my guitar is hard for bends

[lolo_guitar]

hello

i have an epiphone with a floyd rose and the bends are hard to play

strings in 10-46 elixir are a little big too but with another guitar, i have no problems

 

i read that having 2 springs will make the bends very hard to make

 

so, 3 springs: is it a solution to play bends easily ? or just 9-46 ?or 9-42 ?

[guitarlon]

Lighter strings and tune down half a step.

 

Otherwise just keep at it and build up strength/endurance.

[kevinkjs]

Maybe your strings are too tight in the nut slots. You have to have a little wiggle room, especially

 

on bends, Also the nut taper and clearance towards the tuning key side should be adequate to

 

avoid pinching. Loosen a string and pull it up and down and back and forth to check the tightness.

 

Some people think a few thousandths of an inch bigger slot width to string size is too much, but

 

I hear this debunked on you tube all the time. Anyway, that's my 2 cents and good luck. I just did

 

a string change on a non-Floyd for a friends son and it was a 2 springer. I filed the nut slots a bit

 

for him and it plays and bends like a dream, also a new set of .010-.046's were used.

 

kevinkjs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lolo_guitar]

complicated :)

 

i have a Gibson SG and no problem to bend a lot (big bends)

 

and with the EPiphone it's different

 

is it a problem because of the floyd rose which keeps the strings or a problem Epjphone / Gibson?

 

will it be easier to make big bends with a different neck like a GIBSON?

 

 

the strings are blocked in the nut R4 and with the floyd rose

and near from the neck, the strings must be blocked to keep in tune

 

i read a 3d spring would be a solution but i like very much the fact that the tremolo bar is easy to play without too much pression

it's really fun

but i will try

[btoth76]

Hello!

 

Gibson has 12" fretboard radius, whilst Epiphones have 14"...

 

Cheers... Bence

[lolo_guitar]

The Epiphone's models would be harder to play or to bend that Gibson's models ? because of the radius ?

[btoth76]

Hello!

 

Definitely different!

 

I can't strictly say one or another will be more comfortable when doing bends. There are other factors to consider too, like Your fretting hand's anatomy.

 

Cheers... Bence

[lolo_guitar]

i noticed that a floyd rose is not 100% positive because even if you play with 9-42

 

you won't be able to do a bend like a A to a or C or more than that

 

strings can have more tension than without a floyd rose

 

 

without a floyd rose and 10-46, bends are easy with Gibson sg (or les paul ?)

 

no big tension into the strings

 

 

the best would be a floyd rose with the qualities of tun omatic :)

[btoth76]

Hello!

 

I feel it easy. I bend and use vibratoes a lot. In fact, very aggressively. And I use 10-46s. (11-48s on the Tele - which is stiffer due to the longer scale lenght.)

 

I don`t know much about the Floyd Rose, though, but with the traditional TOM/stop bar combination, it is really up to the setup. If You maintain the same brake angle from bridge towards the stopbar, as from the nut towards the machine heads, You`ll get a very nice soft feel of the strings. If You crank the stopbar down, it makes it feel very stiff.

 

Also, when the stopbar is further from the bridge, like on a L6S, it will be even more comfortable to bend strings.

 

As for advices on Floyd Rose-equipped LPs, turn to member Capmaster. He has one (or two), and He is a very helpful and nice person. I am sure, He will give You hints with scientifical precision.

 

Cheers... Bence

[Pesh]

I don't know if it's your thing, but another option might be to block off the trem? I've done that on my Stratocaster; putting a bend on the string caused the tremolo to compensate for the tension, and thus it would move, making bends and vibrato quite stiff.

 

I blocked it off with a wedge (didn't really use it) and the strings became much easier to move.

 

Knowing my luck it was probably me having set something up wrong

[stein]

If the Bends are hard in the sense that the trem unit is moving making you have to bend further, then increasing the resistance will help.

 

The more springs, the more stable. Don't forget you have to re-adjust the spring tension to compensate.

 

The same goes for lighter strings, in that you will have to adjust the tension of the trem. And also, lighter strings will also help as far as that goes, in that they are less tension in relation to the springs on the Floyd.

 

Been A long time sinse I had one of my trems floating, don't remember if you might even get away with 4 springs. The claw that holds the springs and makes the adjustment is pretty easy to adjust, unlike the REST of the Floyd.

[lolo_guitar]

i have 2 springs and 10-46 with an Epiphone and a floyd rose

 

i think that the strings are a little bit high too

 

i read that 3 springs= the bends will be easier to do but i don't want a hard tremolo bar

 

and with 2 springs, it's perfect and the tuning is good too (most of the times) with a good set up of the springs

 

 

i read that In 009's, we lose sustain

 

 

question: 3 springs in a triangle or like that

 

-

-

- ?

[4Hayden]

Could be strings , neck, radius thumb placement on the Epi

[lolo_guitar]

i add a spring =

 

a triangle = on in the center (middle) and the two others , i read that it will be easy for bends

 

i put a lower action

 

 

 

it's good but not as easy as a sg in the same gauge

 

it's so hard to have an axcess after the 17th fret

so dramatic! !!!

 

a real problem

[stein]

They make some aftermarket devices just for that very issue. "Trem setter" comes to mind.

 

Basically, I holds the trem in more of a center location until you use the bar. Gives some resistance at the center spot while leaving it more free once you wang on it.

 

Bottom line for you, as long as there is little resistance on the trem and it moves easily, it will move when you bend a string, so you will have to bend the string higher to achieve the same pitch. There is no way around it. You can have one or the other- easy bends, or easy wangs on the bar.

 

But look into one of those center-stabilizing devices. Might be a good compromise for you.

[lolo_guitar]

great comment

 

yes it 's a compromise

 

i found a solution

 

if you want to push the tremolo bar easily : 9-42-9-46 or 2 springs (the best thing)

 

if you want to bend the note easily : 9-42-9-46 or 10-46 but with 3 springs (= less difficult to bend)

 

for an ibanez, i have 3 springs +9-42= easy to bend but the tremolo bar is a little bit hard for me

with a strat with a vintage tremolo +3 springs like a triangle + 9-46 : it's perfect but other things are not perfect lol

 

so, with my Epiphone les paul pro fx

 

10-46 is the right gauge string for sustain

2 springs = better for dive bombing but harder for bending the note

 

but i have 10-46 + 3 springs in parallel and i was happy yesterday

 

springs in parallel : i read that there will be less tension, easier to play than 3 springs like a triangle

remember that! for next readers:)

 

my guitar was easy to play for bends

 

action must be not too high

 

3 springs is a little bit harder but it's a choice

 

but 9-46 +2 springs can be good too

i think