adjusting bridge

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question444

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I bought a strat, and the bridge is at an angle from the body. In other words, you can bend down or up. I find this undesireable and would like the bridge to be flush with the body. Has anyone ever made this adjustment? Should I attempt it myself or get someone else to do it? Thanks.
 
It all depends on spring tension. In all likelihood all you need to do is tighten up the springs, but if there are not enough springs in there then you'll need to add more. Bare in mind, though, that this will throw off every other aspect of the guitar's setup, and you will need to either adjust it or have it adjusted by a good repair shop.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
Light said:
It all depends on spring tension. In all likelihood all you need to do is tighten up the springs, but if there are not enough springs in there then you'll need to add more. Bare in mind, though, that this will throw off every other aspect of the guitar's setup, and you will need to either adjust it or have it adjusted by a good repair shop.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
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Is this a trem issue so?
 
question444 said:
I bought a strat, and the bridge is at an angle from the body. In other words, you can bend down or up. I find this undesireable and would like the bridge to be flush with the body. Has anyone ever made this adjustment? Should I attempt it myself or get someone else to do it? Thanks.
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It's an easy adjustment; just take the plate off the back (if it has one) and tighten the screws that hold the "claw" (the part that holds the ends of the springs to the body of the guitar) until it pulls the tremelo block against the wood. Of course that will take the guitar sharp, and when you tune it back down, the block may move off the wood and you'll have to tighten the screws some more. You may want to add a spring or springs to stiffen it up a bit, but that's a matter of taste.

As Light says, depending on how much of a change this makes to the string height and intonation, you may need to get those things readjusted.
 
This will also result in a half-blocked vibrato. It the bridge plate is actually pulled against the body with spring tension - then you won't be able to pull the strings sharp with the vibrato bar. The upside is that it's no longer a full-floating bridge.
 
ggunn said:
It's an easy adjustment; just take the plate off the back (if it has one) and tighten the screws that hold the "claw" (the part that holds the ends of the springs to the body of the guitar) until it pulls the tremelo block against the wood. Of course that will take the guitar sharp, and when you tune it back down, the block may move off the wood and you'll have to tighten the screws some more. You may want to add a spring or springs to stiffen it up a bit, but that's a matter of taste.

As Light says, depending on how much of a change this makes to the string height and intonation, you may need to get those things readjusted.
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The angle is of course intentional to allow upward and downward motion of the bridge to alter tone when using the whammy bar, and can be a nuisance if you put any pressure on it when playing. As I don't use the whammy on my squire strat and told the shop guy that, when I had mine in for strings and a setup he put another (third) spring in to bring the bridge plate almost down to body. At the time he said that he has seen squires come with and without the third spring. The nuisance is gone, but the downside is that the slugs on the bridge must be raised all the way up to make up for the lowering of the bridge plate underneath. A neck adjustment was needed in conjuction to get the action right. I like the strings low, so have no problem with the new setup, but someone wanting higher action might have to consider some sort of shim under the plate to keep it higher.

Tom
 
Zaphod B said:
This will also result in a half-blocked vibrato. It the bridge plate is actually pulled against the body with spring tension - then you won't be able to pull the strings sharp with the vibrato bar.
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The OP acknowledged this and said that that's what he wants. Myself, I prefer it to be fully floating.
 
ggunn said:
The OP acknowledged this and said that that's what he wants. Myself, I prefer it to be fully floating.
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Cool. I have my Strat set up as a full floater (it has a Hipshot Tremsetter), and my Korean Strat copy has a half-blocked bridge as described here. Both work fine, and I never use the vibrato to sharp the strings, anyway.
 
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