I have a 2001 MIM strat . the trem block was very thin and the saddles did not seem to sit right but I never did figure out why
I bought a cheap replacement from gear4music although it is a fender part. Now for my standard of playing it is probably good enough for now. but when I had the guitar set set up and the guy I took it to noted it was not a great trem. He described it as a bit clunky. I took that to mean it was a bit tricky to set up. I dont think he got it to float whey way he would have liked.
I like the guitar and think it may deserve an upgrade at some point. what should I be saving up for
Comments
1) how the vibrato baseplate is tilted relative to the top of the guitar body.
2) how loosely the height adjustment grub screws fit the threads through the saddles.
I take the tech’s description to indicate “not very precisely engineered”. The critical area is the “knife edge” where the baseplate meets each of the six pivot screws.
How bendy do you want to get? A Wilkinson WVVS vibrato would do the job and look traditional. Some of the Gotoh and Wilkinson/Gotoh designs would be a distinct upgrade. I like the old Kahler 25nn Fulcrum but obtaining some spare parts is now ridiculously expensive.
The outcome was that many people do not understand how to correctly set it up, and in fact Fenders own advice is a bit mis-leading.
In the thread there are a couple of good videos which show how to set it up well for a wide range of movement.
It is my opinion, that the original design has some issues which affect it's reliability, and some things just have to be accepted, ie:- there is the possibility of wear to the pivot points and screws if careful attention is not paid to set up.
The issue is that when the screws are adjusted as is commonly advised, this does not allow the plate to pivot without some friction over the screws.
I mention this, as with a budget tremolo, this wear may become exaggerated, meaning it will become very difficult to have it function well.
If you are happy with the arm and actual bridge plate, you can easily upgrade the block and saddles-you just have to check some measurements, and even if you order a full unit you will have to check the screw pitch, I think Fender deliberately use different hardware on the Mexican lines to discourage parts from being swapped with the American stuff.
Check the screw holes in your bridge plate for wear, and if they are not too worn you should be able to get it adjusted to work as well as it can, have a look at the thread-it is titled something like -2 point trem v 6 point traditional, it contains a lot of good information about setting it up well, and I was going to update it with Fenders response to my e-mail to them about the bad advice they have on their site, they haven't got back to me.
I found this video that has some good info
It seems just checking the string spacing is not enough as the Mex strat string spacing is very close to a USA narrow spacing.
I just bought a brass block from northwest guitars 10.5mm spacing. The string holes and mounting holes line up perfectly to the plate from my Mex strat bridge. But the trem arm is not aligned so I can't attach a trem arm. (not much point in a trem with no arm)
I just bought a Mex body for a parts caster build and if I had known changing the trem from the thin zinc one was difficult I probably would have gone for a different body.
http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/89942/caspercaster#latest
Callaham is definitely on the short list.
But I found an interesting trem by wudtone. Pit has a few small design features that try to help binding on the pivot screws of a 6 point trem. Are wud tone trems any good?
Thanks for the reply. I will order the wudtone trem.
Just out of curiosity do you have the holy grail plate with the thick lip for the saddle holes or the more traditional looking vintage style plate
Ended up swapping it with a Mark Foley which I still use - perhaps ironically I’ve found the Foley a tad more temperamental, especially in terms of the trem arm threading etc, perhaps more akin to a vintage Fender which it’s meant clone.
The main reason I prefer it over the Wudtone is the tone is definitely different & I would say more ‘vintage’ sounding to my ears - couldn’t tell you what the difference is due to though! I’d hazard a guess at the composition of the block & saddles ?
Taking it out the bag I could not see how it was going to be any better but putting it on the guitar it definitely is. As far as tuning stability is Anyway. And the is very little play in the arm.
The is a plate that fits under the bridge that it pivots on giving it a more solid base the the wood. The body on my guitar had a mark in the finish where the old bridge was digging in.
It pivots on the screws.
Sorry, I know this argument has been gone through several times in the past, but the idea that it pivots on the plate, or on the body if there isn't one, is simply physically incorrect.
The pivot point is the front of the knife-edge bevels in the holes in the bridgeplate, against the sides of the screws. There should in fact be a small gap under the bridge - if it rubs there, it will cause friction and tuning trouble.
Exactly. It wasn't set up right - the pivot screws were too tight. If they're set correctly the bridge doesn't touch the top of the guitar at all unless pulled right back.
No doubt a new member will now register to argue the opposite, and then be proved wrong, and then get banned for being a previously banned member ... again.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
It may just be the case that the old bridge was worn and was not pivoting correctly. It would settle in two different positions depending if you pulled up or pushed down. I set the two bridges up in the same way and the new one does works well.
I definitely don't disagree that the Wudtone bridge is very nicely made and does work well. What I don't like is the way he insists on basing its supposed advantages on something which is physically incorrect - it doesn't help anyone understand how to set up any bridge so that it works properly, even that one.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein