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Organ Swell shoes. Aka expression pedals; or what guitarists call volume pedals. 
I’ve been using this Korg nanoKontrol USB Controller for hardware I don’t currently have. That includes swells, toe Pistons, general Pistons etc.
Let’s just say there’s a reason why swell shoes are over the pedals.
MAKING:
Cost: $75 for 2 shoes
PROS:
-you can custom make them to your needs (angle, how you want to mount it, tension)
-much cheaper than buying ready to play ones; old shoe from old organs average $15-30; pot: $15-25 each
-authentic feel
-low risk. Even if it doesn’t work out, will have picked up skills that will likely be useful elsewhere in this project. (Thanks Mr. Camille Goudeseune)
CONS:
-might end up utterly failing at trying to make it work…
BUYING:
Cost: $100-150 for each shoe
PROS:
-lots of options
-no worries about getting it to work or putting it together, or hunting for parts and figuring out if it would be suitable for my needs
CONS:
-cost
Classic MIDI Works: $250 each. Plus shipping from Canada
Behringer MIDI Foot Controller: $150, 2 shoes+10 toe Pistons.
-a bunch of pedals from Guitar Center. better ones range from $100-160.
-Unless I get the one from Classic MIDI, the feel of the pedal will be really off…
Looks like I should give making my own swell pedals a shot. Do my best to make that work. It’s a risk: $75 for 2 shoes and it’s up to me to make them work, or $100-250 for each shoe ($200-500 for 2 shoes).
Here goes nothing.
