Bigsby tremolo with telecaster

Help i need somebody,

I hope someone could help with some questions... i've read a few posts from another forums and it has helped but i still have doubts...

1. i have a 3 year old USA fender tele deluxe which constantly goes out of tune and breaks strings. i play hard but not hard enough to break 3-4 strings in one night. i like putting on .010-.046 sized strings. (i don't know if this would be a factor, would it?) what about Schaller locking tuners? what about changing to a schaller rolling nut? changing to a tune-o-matic or shaller bridge? would i gain the possibility of more / less perfect tuning capabilities and non-breakage?

2. my other question reguards to the installation of the bigsby tremolo, b-16 (that's the one i think that's made to fit the tele), and to resolve the bigsby's defective detuning problem...???

i was talking to a guy the other day and he told me: "I had a Bigsby installed on an SG that I had aTune-o-matic bridge installed on that originally had a Bigsby on it that wouldn't stay in tune at all. The installer said it's all in carving the nut out enough to let the strings move freely."

What do you think about this comment? and what about the combination of changing to Schaller locking tuners, a schaller rolling nut,and a tune-o-matic or schaller bridge with the bigsby? would i run into any problems. do you think it would still go out of tune??? if so what would be the best combination or other option???

thank you very much for your time,
eric

PS is there a schaller rolling bridge made for telecasters so that i could use the same drilled holes? and also would anyone happen to know someone who could do this in LA, cali. or in barcelona, spain?

thanks again.

Here's what StewMac has in the way of bridges. Their Telecaster stuff is not designed for use with a trem arm, so you're definitely looking at some kind of conversion. I think Graphtech nut and bridge saddles are your most cost efficient approach, though there would be some reduction in that piercing Tele twang.

Alternately, you could try a roller bridge and a locking nut. You wouldn't need to change the tuners to locking types, because the strings would be locked at the nut. For the bridge, you would need a Tune-o-matic style, with the string spacing adjusted to match the Tele.

Any of these approaches is going to require the services of a skilled tech. Buying the right parts is important, but the installation and setup are what decides whether it works or not.

Hey RC, where are the strings breaking? Are they breaking at the bridge? At the tuning post? Either way you might want to take a look to see if there is any burr or sharp angle that may be sawing the string in two as you play, you may just need to de-burr/ smooth things out a little, breaking 3-4 strings a night tells me their has to be something mechanically wrong, especially if it is the same strings breaking in the same place. As far as Bigsby's go, they make a Bigsby for telecasters, it replaces the stock tele bridge and the bridge pick-up mounts in it, it is basically a self-contained, all in one unit, a tun-o-matic bridge will not work on teles or strats unless the neck to body angle is changed, the tun-o-matic is not designed to work with a neck mounted parallel to the body, if you are going to go with the Bigsby, a good nut and some staggered height locking tuners will help solve alot of problems you would probably run into on that end of things.............

Originally posted by pstring
... a tun-o-matic bridge will not work on teles or strats unless the neck to body angle is changed, the tun-o-matic is not designed to work with a neck mounted parallel to the body...

Oooops! :o I'm so sorry! My bad.

In my experience if you put a Bigsby on a guitar you will never keep it in tune.

I was thinking about getting a Bigsby Tremolo for either my Tele or LP, or both. I've tried a few in guitar stores and find they stay in great tune. Are they no good? Did I just get lucky? Are there more bad than good ones?

I think a Bigsby is like a lot of other "trem" systems in that they work great when new and fresh out of the box and then start to exhibit problems as time goes on due to mechanical wear.

The only system I've used that worked over the long haul has been a Floyd but I got so tired of all the work involved with simple sting changes.

I have Parker NiteFly guitars and even they start to go down hill over time such that you just don't feel like using the wang bar ....now they're all locked down to work as hardtails.

I wouldn't say a Bigsby is a "bad" unit but I have seen more than a few guys use them during a song and after a couple of excessive bends their guitars were in Mystery Tuning so they go from playing a pop tune to an avant garde exploration of the Dipsolydian mode...much to the chagrin of the rest of the band. ;)

The one system that I have not tried that I suspect would be good is the Steinberger.

http://kronosonic.com

Wouldn't proper adjustment and care make sure the tremolo keeps working properly. Greg Keelor, from Blue Rodeo, uses a Bigsby on alot of his guitars and if you haven't, then you should see this guy use that bar, sometimes it looks like he's gonna rip it off.

No, I haven't seen him, but I recently watched Buddy Guy at the Calgary Blues Festival. He broke a string on nearly every song. He passed his axe to a tech, who gave him a freshly-strung guitar for the next song. This got to be routine fairly quickly, leaving me to conclude:

• Strings don't break, or go out of tune easily, unless a guitar is poorly set up.
  


• If something like that happens frequently to a player who's been performing for more than a month, it's because he wants it to.
  


• If you wanna do extreme things with any kind of whammy bar, you'd better have your axe(s) set up and maintained by someone who knows what they're doing.
  

Bottom line: If you really want to put a Bigsby on your Tele, then that's what you're gonna do. Just be aware that there's a price to pay in terms of tuning stability, and you're gonna need two guitars and a backstage tech, unless you're prepared to spend some time tuning between songs.

And your line of patter has to be something wonderful to pull that off without pissing off an audience!

That's true, if you had a great tech in your corner they could keep any guitar in tune -- at least from one song to another. It seems like it would be an easy thing to do yourself, and some guys can, but after reading a lot of articles about professional techs and what they go through to keep a guitar in world-class operating form then you realize there's a whole art form to it that just escapes the average Joes like us.

If a Bigsby was a really great unit then we'd see them on lots of guitars but that's not the case at all. But put one on and find out for yourself. In fact, maybe they're a lot better than I remember them being or maybe they're making them better than they used to. I'd be interested in hearing your experiences with it.

Originally posted by Ego
...then you realize there's a whole art form to it that just escapes the average Joes like us...

From what I've heard of your playing, you're way beyond "average Joe" status! And you're right to point out that the Bigsby trems I remember from 'way back' may not be a fair representation of what's on the market these days.

Mea Culpa. Me a maxima old fella!

Thanks for the compliment but I struggle like everybody else...just a lot faster ;) If you haven't checked out my more recent and creepy sounding stuff with Savior Onasis you might give it a spin. All my mortality is in the open on that stuff.

Yeah, who knows, there may be a new and improved Bigsby out there to solve all our problems! Heh.

http://kronosonic.com

I've had my 68 Telecaster I bought new in 68 and it came with the bigbsy on it. I don't have any tuning problems with it at all. Of course I don't dive bomb with it, I play a lot of Chet Atkins and Merle Travis style guitar. Its always worked for me and I don't break strings either. I also have a 84 bowling ball strat that has the trem on it and it also works fine and stays in tune. I also have a 92 G&L ASAT that has the fender trem on it and it stays in tune also. If you don't beat the guitar to death and use it the right way, go for it. You'll like it for sure. My Telecaster came with the bridge they used on the Jagwire and mustang guitars I believe, but you don't need anything special, no locking turner and special nut or what ever. Get the bigbsy kit made for it you'll be smiling, and no, you don't need 2 guitars at the job. With that said, I don't dive bomb or play that style of guitar. The other guys could be telling you right about the tuning problems, I don't know. I know it works for me.

Originally Posted by: flakey87.... Get the bigbsy kit made for it you'll be smiling, and no, you don't need 2 guitars at the job. With that said, I don't dive bomb or play that style of guitar. The other guys could be telling you right about the tuning problems, I don't know. I know it works for me.

Welcome to the forum! It's good to see some of these old threads coming back to the surface for another go-round. :)

The Bigsby design pre-dates any of the wild stuff that players like EVH popularized. Obviously, if you use it within the limits of it's original intentions, you're less likely to get into trouble with it.

Yes, the Bigbsy has been around a long time. I believe Merle Travis had one of the first ones, that would have been back in the late 40's early 50's era. They really weren't made for dive bomb type playing. More along the lines of Chet Atkins and Merle Travis style of playing. I wouldn't have a guitar without some sort of trem on it. Thats how I grew up playing, with a thumb pick and fingers. Hope I've been of some help, and thanks for the hello.