Intonation help?

[zeegler]

zeegler, i'm almost sure that my Schaller made "Floyd Rose II" base plate does NOT have brass fine tuners. They are still perfectly shiny black after 2 years of use and feels like non-brass. Just a little piece of info to add to the confusion

Great! As usual, just when it seems we have something figured out!

Is your Floyd II one of the non-locking ones with the string-thru-the-locking-screw thing? Just wondering, because the Floyd II on my Lado is exactly like the Schaller on my Rhoads, and the spare one I have sitting around. All 3 of them have the brass fine tuners. One has the Jackson logo, one has the Schaller logo, and the other one is a Floyd Rose II.

I hate the non-brass fine tuners. They feel gritty and stiff, whereas the brass ones are smooth and turn very easily.

[jackson1]

Not entirely sure what you mean, so here's a pic of it:

[memphiskat]

You see how your fine tuners on the new one are completely black? That tells me right there, that it is not a Schaller made trem. Schaller only ever used brass fine tuners, and the paint started to wear off immediately. I have a couple of Schallers in super minty condition, but you can still see the brass showing through. It does appear that the trem is sitting to far forward in the route. You could try switching the inserts for a start. I'll bet they're not easy to get out though.

What was wrong with the old baseplate by the way?

While the tops of the fine tuners don't have any paint worn off, which is wierd, whats wierder is where the paint has worn on the screws threads, they do appear to be brass (unless they're copper over steal, but why would you that to a thread).

The original base plate, which started this who mess, had some stripped intonation holes.

karl

[memphiskat]

Hmm....I'm wondering if it's the blade edges on the new plate. Could be that the contact points are slightly farther back, thus sliding everything FORWARD, THUS the need to slide those saddles back, so much.

Just wanted to say you were correct. This appears to be exactly what is happening
karl

[toejam]

An OFR will fit, but the locking screws in the back will probably stick out too far to use the trem...

Nah, you can still use the trem, you just won't be able to pull up too far on it without hitting the body.

[Fretfrenzy]

Save your sanity! Get yourself a new Schaller unit!

[memphiskat]

Save your sanity! Get yourself a new Schaller unit!

I think you're right. I am going to simply get a new trem and sell what I have (including both base plates) in the classifieds (of course with full disclosure of the problems). See if someone else wants to mess with it or use the parts.

I did some searching and the best deals I could find are at Warmouth. They have a Schaller (black) for $165 and a OFR (black) for $180.
Anyone know of a better price? What nut do I get R3 or R4.

I assume I don't have to change the nut, is that right?

What about the posts, keep em or change em?

BTW thanks for all the help! I ask a lot of questions I know, but I try to answer um when I can

Karl

[Fretfrenzy]

Check your nut and locks for excessive wear and if they still function properly, keep them. If not, look on the bottom of the nut for the cast number. (R2 , R3, etc)

Check to see if there is any play with the floyd screws when they are inserted into the posts. ( see if you can moved them back and forth)
If the posts are solid and the threads show no wear and the floyd screws go in smoothly, no need to change them. One more thing before I forget, check the floyd screws where the knife edges make contact. Make sure the surface is perfectly smooth, if not replace those floyd screws.

[fett]

Check E-Bay. The last 2 Charvel Schaller Floyds I bought were like $55 a pop. The trick is to see it posted as a Charvel Trem with a not to good picture. Look real close and you might see the little square that says "Made in Germany by Schaller" just above the trem arm hole. It's usually real blurry and doesn't show well in the photos. Works for me.