847 - 633g (1lb 6oz)

So, the Crybaby is more than twice the weight of the V847.

No prizes for guessing which shell I'm using!

R.

Dave_Mc · May 2014

Wow

) Knew wahs could be heavy but I never actually weighed them. That is a fair difference.

)

ICBM · May 2014

I prefer the heavy ones. They feel more controlled and don't move about on the floor if they're not on a board.

robinbowes · May 2014

I would call even the lightest of the three pretty damned heavy! And remember, this is the empty shell, with no guts or base plate. With all that fitted, the V847 weight rises to close on 2lb.

R.

thermionic · May 2014

You say the Crybaby is old, but are the Vox ones newer? My V847 is not particularly light, pretty much the same as the old Crybaby I had.

Were the old USA-made Dunlop/Vox ones steel and the newer Chinese ones aluminium? Or both aluminium but a thinner casting maybe?

ICBM · May 2014

thermionic said:
Were the old USA-made Dunlop/Vox ones steel and the newer Chinese ones aluminium? Or both aluminium but a thinner casting maybe?

None of them are steel, and probably none of them aluminium - or at least not pure aluminium - they're all varieties of soft alloys of some sort, mostly zinc-based I think. I forgot to say that the other reason I don't like the light ones is that sometimes they break, the two brackets that hold the treadle can come off the main body. Not common, but unrepairable if it happens. The old Jen ones seem to be the most prone to it.

There are steel wah casings, but they're the thin sheet-metal type used by Colorsound etc and are even lighter than the Vox.

I'm genuinely puzzled why anyone would complain about the weight of a wah pedal unless they're putting together a rig for touring by air though!

ThePrettyDamned · May 2014

I wonder what a weeping demon comes in at...

The snarling dogs wah pedals are huge, too.

stickyfiddle · May 2014

That's nothing!

My two are:

A Madbean board in what I believe is an old crybaby shell, at 1640g

And an all-chrome shell from an old Carlsbro way, with a BYOC board inside. That hefty bastard weighs 1970g!!

digitalscream · May 2014

Try an Ibanez Weeping Demon. They feel like they're carved from a solid lump of metal...even the Junior's pretty heavy.

It does have its benefits, though. I once played a solo standing one-footed on my WD Jr (and I'm about 15st), and it didn't even creak.

DrBob · May 2014

ICBM said:

I prefer the heavy ones. They feel more controlled and don't move about on the floor if they're not on a board.

Agreed, as a 'larger man' I do find it reassuring for the Wah pedal to have a degree of heft, feels less like it's going to shatter into a thousand pieces as my size 11 bears down on it..

meltedbuzzbox · May 2014

digitalscream said:

Try an Ibanez Weeping Demon. They feel like they're carved from a solid lump of metal...even the Junior's pretty heavy.

It does have its benefits, though. I once played a solo standing one-footed on my WD Jr (and I'm about 15st), and it didn't even creak.

my weeping demon used to anchor my board to the floor and the rest of my pedals used to orbit around it.

great pedal

ThePrettyDamned · May 2014

digitalscream said:

Try an Ibanez Weeping Demon. They feel like they're carved from a solid lump of metal...even the Junior's pretty heavy.

It does have its benefits, though. I once played a solo standing one-footed on my WD Jr (and I'm about 15st), and it didn't even creak.

Does the junior sound as good as the original? I want an original but the sheer size does put me off a little, though I could make room if needed...

robinbowes · May 2014

ICBM said:

I'm genuinely puzzled why anyone would complain about the weight of a wah pedal unless they're putting together a rig for touring by air though!

Because I'm putting together a largish pedal board involving a few expression pedals - let's say 3. If they all weigh > 3lbs, then that adds > 12lbs to my board (3 expression + 1 wah). I want to keep the weight down.

R.

Gagaryn · May 2014

Budwah is over 2kg - only know that as I just posted one and it cost a fortune!

p90fool · May 2014

First Les Pauls, now wah pedals, this weight obsession is madness I tell you. Mind you, I had the rubber feet on my wah removed and put back on with hide glue, sounds awesomesauce now!

I can't honestly say I've ever chosen effects pedals based on weight, though my liking for Vox coiled leads means that the heavier they are the better probably.

digitalscream · May 2014

ThePrettyDamned said:
Does the junior sound as good as the original? I want an original but the sheer size does put me off a little, though I could make room if needed...

Yes - it's every bit as good. The differences lie in the features rather than the tone. For example, it's a sprung pedal (you don't get the option of leaving the wah cocked, like you can with the full fat version), there's no on/off switch, and the Q control has gone. You still get the auto-off delay and boost controls though, and the taper's exactly the same.

It's exceedingly awesome,

filthy_phil · May 2014

My Cry Baby is a bit of a lump. But at least it stays in one place!

ThePrettyDamned · May 2014

digitalscream;241717" said:
ThePrettyDamned said:

Does the junior sound as good as the original? I want an original but the sheer size does put me off a little, though I could make room if needed...

Yes - it's every bit as good. The differences lie in the features rather than the tone. For example, it's a sprung pedal (you don't get the option of leaving the wah cocked, like you can with the full fat version), there's no on/off switch, and the Q control has gone. You still get the auto-off delay and boost controls though, and the taper's exactly the same.

It's exceedingly awesome,

That's perfect, will order as soon as possible!

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Wah pedals - how heavy???

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