Bridge pins

rickenboom · #1 07-14-2018, 03:04 PM

As a Guitar improvement project I replaced the plastic bridgepins of my Maton with bone pins. Had to sand them down until they fitted, keep in mind it was Harley Benton one size fits nothing.
The whole idea was just to be busy doing guitar things, never thought that the sound would really improve.
Guess what?! It DOES work! I ended up with a much clearer and crispier sound.
Thought I ‘d share it with you : don’t hesitate, get some bone pins, it puts a smile on your face!
Next time I ‘ll share with you the hard work on a TUSQ compensated bridge.

Jcamp · #2 07-14-2018, 03:49 PM

Where did you get your bone pins? I’ve had mixed results with brass if you’d wanna give them a go

AcousticDreams · #3 07-14-2018, 05:09 PM

Yes Bone pins do make a difference. But don't stop with bone on just pins, try a Bone saddle as well.

jaybones · #4 07-14-2018, 08:43 PM

I replaced the plastic pins with TUSQ and could hear an immediate difference.

Tube Sound · #5 07-14-2018, 09:29 PM

Bones pins, bone saddle, bone nut. Always. Well, almost always....

vindibona1 · #6 07-15-2018, 12:52 AM

Bridge pins can make an incredible difference. But different materials can produce different tonal affects. While anything is better than plastic and bone is a good starting place, there are other pin materials that might be even better. As an example, ebony has similar qualities as bone does, but is warmer and lusher sounding. Buffalo horn has more piano-like qualities. African Blackwood can tame excess highs. And what's more, there is nothing written in stone that says you have to use all the same pins across all six strings. JME

gfspencer · #7 07-15-2018, 06:46 AM

I love to play around with different strings and different pins. I think ebony pins give a guitar a little more warmth.

rmyAddison · #8 07-15-2018, 07:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickenboom

As a Guitar improvement project I replaced the plastic bridgepins of my Maton with bone pins. Had to sand them down until they fitted, keep in mind it was Harley Benton one size fits nothing.
The whole idea was just to be busy doing guitar things, never thought that the sound would really improve.
Guess what?! It DOES work! I ended up with a much clearer and crispier sound.
Thought I ‘d share it with you : don’t hesitate, get some bone pins, it puts a smile on your face!
Next time I ‘ll share with you the hard work on a TUSQ compensated bridge.

Been there, done that, got a 20 year old box full of pins (bone, TUSC, Ebony, FWI, FMI, Buffalo horn, brass, etc.), and yes, in general, good old bone is made for the job.

However, not always. My Authentic came with period correct plastic, many Authentics do, and a switch to bone was too dark/warm, albeit a very minor change.

Personally I have NEVER had a pin change make the huge differences some people claim. Pins are way down on the list of things that affect sound, not even close to say strings, string gauge, pick thickness/material, or nut/saddle changes.

FWIW high end boutique pins (FWI, FMI) I have a couple sets, to my ears are no better than bone.........

JayBee1404 · #9 07-15-2018, 07:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmyAddison

Personally I have NEVER had a pin change make the huge differences some people claim. Pins are way down on the list of things that affect sound, not even close to say strings, string gauge, pick thickness/material, or nut/saddle changes.

FWIW high end boutique pins (FWI, FMI) I have a couple sets, to my ears are no better than bone.........

Bingo!

archerscreek · #10 07-15-2018, 08:02 AM

I bought a used D-18GE and hole #6 in the bridge is so big I have to add a wrap of plastic around the pin to get it to hold the ball end. Otherwise the ball end quickly slides up as soon as I let go and look towards the tuners to begin tensioning the string. I’m happy with the sound of the plastic but like the idea of sanding an overly fat pin down to get it to fit how it should. So I’ll check ‘em out. Thanks.

TBman · #11 07-15-2018, 08:59 AM

I had put bone pins in my J-45 and although I didn't notice any difference in tone (could be age related) they really look nice with the abalone center. I like the look of ebony with or without abalone. I had bought a couple of sets of brass pins and used them on my laminated smaller guitars which did give a bit of a crisper sound to one of them, but they were a bit on the ugly side so I took them out eventually, lol.

Rev Roy · #12 07-15-2018, 09:12 AM

Glad it worked out for you. I’ve always swapped plastic pin for bone with nice inlays. But just for a little bling. I’ve never noticed - or expected - much change in tone.

rickenboom · #13 07-15-2018, 09:55 AM

Got them at Thomann.de

rickenboom · #14 07-15-2018, 09:57 AM

And it is not a big difference, but noticable nevertheless. Which makes me happy!

Alan Carruth · #15 07-16-2018, 11:06 AM

As far as I can tell, if changing pins alters the sound it's due to the mass difference. If a guitar has a resonance that is 'on the edge' of interacting strongly with another, a small change in mass at the bridge can make an out sized difference, but otherwise you probably won't notice anything. That's why some folks hear a big change and others don't her any, and others again hear the opposite. No two guitars are the same, and it all depends on where they started out.