RR3 serial... is it good

[Elbowhite]

I'm gonna buy very soon a RR3 with this serial number : 9701969
Can anyone please tell me is this line good and what can I aspect from it. I haven't played it yet but it's new and has a Eerie dess swirl graphic on it.
Is it made in Japan?
Thx

[Sunbane]

Re: RR3 serial... is it good

Yes, it's made in Japan, so build quality should be good. There are two things to be aware of:

1) The stock pickups aren't all that great. You may want to replace at least the bridge pickup to get a sharper sound.

2) The bridge is the JT580LP - licensed Floyd knockoff. While decent, it has some inherent problems: It's made of cheap metal, so it will wear quicker than a real Floyd. If you are buying the guitar used, there's a risk the bridge is well worn already. Also, because of this, the screws are easilly stripped, so don't overtighten them! Also, don't adjust the trem posts while the guitar is strung up - I ruined the knife edges on mine that way. Some players have also reported that the screws for the locking nut may snap with too much force applied. Next, many have testified that the trem arm collar tends to work itself loose during play. My trem arm was the opposite: It would sit so tightly that you'd get warble effects when you tried to move it out of the way (but I suspect my trem arm wasn't original). On the good side: It will stay in tune as long as it's in good condition. It will work as advertised until you either break it or it wears out (depending on how big a cat you are with whammy acrobatics).

As you probably can tell, I'm not a fan of this trem. In addition to the points above; On mine there was some play in the saddles (they would wiggle a bit). I noticed an improvement in my alternate picking after I replaced this bridge with a Schaller Floyd. The real difference may be mostly psychological, but overall the Schallers and the OFRs are heads and shoulders above the JT580POS. Next, the angle of the saddles (where the strings go in), made subtle palm muting difficult. I would rather play a guitar with a vintage, non-locking trem than the JT580LP, but that's my personal stance.

Having said all that, I must mention that I've played other Floyd copies that were far worse. As long as it stays in tune and you can live with its other shortcomings, it will be a decent trem.

[Sunbane]

Re: RR3 serial... is it good

A Schaller Floyd will fit without problems (it actually leaves plenty of room to spare in the back), and an OFR should too. The route in the guitar is not perfect for any of these two - you'll probably have little "gaps" in the back where the JT580LP has a slant, while the OFR/Schaller don't. Newc once mentioned that the width of the route was a little tight in one of his guitars when he transplanted in an OFR, but that taking off a little of the clearcoat inside the route was enough to make the trem go clear.

Replacing the bushings in the guitar body is trickier business, so it would probably be for the best to let a pro do it. I did it myself with pliers and a hammer - and was promptly called an idiot and a lucky b**tard for not screwing up my guitar. [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[Elbowhite]

Re: RR3 serial... is it good

thx for thr reply
for the pickups... don't worry, I allready have two EMGs at me (81 and 85 [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] So there won't be any problem with the pups. THey will be imidiately replaced.
for the tremolo... I'll sure be buying a new one. I'll buy probably a Original Floyd rose.
BUt I'll buy it in the next 4-5 months.
So I'll take care of that problem two.

The guitar is new, never played... As soon as I replace those two things above I'll sure have one heck of a guitar [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

Just one question: What tremolo to use that goes with no problems in the guitar?
Thx

[Newc]

Re: RR3 serial... is it good

Yeah you can rip the JT580LP pivots and inserts out with a pair of pliers, but you gotta be careful when putting in the OFR inserts - they're a teenie bit bigger and may split the wood if they get crooked. Rub them over a bar of soap and that may help them to go in easier. I drove mine in with a hammer, missed and hit the pickup ring and cracked the clearcoat [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

But hey, I got that bastard in the hole [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

Newc