Floyd Rose users - just got my first Floyd, which is almost 40 years old - what wear-and-tear items should I be a-wear of?

[Joe Bfstplk]

Floyd Rose users - just got my first Floyd, which is almost 40 years old - what wear-and-tear items should I be a-wear of?

The fine-tuners seem like they are a little "loose" in their threaded holes. Is that normal or are the threads worn out? Replacement fine tuners, or tap the holes and get upsized thread on replacement ones?

Also, I'm thinking about a replacement block, since there are nice ones that are a bit beefier and even brass if you want it....

PFA:

 

[unix-guy]

Check the knife edges and the grooves of the posts... Watch for any divots or other non-smooth areas.

Check the screws that hold the saddles in place (for adjusting intonation).

Some of them have very small hex heads they get easily stripped.

I wouldn't worry too much about the fine tuners. The just apply pressure on the bolts underneath them. Does yours have a metal "spring plate" pushing up from underneath?

I much prefer posts with a hex head and not screwdriver slot...

Edit:

What is it? Kramer?

Edit 2:

Also check the locking nut screws.

Is the nut bolted thru the neck or screwed on from the top? If bolted thru make sure they are snug but don't crank on them.

 

[Churchhill]

Might check the blocks that lock the strings in the saddles. It's really easy to over-tighten them, which someone may have done over the years and damaged them. Same type of wear as the lock nut screws suggested by @unix-guy all good suggestions. I agree about not worrying too much about the fine tuners.

Nice axe, BTW!!

 

[AtomicJeff]

40 yrs old? Springs.

 

[hfam]

The knife edge is make or break, do or die on a used FR, especially a "licensed" FR. Nice, crisp edge on each, no wear (or very slight wear) on them where it meets the posts? Good to go. If you have divots on those edges you can probably toss it as it just will not stay in tune.

Next are the saddles themselves. Worn, replace em.

Check the blocks that hold the strings in place. They are old, people overtighten them,and they will crack/crumble. Check em on the next string change for sure.

Otherwise all the other items mentioned are good to consider. A 40 year old FR can be great, but there is lots of stuff that can wear out or break with age.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[State of Epicicity]

Hmm, with all these suggestions it would be easier just to replace it haha.

But I agree with all the suggestions above.

Congratulations on the guitar, by the way! That looks like a fun one.

My recommendation for setup is to unlock the nut and loosen the spring screws in the back then place business cards to level the trem. Now see if your action is good. If not, make sure to remove the trem before adjusting the posts, so as not to wear the knife edges on the baseplate or the pivot points on the posts.

Now get the strings to stay in tune as you would on a hard tail. Next lock the nut and remove the business cards. Screw in the spring screws in the back until the guitar is in tune again, diving and pulling up as you go along to test, and you're there! That's what I do, anyway.

Best of luck with it!

 

[skolacki]

Looks like a Duncan Invader. I have one in a box somewhere or maybe I sold it. My first Floyd was an original with no fine tuners. A real pain to deal with but worked great. Long gone, think I sold it on my last move. Congrats!

 

[Joe Bfstplk]

Check the knife edges and the grooves of the posts... Watch for any divots or other non-smooth areas.

Those are in good shape. Pivots smoothly. Checked them when I had it apart to lower the action a little. Loosened the strings and removed the springs (and the bridge) when turning the pivot screws to adjust height....

Check the screws that hold the saddles in place (for adjusting intonation).

All in good shape. Had to adjust all of them forward a little after I lowered the action.

I wouldn't worry too much about the fine tuners. The just apply pressure on the bolts underneath them.

They seem slightly 'loose' - like their threads are worn - or the threads in the bridge plate that they screw into. If I turn them, I have to push them towards the back of the bridge plate or the string goes flat. Definitely some play in the threads - hopefully the screws and not the bridge plate.

Does yours have a metal "spring plate" pushing up from underneath?

Yup.

I much prefer posts with a hex head and not screwdriver slot...

Screwdriver slots on my posts. :/ Seems to work, but hex is always nicer than any screwdriver - even Philips head.

Edit:

What is it? Kramer?

Yes. '86, per the seller. About the time I applied for a job there, in Neptune, NJ. Pretty sure Danelectro guitars were made in the same building back in the '60s, when my uncle Pete worked for them....

Edit 2:

Also check the locking nut screws.

Did. Found them a little loose, probably from a combination of almost 40 years of vibration and wood aging. Snugged them up, but not too tight. Nice and solid now.

Is the nut bolted thru the neck or screwed on from the top? If bolted thru make sure they are snug but don't crank on them.

Thru bolts. Went easy on them. Snug and secure, but not squashing anything.

Might check the blocks that lock the strings in the saddles. It's really easy to over-tighten them, which someone may have done over the years and damaged them. Same type of wear as the lock nut screws suggested by @unix-guy all good suggestions. I agree about not worrying too much about the fine tuners.

Nice axe, BTW!!

Thanks! Always wanted one. Actually applied to work there in the mid '80s, but didn't get the job. Swapped out the '80s Duncan singles for the Lawrence L45S pickups in the picture. Pickguard is a Chandler upgraded one, probably a loaded pickguard set from the '87 timeframe. Now I have made it 100% hum free, and the Invader defaults to parallel mode so the S1 switch/pot puts it in series for a nice boost and tone shift. Never figured that I would like the Invader, but it's actually pretty great....

40 yrs old? Springs.

Duly noted. Thinking about an upgraded inertia block, so can get springs at the same time....

 

[Joe Bfstplk]

Hmm, with all these suggestions it would be easier just to replace it haha.

That thought has crossed my mind. If the fine tuners' threaded holes are shot, that will likely come to pass....

But I agree with all the suggestions above.

Congratulations on the guitar, by the way! That looks like a fun one.

Thanks! Always wanted a Kramer.... I have decided his name is Cosmo....

My recommendation for setup is to unlock the nut and loosen the spring screws in the back then place business cards to level the trem. Now see if your action is good. If not, make sure to remove the trem before adjusting the posts, so as not to wear the knife edges on the baseplate or the pivot points on the posts.

Now get the strings to stay in tune as you would on a hard tail. Next lock the nut and remove the business cards. Screw in the spring screws in the back until the guitar is in tune again, diving and pulling up as you go along to test, and you're there! That's what I do, anyway.

I wrapped and taped a few sheets of printer paper around the metal ruler from my carpenter's square to make sure the bridge stayed level while working on it. Bridge plate is level with the top.

Best of luck with it!

Thanks!

 

[Churchhill]

Thanks! Always wanted one. Actually applied to work there in the mid '80s, but didn't get the job. Swapped out the '80s Duncan singles for the Lawrence L45S pickups in the picture. Pickguard is a Chandler upgraded one, probably a loaded pickguard set from the '87 timeframe. Now I have made it 100% hum free, and the Invader defaults to parallel mode so the S1 switch/pot puts it in series for a nice boost and tone shift. Never figured that I would like the Invader, but it's actually pretty great....

Know exactly what you mean, I've always wanted one, too, just never found one that spoke to me and wasn't beat up and worn out. Glad you found one, with that old Floyd and Chandler guard, that's just cool! I've heard that the main difference between the Invader and the SD Distortion is the pole pieces, both pretty great, I think. That's a really cool way to wire it, too, with it defaulting to parallel and hitting the switch for a boost. Sounds really versatile. I'm a sucker for white with a black pickguard. That's the real thing, congrats!!

 

[Joe Bfstplk]

Know exactly what you mean, I've always wanted one, too, just never found one that spoke to me and wasn't beat up and worn out. Glad you found one, with that old Floyd and Chandler guard, that's just cool! I've heard that the main difference between the Invader and the SD Distortion is the pole pieces, both pretty great, I think. That's a really cool way to wire it, too, with it defaulting to parallel and hitting the switch for a boost. Sounds really versatile. I'm a sucker for white with a black pickguard. That's the real thing, congrats!!

The 12 poles also lets me mimic the "Wide Range" 3+3 pole arrangement by backing the pickup off and raising the EAD poles on one coil and the GBE on the other. Gives a hint of single coil vibe and the bridge pickup slant. Absoltely kills with the middle or neck pickup added with it....

 

[Churchhill]

The 12 poles also lets me mimic the "Wide Range" 3+3 pole arrangement by backing the pickup off and raising the EAD poles on one coil and the GBE on the other. Gives a hint of single coil vibe and the bridge pickup slant. Absoltely kills with the middle or neck pickup added with it....

That's definitely something I'll have to try, got a couple different HBs with adjustable screws/bolts on both coils. Makes sense, too, that it would benefit when combined with the neck or middle. Thanks for the idea!!

 

[Joe Bfstplk]

That's definitely something I'll have to try, got a couple different HBs with adjustable screws/bolts on both coils. Makes sense, too, that it would benefit when combined with the neck or middle. Thanks for the idea!!

It works decently. A humbucker is never going to be a true single coil, but if you make the pole pieces closer to the strings, they pick them up louder, so you can get a hint of single coil clarity by simply playing with a screwdriver. Typical HB height screws are #3-48, and typically on a standard HB, the pole screws are #5-40, so 5 turns of a pole piece is equivalent to 6 turns of a height screw. Probably good to go 3 turns on the height and 2.5 turns on the poles to start....

Here's where I ended up with the Invader:

I am looking at getting a #3-48 tap and drilling the two extra screw holes on the bass side of the pickup's tab, so that I can get the coils parallel to the strings. It irks me that the springs and screws lean like that.

I did more or less the same trick on my Strat, which has a Planet Tone Clearvoyant HB at the bridge. It has the 3+3 arrangement of adjustable poles, and it works quite well.

 

[Dave Merrill]

It works decently. A humbucker is never going to be a true single coil, but if you make the pole pieces closer to the strings, they pick them up louder, so you can get a hint of single coil clarity by simply playing with a screwdriver. Typical HB height screws are #3-48, and typically on a standard HB, the pole screws are #5-40, so 5 turns of a pole piece is equivalent to 6 turns of a height screw. Probably good to go 3 turns on the height and 2.5 turns on the poles to start....

Here's where I ended up with the Invader:

I am looking at getting a #3-48 tap and drilling the two extra screw holes on the bass side of the pickup's tab, so that I can get the coils parallel to the strings. It irks me that the springs and screws lean like that.

I did more or less the same trick on my Strat, which has a Planet Tone Clearvoyant HB at the bridge. It has the 3+3 arrangement of adjustable poles, and it works quite well.

I've never understood why split pickups are often built with their sensing screws closer to the bridge on the high strings side, and further from it on the low side. That seems backwards to me, accentuating treble-ness where you'd want fatness, and bass-ness where you'd want clarity. Most strat pickups are oriented the same way, except Hendrix-style.

Thoughts?

 

[unix-guy]

I've never understood why split pickups are often built with their sensing screws closer to the bridge on the high strings side, and further from it on the low side. That seems backwards to me, accentuating treble-ness where you'd want fatness, and bass-ness where you'd want clarity. Most strat pickups are oriented the same way, except Hendrix-style.

Thoughts?

P-bass pickup, anyone?

I never really thought about it until I saw one that was "backwards", and then the lightbulb went on!

It does seem to make sense to have the bass strings pole pieces closer to the bridge than for the treble strings in the P-bass scenario, at least.

 

[rcm78]

Is that a real floyd? I tried zooming in but the resolution and my old ass eyes dont work well together...

 

[Dave Merrill]

P-bass pickup, anyone?

I never really thought about it until I saw one that was "backwards", and then the lightbulb went on!

It does seem to make sense to have the bass strings pole pieces closer to the bridge than for the treble strings in the P-bass scenario, at least.

The considerations for bass are different methinks.

 

[Joe Bfstplk]

I've never understood why split pickups are often built with their sensing screws closer to the bridge on the high strings side, and further from it on the low side. That seems backwards to me, accentuating treble-ness where you'd want fatness, and bass-ness where you'd want clarity. Most strat pickups are oriented the same way, except Hendrix-style.

Thoughts?

I believe the original intent was to tilt the brigde pickup to add beef to the lower strings. If you look at Strat pickups, the skinny E pole of all 3 is equally spaced, but the bridge fat E pole is 3/8" closer to the middle pickup. The skinny E poles of the Tele neck and bridge pickups are in the same spots as the successor Strat's. The Tele fat E bridge pole is 5/8" closer to the neck pickup than the skinny E. The slant softened a bit for the Strat. Maybe, since the Strat was meant to improve upon the Tele, Leo softened the bridge pickup angle to even it out a bit. Dunno.

P-bass pickup, anyone?

I never really thought about it until I saw one that was "backwards", and then the lightbulb went on!

It does seem to make sense to have the bass strings pole pieces closer to the bridge than for the treble strings in the P-bass scenario, at least.

I have seen that arrangement, but never played one that way. Seems like it could be good.

Is that a real floyd? I tried zooming in but the resolution and my old ass eyes dont work well together...

Looks to be. Not sure if there were fakes yet in the mid '80s, and it appears to be that old.

 

[Andy Eagle]

Is that a real floyd? I tried zooming in but the resolution and my old ass eyes dont work well together...

No it’s a Takeuchi.

 

[Andy Eagle]

The fact that it still works is good for those . I would not try to replace anything that works in it . The typical problem with TSR is broken bridge saddles and worn knife edges.