Re-centering a sideways bigsby

[Missing Fingers]

So I put a Bigsby on my SG. Sexy. But I didn't make pilot holes because I couldn't find the drill. After screwing it in, I realized it is sideways, not just measurement-wise but to the naked eye as well; it is obviously off-center. Do you guys have any recommendations about how I could fill in those holes (personal experience advice would be very helpful) and also how to set it perfectly straight? My guitar shop in this small town is awful and I won't be around guitar center for a few months, so a professional installation isn't possible.

 

Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot.

[dcindc]

Take it off, dowel the holes (walmart) and do it again.

use a measuring tape.

[sxyryan]

Take it off, dowel the holes (walmart) and do it again. use a measuring tape.

 

 

Ditto.

 

And before your do any drilling, lay the guitar down flat and put the bigsby where you think is right

 

Then stand back and look at the thing. It helps to run a string from both e tuners to bigsby, over the bridge, to see how everything lines up. If it all looks good, plus your measurements are good, it should be fine.

[HanSolo]

I believe Dirty Harry said it best "A man's got to know his limitations." Hope it covers the old holes when you get it straight!

[Yasgurs Farm]

Suggestion: when you discover which side is high (obviously, it will be either the left or right side) you may be able to KEEP one or the other holes and then either lower one side or raise the other. (that is, if there are no obstructions or other considerations.) -- If this is the case, see if you can COVER the unused screw hole with the Bigsby itself, making it unnecessary to plug any holes.

If you need to plug a hole with a dowel, drill the hole OUT to match the next size up dowel, rather than jamming something in. Five tips for this process: 1) get ANOTHER piece of wood for a practice attempt. Drill into the wood with the bit you've selected, insert a section of dowel, and so forth. When you get a good snug fit, pull it out (see tip #3) and transfer the dowel to a prepared hole in the guitar that you made using the same drill bit. The test hole makes it easier to select the proper drill bit, because it allows you to experiment. 2) Choose a drill bit slightly SMALLER than the dowel you get. Then sand the dowel to fit. 3) Do the sanding on the END section of a longer length of dowel. This will make it much easier to sand and easier to remove the dowel from the test hole in the other piece of wood. 4) After the dowel is seated in the guitar, with a drop of glue in the bottom, and the glue has dried, use a flat wood chisel to whack off the end of the dowel flush with the guitar body. This will leave a clean, smooth surface, and eliminates sanding, which would ruin the finish on the guitar. 5) To stain or dye the dowel end to match the guitar top, use a DIFFERENT piece of the same dowel as a test, allowing test colorings to dry before deciding. When you get the test dowel to match pretty well, use that formulation on the dowel that's in the guitar. For this reason, you need to keep track of the exact formula for mixing the dye, marker or whatever you use, if it is a blend of colors.