Blacktop Jazzmaster bridge ideas?

omari · Post by **omari** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 4:03 pm

i just bought a fully loaded Blacktop Jazzmaster body off of Ebay. i'm going to take the neck off of a Squier Strat i never play and probably change out the bridge humbucker to a GFS dream 90. but, i haven't owned an offset guitar in 15 years and would like some advice for a replacement bridge that i can drop in with out any body mods. are the vintage jazz/jag/mustang bridges the same specs as the modern imports?

i don't use the tremolo very much, i just want something that will keep the strings in place when strumming hard. the cheaper the better.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/360792775315?_t ... EBIDX%3AIT

George · Post by **George** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 4:17 pm

looks like it has traditional bridge routs. yes, as far as i know, vintage and modern mustang/jazzy bridges fit each other fine

you can either:

1. mastery bridge
2. staytrem bridge
3. warmoth modified bridge (which this looks sort of like already)
4. lock the bridge in place using some metal piping (cur did a thread on this somewhere)
5. leave as is

anti-option: shim the neck for a tune-o-matic. this is somewhat of a daft option in my opinion, but others seem to have had some success with it.

i can't comment on this particular bridge but i wouldn't be too afraid of strumming heavily on these styles of bridges, and i would give it a shot as is. ironically, with the trem set up right i've found the bridge is way less likely to become problematic, as a quick wobble of the trem will right it back to the middle of it's cups. this style of trem is also the most robust and maintainable with frequent use, so yeah, i'd try setting it up as is and see how you get on (definitely the cheapest option!)

if the strings start to pop, you can try heavier strings, or shim the neck to increase the bridge's break angle

theshadowofseattle · Post by **theshadowofseattle** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 4:48 pm

So you're worried about string slippage? Just replace the saddles. There's no need to replace the entire bridge.

I know this because I replaced the entire bridge and regret it.

Also, you haven't set the thing up yet. Play it and see how you like it first.

omari · Post by **omari** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 4:53 pm

i had a re-issue jazzmaster in the late 90's and always had problems with the trem/bridge, but i know a lot more about guitars now. i'm psyched to have another one.

George · Post by **George** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 4:55 pm

i had trouble with that kind of bridge on my 90s jaguar too. the saddles on that blacktop look like the strings will be much better seated than the 90s one anyway. i'd see how you get on with it before spending more money

Dillon · Post by **Dillon** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 5:43 pm

Blacktop bridge is pretty much the same (if not the exact same) as the Squier VM bridge. It's crap if you actually use the trem, especially if you use lighter gauge strings, but it will hold the strings in place fine if it's set up right and you don't use the trem much. If you end up replacing it, cheapest option would probably be to get a Japanese Mustang bridge second hand, and shim the outside two saddles so that it's closer to the correct radius. Or you could buy two sets of saddles and install the middle saddles on the outside...I've been thinking of trying that.

George · Post by **George** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 5:45 pm

ooh, i didn't realise it has the squier vm bridge. those things suck. i would suggest something else then lol

Dillon · Post by **Dillon** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 6:44 pm

I take it back, I was confused because my VM project has a blacktop bridge, not the VM bridge. So my previous post was actually more relevant to this thread than I thought

They're not the same, but still crap. The saddles are too small so they move around side to side, tolerances on the height adjustment screws are loose, etc. All the same problems as the VM bridges and CIJ / MIJ Jaguar bridges.

theshadowofseattle · Post by **theshadowofseattle** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 7:00 pm

JUST SWAP THE SADDLES FOR TUSQ

omari · Post by **omari** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 8:10 pm

I should get it this week and I'll try it out as is, but new saddles are looking like the best option so far.

Thanks!

George · Post by **George** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 8:13 pm

theshadowofseattle wrote:JUST SWAP THE SADDLES FOR TUSQ

what does tusq sound like compared to steel or w/e?

Dillon · Post by **Dillon** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 8:59 pm

Never tried TUSQ saddles but TUSQ nuts (lol) are nice. Brighter than plastic, increased the sustain on the guitars I've put them on. Basically the theory is that bone (or synthetic bone like TUSQ) transfers vibration better than plastic or metal, that's why a lot of archtops and acoustics use bone. But on something like a Jaguar / JM, where the saddles are on top of a steel plate that's set on top of two small screws, I doubt it matters much at all. Anyway I've thought about getting some TUSQ Mustang saddles, but they don't look much better than the blacktop saddles. All pictures I've seen show that they're smaller than real Mustang saddles, with gaps in between. Oh hey look OSG is actually useful sometimes

http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/vie ... php?t=8426

http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/vie ... =8&t=62602

omari · Post by **omari** » Mon Feb 10, 2014 11:43 pm

now i'm leaning towards the staytrem just so i don't have to fuss with the little screws on the individual saddles.

theshadowofseattle · Post by **theshadowofseattle** » Tue Feb 11, 2014 2:31 pm

George wrote:
theshadowofseattle wrote:JUST SWAP THE SADDLES FOR TUSQ
what does tusq sound like compared to steel or w/e?

There are Tusq saddles on the Prisonstang when I got it, so I can't really say what difference they make as in before-and-after. The guitar sounds great, so I can't imagine they're hurting anything. They're very adjustable, though, which is what dude seems to be after.

stilwel · Post by **stilwel** » Tue Mar 18, 2014 1:35 am

omari wrote:now i'm leaning towards the staytrem just so i don't have to fuss with the little screws on the individual saddles.

Hey, not sure what you ended up doing, but I highly recommend the Staytrem bridge for the BT JM.
Feels and sounds great!

Here's mine: