bobouz Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Might try it on a MIJ Texan Paul McCartney, Does anyone know what they used? It looks like Tusq if maybe a little smoother. And what exactly is ceramic? Adjustable bridges & the various saddle inserts have come up quite a bit lately! Like you, I have a Terada-Japan-made '64 McCartney Texan (built in 2005). The saddle material is a little different than Tusq, and was probably sourced in Japan. Hard to know exactly what it is, but I like the tone of my Texan, so it's staying on there. As for the ceramic saddles, the material is very hard, and nothing like Tusq or bone. Trying to lightly sand or shape it is not an easy task, and it can be chipped if you're not careful. Overall, it seems similar to any white ceramic kitchen item, but with no outer glaze. On my '66 Epi Cortez, I swapped the original rosewood saddle with an old ceramic saddle I'd removed from a B-25 many years ago. Imho, the guitar sounded good with the rosewood saddle, but now sounds perfectly dialed in with the ceramic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldCowboy Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 My '62 J-50 has one of the glazed saddles. Fits the metal crossbar a bit differently than the nonglazed variety, but sounds the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el capitan Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 bobouz, Thanks for the prompt & helpful reply. I tried putting the Tusq saddle on the Texan, but it wouldn't slot right in like on the Kalamazoo guitars, so I put the original back on. When I strung it back up it played easier than before. Result! Your description of ceramic saddles is very clear - I don't recall ever seeing one, only wooden ones. They seem to work OK on a 12-string,but the Eldorado & Frontier were definitely better with Tusq. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldCowboy Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 bobouz, Thanks for the prompt & helpful reply. I tried putting the Tusq saddle on the Texan, but it wouldn't slot right in like on the Kalamazoo guitars, so I put the original back on. When I strung it back up it played easier than before. Result! Your description of ceramic saddles is very clear - I don't recall ever seeing one, only wooden ones. They seem to work OK on a 12-string,but the Eldorado & Frontier were definitely better with Tusq. It's not unusual to sand a bit off Tusq to make it fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Does anyone know what they used? Talking about The Fabs ? . . . If yes, Lennon and Harrison used ceramic in rosewood while McCartney had ceramic in plastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el capitan Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Cowboy, I sanded one a few years ago & took a tad too much off. So the saddle didn't fit exactly. So the guitar didn't sound right & I put the wooden saddle back on. This time I found the original saddle to be so similar to Tusq I decided to leave well alone. The Texan plays & sounds better than it did anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Talking about The Fabs ? . . . If yes, Lennon and Harrison used ceramic in rosewood while McCartney had ceramic in plastic. How do you know this !? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 How do you know this !? ? , , , what makes you wonder. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 ? , , , what makes you wonder. . Just wondered how this info would be available Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Just wondered how this info would be available Hmmmm, shouldn't looking at the pics do it. They broke through after the invention of the camera and is one of the most photographed bands in rock-history. Tell me if there's diffuse factor here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Hmmmm, shouldn't looking at the pics do it. They broke through after the invention of the camera and is one of the most photographed bands in rock-history. Tell me if there's diffuse factor here. No no , don't misunderstand , I'm not poo pooing ... Am just amazed by the amount of detective work you have obviously put in There's arguments about the 'type' of guitar that Dylan used on blood on the tracks , or of course the famous nick drake guild / not guild And you know the saddle material !! Fascinating! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el capitan Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Macca with a plastic bridge? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 And you know the saddle material !! Fascinating! O thanx, , but isn't that just another day at the Board-office. Macca with a plastic bridge? This is really interesting - been writing about it many times. As I see it, the Texan had plastic bridge, which is now replaced. Yesterday was recorded with the plast/porcelain combo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldCowboy Posted August 8, 2017 Share Posted August 8, 2017 One of my favorite things about the board is people catching things I haven't noticed. It keeps me informed and, sometimes, humble😄 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldCowboy Posted August 8, 2017 Share Posted August 8, 2017 Cowboy, I sanded one a few years ago & took a tad too much off. So the saddle didn't fit exactly. So the guitar didn't sound right & I put the wooden saddle back on. This time I found the original saddle to be so similar to Tusq I decided to leave well alone. The Texan plays & sounds better than it did anyway. Cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 8, 2017 Share Posted August 8, 2017 One of my favorite things about the board is people catching things I haven't noticed. It keeps me informed and, sometimes, humble�� Agree - so many levels and angles of knowledge on this Board. From the lexical stuff to highly individual viewpoints, discoveries and taste-examples. You, for natural reasons being closer to the source, fx had chances to experience and gather things totally out of my reach. If I have discovered a plastic bridge, a wooden saddle or a weird burst, its great to exchange them with a couple of your secrets - that (too) must be what this place is about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el capitan Posted August 10, 2017 Share Posted August 10, 2017 Am I imagining it or have I seen saddles made of metal & painted white? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldCowboy Posted August 10, 2017 Share Posted August 10, 2017 Am I imagining it or have I seen saddles made of metal & painted white? Over the years, I've seen some interesting stuff w/regard to adj. saddles. I once owned an Epi Texan with a brass saddle that someone had machined for it - did a nice job, too. Although I've never come across one as you describe, I wouldn't rule it out as a possibility. Also, it seems to me that Gibson experimented a bit with adj. rigs before settling on ceramic. In those days, mid to late 1950's, stuff like that would have likely found its way out of the factory rather than being trashed or archived. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajay Posted August 11, 2017 Share Posted August 11, 2017 I have been playing my KALAMAZOO KG-10, (Same as an all-Hog Gibson B-15). It came from Gruhn' with the ADJ bridge with the original Rosewdood saddle. I have always wondered what a bone saddle would do. I just received a Bone saddle from Philadelphia Luthier's today.I used the same strings before and after. I took out the metal plate, because the bone saddle was tight. I gave it a fewswipes on the sandpaper, and left it tight. I just set the screws at the original height, and pushed the saddle down to the stops on the screws.All I can say is that I'll be leaving it right where it is. Between the boneb and the Mahogany it sounds noticeably more alive. The lows are louder, and the highs are ringing.All in all $20 well spent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldCowboy Posted August 12, 2017 Share Posted August 12, 2017 I have been playing my KALAMAZOO KG-10, (Same as an all-Hog Gibson B-15). It came from Gruhn' with the ADJ bridge with the original Rosewdood saddle. I have always wondered what a bone saddle would do. I just received a Bone saddle from Philadelphia Luthier's today.I used the same strings before and after. I took out the metal plate, because the bone saddle was tight. I gave it a fewswipes on the sandpaper, and left it tight. I just set the screws at the original height, and pushed the saddle down to the stops on the screws.All I can say is that I'll be leaving it right where it is. Between the boneb and the Mahogany it sounds noticeably more alive. The lows are louder, and the highs are ringing.All in all $20 well spent. [/quoteti Sounds about right. A word of caution, however, about that metal plate. You may want to reconsider and reinstall it. Missing plates w/ceramic or bone have a tendency to let string tension create a saddle fracture - I've seem it more than a few times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted August 14, 2017 Share Posted August 14, 2017 Wow.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el capitan Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 Rosewood, ebony, ceramic, bone Tusq. Who knew? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el capitan Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 Looked up the blurb on the Epiphone 1963 EJ45,the saddle is made of "imitation bone". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NY Albertan Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Old topic, I know. But what material was used for the nut on these old rosewood adjustable saddle Gibson's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greggo Posted October 13, 2023 Share Posted October 13, 2023 Ebony bridge pins also give a noticeably mellower, woody tone. And you could just switch out high E and B pins if desired. You can get a set of Crosby ebony pins on Amazon for about $14. You will have to sand them down a little to fit into vintage Gibson holes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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