Power Pins Fix For A Lifting Bridge - Video

[ac2300]

This is a Korean Video, unless youre Korean, you dont need the sound. Im hoping that someone here might be able to roughly translate it. We have several manufacturers interested in testing this for production. Any feedback appreciated.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62ICzNaoPg0&t=4s

[mirwa]

Have fitted power pins before, not my cup of tea personally, they just IMO add mass, certainly would not rely on the bolting of the pins to the top as the means of securing the bridge, I can see the bridge plate cracking very soon.

Steve

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by mirwa

I can see the bridge plate cracking very soon.

I tested Power Pins II on a guitar who's bridge was lifting. The II comes with a "Power Plate", a slotted metal strip through which the bolts pass, in addition to washers. I think it very unlikely that the bridge plate would split with the Power Plate to distribute loads.

I don't see Power Pins as an ideal method of permanently attaching a bridge, but my tests show that it will work. I see it as, potentially, being a temporary method of attaching a bridge and stringing a guitar as part of the build/tuning process.

The Power Plate II weighs 32 g, compared to ebony pins at 3 g. (No, that is not a typo.) The first round of testing I did suggested that that added weight significantly reduces overtones above about 3 KHz with a significant change in timbre. That could be an advantage on some instruments for some players.

Unfortunately, my results were not repeatable and on the second testing, same guitar, same strings, there appeared to be no attenuation of overtones and no change in timbre of the instrument. Without additional testing, little can be concluded from those two tests.

The added weight did alter the waveform of the onset transient and decay. What that translates into audible differences in sound is an open question.

[Hot Vibrato]

Seems like a reasonable way of dealing with a bridge lifting on a cheap guitar. But for a decent instrument, it's best to remove it and reglue it properly. It's important to carefully remove the finish under the bridge, so that it has clean wood to wood contact.