Adjust-O-Matic vs Mustang Standard Bridge

Cymbaline · Post by **Cymbaline** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 5:03 pm

Considering getting a different bridge for Teh Kurdtz - the damned bridge will not stop rattling no matter what I do.
Yes, I've got fat strings, yes, the trem is locked, yes, I put graphite in all the slots, yes, I stretched the strings, etc etc etc.

At first I thought I had "tube rattle" in my amp, but it is the bridge of the guitar. Thing is with my last set of strings it wasnt rattling, now that I've put on fresh strings it's back to being a rattle-trap again. Same strings so wtf?

Would the standard mustang bridge be less prone to rattling?
-And can I just swap the standard bridge in place of the adjust-o-matic? or do I have to do some major trickery to get it to fit?

Also been considering the compton bridge, but I don' see how that could possibly be intonate properly.

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 5:16 pm

i still stand by the theory of "its part of the guitar, its how its supposed to sound"

if you don't like it, get a strat. mustangs sound like mustangs because they have mustang parts that rattle around.

if you go farting around trying to turn it into a les paul with a tuneomatic just get a les paul. they don't rattle either.

or you could just get rid of the shitty japan mustang bridge and put a vintage american one on there that has fatter saddles and doesn't rattle as much. japan made 65RI's also have bigger vintage correct saddles that dont rattle

Dillon · Post by **Dillon** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 5:19 pm

You can't swap; the post holes for the two bridges are completely different. And the Mustang bridge may actually rattle more. I don't have much experience with the adjust-o-matic, others on here will probably be able to say for sure, but I bet you could upgrade to any of the nicer, aftermarket import-spaced tune-o-matic style bridges. I would be very surprised if one of these wouldn't drop right in.

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 5:24 pm

on bottom is a 69RI, compstangRI, 90's MIJ, or any other run of the mill japan mustang bridge

on top is a vintage american or 65RI japan mustang bridge.

its those spaces there that make it rattle.

Cymbaline · Post by **Cymbaline** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 5:53 pm

Allright good info, Mustang bridges are rattle traps, sounds like compton is the way to go since it has NO MOVING PARTS
Still don't see how it could ever intonate properly though, I wish that dude that posted his compton bridge pics with his Teh Kurdtz was a member here so we could ask him for intonation results

Dillon · Post by **Dillon** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 6:54 pm

This guy has a KC 'stang with the TOM style bridge unless I'm completely reading his first post wrong

Compton bridge...I bet it intonates just fine on a typical 24 3/4" scale guitar. But as the intonation is (obviously) fixed, it sounds like a terrible idea for a 24" scale guitar. I'd bet money those are designed for a 24 3/4" scale guitar and thus the intonation would indeed be off on a Mustang. Maybe email them and find out? But fixed intonation in general is a terrible idea if you ask me.

Check these out, it's the only height adjustable TOM style bridge I know of. Though it may not work in a Mustang trem.

http://www.fullcontacthardware.com/fch- ... bridge.htm

cur · Post by **cur** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 7:10 pm

I may be mistaken, but didn't honeyiscool toss a wilkinson roller bridge on his KC mustang? I think he had to rig it a little.
some random pic from my google search of wilkinson RB

Cymbaline · Post by **Cymbaline** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 7:23 pm

OK I'll email this dude and ask him how the hell it can possibly intonate correctly, but does anyone have these stats handy about the COBAIN Mustang?

-Bridge base stud post spacing
-String spacing from E to E

avj · Post by **avj** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 6:03 am

Assuming the Wilkinson works, GFS have it for ~$25 USD here:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Wilkinson-B ... p_866.html

According to the Other Silly Guys, the radius on that is ~12" to match a Gibson.

http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/vie ... =8&t=67303

I have a GFS version of the Schaller roller bridge on a Classic Player Jaguar and CP Jazzmaster and love them. Both necks are a 9.5" radius, but the supposedly-twelve-inch radius on that bridge has not been a hindrance at all.

luciguci · Post by **luciguci** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 8:30 am

I put the Wilkinson on my Squier VM Jag and it works really well, and you can always shim the saddles if you want it to match the neck radius (I didn't find the need to since 9.5" and 12" radius necks are already so similar)

George · Post by **George** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 10:10 am

just to offer a counter opinion to daft, i had absolutely no success putting a wilko tune-o-matic on a mustang, even with a ridiculous amount of shimming into the realms of what would be deemed unsafe for a neck, the resulting action was way too high and had no range of adjustability. you may be better off looking at other tune o matic designs. in fact i'm surprised there isn't a shallow design out there by now.

the guitar in my avatar has a wilkinson roller, but that has a massively angled neck pocket to compensate for it.

the classic player jags actually compensate this by having both an angled neck pocket (spun out to be for increased sustain as well) AND a rout in the pickguard allowing the bridge to recess into it. good feature but not attainable on a mustang plate

othomas used the wilko bridge in his VM mustang but had to grind down the underside of it to take a few millimetres off the height of it. even then it still has a lot of shimming today.

my advice would be, if you're set on a TOM then be prepared to work for it. if you want a drop in solution look elsewhere. you can keep a mustang bridge still by adding some piping round the posts (ask cur about this), or use crappy squier plastic tuner bushings which are a perfect fit. my vm mustang has them in at the moment, and it was just a much easier compromise.

having said that i cut the top bit off each bushing to give lower action

George · Post by **George** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 10:21 am

cur wrote:I may be mistaken, but didn't honeyiscool toss a wilkinson roller bridge on his KC mustang? I think he had to rig it a little.
some random pic from my google search of wilkinson RB

fwiw, they may not be the original posts and cups that come with the wilkinson roller bridge. they're actually much wider and will sit on top of a standard bridge post rout without recessing.

actually maybe i'm wrong. if you look at the roughed edges on the pickguard it looks like he's routed it out larger to accommodate, which would not be very easy on a mustang plate. fair play to the guy for getting it to work like that, i'd like to know what his solution was. i can't see any TOM cup in the picture though so i have to wonder about the adjustability. also notice that the TOM is basically touching the guard anyway, so in my opinion he's probably not able to get the action as completely low as he'd like or get a very bare minimum compromise by shimming the hell out of his neck pocket

in short: it will be a total shoehorn to get it to work

George · Post by **George** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 10:32 am

sorry, 3rd post

i will also contradict what some people have said about the bridge post spacing. a mustang and some TOM bridges absolutely share the same post spacing (the wilko roller included), it's the other problems that manifest that are an issue.

paul_ · Post by **paul_** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 2:54 pm

One thing to be aware of is that a Mustang bridge and TOM offer completely different feel/sound/playability. There's probably nothing you could do to alter the overall vibe of a Fender offset more than that swap, really.

cur · Post by **cur** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 3:04 pm

trewth

George · Post by **George** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 3:23 pm

LET THAT BOY KURDTZ!

cur · Post by **cur** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 3:33 pm

George wrote:LET THAT BOY KURDTZ!

I am all for that, I was just trying to figure out what HIC did to make it works. So then I linked it because that's how I roll.

George · Post by **George** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 3:40 pm

im just memeing about anyway ("let that boy cook" being the source). i think actually it's gonna be a struggle to get a tune o matic in there without extra work, hence my ridiculously ocd posting

paul_ · Post by **paul_** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 3:51 pm

I did notice Cymbaline totally didn't flip out at you for that and edit all his posts down... maybe it was that guy...

cur · Post by **cur** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 3:52 pm

George wrote:im just memeing about anyway ("let that boy cook" being the source). i think actually it's gonna be a struggle to get a tune o matic in there without extra work, hence my ridiculously ocd posting

Yes george, I am aware of all the internet traditions.