Designing a bridge for the Jazzmaster/Jaguar

[dylanafghjkl]

looks cool but i always feel like you sacrifice intonation when using 3 adjustment screws rather than one per string, even if it's compensated
that being said my favourite guitar i own at the moment is a kawai with one of these sort of bridges


also re: wax potting a bridge - wouldn't wax be soft enough that you could still adjust the screws through it?

[redchapterjubilee]

I'd love for someone to get bridge blanks and drill for normal Mustang saddles at a flatter radius, i.e. just making a regular Mustang bridge at 9.5 radius. That is essentially what a Staytrem is but I'm thinking something even simpler in design. The only reason I ever feel the need to use anything other than a Mustang bridge is if the guitar isn't 7.25 radius. Then you kinda have to use something else, or shim a Mustang bridge. Seems if someone could get bridge blanks and drill them for 9.5 with Mustang saddles and sell them at $40 you'd do decent business.

[601210]

I'd love for someone to get bridge blanks and drill for normal Mustang saddles at a flatter radius, i.e. just making a regular Mustang bridge at 9.5 radius. That is essentially what a Staytrem is but I'm thinking something even simpler in design. The only reason I ever feel the need to use anything other than a Mustang bridge is if the guitar isn't 7.25 radius. Then you kinda have to use something else, or shim a Mustang bridge. Seems if someone could get bridge blanks and drill them for 9.5 with Mustang saddles and sell them at $40 you'd do decent business.

I don't think you can really "drill" mustang saddles to a different radius, the radius is a result of the size of the saddles themselves.

[redchapterjubilee]

The saddles no, but the bridge yes. You would have to have a blank bridge that has not been drilled for saddles. Not sure if those blanks are easy to obtain.

[mizbiz]

I think what 601210 meant is that it is entirely irrelevant where the location of the intonation screw holes sit on the bridge base. Because the mustang saddles have a fixed height, the only way to modify the radius on them is to either sand them down lower or shim them up higher. There are no height/radius adjustment grub screws on mustang saddles.

[601210]

^ what he said.

Actually looking at it now, if you wanted a ready-made solution surely it isn't that hard to machine a slotted shim that just slips under the saddles and corrects the radius for all 6 at the same time?

[mizbiz]

^ what he said.

Actually looking at it now, if you wanted a ready-made solution surely it isn't that hard to machine a slotted shim that just slips under the saddles and corrects the radius for all 6 at the same time?

^^^Great idea!

Or if someone was able to develop a method to precision machine the center saddles only removing a fraction of the bottom of the existing saddles to convert it to a 9.5" radius, that might be a more cost effective solution since no new parts would have to be manufactured.

[mizbiz]

Hell, come to think of it, why hasn't anyone come up with a new set of replacement 9.5" radius metal mustang saddle barrels that simply drop into the existing bridge and use the existing intonation screws/springs? It would be even more rad if they came in various metal types (i.e. brass, steel, stainless steel, chromed, titanium). That seems like the most simple and cost effective solution cause it would only be the cost of manufacturing the barrel saddles themselves.

I mean, it certainly is a variation of using GraphTech saddles as a solution, but it seems like one that would be more readily acceptable and utilized since most agree that the GraphTech ones present issues because 1) they are not wide enough and shimmy around, and 2) are not conductive, rendering the post/thimble grounding ineffective. Basically, they suck.

[arkivel]

The string spacing would still be too far apart using a Mustang bridge - either Fender or aftermarket. Having said that, designing a functioning bridge should not be rocket science. The Staytrem bridge gets you 90% the way there. The only thing to improve is making it a fixed bridge and precision machined saddle grooves with harder chrome plating like the Mastery bridge.

[Embenny]

The string spacing would still be too far apart using a Mustang bridge - either Fender or aftermarket. Having said that, designing a functioning bridge should not be rocket science. The Staytrem bridge gets you 90% the way there. The only thing to improve is making it a fixed bridge and precision machined saddle grooves with harder chrome plating like the Mastery bridge.

Staytrem offers a fixed-bridge version. You just have to specify that when you order.

[mizbiz]

The string spacing would still be too far apart using a Mustang bridge

Really? I've never heard that before... not being a smartass, but is it too far apart on the mustang as well? I just assumed the Jags and Jazzmasters had the same fretboard width as the mustang, and therefore the same string spacing too. I genuinely am ignorant on this. In fact, I use real mustang bridges (not aftermarket) on some of my offsets and the only thing I've ever noticed is the discrepancy in radius.

[arkivel]

The string spacing would still be too far apart using a Mustang bridge - either Fender or aftermarket. Having said that, designing a functioning bridge should not be rocket science. The Staytrem bridge gets you 90% the way there. The only thing to improve is making it a fixed bridge and precision machined saddle grooves with harder chrome plating like the Mastery bridge.

Staytrem offers a fixed-bridge version. You just have to specify that when you order.

Problem still is that staytrem saddles are not precision polished and hard chromed so you can't really use the vibrato if the bridge is fixed. They advise against it.

[arkivel]

The string spacing would still be too far apart using a Mustang bridge

Really? I've never heard that before... not being a smartass, but is it too far apart on the mustang as well? I just assumed the Jags and Jazzmasters had the same fretboard width as the mustang, and therefore the same string spacing too. I genuinely am ignorant on this. In fact, I use real mustang bridges (not aftermarket) on some of my offsets and the only thing I've ever noticed is the discrepancy in radius.

Mustang bridges tend to be spaced too wide and the e strings tend to fall off the fretboard. System and Mastery have a more narrow string spacing to fix this. Some actually prefer the stock jazzmaster saddles to mustang saddles for this reason