Repairing an offset bridge

[cognistudio]

My Sheraton was bought new in late 90s and kept in storage for last many years. I now realize that it has a little problem as illustrated here:

 

 

I must have gotten a lot more anal over the years since I never noticed this before. Bridge needs to move about 1mm to left. It is not just a cosmetic issue. It is hard to mute 6th string with my thumb, and with lighter strings it is easy to run high E off the fretboard. This is a 71mm spacing bridge. On top of it, I want to convert my guitar to chrome/nickel and I just ordered replacement chrome bridge from WD. Interestingly, nut is also offset in same direction by a bit, as if some joker at Samick factory that day thought it would be a good feature to offset all strings. Even though I am the original owner and guitar is completely stock, I never filled out my warranty card and have no way of proving to Epiphone that I am the original owner so I can get warranty service, if indeed this would be covered.

 

Given all this, how can I straighten this at least expense, hassle and damage to the instrument? I'm thinking the simplest and least destructive idea would be to get replacement blank saddles and notch them in a way that keeps strings straight without doing a major surgery?

[Ricochet]

Given all this' date=' how can I straighten this at least expense, hassle and damage to the instrument? I'm thinking the simplest and least destructive idea would be to get replacement blank saddles and notch them in a way that keeps strings straight without doing a major surgery?[/quote']

 

Correct.

[carverman]

Bridge needs to move about 1mm to left. It is not just a cosmetic issue. It is hard to mute 6th string with my thumb' date=' and with lighter strings it is easy to run high E off the fretboard. This is a 71mm spacing bridge. On top of it, I want to convert my guitar to chrome/nickel and I just ordered replacement chrome bridge from WD. Interestingly, nut is also offset in same direction by a bit, as if some joker at Samick factory that day thought it would be a good feature to offset all strings.

 

Given all this, how can I straighten this at least expense, hassle and damage to the instrument? I'm thinking the simplest and least destructive idea would be to get replacement blank saddles and notch them in a way that keeps strings straight without doing a major surgery?[/quote']

 

Well there is more than one way to do this. If you are only talking 1 mm offset, you could remove the posts

for the bridge and stop piece and "drift" the holes over 1mm in the direction that you want the string(s)

to go. I've done this on occasion..even more than 1mm. But then you would need to epoxy in the posts

(but not the screws inside the posts), in order to fill in the elongation of the holes. A wooden shim on

on side, would also do this for you. The bridge holes are the easiest, because there is no string

tension pulling on the posts, but the stop piece requires the posts to be either glued in or

very tightly hammered in.