ABM headless hardware?

pima1234

pima1234

Fractal Fanatic
I own a few headless guitars with the ABM headless system.

Well, went to change strings tonight on the newest one and discovered that the screw for the 3rd string on the headpiece is stripped (more precisely, the ferrule which it screws into). It was tight when removing the screw, whereas the others were okay. (Come to think of it, I'm surprised the original string didn't just pop out, since I can't tighten the locking screw at all now for that string.)

Of course, this tells me the builder was careless when installing the original strings. (Never rush to get it out the door, I always say.)

But anyway... has anyone else ever had this issue with ABM hardware?
 
I've had other issues with ABM hardware (their single unit bridges). I think they're shit to be honest. Poor QC and poor design. Nothing intuitive or user friendly about it and their machining is nothing to write home about either.
 
The issue I'm dealing with should certainly never happen. From what I'm seeing, their design is overly simple, and it does appear that the machining is imprecise. I'll be curious to see if my others ever have the same problem. But I definitely won't use ABM ever again.

Is J Design good/reliable?

There's T4M, Hipshot, and of course the upper echelon Rick Toone hardware.
 
Of course, everything depends on the builder's response at the moment. If he makes it right, I'll feel better about it. But I still won't trust the hardware...

This particular builder doesn't even shield his guitar cavities.

Oh... and there's the Strandberg hardware too.
 
I'm not too familiar with different/newer brands. I've only been exposed to the ABM/Hipshot/Floyd/Ibanez stuff. After ABM, i decided to stick with Hipshot for all my fixed bridge needs. Hipshot bridges are fantastic in terms of ergonomics and quality. I can totally back you up on the fact that ABM machining is imprecise. As far as I know in my particular case, new hardware was purchased without compensation from ABM, which I think was a dick move on their part.
 
I agree with you about Hipshot hardware. Both of the Soloway guitars I've owned (one is for sale, currently, since I've changed to headless guitars) have Hipshot hardware, and I was completely blown away by the quality.
 
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It is really bad service when a company won't rectify a problem with their product.

Thankfully, the builder responded very quickly, and is going to work to get me a new headpiece. In the meantime, I hope I don't have any gigs that require high gain. One of my other headless guitars has P90s and the other is hollowbody. My other traditional guitars are for sale and all boxed up. LOL. Sometimes, we just have to laugh at the situations.
 
Well, ABM now wants pictures of the stripped screw and slot. I can't remove it now, after putting it back. It did take a video of me moving the screw freely in the slot. Bad machining and poor customer service. Frustrated.

And, I haven't heard from the builder in a couple days, which adds insult to injury. I'm sure he's really busy, but an issue like this should not happen on a guitar in this price range.

Worst part is that I ordered another one from him 9 months ago, and it was supposed to be a 6-9 month wait. And yes, using ABM hardware... Grrr!

And this is a highly respected builder. I love the design of his guitars, but the choice of hardware obviously leaves something to be desired. Hipshot is about the same price range.
 
Forgot to mention that what caused this problem was that the first string broke while tightening it. Another indication of poor machining. I never, ever break strings, and I don't wear them out quickly at all.
 
I have a headless coming with Strandberg hardware because Rick Toone's hardware is exclusive to his guitars (trust me, I had several emails with him) and I have read a lot of bad things about ABM.

I hope you get it fixed!
 
I should note that Peter at ABM is being helpful. I was finally able to remove the screw again and take some clear, close up photos.

I'm beginning to think that the guitar was rushed out the door after a quick string change or something silly like that. I hate to say that it was the builder's fault (or whomever installed the strings), but I believe the problem is that the screw was over-tightened, which could very easily have stripped the screw or the tap hole. I still think slightly over-tightening shouldn't cause it to strip. Regardless, I just want to be able to use my guitar again!

And I really can't figure out why the first string broke while I was tuning it up to pitch (and only barely), but that tuning machine was starting to become tight. Then it just snapped! (And yeah... it hurt a little, and was a real surprise.)
 
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I was able to confirm that, although the screw itself is stripped a little, the tap hole is very stripped. None of the other screws will tighten in that slot, and it's a different color (more gold or shiny brass) than the other holes.

I can't get a clear answer as to whether someone gig over-tighten the screw or if it was a machining error, but I am sending the stripped headpiece to the builder. Then he is going to send a temporary replace, as the expected wait time for a new chrome one is about 6 weeks.

Hopefully, the bridge will not be a problem, but I'm concerned that the 1st string tuning machine will continue to break strings.
 
By the way, things are getting resolved with my guitar.

I only hope that once the new headpiece arrives, that another string doesn't break, because that will indicate a problem with the bridge as well.

ABM sounds like a rather small company, that is okay in general, but with some issues that may need to be addressed (as noted above). That's not an uncommon scenario for small businesses.
 
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