Danelectro tremolo question

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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Gear »

Danelectro tremolo question

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Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 17 2013 02:47 PM I have a Danelectro U2 reissue guitar. I like the way it plays and sounds, but I'd really like to add a whammy bar to it. My question is: Is it possible to refit that guitar with a tremelo bridge? I have some experience building acoustic instuments, but not electric guitars. (yet!) Thanks in advance! ~Fred Last edited: Oct 18, 2013 11:08:30 Top
LHR Joined: Aug 23, 2006 Posts: 2123 The jungle	Posted on Oct 17 2013 03:33 PM You can put a Bigsby B5 or B50 on it. But you will have to reinforce the space inside with a block of wood first. Can be done. And there is an access hole near the spot where it will go. You might look into one of these, same basic idea as the Bigsby: http://www.guitarfetish.com/Xtrem-Top-Mount-Vibrato-Four-Finishes_c_376.html — SSIV Last edited: Oct 17, 2013 15:36:11 Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 17 2013 04:50 PM Thanks for the advice! I just placed a bid on a B5. Crossing my fingers! Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 18 2013 11:15 AM Ok, I just purchaced the B5 and it should be in my hands in a few days. Am I going to have to replace the original rosewood saddle and bridge on the Danelectro with something harder, or will the wooden saddle be OK with the B5 installed behind it? I'm worried about the wound strings acting like a saw blade on the saddle. I'm just trying to wrap my head around how this is all going to work. Last edited: Oct 18, 2013 11:30:51 Top
CrazyAces Joined: Jul 31, 2012 Posts: 4053 Nashville, TN.	Posted on Oct 18 2013 12:05 PM I mentioned this bridge in another thread but you could use one of these and notch out the back for the string lays http://www.cjguitartooling.com/bridges.html — http://www.facebook.com/CrazyAcesMusic http://www.youtube.com/user/crazyacesrock http://www.reverbnation.com/crazyacesmusic Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 18 2013 12:45 PM CrazyAces wrote: I mentioned this bridge in another thread but you could use one of these and notch out the back for the string lays http://www.cjguitartooling.com/bridges.html Once again, this site has impressed me. That's perfect! I'll be ordering that as soon as I get home tonight. Thank you so much, Jeff, for your professional advice. It is very, very helpful and I have to say that it's so cool to hear personally from someone who I really look up to. Thanks again! ~Fink Top
CrazyAces Joined: Jul 31, 2012 Posts: 4053 Nashville, TN.	Posted on Oct 18 2013 12:54 PM "it's so cool to hear personally from someone who I really look up to" You must be very short, LOL. Full disclosure: I have an affiliation with CJ Guitar Tooling BUT I only suggest the bridge because it works great and installs easily. I designed that bridge in 2007 as way to get better intonation and a different, more direct transfer sound out of Danos, Not to say I want to change the sound of Danos, I have many, stock and I love them. — http://www.facebook.com/CrazyAcesMusic http://www.youtube.com/user/crazyacesrock http://www.reverbnation.com/crazyacesmusic Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 18 2013 01:01 PM CrazyAces wrote: "it's so cool to hear personally from someone who I really look up to" You must be very short, LOL. Full disclosure: I have an affiliation with CJ Guitar Tooling BUT I only suggest the bridge because it works great and installs easily. I designed that bridge in 2007 as way to get better intonation and a different, more direct transfer sound out of Danos, Not to say I want to change the sound of Danos, I have many, stock and I love them. Ha! Another quick question. How do I know which set of saddles to order; the 5/16 or the 1/4 inch? Top
CrazyAces Joined: Jul 31, 2012 Posts: 4053 Nashville, TN.	Posted on Oct 18 2013 01:18 PM I find that the 1/4 inch work better on the Danos as they have more height adjustment with the low angle neck/neck pocket. Also be aware that a shim in the neck pocket is sometimes needed with this bridge but the B5 should help with saddle break angle and may not be necessary. Looking forward to your results! — http://www.facebook.com/CrazyAcesMusic http://www.youtube.com/user/crazyacesrock http://www.reverbnation.com/crazyacesmusic Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 18 2013 01:25 PM CrazyAces wrote: I find that the 1/4 inch work better on the Danos as they have more height adjustment with the low angle neck/neck pocket. Also be aware that a shim in the neck pocket is sometimes needed with this bridge but the B5 should help with saddle break angle and may not be necessary. Looking forward to your results! Perfect. Thanks for the tip! Top
LeeVanCleef Joined: Oct 05, 2011 Posts: 744 France	Posted on Oct 20 2013 09:02 AM These are from a French guitar forum: image image image image image image image Hope these help. There's not much information, but the guy said he had to relocate the upper pot to be able to fit the Bigsby. Also, he doesn't explicitly mention it, but I'm pretty sure he had to add a wood block under the Bigsby, as LHR described. Good luck with your mod! A Dano with a vibrato must be awesome, sadly few models besides the U2/'56 seem to have enough space behind the bridge to accommodate one. — Old punks never die... They just become surf rockers. Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 21 2013 06:04 AM Holy Cow, that's a huge help! Thank you very much, LeeVanCleef! Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 25 2013 11:48 AM CrazyAces wrote: "it's so cool to hear personally from someone who I really look up to" You must be very short, LOL. Full disclosure: I have an affiliation with CJ Guitar Tooling BUT I only suggest the bridge because it works great and installs easily. I designed that bridge in 2007 as way to get better intonation and a different, more direct transfer sound out of Danos, Not to say I want to change the sound of Danos, I have many, stock and I love them. Hey, Jeff. I recieved that bridge you recommended yesterday and it looks very nice. Thanks for the advice! Now I'm just waiting for the tremolo to arrive so I can go to work on the modification. Last edited: Oct 25, 2013 21:37:36 Top
CrazyAces Joined: Jul 31, 2012 Posts: 4053 Nashville, TN.	Posted on Oct 25 2013 06:08 PM Finkdaddy, Great! Please keep me/us posted on this project. I just (this afternoon) had the pleasure of acquainting a young customer of mine with the Dano/Silvertones, ins and outs, mods, stock, sounds....fun to share some of this info and experience. — http://www.facebook.com/CrazyAcesMusic http://www.youtube.com/user/crazyacesrock http://www.reverbnation.com/crazyacesmusic Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 29 2013 04:44 PM CrazyAces wrote: Finkdaddy, Great! Please keep me/us posted on this project. I just (this afternoon) had the pleasure of acquainting a young customer of mine with the Dano/Silvertones, ins and outs, mods, stock, sounds....fun to share some of this info and experience. Ok, I've recieved both the new bridge and the new tremolo and I see a potential problem. The posts on the tremolo are about 6mm narrower than the string spacing at the bridge. I'm going to widen the holes on the back of the bridge as much as I can get away with, but I can't take too much off because I can't alter the holes where the saddles attach. But I'm still worried that both E strings may still touch the bridge behind the saddle. I don't think that will be an problem since the contact is happening behind the saddle. Also, I'll make sure the contact point is smooth and polished like glass and is well lubricated. Does what I just said make sense, or am I thinking it all wrong? ~Fink Top
Dane_Brammage Joined: Jun 14, 2006 Posts: 203	Posted on Oct 29 2013 06:36 PM I would worry about the strings breaking if they rub between the saddle and Bigsby. Can you raise the saddles enough to allow the strings to clear the back rail of the bridge? You would have to shim the neck joint to compensate, but to me that would be a better compromise. Top
CrazyAces Joined: Jul 31, 2012 Posts: 4053 Nashville, TN.	Posted on Oct 29 2013 07:31 PM Fink, You won't be able to use the original string holes in the CJ bridge. You will have to cut notches into the top, back edge of the bridge where each string's path is. Does that make sense? If not I'll see if I can find a picture somewhere. Because the bridge is aluminum it should be fairly easy to do with a sharp file or dremel tool. — http://www.facebook.com/CrazyAcesMusic http://www.youtube.com/user/crazyacesrock http://www.reverbnation.com/crazyacesmusic Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 30 2013 11:39 AM I knew I'd have to alter the CJ bridge, that's not really a problem. The issue I'm seeing is that the posts on the tremolo where the strings attach are 6mm narrower than the existing holes on the CJ bridge. So it's not just vertically that the holes will have to be altered, it's horizontally too. I'm worried that the outside strings will come too close to the holes where the saddles attach to the bridge, if you see what I mean. Hopefully, like Dane and you said, I can shim the neck and minimize the amount of change to the CJ bridge. This weekend I'm going to try putting this all together, so I'll show some pics then. Thanks for all the advice guys! ~F Top
CrazyAces Joined: Jul 31, 2012 Posts: 4053 Nashville, TN.	Posted on Oct 30 2013 01:19 PM Fink, I was talking about something like this. FWIW almost all bigsby style tailpieces have narrower spacing than the bridges that are used with them. — http://www.facebook.com/CrazyAcesMusic http://www.youtube.com/user/crazyacesrock http://www.reverbnation.com/crazyacesmusic Top
Finkdaddy Joined: Oct 04, 2013 Posts: 115 Waterford, WI	Posted on Oct 30 2013 01:53 PM Oh, man. That helps a ton. Thanks again for the help! I'll keep everyone updated on how it goes. Top

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