Members DammitJanet Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 I'm overhauling my '90's mexican Strat into a rockabilly machine. I don't think I can put a Bigsby on it (or can I?), so I'd like the next best thing. I need a replacement for the current trem that will stay in tune REALLY well. So recommend the absolute best trems. All the other parts are already picked out, so please stick to trems. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members iamrockzorz Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Its funny that you say that, because im going to completely deck out my MIM strat when i get it. I was thinking about putting seymour duncan single coil sized humbuckers in it first off. The hot rails, cool rails and either a 59 mini or a jb jr or even a vintage rails. All humbuckers. What else are you doing to yours Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vintage clubber Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Graph Tech Ferraglide saddles, a hip shot trem setter and a good set up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted December 24, 2006 Moderators Share Posted December 24, 2006 Originally posted by DammitJanet I'm overhauling my '90's mexican Strat into a rockabilly machine. I don't think I can put a Bigsby on it (or can I?), so I'd like the next best thing. I need a replacement for the current trem that will stay in tune REALLY well. So recommend the absolute best trems. All the other parts are already picked out, so please stick to trems. Thanks! Two point Wilkinson VS100, but you'll have to swap out the nut for a trem nut and pop a set of locking tuners on there as well.....Sperzels, Schallers or Planet Waves, all OK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted December 24, 2006 Moderators Share Posted December 24, 2006 Originally posted by vintage clubber Graph Tech Ferraglide saddles, a hip shot trem setter and a good set up... Do you sell any of those VC? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members go cat go Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 if it's a 90's MIM Standard the only quality parts that will fit are Callaham. If it's a 50's, 60's or 70's series the Wilkinson Vintage 6 point is where it's at. I own both and I have to say both are wonderful units. The Wilkinson will save you $$$ as it is only about $40. The Crimson Tide: MIM Standard body MIM Deluxe Player neck Callaham Premium MIM standard bridge upgrade Van Zandt Rock model pups with blender Wilkinson kluson style tuners MIM 60's Classic Sunburst Wilkinson Vintage Bridge Vintage Vibe Sp-90's I tend to like the Wilkinson better because of the staggered string holes. Both have steel blocks and saddles. Again, if you are ugrading the standard, Callaham is the only way to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DammitJanet Posted December 24, 2006 Author Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Well, I'll certainly consider these options. Thanks for the input guys. The strat is a midnight wine finish, and I'm planning on switching out the white parts/pickguard for aged white (cream) parts/pickguard to give it a vintage look, and replacing the stock pickups with Duncan lipstick pickups for a vintage sound/look. I'm also looking at putting a vintage style chrome tremolo cover plate on. I've always liked the look of those and you just don't see them on strats anymore, but I'm not sure I can still use the whammy bar with a cover on. Hmmm. And then, I also look at something like this and wonder if I shouldn't just hold out and save up for one of these... http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Gretsch-Guitars-Electromatic-Hollowbody-Electric-Guitar?sku=517730 Any thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 's mel gibson Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Originally posted by DammitJanet I'm overhauling my '90's mexican Strat into a rockabilly machine. I don't think I can put a Bigsby on it (or can I?), so I'd like the next best thing. I need a replacement for the current trem that will stay in tune REALLY well. So recommend the absolute best trems. All the other parts are already picked out, so please stick to trems. Thanks! I assume you've already got the regular Strat tremolo unit on your guitar. It's not a non-trem stop-tail is it? If moneys no object and you're replacing the reg Fender Trem, Kahler is the easiest to upgrade to. There's very little cutting to do and mine work great. I have them on both my 75 Strats and on my 78 LP Standard. I have seen a Bigsby on a Strat but to tell you the truth, they don't do much other than a shallow wiggle but, they look great. I've got one on my 61 SG/LP Custom. Floyd Roses for Strats require too much cutting. It would be simpler to just wait for a used one with a Kahler or a Floyd. The Gretsch looks great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brewski Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Wilkinson Bridge for fulcrum style trems are the best!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members warriorpoet Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 http://cgi.ebay.com/Gotoh-Wilkinson-VSVG-Strat-Tremolo-Nickel-Steel-Block_W0QQitemZ290064530333QQihZ019QQcategoryZ41407QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1446579&highlight=vsvg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members warriorpoet Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 http://www.callahamguitars.com/ These are supposed to be good, too. I don't like the block or saddle designs as much, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DammitJanet Posted December 24, 2006 Author Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Wow. The Wilkinson sounds really sweet. I'm curious though...would I need to put a new nut on the guitar as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members warriorpoet Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Originally posted by DammitJanet Wow. The Wilkinson sounds really sweet. I'm curious though...would I need to put a new nut on the guitar as well? Not usually necessary. Make sure you have no tuning/ intonation issues related to the nut to begin with, and you should be golden. A well-dressed stock nut outperforms a poorly dressed expensive one 100 out of 100 times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DammitJanet Posted December 24, 2006 Author Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Would I still be able to use the whammy bar on the wilkinson with one of those chrome bridge covers? And what do you recommend for tuners? I've had a set of the Planet Waves self-trim tuners on an Explorer for a couple of years that seem to work pretty nicely though I've always heard that locking tuners are the way to go. But the PW's have an 18:1 ratio....hmmmm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AtomHeartMother Posted December 24, 2006 Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Originally posted by DammitJanet Would I still be able to use the whammy bar on the wilkinson with one of those chrome bridge covers? And what do you recommend for tuners? I've had a set of the Planet Waves self-trim tuners on an Explorer for a couple of years that seem to work pretty nicely though I've always heard that locking tuners are the way to go. But the PW's have an 18:1 ratio....hmmmm. You better make sure you can even put the cover on that Wilk bridge. You may not be able to. Also, make sure that that bridge is a direct replacement for a MIM bridge. For some reason, I don't think it is. If I recall correctly, the string spacing on MIM Fender bridges is 2 1/16" and that bridge is 2 3/16". I could be wrong though. But you want to make sure that you are putting correct parts on. I know that MIM Fender's DON'T have vintage correct spacing, which most replacement bridges do have. Measure the string spacing between the centers of the two E strings at the saddles. Also, measure the distance between the two outside bridge plate screws (at each center). That will tell you if that Wilk is a replacement or not (the Wilk is 2 3/16"). To be honest, a well setup traditional Strat trem should be more than stable for simple stuff. It will go out of tune with a lot of divebombing and whatnot, but so will any trem aside from a Floyd Rose. If you're just doing subtle Bigsby-like stuff, just set up your trem properly. I recommend GHS Graphitall for all contact points at the trem, nut, and string trees. Also, tighten the claw down enough so that the plate is flat against the body, but still has leeway to be push down on the trem to drop notes down. You don't need the back of the bridge raised up for doing simple Bigsby-like stuff like that. If you're looking to do a replacement for tonal reasons, check out Callaham. But if it's purely for tuning stability, the Fender bridge is more than adequate. If you're looking to amend string breaking issues, the Graphtech Ferraglide saddles will help if you don't mind ugly looking saddles and a loss in tone. The Callaham saddles should also help with string breakage due to their elongated string slots. EDIT: I was correct about the MIM having a 2 1/16" string spacing. That Wilk won't fit correctly. Even if it does fit without modification, the string spacing will be messed up. I don't think it's worth if for any mild difference in stability and tone you'll notice, especially at $100, at which price you could get a Callaham. Go to Block Details on the left panel and scroll down to Tremolo block chart for the string spacings of various Fenders: http://www.callahamguitars.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DammitJanet Posted December 24, 2006 Author Members Share Posted December 24, 2006 Thanks for the input. Much appreciated! I'll be sure to put up some pics when all the work is done. Guess I'm sticking with the current trem for now. Still need to figure out the tuners though... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vintage clubber Posted December 25, 2006 Members Share Posted December 25, 2006 Originally posted by Ratae Coritanorum Do you sell any of those VC? the ferraglide saddles. I don't sell the hip shot unit, but he can get that from stew mac or on ebay. whatcho rollin' yo eyes at anyway? my post wasn't meant as a spam. I only suggested what upgrades I would make to the trem... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mattoverb Posted December 25, 2006 Members Share Posted December 25, 2006 Originally posted by Ratae Coritanorum Two point Wilkinson VS100, but you'll have to swap out the nut for a trem nut and pop a set of locking tuners on there as well.....Sperzels, Schallers or Planet Waves, all OK. Locking tuners don't do anything for tuning stability...Get a callham because it's all that fits! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members warriorpoet Posted December 25, 2006 Members Share Posted December 25, 2006 Originally posted by mattoverb Locking tuners don't do anything for tuning stability...Get a callham because it's all that fits! Not true. If it's a MIM, Wilki makes a slightly down-line version (from the VSVG) that fits a MIM standard. It has more traditional "vintage" saddles, but the same offset block and unique screw hole design as the higher end trems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Bruce Bennett Posted December 25, 2006 Members Share Posted December 25, 2006 yep, wilkenson 2 pole bridge, ( or even an American Standard Fender will do) the point here is to get away from the higher friction, 6 screw design. Locking tuners, ( don't care what brand, they all are pretty darn good) and the iceing on the cake is... a LSR roller nut.. this is a MUST if you want to actually stay in tune. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AtomHeartMother Posted December 26, 2006 Members Share Posted December 26, 2006 Originally posted by Bruce Bennett yep, wilkenson 2 pole bridge, ( or even an American Standard Fender will do) the point here is to get away from the higher friction, 6 screw design. Locking tuners, ( don't care what brand, they all are pretty darn good) and the iceing on the cake is... a LSR roller nut.. this is a MUST if you want to actually stay in tune. Yeah...if you want to do irreversible mods to your guitars. As long as you're nothing really yanking on the thing and you've got your guitar setup correctly (especially restringing and nuts slots), you shouldn't run into tuning problems if you're just wiggling the bar now and then. PLENTY of famous guitarists have gotten by with just stock Strats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members thrill74 Posted December 26, 2006 Members Share Posted December 26, 2006 Callaham. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DammitJanet Posted December 26, 2006 Author Members Share Posted December 26, 2006 Nevermind. Thanks for the input, but I think I'm going to just get the Gretsch G5120 instead. Any offers on my strat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members randomhero2006 Posted December 26, 2006 Members Share Posted December 26, 2006 I could so drop a Tommy Boy reference to the Calaham tremelos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mboyd784 Posted December 26, 2006 Members Share Posted December 26, 2006 Originally posted by Bruce Bennett yep, wilkenson 2 pole bridge, ( or even an American Standard Fender will do) the point here is to get away from the higher friction, 6 screw design. Locking tuners, ( don't care what brand, they all are pretty darn good) and the iceing on the cake is... a LSR roller nut.. this is a MUST if you want to actually stay in tune. Ah yes...the roller nut! Me Gusta! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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