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I have a Yamaha Classical on my bench that's giving me a run for my money with a mystery intonation issue. All but the B string are perfectly intonated with the usual compensations we see. The B string however is almost an entire 1/2 step off (sharp) at the 12th. Right from the get go the scale starts going sharp incrementally at every fret. I can find the fundamental harmonic on that string but it's sitting halfway between the 11th and…

when setting up acoustic guitars, from time to time I have a lot of trouble with getting the G string to ring true when fretted. Starting from lower frets and at its worst at about the 5/6th fret, the G string buzzes when plucked "heavily" (when no other string does so)...most recently a Taylor 724 which had a neck adjustment to reduce action (to 5/64-4/64), relief about 0.003 or 0.004. Increasing relief to about 8-9 helps somewhat.…

Hey all, I’m curious to know people’s general thoughts on the appropriate or ideal saddle height after a reset. And, when to replace a bridge that’s been shaved down. I know there are a lot of factors (for me anyhow) and this question could open a whole can of worms when it comes to the specifics of the guitar, its age, style of bridge and desired sound. I’m providing an example I encountered recently, but would also like to know people…

Ok, I'm a new builder and I've only done solidbody electrics so far, so this question is related to only those. In my opinion, these are the things that have the most impact on tone, listed in order from most influential to least. Have at it! Pickup/electronics, neck joint type, neck construction (including fret size/material), scale length, bridge type, bridge saddle material, tone wood Of course, this only takes into account the guitar.…

my customer bought this used with the original saddles replaced by nylon saddles and would like to restore to the original brass saddle inserts. anybody got a set or an address where I can get them (made)? thx Age

Would you have any recommendations on wiring configurations and piezo controllers to replace the electronics in my Music Man Reflex, which used to have the Game Changer system? The guitar has an HSH pickup configuration with a piezo bridge pickup. It has three existing holes for Volume/Tone/Blend, a blade switch slot, and a 3-way switch hole. When I bought this guitar about a decade ago, the Game Changer system offered a mind-numbingly a…

I inherited a 70's D28 that is a players instrument. The action is too high for me, but the saddle is bottomed out. There is no obvious belly bulge. The top of the bridge has been shaved. Bridge pin holes are uneven in diameter. However, the bridge placement seems pretty close; within 1/32". A straight edge on the fret board sits about 1/8" below the top of the bridge. The fret board has plenty of finger worn wells, there is virtually n…

I need some advice on replacing some saddles. I have been restoring a "dumpster dive" 1972 Gibson SB-400 bass, with a Multiplex bridge. It has nylon saddles, one of which has a crack. The screws upon which the saddles ride are not removable, as the end has an enlarged cap (see picture). How do I replace the saddles without destroying the screws? I repaired the cracking nylon saddle by supergluing two layers of fiberglass wrap (used for f…

Hi Folks. I have a new Gibson L-00 retro on the bench. It came in because the saddle had pulled forward and was extremely loose in the slot. the saddle was a narrow affair measuring out at 3/32. It had buzzing issues as well because saddle was low and neck angle is actually high (straight edge is 5/32 above bridge). Previous looth tried to correct by shimming saddle but recommended me for bridge work. I re-slotted the saddle slot wi…

I've got a Gretch G2420T with Bigsby B60 on my repair bench. When the customer plays, the strings are coming out of the saddles. We're thinking of replacing the B60 with a Bigsby B70 to increase the break angle over the saddles and bridge. Any concerns with that? I noticed the B70 is only on center block models. The G2420T is hollow body. Will the inside braces support the B70 enough?

I'm in the process of setting up a Parker (PDF-80 Maxx Fly Floyd Rose Special; Early-2010s) and one of the Floyd Rose saddles (G string) are stripped. Found exact replacement parts on StewMac and ordered in hopes of just swapping out one of the saddles and not having to replace everything: https://www.stewmac.com/parts-and-hardware/bridges-and-tailpieces/bridges-and-tailpieces-for-electric-guitar/floyd-rose-tremolos/floyd-rose-special-s…

Good Morning - the guy that runs the GuitarTechWorkstations channel on YouTube suggested I reach out to y’all to find a good luthier in the Houston area. I’m wanting to replace the plastic bridge & adjustable saddle on my ‘64 Gibson B-25. Any suggestions? Thank You! Thank You! I can be texted at 281-784-2306 or emailed at [email withheld]

I have two guitars I am working on that are missing a few parts and wanted to see if anyone has them that they would like to sell. I have a customer with an early 50's L5 that he got when he was 10 years old. He wants to reinstall the dearmond rhythm chief but is missing the long beam that connects the controls to the pickup and the small bracket affixes between the string run between the tail piece/bridge. Second, I have a 1978 telecaste…

Hey hive mind! Has anyone ever seen an acoustic saddle modded like this? If you have, what's the purpose of this notch under the b-bump? A client dropped off a bunch of guitars for repairs and setups this weekend and this saddle was in an early 2000's Larrivee dreadnought. It has a factory installed K&K Pure Mini under bridgeplate pickup and sounds great.

I'm interested in incorporating a compensated nut into my next build. Any thoughts on the intonation procedure? Nut first, saddle first, which fret to intonate to, etc?

Hi everyone! So I have a Fender Custom Shop Strat in my shop at the moment, and it's a real PITA. I've leveled the frets, made a new nut, and set it up to my liking. Normally this would help remove a lot if not all fret buzz, but this guitar just keeps buzzing all over the fretboard. Every single fret buzzes. It's very prominent as well. I've heard some guitar techs say that "some guitars just buzz more than others", but I can't accept t…

I am experimenting with some intonation ideas and it involves gluing two bone saddles together. I'm looking for suggestions for the best glue to use for that purpose. Alternatively, I can use corian or equivalent to make a wider one piece saddle. Any thoughts on the glue, or using corian for a saddle would be greatly accepted.

We hear a lot in LoothLand these days about 3D printing. I think it's an awesome use of that technology for what we all do. With my long history with AutoCad and 3D rendering in my previous life, I should pull the trigger on a 3D printer, but I'm just not ready yet AND I have no available space for one in my little shop or in my office right now. Yes, 3D printing is great, but sometimes, good ole regular printing can be a surprise frien…