RobinTheHood Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Yeah, they are a great design. I've even become partial to the strat shape in general as a design too. The are only a few things that may get in the way of mods, depending on the guitar you have and what you want to do to it. Like pickup routing, bridge type and a few other minor things. I wanted to use a strat body I have (alder) for my S-500 (laminate), but the alder body is routed specifically for single coils, so that was a no-go. There are still sometimes a few bumps in the road, I suppose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Yeah, they are a great design. I've even become partial to the strat shape in general as a design too. The are only a few things that may get in the way of mods, depending on the guitar you have and what you want to do to it. Like pickup routing, bridge type and a few other minor things. I wanted to use a strat body I have (alder) for my S-500 (laminate), but the alder body is routed specifically for single coils, so that was a no-go. There are still sometimes a few bumps in the road, I suppose. I bought a blem sss strat copy for $99 about 6 months ago, the blem was a small ding on the bass edge of the lower bout, you can't even see it but it you run your fingers over it you can feel it, thing is when it arrived I found the neck pup was dead, I contacted the dudes for a replacement pup but they insisted I send the whole geet back and they would fix it. It was going to cost me $50 to courier it back, I got a hsh pre-wired pg with 4 wire buckers for $45 from EdenMart in Hong Kong. When I went to install it, everything fit ok except the route didn't go close enough to the bridge for the bridge bucker, I chiselled it a bit closer to the bridge, put push/pulls on the tone controls, 1 for each bucker, now it has more sounds on tap than a Virgin Megastore, all for $160 (including push/pulls), it has a rolled edge fretboard, and it's one of the most comfortable guitars I own to play. You just couldn't do something like that with any other differently constructed guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_edward Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Some photos. Pretty deep grooves, actually, now that I'm really looking at it. The high e saddle has the gangstea lean toward the b. A few things just reading this last page and looking this pic; The depth of the grove makes no difference as the saddles are adjustable for height, that negates any difference in, or increased depth of, the groves. IMO this type of strat/tele saddle should lean - if they were totally parallel to the top of the guitar and also followed the proper string radius - they would from a small set of "stairs" not a smooth round top that matches the fretboard radius. It's much more comfortable to play that way. From the position of your saddles I can almost guarantee your intonation is already off, on at least 4 if not all strings, and your stings (at the bridge) do not follow the fretboard radius, unless your fretboard is flat. Also, once you get the saddle height set correctly and your set-up is complete - pull out the little allen head screws and grind the bottom down so that when they're sitting at the finished height, none of that adjustment screw sticks up from the saddle, now you're done Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 [Also, once you get the saddle height set correctly and your set-up is complete - pull out the little allen head screws and grind the bottom down so that when they're sitting at the finished height, none of that adjustment screw sticks up from the saddle, now you're done Why do you find that necessary JE? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_edward Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Why do you find that necessary JE? It makes it infinitely more comfortable to play (palm muting especially) and lowers the chance of a burred screw head cutting your hand. From the factory the screw heads shouldn't be sticking up in the first place, but they have to leave them long to allow for every eventuality (action height, shimmed neck angles etc). But once you know the saddle height for your playing style and string gauge, they should be ground to finished height. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 It makes it infinitely more comfortable to play (palm muting especially) and lowers the chance of a burred screw head cutting your hand. From the factory the screw heads shouldn't be sticking up in the first place, but they have to leave them long to allow for every eventuality (action height, shimmed neck angles etc). But once you know the saddle height for your playing style and string gauge, they should be ground to finished height. Well that's what I thought you may have been concerned with, but isn't it easier (and I do this) to, just before starting to adjust the saddle heights, screw all the grub screws out halfway, then using a needle or nail file, debur the tops of the screws, even round them off a bit if it a real bother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_edward Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 I suppose if they were no higher than the string tops it would be fine, but higher espcecially like the high E string in the first picture is no good, smooth or not. Ask yourself - which of these two pic's look more player friendly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 I can definately see your point. But as a personal preference, the only ones that bug me are the high strings where the allen screws stick way out of the top. I run into this with my basses, as I like extremely low action, but I dont palm-mute or rest my hand on the bridge of a bass. Out of curiosity, I'll have to take a look at my strats tonight before our gig to see how they are set up. Most of my guitars are over at my drummer's house/practice area at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_edward Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 As a point of interest, shimming the neck and changing the angle will also effectively lower the bridge screws, as the saddles will need to be higher to keep the same action as you had before shimming. RTH, it always seems to be worst on the two E strings and personally, like you, I really don't like, some guit's do use a shorter screw for these two saddles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 I suppose if they were no higher than the string tops it would be fine, but higher espcecially like the high E string in the first picture is no good, smooth or not. Ask yourself - which of these two pic's look more player friendly? Don't get me wrong, I can see your point, perhaps because I'm still pretty much a beginner (2 1/2yrs) as a player, with an extremely slack practice regime, and palm muting isn't something that I do that much. To be honest I have found repairing, modding, electronics and doing set-ups to be right up my alley, it must be my fitter/machinist and design engineering background coming to the fore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougefresh91 Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 A few things just reading this last page and looking this pic; The depth of the grove makes no difference as the saddles are adjustable for height, that negates any difference in, or increased depth of, the groves. IMO this type of strat/tele saddle should lean - if they were totally parallel to the top of the guitar and also followed the proper string radius - they would from a small set of "stairs" not a smooth round top that matches the fretboard radius. It's much more comfortable to play that way. From the position of your saddles I can almost guarantee your intonation is already off, on at least 4 if not all strings, and your stings (at the bridge) do not follow the fretboard radius, unless your fretboard is flat. Also, once you get the saddle height set correctly and your set-up is complete - pull out the little allen head screws and grind the bottom down so that when they're sitting at the finished height, none of that adjustment screw sticks up from the saddle, now you're done The issue with the grooves is that they're off-center. That is, they're jammed up against the adjustment screws. The strings are slowly moving back towards the grooves, and when they get there they'll be rubbing against the screws. I read somewhere that the strings should run down the center of the saddle, which makes sense, but I don't know what affect it will have if they're not. I checked the intonation and it seems right on. It's possible I'm not checking properly, as I've never done this before. As for the pre-wired pickguards. I'm all for an easy install, but I was planning on going with a master tone and volume. If anyone knows where I can pick up something like that, I'd love to know. Otherwise I was considering a warmouth custom pickguard and some decent GFS pickups. I think I like this guitar more than the SG. Well, maybe not more, but it's close. I have long arms, so that extra inch in the scale feels like it makes strumming easier. The bridge feels like it's back farther so I have more room to work with, if that makes sense. This guitar has also made me realize how much I dislike the Floyd Rose bridge on my Fender. It's just too big. I like resting my hand behind the bridge and it's not possible with that huge thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 As for the pre-wired pickguards. I'm all for an easy install, but I was planning on going with a master tone and volume. If anyone knows where I can pick up something like that, I'd love to know. Otherwise I was considering a warmouth custom pickguard and some decent GFS pickups. GFS has pre-wired PGs with GFS pups already installed, try eBay too, don't think that all pre-wireds are all in the standard SSS format with 1V & 2T, the one I mentioned that I used above was HSH, they come in all flavours so there's a very good chance you'll find one setup how you want it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 I checked the intonation and it seems right on. It's possible I'm not checking properly, as I've never done this before. Did you use a fretted 12 compared to a harmonic 12 to do your intonation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougefresh91 Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 If memory serves, all sss GFS pickguards seem to have the standard 2 tone/1 volume configuration. I want to move the volume and just have a master tone. Although I've gotten kind of used to it at this point, but I keep the knob off for that extra bit of room. Yes. They are both in tune when I do that. However, am I doing the harmonic properly? I lightly pluck the string over the 12th fret, right? Kind of like a pull off, but real light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 If memory serves, all sss GFS pickguards seem to have the standard 2 tone/1 volume configuration. I want to move the volume and just have a master tone. Although I've gotten kind of used to it at this point, but I keep the knob off for that extra bit of room. Yes. They are both in tune when I do that. However, am I doing the harmonic properly? I lightly pluck the string over the 12th fret, right? Kind of like a pull off, but real light. Not really, the trick is to ever so lightly (so the string isn't deflected very much, if it deflects your actually changing the pitch) just touch the string with the tip of your fretting finger, exactly over the 12th fret's wire (imagine that your finger is the fret wire), then pick the string, it's important that the strength of your picking for the harmonic and the fretted 12th is the same, it's no use picking the fretted normally and the harmonic softly. It's very difficult to describe with out drawing pictures or showing someone in person, I hope you understand it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougefresh91 Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 I think I see what you're saying. I wasn't doing the harmonic correctly. Now, it seems e, a, d, g fretted notes are high. The harmonics are in tune. This bridge is a mess, but hopefully I can fix this for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougefresh91 Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 I watched a few videos. One thing I'm still unsure of is what do you do if the harmonic is sharp, but the fretted note is in tune? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 This link describes setting intonation, I haven't read it, but I got it from the D-I-Y thread in the Lounge and I know animalfarm chooses the best tutorials from many others and he's very thorough. http://projectguitar.com/tut/intonate.htm While I'm in the neighbourhood, here's one about setting up bridges/saddles, for when you get your new saddles. http://projectguitar.com/tut/action.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougefresh91 Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 Thanks for the links. I believe I've done this correctly. At least I have it as close as I can. On a couple strings the fretted note is in tune but the harmonic is a bit sharp. Idk how to fix that. Plus they aren't staggered like they should be and idk why that is either. The sloppy jallopy bridge. I need to pick up a proper measuring tool like you suggested in the other thread, and just replace this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 The sloppy jallopy bridge. I need to pick up a proper measuring tool like you suggested in the other thread, and just replace this. I think that's a good idea, it seems the saddles you have would make it a far more difficult job than it needs to be. Vernier Calliper Dial Calliper Digital Calliper These are all exactly the same thing with different methods of reading the result, a vernier will be the cheapest, don't get one unless you already know how to use one, they are very difficult to read, a dial calliper is exactly what it says, it has dial on the top similar to a large analogue watch with the hour hand missing, a digital is also self explanatory, it has a digital display. Choose between the dial and digital variety, depending on how much you wish to spend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougefresh91 Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 I got a dial caliper from ACE for about $33. And a steel rule, counterink bit and a steel brush for my Dremel. I figure I'll just get new saddles and clean up the bridge really well. The saddles measure .41 wide. Do any other measurments matter in this situation? Is replacing just the saddles an ok solution? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 I got a dial caliper from ACE for about $33. And a steel rule, counterink bit and a steel brush for my Dremel. I figure I'll just get new saddles and clean up the bridge really well. The saddles measure .41 wide. Do any other measurments matter in this situation? Is replacing just the saddles an ok solution? That's great you got that stuff already. If you intend to use the trem, I'd recommend roller saddles, even if you don't use the trem they're still a good investment IMHO, they don't cost much more than standard. Most of the other dimensions are pretty standard, it doesn't matter if they're slightly different anyway, you can adjust the saddles forward and back, up and down, so slight variations don't pose much of a problem, but it's really important to get the correct width, that can't be adjusted. That's why I bought up using the callipers earlier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougefresh91 Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 Yeah, I'm not messing around over here. =] I really like this guitar, and want it fixed. And I want to get an order placed today, too. The graphtech saddles look nice. Haven't come across roller saddles yet though. What kind exactly? My trem arm is missing and I have no plans on replacing it for now. I just don't use it. In fact I was thinking about blocking it, but I don't really know what the point would be with this bridge. It would make a noticeable difference on the Floyd Rose though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 Yeah, I'm not messing around over here. =] I really like this guitar, and want it fixed. And I want to get an order placed today, too. The graphtech saddles look nice. Haven't come across roller saddles yet though. What kind exactly? My trem arm is missing and I have no plans on replacing it for now. I just don't use it. In fact I was thinking about blocking it, but I don't really know what the point would be with this bridge. It would make a noticeable difference on the Floyd Rose though. Like I mentioned earlier about the graphtech saddles, reports i've seen here in the past have shown about a 50/50 opinion split, I've never seen anyone ever regret getting rollers though, myself included. If your definite you are never going to use the trem, then get standard saddles, but if you think you might muck around with it in the future, go for the rollers. As for brands, I've never bought a brand name of them yet, i have at least 10 guitars I've put them on and have never had a problem, I've got a pic of one of my strat style guitars with rollers, I'll post it when I track it down (soon). I always get mine from eBay, I'm on a tight budget, so I like to shop for the best value possible, so j just.enter "roller saddles" in the eBay search bar, sort by "Price + Postage: lowest first", I don't necessarily buy the cheapest, just ones that look like decent quality for a reasonable price. If the search shows too much other crap, horse saddles for example, just choose the "Musical Instruments" category and run the search again. Listings should have a diagram or table with the important dimensions displayed, if they don't, forget them, plenty of others do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 This is the first guitar I bought (in the modern era), cost me $110, after upgrades, about $200, the saddles don't shine coz they're stainless steel.bodied rollers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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