The Acoustic Guitar Forum

Go Back   The Acoustic Guitar Forum > General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion > Build and Repair

Reply
 
Thread Tools
  #1  
Old 08-16-2016, 04:02 PM
mahoriver mahoriver is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 563
Default Advice wanted on Individual compensated brass saddle x 6 replacement

Hi Luthiers and anyone else who can help.
Im interested in a vintage guitar from the 40s.
Every about it looks good.And i like the sound.
But im thinking it might be overly bright with what i think are six compensated
Brass saddle pins.Could be bronze ?.
Does anyone have an knowledge of this type of compensated saddle.
And whether or not these could be removed and replaced with "bone" made to copy the original shape? (it looks very well done but)


Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 08-16-2016, 04:26 PM
Mr LV19E Mr LV19E is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Orion MI
Posts: 122
Default

Looks like little pieces of fret wire
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 08-16-2016, 05:49 PM
Earl49 Earl49 is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Idaho
Posts: 10,982
Default

Looks like fret wire to me too. Might be a bit bright but should last forever...
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 08-16-2016, 06:11 PM
mahoriver mahoriver is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 563
Default

That confirms it then.Makes sense to.If i buy it just have to see how it goes.
Thanks very much to you both for your help
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 08-16-2016, 06:12 PM
Earl49 Earl49 is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Idaho
Posts: 10,982
Default

Go for it! If it turns out to be too bright, string choices may tame it down.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 08-16-2016, 06:24 PM
Bruce Sexauer's Avatar
Bruce Sexauer Bruce Sexauer is offline
AGF Sponsor
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Petaluma, CA, USA
Posts: 7,525
Default

It looks to me like the bridge got cut down too far to hold a saddle, and a creative solution was implemented. A guitar is designed to have about a half inch between the top and the string. Usually, there's 3/8" of bridge and 1/8" of saddle. When there is less than 3/8 between the strings and the top the guitar will not generally sound it's best, and a neck set becomes advisable. Sometimes the bridge gets shaves, putting off the inevitable, and then the bridge needs to be replaced if the job is to be done right. This guitar may work if the fret saddles were done cleverly enough, but it is not healthy. Any further adjustment will mean precision bridge shaving and reinstalling fret bits.
__________________
Bruce
http://www.sexauerluthier.com/
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 08-16-2016, 09:29 PM
LouieAtienza LouieAtienza is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 4,617
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruce Sexauer View Post
It looks to me like the bridge got cut down too far to hold a saddle, and a creative solution was implemented. A guitar is designed to have about a half inch between the top and the string. Usually, there's 3/8" of bridge and 1/8" of saddle. When there is less than 3/8 between the strings and the top the guitar will not generally sound it's best, and a neck set becomes advisable. Sometimes the bridge gets shaves, putting off the inevitable, and then the bridge needs to be replaced if the job is to be done right. This guitar may work if the fret saddles were done cleverly enough, but it is not healthy. Any further adjustment will mean precision bridge shaving and reinstalling fret bits.
That may explain the bright sound...
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 08-16-2016, 11:13 PM
Howard Klepper Howard Klepper is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Earthly Paradise of Northern California
Posts: 6,627
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mahoriver View Post
Hi Luthiers and anyone else who can help.
Im interested in a vintage guitar from the 40s.
Every about it looks good.And i like the sound.
But im thinking it might be overly bright with what i think are six compensated
Brass saddle pins.Could be bronze ?.
Does anyone have an knowledge of this type of compensated saddle.
And whether or not these could be removed and replaced with "bone" made to copy the original shape? (it looks very well done but)
Is there any reason for not revealing what make and model guitar you are talking about? That might get you better answers.

A photo showing the whole guitar, or showing both the neck and the bridge could help, too.
__________________
"Still a man hears what he wants to hear, and disregards the rest."
--Paul Simon
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 08-17-2016, 07:13 AM
mahoriver mahoriver is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 563
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by LouieAtienza View Post
That may explain the bright sound...
The material used for the saddle.and any potential brightness this could cause,was the reason for the thread.
===============================

Think i've got all the info i need.Thanks everyone.
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 08-17-2016, 01:31 PM
yellowesty yellowesty is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Petaluma, California
Posts: 182
Default

Observation: those little pieces of brass will not, in themselves, "add brightness." They're much too small to have any resonances in the audible spectrum. If the guitar sounds brighter with brass mini-saddles than with a bone (or plastic) saddle, it's because the bone or plastic saddle is damping the strings at higher frequencies. I'm not suggesting that such damping is bad, but the brass isn't adding anything, it's just letting the strings have their way.
Reply With Quote
  #11  
Old 08-18-2016, 04:08 PM
Alan Carruth Alan Carruth is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 4,180
Default

I've tried on a couple of occasions to measure a difference in the sound of a guitar with 'hard' and 'soft' saddles. It's not easy. The differences from that are really small. Bridge mass, on the other hand, is a major player, and that instrument has about as light weight a bridge as I've seen.

There's not much horsepower in a plucked string. If you're making a car with a small engine, and you want acceleration, you have to keep the weight down. In a guitar acceleration of the top is what gets you high frequencies. Sometimes changing the bridge mass by even a couple of grams can make a big difference in the brightness of the sound. Since that bridge may be 10-15 grams lighter than normal, I'm not at all surprised that it sounds 'bright'.

Here's where bridge pins can make a difference. Those plastic pins probably weigh somewhere around 3-5 grams. Putting in bone pins would add another 3-5 grams, and might make a difference. Brass pins would add something like 20-25 grams, and would get your bridge up into the 'high normal' range for bridge weights, I would think, you'd get a less bright sound with more sustain, but a bit less power.
Reply With Quote
Reply

  The Acoustic Guitar Forum > General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion > Build and Repair

Thread Tools





All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:07 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Copyright ©2000 - 2022, The Acoustic Guitar Forum
vB Ad Management by =RedTyger=