Bar strings the only thing I've really needed to do is swap the bridge in order to get the intonation set, in simple terms intonation is tweaking the length of the strings so the tuning is consistent along the length of the fret board.
So I need a new bridge, Advantage one, this is a Les Paul style guitar, the bridge is a push fit onto a couple of pillars so I just need to get a new one. Advantage two, lots of people make and sell arts to fit a Les Paul, in fact you can buy parts to fit most any type of guitar, Strats and Les Pauls being the most common. So lots of choices for spare parts, I don’t have to break out the 3D printer. Advantage three, it’s called a tune-o-matic bridge, and that sound really cool to me.
So what is the best bridge for a 30 year old LP copy owned by a man on a budget? Having spent at least 30 seconds trawling guitar forums I head for ebay, a quick search reveals roller bridges which look cool and normal bridges. Back to the guitar forums and I get the impression that roller bridges are good if you have a tremolo arm (also known as a whammy bar) my guitar is mostly armless so I decide to go conventional, there are also dark murmurs that roller bridges suck up tone. Also the term normal bridge covers quite a lot of ground but the sophistications of ABR and Nashville style bridges are lost on me so my purchasing decision is based on price and will it fit. basically a crude buy one that looks like the one I’ve got for the least amount of cash strategy. The final result 5 pounds from China! That is 5 pounds including postage from Shenzhen China delivered in less than a week, half the cost of a UK seller, ok I don't believe this is the best quality part ever but I'm not sure this even covers the cost of putting something in an envelope.
While I'm looking for parts I start to think about styling my guitar wondering about using black hardware v the pull of authentic aged components, and I’m starting to think about aging my new bridge, I appear to crossing to the dark side.
Finally after all the effort, one vital component buy a guitar stand, I watched Hondo drift slowly sideways and drop to the floor after being propped against the sofa! Fortunately a soft bump and just needed a retuning but...
So what is the best bridge for a 30 year old LP copy owned by a man on a budget? Having spent at least 30 seconds trawling guitar forums I head for ebay, a quick search reveals roller bridges which look cool and normal bridges. Back to the guitar forums and I get the impression that roller bridges are good if you have a tremolo arm (also known as a whammy bar) my guitar is mostly armless so I decide to go conventional, there are also dark murmurs that roller bridges suck up tone. Also the term normal bridge covers quite a lot of ground but the sophistications of ABR and Nashville style bridges are lost on me so my purchasing decision is based on price and will it fit. basically a crude buy one that looks like the one I’ve got for the least amount of cash strategy. The final result 5 pounds from China! That is 5 pounds including postage from Shenzhen China delivered in less than a week, half the cost of a UK seller, ok I don't believe this is the best quality part ever but I'm not sure this even covers the cost of putting something in an envelope.
While I'm looking for parts I start to think about styling my guitar wondering about using black hardware v the pull of authentic aged components, and I’m starting to think about aging my new bridge, I appear to crossing to the dark side.
Finally after all the effort, one vital component buy a guitar stand, I watched Hondo drift slowly sideways and drop to the floor after being propped against the sofa! Fortunately a soft bump and just needed a retuning but...
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