Educate me on bridge pins

bobby b · #1 11-03-2011, 09:05 PM

I get that they are made from different materials that may or may not help with sound, bone vs tusq vs ebony vs brass etc etc.....

But whats the deal with 'slotted vs un-slotted' bridge pins?

Would the bridge need to have some slots added or would the unslotted pin just press the string into the bridge? That cant be right, it would crack the bridge .....no?

Is one preferred over the other?

Thanks

hotpocket · #2 11-03-2011, 09:08 PM

They hold the strings down.

bobby b · #3 11-03-2011, 09:14 PM

.........um yeah, no kiddin' ......really?

Landru · #4 11-03-2011, 09:20 PM

Supposedly - one, if the bridge is not slotted and the pins are, needs to slot the bridge and then use pins without slots. Why? I don't know.

hotpocket · #5 11-03-2011, 09:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bobby b

.........um yeah, no kiddin' ......really?

You're welcome.

bobby b · #6 11-03-2011, 09:33 PM

Ok, the reason I ask is........

I changed strings and noticed the low E made a dull thud sound as I was trying to tune it to pitch. I noticed that the ball end was not seated against the bridge plate, so I loosened the string, pulled the pin and re seated the pin/string.
That fixed it, but it got me thinkin'......
If the bridge was slotted then more of the string surface as well as the ball end would be in direct contact with wood, as it is with slotted pins, the slots capture most of the string and most if not all the contact is only btwn the ball end and bridge plate.
Surely this must make a 'sonic' difference? I realize that most of the string vibe transfer is via the saddle to the bridge but would the string 'anchor' point factor in too?

gitnoob · #7 11-03-2011, 09:49 PM

The strings only vibrate between the two terminal ends -- the nut and the saddle. The anchor shouldn't matter. Otherwise your intonation would be pretty weird.

Mass does make a difference, but the mass difference between any given set of pins is pretty small. I measured a set of plastic pins at about 3.5 grams and some ebony pins with brass dots at about 4.5 grams.

A bridge, for example, weighs about 30 grams, so we're talking about a very small difference in mass for the pins.

bobby b · #8 11-03-2011, 09:53 PM

The anchor must matter.
I could only elicit a dull thud from the string until I fixed the anchor point.

gitnoob · #9 11-03-2011, 09:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bobby b

The anchor must matter.
I could only elicit a dull thud from the string until I fixed the anchor point.

Well, it has to be anchored securely of course. Otherwise the string can lengthen when you pluck it. The ball end needs to be tight against the bridge plate to prevent that.

You know that there are pinless bridges, right? They seem to work fine.

bobby b · #10 11-03-2011, 10:06 PM

That must have been the issue, guess it would have worked out as the string/ball end 'slipped' into place.
Just kinda freaked me out, when it went from beautiful ringing bass tone to a very dull thud.

Thanks

The mass of the pins may make a small difference yes, but would there be any reason to go with un-slotted over slotted pins or vice versa?

gitnoob · #11 11-03-2011, 10:09 PM

Unslotted pins are for slotted bridges. Slotted pins are for unslotted bridges.

http://www.bryankimsey.com/bridges/slotted.htm

bobby b · #12 11-03-2011, 10:18 PM

Yes I realize that..

I was wondering if there were any advantages of one over the other. The link answered my question........

"Advantages of slotted bridges:

1) the ball end is supported securely on 4 sides- 3 by the bridgeplate, and 1 by the non-slotted pin.
2) I think they sound a little better. I've done nothing but slot a bridge on a customer's guitar and he (skeptically) played it for an hour and thought it had a little better definition and clarity. Just a little, but, hey, do you want a little or not? I'll take it!
3) I think the bridgeplates last longer since the ball end isn't trying to work its way up the hole. On a correctly slotted bridge, you can sometimes actually remove the bridgepins while the strings are under tension. I like to have just a little "push" on the pins to help hold them in place, but you can definitely feel the string "click" into the plate.
4) every Martin guitar that I've examined built prior to 1985 with the original bridgeplate has a slotted bridge, although the low E might need just a little more opening up. If you can turn the pins around so that the slot faces the rear with the string in place, the bridge is slotted."

Landru · #13 11-03-2011, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gitnoob

Unslotted pins are for slotted bridges. Slotted pins are for unslotted bridges.

http://www.bryankimsey.com/bridges/slotted.htm

Yeah - but Bryan automatically slots all bridges and uses unslotted pins. He addresses this on the UMGF:

http://theunofficialmartinguitarforu...shaving-braces

Post #7.

sachi · #14 11-04-2011, 07:32 AM

Older guitars typically had slotted bridges. The makers switched to unslotted bridges and slotted pins as a cost-savings measure. I've slotted the bridges on each of my guitars; it's not hard to do although it takes a while.

Bryan Kimsey is better than I am at explaining why it matters.

dawhealer · #15 11-04-2011, 10:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hotpocket

They hold the strings down.

That's been my experience as well.

I've been playing for a while and have used all differrent kinds of bridge pins. I can't tell that they make much, if any, difference in sound.

However, I think they make a big difference in how finished a guitar looks, so if I buy a guitar that doesn't already have bridge pins/end pin that compliment the appearance of the guitar (I think plastic bridge pins and end pins are cheesy, just my personal opinion), that's one of the first things I'll replace.