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j-35 Bridge Pins


Bozz

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Has anyone here tried different bridge pins on a new J-35? I'm not overly enthused with the plastic pins on mine. Has anyone tried bone, or ebony? With what results?

Thanks for the feedback.

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I put ebony in my J-15, Can't tell hardly any difference maybe not as good as the plastic ones, maybe a little brighter if that's what you want.

 

I tried bone, Tusq and ebony in my Hummingbird Pro.

None sounded as good as the factory fitted plastic ones. I could have saved myself the expense and trouble.

Back to plastic.

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I tried ebony, rosewood, and boxwood in my J-35 and went back to plastic. All three seemed to decrease volume a bit and going back to the plastic factory pins brought the J-35 back to what it was originally, and the reason I bought it... excellent tone, volume, projection. It's the old addage, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I'm not even going to worry about trying other types of pins because I like the way the guitar looks and sounds as-is.

 

DC

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My J-35 is bright and loud. Which is what I wanted when I bought it so I can be heard when playing with friends. I did try bone pins and it I felt it added a touch of harshness to the sound. I then tried some ebony pins and feel they gave the guitar a beautiful tone. Not sure if they reduced the volume but my J-35 has plenty of volume so the richer tone of the ebony pins is worth it.

 

I think these tonal changes from pins saddles etc are very much different from guitar to guitar and player to player so try it for yourself and see what you like.

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I think these tonal changes from pins saddles etc are very much different from guitar to guitar and player to player so try it for yourself and see what you like.

Something tells me you are right.

The sonic nuances connected with pins, saddles and nuts are so delicate that each individual easily ends up contradicting Bob Colosi.

 

I stick to the the denser material the more sound/sustain- theory though and keep bone for the the 3 low strings on almost all guitars.

The high-end varies between plast, wood and buffalo horn. The 2 first in the more rounded department - the horn being somewhere in the middle.

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The job of a pin is to hold the strings in the holes. Pretty much any material will get the job done. Other than that it comes down to looks. Possibly though, I guess heavier pins would weigh the bridge down more which would mean you would need more energy to get the top a vibrating. Conversely lighter weight pins would mean less energy would be required. I just stick with the old celluloid or hard plastic pins. Never heard any noticeable difference between those and pins made of other materials. But if I paid as much as some of these guys charge for pins made of fossilized camel penis or whatever, I betcha I would hear a difference because I would want to or expect to.

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The job of a pin is to hold the strings in the holes. Pretty much any material will get the job done. Other than that it comes down to looks. Possibly though, I guess heavier pins would weigh the bridge down more which would mean you would need more energy to get the top a vibrating. Conversely lighter weight pins would mean less energy would be required. I just stick with the old celluloid or hard plastic pins. Never heard any noticeable difference between those and pins made of other materials. But if I paid as much as some of these guys charge for pins made of fossilized camel penis or whatever, I betcha I would hear a difference because I would want to or expect to.

[thumbup][thumbup][thumbup] Well said, Zomby.

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The job of a pin is to hold the strings in the holes. Pretty much any material will get the job done. Other than that it comes down to looks. Possibly though, I guess heavier pins would weigh the bridge down more which would mean you would need more energy to get the top a vibrating. Conversely lighter weight pins would mean less energy would be required. I just stick with the old celluloid or hard plastic pins. Never heard any noticeable difference between those and pins made of other materials. But if I paid as much as some of these guys charge for pins made of fossilized camel penis or whatever, I betcha I would hear a difference because I would want to or expect to.

Reminds me of the story of The Emperor's New Clothes?

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Never heard any noticeable difference between those and pins made of other materials.

But you are one rough player - and one tough guy, aren't you Zomb.

 

According to your sub-slogan you approach the whole thing with a certain classic masculinity that lives somewhere quite rustic compared to the fine arts of luthier-craftmanship and Amadeus Mozartish styles of playing and handling guitars.

 

Well, that might be pretty cool, , , as long as you don't treat the tuning the same way (which I btw did myself some 15 odd years back).

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Last summer in june i bought my J35.

In the winter my luthier changed the tusk saddle&nut with bone ones.

The voice of the guitar changed for better (to my ear). Became less tinny, especially the second string.

20 days after I changed the plastic bridge pins with bone ones.

After the pin change the sound improved more (to my ear) and became even less tinny than before.

In conclusion I can say that now I like the sound of my J35 twice.

I hear now a better and "more expencive" sound out of that box (if you know what i mean).

The new guitar (with tusk saddle) sounded loud.

Now the guitar sounds as loud as before the changes, but has more overtones than before (to my ear).

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The job of a pin is to hold the strings in the holes. Pretty much any material will get the job done. Other than that it comes down to looks. Possibly though, I guess heavier pins would weigh the bridge down more which would mean you would need more energy to get the top a vibrating. Conversely lighter weight pins would mean less energy would be required. I just stick with the old celluloid or hard plastic pins. Never heard any noticeable difference between those and pins made of other materials. But if I paid as much as some of these guys charge for pins made of fossilized camel penis or whatever, I betcha I would hear a difference because I would want to or expect to.

can you post a link to the camel penis pins please?

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But you are one rough player - and one tough guy, aren't you Zomb.

 

According to your sub-slogan you approach the whole thing with a certain classic masculinity that lives somewhere quite rustic compared to the fine arts of luthier-craftmanship and Amadeus Mozartish styles of playing and handling guitars.

 

Well, that might be pretty cool, , , as long as you don't treat the tuning the same way (which I btw did myself some 15 odd years back).

 

 

Ya made my day. Love it but have some pity and gimme a break.

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