Well, OK, I'm new and a bit ignorant

[EugieBaange]

Well,y'all have been very helpful.
I've been using a Stevens Bar and I've just come across a couple of Ray-Don steels.
They're tapered brass, coated in hard black plastic(?) and have a bullet nose on one end (the tapered end)and a kind of concave indent on the wider, "flat" end. Probably pretty standard from what I gather. But which way do you hold it?
Thanks.

[Brad Bechtel]

The bullet end should be the tip of the bar, with the other end resting in the crook between your thumb and your palm.

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Brad's Page of Steel:
www.well.com/~wellvis/steel.html
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars

[Bob Stone]

Eugie--

When I first weaned myself from Stevens bars I was attracted to tapered bars. Maybe they are easier to hold on to than straight bullet bars. However, I quickly changed to a straight bullet bar. You won't find many people playing tapered bars. In my opinion, you want that weight out on the tip that straight bars have. You will eventually learn to hold on to that slippery steel.

Enjoy!

[Jason Lollar]

The round end makes for smooth transition when moving the bar across strings but you loose the ability of doing pull offs that the stevens bar makes so easy.

[Ray Montee (RIP)]

Well Jason.....I don't have any idea of what a "pull off" is, but that's not unusual for this self-taught igit.
Speedy West used to BOUNCE his bar all of the way up his neck in a full chord fashion and I've never seen it written anywhere that he had either a tapered bar, plastic covered bar, or a round bar with a flat handle on top of it.
I used to use both a tapered, chrome covered model and plastic covered bar. The plastic muted it tooooo much and deadened the natural ring of vibrato. The chrome one finally allowed strings to cut into it making it hook as I'd move the bar forward and backward across the strings.
I now use a HEAVY bullet bar with Buddy Emmons embossed in the flat end of it and a slightly lighter weight, similarly shaped bar for my Ric.
For whatever this is worth to you.....

[Jason Lollar]

Thats OK I am an ignorant git too and a bit isolated from steel players out here, you dont see local players very often in the majority of clubs in the Seattle area.The thing I didnt mention is that though I use a round bar sometimes I never used one long enough to overcome my limitations with it and actually that goes for the Stevens bar too but I can still fake people into thinking I know what I am doing most of the time! I just hit a note and act like I mean it and that usually is sufficient.