setting up a JT-6

[Floating Seeds]

hi ho

I have never setup a floyd before. I got this Charvel model 3 I am setting it up with new strings. I have the manual online to read but I'm confused about something. It only seems to go down. How do I set it up so the trem can go up as well as down? There are the big bolts that hold it one but.. it doesn't seem that loosening the claws will let it go up either. Can it go up? I don't know so let me know the manual doesn't say anything about this.

I mean up as in pull up you know opposite a dive bomb in case you wonder what i mean by up, that's what I mean think dive bomb but going up like on a strat you can loosen the claws to it floats a bit.

[Floating Seeds]

ok never mind the claws do make it float whoever had it last had it all the way down but I see why they did it this bridge kinda sucks. When I bend a string other strings go out of tune. I put new strings and tuning it was a real trip now I got to intonate it but I'll wait a while for the strings to really stretch I guess.

[charvel750]

The fact that other strings go out of tune when you bend one string is going to happen on any floating tremolo. It's not an inherent flaw of the JT-6. You can set the trem up to be blocked so that it can only depress and that will solve the issue. But obviously you want to have the ability to pull up, so it will have to float.

[toejam]

but I'll wait a while for the strings to really stretch I guess.

You need to stretch your strings out before you lock the nut. When you put new strings on, tune up to pitch, bend the strings, pull them up off the board, retune to pitch, repeat the stretching and tuning process until the strings don't go out of tune, then lock the nut.
And it's a floating trem, so when bending, of course the other strings will go out of tune.

[Floating Seeds]

I have a strat but I can bend strings and the others won't go out of tune. I don't really know a whole lot about floyds but it really was not that bad to string it up really so far, other than I found it weird that other strings were going sharp while trying to tune it up. That was just a surprise.

I got 2 questions. How do you set the action at the bridge? I don't see how to raise or lower the saddles really.

Also what does raising or lowering the posts do it looks like it one side was lower, I don't know if I should raise it or lower it.

[toejam]

The two posts are for lowering and raising the bridge to set the action. The saddles are fixed and cannot be adjusted. The only way you can fix individual string height is if you put a metal shim or something underneath the saddles.

[Floating Seeds]

ok thanks I see, I'll have to loosen all the strings to mess with the posts.

how can I loosen it so I can get some fluttering action going? It seems awefully tight right now and won't flutter much

[toejam]

You don't have to loosen the strings to adjust the posts. And if the bridge seems tight and doesn't flutter well, you can always remove a spring from the claw in the back. Though, with taking a spring out, you'll have to tighten the claw because the bridge will tilt up off the body more. It's all a balancing act. A typical Floyd setup is three springs, but some people use two, some people use four or five.

[Floating Seeds]

thanks for your help toejam

strange I find this bridge actually somewhat easier than the one on my strat although it looks more complicated it is pretty simple really. The strat is really painful to setup correctly this thing is pretty closely intonated and I haven't even touched that yet, plus the action is bitchin' like it is I may need to adjust the truss rod the neck looks a little bowed but not to bad.

yah it has four springs my strat has 3 that is probably why I can flutter on the strat altho it's not quite brad gillis flutter it is still looser than this

[toejam]

No problem. Floyds can be a bit of a pain the first time you try them, but they're not too bad to get under control.

[Floating Seeds]

great

there is a little fucking washer that holds the saddle screw in when I was intonating it guess what the little mother fucker came out.

I see little hope of getting this back on without taking the god damn entire bridge off so do I have to completely unscrew the posts or what, and I got a new set of god damn strings on it too. I'm really not happy about this.

[scotty]

You should adjust your claw (spring tension) so that the base the trem is level to the body. If the bridge is leaning back or even touching the body you will want to loosen the springs. But you will want to do this in small increments because you will want to check your tuning while try to set you bridge level to the body. Thus floating trem.
Try some of these.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=floyd+rose+setup&search_type=&aq=1&oq=floyd+rose

[Newc]

Actually you might want to set the base to follow the angle of the fretboard, since those were non-recessed and the neck angle was not flat.

I've not had to work with a JT6, but I don't get where the washer was - under the saddle? Seems odd to me. Maybe it was just being used as a shim?

For minor action adjustments, you should not need to adjust the intonation.

[dg]

great

there is a little fucking washer that holds the saddle screw in when I was intonating it guess what the little mother fucker came out.

I see little hope of getting this back on without taking the god damn entire bridge off so do I have to completely unscrew the posts or what, and I got a new set of god damn strings on it too. I'm really not happy about this.

You absolutely do not need to unscrew the posts to take the trem off. With a little patience, you don't even have to remove the strings. Loosen the strings & let the trem rock back (you may want to put something under the back of the trem to protect the paint since this is a non-recessed trem), then remove the springs from the trem block. The trem can then be lifted right out. This is how I do it on my guitars with truss adjustment at the heel, if I don't feel like changing strings at that time. I can have the trem off, then back on & tuned up in just a few minutes.

[Floating Seeds]

um no the little washer that holds the saddle screw came off I have to pop the springs off to put it back on plus a string broke and I've given up trying to intonate it because I get it perfect than when I adjust other strings it is flat or sharp again. Don't care it is only a few cents off it's not really noticeable.