Members _pete_ Posted November 24, 2005 Members Share Posted November 24, 2005 A few days ago I posted this thread. I setup my 93 MIM Strat like he said and I'll be damned if it doesn't stay in tune great now. I can dive or pull up or shake the hell out of the bar and it holds tune great. Every once in a while it will go out slightly but a quick yank up on the bar puts it right in tune. A little work on the nut should take care of that problem. The 2 outside screws are adjusted out far enough to let the bridge pivot freely and the 4 inner screws are all adjusted a little higher so they don't bind. The downside is that initial tuning is a like tuning a floating Floyd. I don't have a problem with that but I know many of you do. It's nice to use the bar and stay in tune though. Here's pics of how it ended up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lchyi Posted November 24, 2005 Members Share Posted November 24, 2005 Nice Pete, I'm working on my strat right now I'll let you know how it goes! Thanks for the post on the original thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members buddastrat Posted November 24, 2005 Members Share Posted November 24, 2005 That's pretty much how every Fender comes from Fender. All have that amount of up pull. But Fender has the screws even, which I prefer, it's more solid. I don't angle the trem claw like that. I angle the two outer springs though. I get the tension I want that way. My strats all return to pitch really well. People think I'm nuts 'till I let 'em try it. Just pick up a regular stock strat just in from Fender, before anybody startin' messin with it, tune and stretch, and it will stay great. They "usually" set them up well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lchyi Posted November 24, 2005 Members Share Posted November 24, 2005 I just setup my strat like that (along with a nice brown pearl pickguard change ) and it is doing very well right now even with brand new strings. I'm still playing to some furious backing tracks and trying to get these strings out of whack but they seem to be within a cent or two every time I check it again. to angled strat setups. I also loosened the middle 4 screws and the outside two a little on the bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ChrisGansz Posted November 24, 2005 Members Share Posted November 24, 2005 Tried the screw technique and the "slanted claw" on my SX 57sst Strat - and guess what? The damn thing works like a charm! PS - I didn't float it too high! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lloop9 Posted November 24, 2005 Members Share Posted November 24, 2005 Hmm... having the trem pivot on the 2 outer screw makes it behave like a modern 2 point trem like a wilky rite? But doesn't that place too much stress on the 2 outer screws? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members buddastrat Posted November 24, 2005 Members Share Posted November 24, 2005 Yeah I think so. Plus having the six screws making contact is what that trem is all about. More contact points, and it still stays in tune fine. I just like it because I can give it extreme abuse. If it's just the two screws, I'd be a little more leary of the abuse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members _pete_ Posted November 24, 2005 Author Members Share Posted November 24, 2005 On mine the 4 center screws are still there and touching the bridge but they're backed out about a 1/4 turn more than the outer 2 so the screw heads don't impede travel. I've got a Callaham steel block and stainless screws in it and does improve the sound a bit. The s/s screws are pretty strong too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wes37 Posted November 28, 2005 Members Share Posted November 28, 2005 Here's something I can't figure out....why does it help to have the treble side looser when the treble side exerts more tension? I would think that the right "balance" would be more string tension for the treble side, not less, but your experience and Carl Verheyen's method both say looser on the treble side. Any thoughts as to why this works? Wes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vintage clubber Posted November 28, 2005 Members Share Posted November 28, 2005 So with that set up, is there no wobble in the trem when you bend a string? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bluesbreaker46 Posted November 28, 2005 Members Share Posted November 28, 2005 originally posted by wes37Here's something I can't figure out....why does it help to have the treble side looser when the treble side exerts more tension? I would think that the right "balance" would be more string tension for the treble side, not less, but your experience and Carl Verheyen's method both say looser on the treble side.Any thoughts as to why this works?Wes that doesn't make any sense to me either edit: nevermind, yes it does Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mikeyzc Posted November 28, 2005 Members Share Posted November 28, 2005 hmm...I may have to try this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Virgman Posted November 28, 2005 Members Share Posted November 28, 2005 I have to agree with BuddaStrat. The Fender recommended setup works pretty good. Damn simple too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members go cat go Posted November 28, 2005 Members Share Posted November 28, 2005 Originally posted by bluesbreaker46 that doesn't make any sense to me eitheredit: nevermind, yes it does Because the treble srtings are exerting more force on the trem the the bass strings. The bass strings don't have to be so tight because they are thicker and require less force to stay in tune. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Matter-Eater Lad Posted November 28, 2005 Members Share Posted November 28, 2005 Bullet end strings might help too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members _pete_ Posted November 28, 2005 Author Members Share Posted November 28, 2005 Originally posted by vintage clubber So with that set up, is there no wobble in the trem when you bend a string? I don't notice any. It's not as noticeable as doing double stop bends with a Floyd. It does it to a much lesser degree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members J.custom Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 Hi guys, sorry to bring up such an old thread, but I was wondering has anyone done this with a Sterling silo 30 or EBMM Silhouette before? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members csm Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 As it happens, this is Useful Stuff, since I'm currently attempting to beat a regular Fender vintage-reissue bridge into reliable whammy shape ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tiltsta Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 Cool. The vintage trem gets a lot of crap for being unreliable, but when you get it right it can be very, very good. I bet this post will help some people. I have mine set to just about rest on the body, but I can still pull up the bar about a quarter step or so, so it ins't sitting on the body. I can tremolo pretty well with it, and it stays in tune. A bandmate of mine helped me set it up, and told me the real key is to get the string tension and spring tension balanced, and to keep the inner screws tighter than the outer screws, which work like the 'posts' in a floyd type trem. It seems to work really well on both of my vintage trem strats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vintage clubber Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 when this thread was published, I pretty much had all my trems blocked and didn't use them. I use mine now, but do use a different set-up technique than pictured here. In my set up, the trem remains flush to the body and I do set the springs differently. My strats all stay pretty well in tune with light trem usage. I don't do any dive bombing though... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jtr654 Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 You have to angle the claw not the springs so it'll come back to it's original spot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sonowilson Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 nice post. I saw a YouTube video from some famous strat player. Can't remember the name - old school guy. Any way, I tried the slanted claw and its awesome. Slanted claw evens out the tension between the large and small strings. Also with a straight claw and a floating trem you won't get a even musical tone if you pull all the way up on the bar. Way mine is set, I get a whole tone on strings 4-6 and a half tone on strings 1-3 when I pull the bar all the way. Stays in tune a heck of a lot better too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members _pete_ Posted October 16, 2011 Author Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 Well, this is an old thread. This method does work though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mymindsok Posted October 17, 2011 Members Share Posted October 17, 2011 That set-up appears to be pretty much exactly what Dan Erlewine describes in his book The Guitar Player repair guide. I'm not surprised that it works...! nice post. I saw a YouTube video from some famous strat player. Can't remember the name - old school guy. Any way, I tried the slanted claw and its awesome. Slanted claw evens out the tension between the large and small strings. Also with a straight claw and a floating trem you won't get a even musical tone if you pull all the way up on the bar. Way mine is set, I get a whole tone on strings 4-6 and a half tone on strings 1-3 when I pull the bar all the way. Stays in tune a heck of a lot better too. If he Trem system pivots on either the screws or the two posts, those won't allow for any twisting of the bridge or block. The springs are hooked to the tone block and theres a pretty straight pull there. Can you explain how having how the claw biased to one side, helps keep the guitar in tune? It appears as if the extra spring tension on the bass side would get evenly distributed to the entire bridge. Is your bridge twisting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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