Uneven Floyd Rose Radius fix

[Acapulco Gold]

I bought a Jackson a few months ago but was slowly getting familiar with it before checking the setup. I have found that my A string is about .5mm lower than the E or D and the B is similarly below the E and G. I have checked and there don't seem to be any shims under the saddles. Also some of the saddles sit higher, as if the fine tuner is out, but it's not, I keep the fine tuners at the same height but some of the saddles seems to be sitting at an angle so higher than others.

I read about buying shims, is there anything else that could raise or lower a saddle so much? Thank you

[toejam]

There are three different saddle heights. They should go in an arch with the two Es being the lowest, A and B higher, and D and G highest. Someone probably got them mixed up and didn't put them on right. They should also be numbered on the bottom of them for each corresponding set.

[diablomozart]

There are three different saddle heights. They should go in an arch with the two Es being the lowest, A and B higher, and D and G highest. Someone probably got them mixed up and didn't put them on right. They should also be numbered on the bottom of them for each corresponding set.

wha toejem said...there's a reason i prefer disassembling the edge tremolo...all the saddles are the same and the baseplate is shelved to match the radius of the neck so i can't screw it up...d.m.

[EntrailsOfU]

wha toejem said...there's a reason i prefer disassembling the edge tremolo...all the saddles are the same and the baseplate is shelved to match the radius of the neck so i can't screw it up...d.m.

The same can be said about the JT-6! While not the best materials, these trems did have some great design choices. I suppose the edge is similar in great design, poor materials.

[diablomozart]

The same can be said about the JT-6! While not the best materials, these trems did have some great design choices. I suppose the edge is similar in great design, poor materials.

i wouldn't say that, esp about the edge...i have a number of late 80's 500 series guitars with the original trem that came on them then and they hold up fine...i also have a jt6 on a charvel spectrum that still works well too...guess it depends on how well they were taken care of...d.m.

[Number Of The Priest]

The Ibanez Edge is made by Gotoh so there's the comfort of knowing the unit has excellent craftsmanship. The one thing I would change about it would be to make the entire baseplate out of solid steel. Because the Edge has steel knife edge inserts, it's implied that the rest of the baseplate is zinc alloy, very similar to the construction of the "Schaller Tremolo" (and Jackson JT590).

At least Gotoh's GE1996T trem is solid steel and the knife edges are part of the baseplate.

[schizotronic]

There are three different saddle heights. They should go in an arch with the two Es being the lowest, A and B higher, and D and G highest. Someone probably got them mixed up and didn't put them on right. They should also be numbered on the bottom of them for each corresponding set.

That's it. Disassemble and check carefully. If you cannot find the letters or numbers distinguishing the "set" of every two saddles, put them on a dead flat surface and carefully look at them; it's easy, sometimes it's easier to see. Assemble them back, so they form an arch, hopefully matching the radius of the fingerboard. Intonate and you're done. HOWEVER, you can shim some of them, typically G and D to get a better radius. You can even sand flat the higher ones, and measure after 3 - 4 minutes of sanding. I DO NOT RECOMMEND DOING THAT! In the guitars that I know they we'll be with me forever, I have done that. I had to do that. I DO NOT RECOMMEND unless you're keeping the guitar and if you know what you're doing!! After that, you can use nail polish, lacquer or any other finish coat that adheres well to the sanded metal in order to protect it.
Best thing is to shim. You can use foil; a clean soda can, cut carefully with scissors provide a good shim. EVEN wood veneer can do the trick, specially if your guitar is too trebly to your ears. I've done that to some guitars by their owners request. I ALSO do not recommend, but I need to say: it worked very well (tone-wise) and you can reach the thickness you want by sanding the wood. Of course, to ANY of these repairs, you'll need to install the saddle, put all the screws back, retune and test. Or measure. Or both. It's time consuming and expect some string breakage during the tedious process. If I was not living in Brazil I would perform this setup for you, for free.

[EntrailsOfU]

The Ibanez Edge is made by Gotoh so there's the comfort of knowing the unit has excellent craftsmanship. The one thing I would change about it would be to make the entire baseplate out of solid steel. Because the Edge has steel knife edge inserts, it's implied that the rest of the baseplate is zinc alloy, very similar to the construction of the "Schaller Tremolo" (and Jackson JT590).

At least Gotoh's GE1996T trem is solid steel and the knife edges are part of the baseplate.

This was my concern with the Edge. I have 3 JT-6's that I would put up against any other trem as far as tuning stability and usability goes, but they were well taken care of. I've even had Floyd Rose Specials hold tune similarly. But any trem with a base plate of anything other than steel is inferior (not unusable) in my opinion. Zinc is too soft to be something that will last like steel.