Slack in Floyd Rose arm

[Pointy]

How much slack is it normal to have in a FR tremolo arm? My new RR24 has the chinese OFR, which works just fine, but there is quite a lot of slack in the arm compared to the cheapo licenced FR on my 10-year old RG. I don't like the resulting clicking, and it is also harder to control for that reason, although i'll get used to it i guess.

Is this the way all OFRs are or am i doing something wrong? It looks like a design issue to me because the trem arm is slotted in and not screwed as in the Ibanez version. But then this means that i can use a soft shim of some sort (piece of cloth?) to fix the issue completely. I'd like to hear what regular Floyd users have to say, as this is my first OFR.

[Nazgul]

i can use a soft shim of some sort (piece of cloth?) to fix the issue completely.

Some teflon (plumbers) tape should do the trick.

[ozzuk1]

Apparently these new koreanFRT-1000/chinese(ping) OFR's dont have the same close tolerance an original ofr or schaller FR does, apprently the telfon tape works well as it helps the arm thread grip onto the bridge better, it's a cheap fix.

A few guys have just bought a new Schaller arm unit and replaced it, i've had two schaller FR's for a few years and both arms are still good...

[ulijdavid]

I got a bunch of Original Floyd Rose Trems in and they are pretty sloppy also. Makes it extremely difficult to do any controlled tremolo vibrato. I never remember having this kind of slop in the arms. This problem isn't just associated with the Korean models. Hopefully Floyd/Schaller fix this problem.

[Grandturk]

This problem isn't just associated with the Korean models. Hopefully Floyd/Schaller fix this problem.

That's right. The arm on the Floyd on my ProMod was perfect, and a recent arm on a German Floyd was wobbly and I had to replace it. Its a crap-shoot.

[Axewielder]

I buy these by the truckload! +1 to the crapshoot comment.

[Grandturk]

I buy these by the truckload! +1 to the crapshoot comment.

How is the quality on Floyd's old-style screw in bars? I don't mean the old ones, I mean the new ones that are made like the old ones. I was thinking about going with one of those - which I haven't had since 93 or so.

[Axewielder]

How is the quality on Floyd's old-style screw in bars? I don't mean the old ones, I mean the new ones that are made like the old ones. I was thinking about going with one of those - which I haven't had since 93 or so.

This is the first I've heard of this!

[Grandturk]

ORLLY?

http://www.prorockgear.com/tremarmscrew-instyle.aspx

[donbarzini]

I got a bunch of Original Floyd Rose Trems in and they are pretty sloppy also. Makes it extremely difficult to do any controlled tremolo vibrato. I never remember having this kind of slop in the arms. This problem isn't just associated with the Korean models. Hopefully Floyd/Schaller fix this problem.

Just installed a brand new chrome OFR last night. SLOP again, RRRRRR. I moved one of my chrome arms over that never had slop and it works perfectly on the new bridge, didn't even have to try a different bushing. This leads me to believe it's something getting f'd up in the threads of the actual arm itself during production. So plumbers tape will really help? I'm sick of ordering replacement arms just to get the same problem in return. I used to think the chrome ones didn't have this problem but this is not true now, my black one was just as bad and I tried four replacement arms and bushings.

[Grandturk]

Just installed a brand new chrome OFR last night. SLOP again, RRRRRR. I moved one of my chrome arms over that never had slop and it works perfectly on the new bridge, didn't even have to try a different bushing. This leads me to believe it's something getting f'd up in the threads of the actual arm itself during production. So plumbers tape will really help? I'm sick of ordering replacement arms just to get the same problem in return. I used to think the chrome ones didn't have this problem but this is not true now, my black one was just as bad and I tried four replacement arms and bushings.

Like what threads are you talking about? Is this a screw-in arm? If it is, and its not a Made in Germany old-style screw in arm - all bets are off, IMO. New Floyd Roses - at least the MIG and the MIK ones - all come with collared arms, not screw in arms.

Or are you referring to the threads on the collar?

[Pointy]

Ok, i am a bit surprised by these comments. If the same problem appears in german units too (supposed to be the high-end ones) it means their quality control has really dropped their standards. No matter where it is made, the Floyd Rose tremolo is supposed to be a professional piece of equipment. An entry-level korean-made licenced copy (the one on my Ibanez) shouldn't feel better... if and when i decide to replace it with a Schaller one (i was thinking of it), i'll be sure to check the unit i'll buy carefully.

FWIW, tuning on the RR24 is of course rock-solid no matter what. If i grab my Ibanez from the tremolo arm and whack it up and down (or improv a solo specifically to annoy the neighbours ) it will go slightly out of tune after a while - but then it is a single-locking unit!

For now i'll improve it roadie-style and keep playing, i've seen worse and i know that even professional equipment, in all fields, can be hit-and-miss if you don't pay a small fortune for it.


PS: since it was mentioned, the threads on the collar of my trem arm are fine

[Axewielder]

ORLLY?

http://www.prorockgear.com/tremarmscrew-instyle.aspx

Interesting. My pink strat has the old style one, and that form factor is kind of growing on me a bit. It's a pain to have to track down a wrench to get the arm on or off, but they are nice and tight feeling.

[Grandturk]

I ditched the screw in type because I could never get the arm unscrewed but I just read somewhere that you can tighten the bushings part to the trem baseplate so that it doesn't rotate and you can unsrew the arm without a wrench... I might need to get one to screw with.

[donbarzini]

Like what threads are you talking about? Is this a screw-in arm? If it is, and its not a Made in Germany old-style screw in arm - all bets are off, IMO. New Floyd Roses - at least the MIG and the MIK ones - all come with collared arms, not screw in arms.

Or are you referring to the threads on the collar?

Yes, the newer ones, the threads in the collar. I have a brand new OFR that i just installed last night and a 6 month old OFR bought from the same place, all retail OFR Floyd Retail packaging box. The arm bought from 6 months ago works perfectly on the brand new OFR with the same bushing. So I believe it's all in the threads on the collar of the arm.