Warmoth JM Body: Thimbles & Vibrato/Tremolo

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quiksilver78
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Warmoth JM Body: Thimbles & Vibrato/Tremolo

Post by quiksilver78 » Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:49 am

Hi Guys,

As I finally get going once again with my Lefty JM Warmoth project, I wanted to check with the experts about what thimbles and vibrato/tremolo plates fit a Warmoth body.

I was looking at Darren Riley's and he carries both the AVRI and CIJ vibrato tailpiece. Are either of these compatible with a Warmoth JM body?

The same question applies to the the thimbles for the bridge (I've purchased a Staytrem bridge, fyi) but apparently, again, there are thimbles for both CIJ and MIA Jazzmasters - wondering where Warmoth fits into all this.

Thank you again for your help!

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JVG
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Re: Warmoth JM Body: Thimbles & Vibrato/Tremolo

Post by JVG » Sat Sep 23, 2017 8:43 pm

hi there

The screw hole spacing is identical for Japanese, Korean, and USA Fender jazzmaster tremolos, and the internal dimensions are near identical, so it doesn't matter which you choose (from a fit perspective). I actually find the Japanese ones perfectly good, even though a lot if people frown upon them because they're not quite as hefty. The handy thing abut warmoth is they pre-drill the tremolo mounting holes, so there's no worry about lining things up properly when you screw it on.

Regarding bridge thimbles, there's definitely a difference between Japanese and US ones. To be honest I can't be 100% sure which ones I used on my warmoth build....I think they were US. Try emailing them to ask the hole diameter.

Good choice with the Staytem bridge. I'm a big fan of those. I'd also recommend the Staytrem collet and arm, which are a big improvement over both the Japanese and US ones. It's also the only way you're gonna get a lefty trem arm, because sadly fender just don't care about lefties!

Cheers!
J.

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Embenny
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Re: Warmoth JM Body: Thimbles & Vibrato/Tremolo

Post by Embenny » Sat Sep 23, 2017 9:01 pm

I put USA thimbles in my Warmoth JM when I built it...9 years ago. All variations of Offset tailpieces fit. I like the USA ones. The MIJ have the holes for the strings drilled closer together, so the string pinch slightly inward as they go from saddle to tailpiece. Better alignment on the USA ones, though my MIJ Jag hasn't broken a string in years so it clearly isn't binding or stressing the string much if at all.
The artist formerly known as mbene085.

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