Resonator Guitar Saddle

[L20A]

Do most resonator guitar's saddles have slots in them?
I'm thinking about trying bone in mine and I don't know if I need to slot the saddle or not.
It's a 2 piece wooden saddle.

[macfawlty]

I'd like to know an answer on that one as well. I'm not sure what mine is made of but it definitely has slots.

[blue]

I can only speak to National biscuit and tricone guitars. Yes they are slotted. And should be slotted in a particular way to allow the string to vibrate freely. Not just a grove like a nut slot. Everything has been tried, and it's hard to beat maple. Not ebony, not bone... JD tried everything before settling on maple. Now some folks think the new carbon fiber biscuits sound fine, but to me it's one of those things where folks are looking for a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

Do what you want, but just think on this. If bone was the answer, wouldn't guys like Bob Brozman, Mike Dowling, Steve James, and Keb Mo be using it?

[L20A]

Originally Posted by blue

I can only speak to National biscuit and tricone guitars. Yes they are slotted. And should be slotted in a particular way to allow the string to vibrate freely. Not just a grove like a nut slot. Everything has been tried, and it's hard to beat maple. Not ebony, not bone... JD tried everything before settling on maple. Now some folks think the new carbon fiber biscuits sound fine, but to me it's one of those things where folks are looking for a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

Do what you want, but just think on this. If bone was the answer, wouldn't guys like Bob Brozman, Mike Dowling, Steve James, and Keb Mo be using it?

Sorry but I don't know who these people are. I don't know much at all about a resonator guitar.
What I do know is that my guitar needs to have the saddle moved back about 1/8" and my guitar tech suggested gluing a piece of bone to each of the existing saddle halves to achieve it.
This is for an intonation problem.
Looks like I should just have him add some more maple.

[jt1]

What Blue said. Bone saddles make resonators sound really shrill, at least to my ears. I tried on on my 1931 style 1 tricone and on a more modern National Islander Deluxe. Maple is the thing.

The slots are typically filed narrow at the back of the saddle and wider in front, so that the strings can vibrate. The contact point can be varied to address intonation.

[Dan Carey]

Originally Posted by jt1

What Blue said. Bone saddles make resonators sound really shrill, at least to my ears. I tried on on my 1931 style 1 tricone and on a more modern National Islander Deluxe. Maple is the thing.

The slots are typically filed narrow at the back of the saddle and wider in front, so that the strings can vibrate. The contact point can be varied to address intonation.

I'll echo what Blue and jt1 said. Maple is the best...that's why it's been used for almost a hundred years! I tried a carbon fiber biscuit on my Regal and it made it REALLY loud and REALLY harsh. I put the maple biscuit back in the next day. Yes, it was slotted, but just barely enough to hold the string in place.

[blue]

Originally Posted by L20A

Sorry but I don't know who these people are. I don't know much at all about a resonator guitar.
What I do know is that my guitar needs to have the saddle moved back about 1/8" and my guitar tech suggested gluing a piece of bone to each of the existing saddle halves to achieve it.
This is for an intonation problem.
Looks like I should just have him add some more maple.

My baritone resonator required some additional maple glued onto the saddle for intonation also. Is your guy a resonator expert? 1/8 sounds like a lot of adjustment. But back to the point, yes, you can glue maple onto it. It's done regularly as Nationals have straight saddles and these days everybody's about intonation. I play mostly slide, so I don't really sweat it. It's just that when I went to strings in the 72 to 76 range on my baritone something had to be done.