Stingray Whammy

[bovinehost]

As all of you know....okay, many of you....or maybe some of you....okay, as three of you know, I am a bassist. Generally speaking, there are no whammy bars on basses. And if there is a whammy bar on a bass, we real bassists band together and beat the owner senseless.

Anyway, I have a Stingray guitar and I like it. Don't mention this over on the bass side. You know how they are.

The whammy seems to be 'snap in' rather than 'screw in', Is there any way to make it remain in a more upright position or do they all just swing away? Not a deal breaker but I'd like to tighten it up so I can play chords and whammy with abandon and all that guitar stuff.

Jack

 

[Sweat]

Should be a set screw on the trem that can be tightened

 

[GWDavis28]

Jack, it doesn't exist without pictures!!!

FAQ | Ernie Ball Music Man


How do I tighten the trem arm to prevent it from swinging around?

Depress the tremolo arm like you are dive bombing. Looking up from the lower strap button, inside on the trem block on the right, you will find a 1.5mm hex key adjustment screw. You can adjust the arm's swing there.

Glenn |B)

 

[bovinehost]

You guys rock. I'll get you some photos ASAP. I really like this thing. Did about 12 new guitar tracks with it tonight.

 

[DrKev]

Jack, YOU rock.

 

[GWDavis28]

You guys rock. I'll get you some photos ASAP. I really like this thing. Did about 12 new guitar tracks with it tonight.

Nice Jack, can't wait to see it, and always glad to help!!!!

Glenn |B)

 

[bovinehost]

My two MM guitars. I realize some of you have vast herds of these things....and I do, too, only they have those really big strings. But these are my two guitars and I think I can cover a lot of ground with them.

I'm having a bit of trouble with the trem set screw. First, I couldn't find it. Then I did (utilizing one of those strap-on headlights, I'm sure I looked ridiculous) but couldn't get it to turn, Might be a lack of proper allen wrench, not sure. It's really hard to get at while holding the whammy bar down all the way! I gave up on that. It will swing free or I'll duct tape it or something. It's fine.

I say "It's fine" with my forehead all scrunched down and my teeth clenched because it IS NOT FINE but I know when I'm beat.

Then, like an idiot, which I surely am, I decided that life would be easier without the bridge cover. It's kind of a pain on the Valentine when you want to change strings, but the Valentine has set screws on the cover. Easy enough, really. I often leave it off the Valentine. "I could do that on the Stingray", I said, LIKE AN IDIOT. Understand that I have no experience with springs and other complicated bits, but I dove right in. SPROING. Good thing I have a headlight.

Along the way, I realize I don't have to remove the bridge cover to change strings. I didn't let this valuable information deter me, though. I was going in.

I see one screw for the bridge cover. I remove it. Where is the other one? Hidden away from human interference. Under the big black thing that the strings go through, and yes, I'm sure there's a term for it but I made some new ones up using my Navy words. After a bit of wrangling, I decide the bridge cover will live forever in its current environment. Mere humans cannot remove that sucker. This is maybe why we have robots.

No problem, I'll just reassemble it and live happily ever after. Hah. Did I mention I have no experience with trem springs? I'll not list everything I tried but will mention that at some point, there was even a drink coaster involved. This did not work, either. I bet you guessed that. The tension of those springs coupled with their relatively short size combined to thwart my every attempt. I again used some Navy words. They did not help.

Now I'm so frustrated that I say to myself, "We're going to a repair shop tomorrow." This is such an abject admission of total defeat. I was not even a little bit happy. You know and I know I'm an idiot but now some d#ckweed repair guy gets to know it, too. I hate that. But this is why the baby Jesus gave us YouTube. I find a trick using a flathead screwdriver, which I'm sure you guys know about, but I don't because there are thankfully no springs on my basses.

It's a good trick but does take some practice and some Navy words. Also, lots more SPROING. But by god, I got those springs back on. We're back in business. Whew.

Question: it came with 3 springs installed and two in the case. Holes are for five, I'm using three. Is there a good reason to install the other two? Please say there isn't. If you say there is, I'm going to use more Navy words and may never speak to you again.

Cheers, babies. If nothing else, I'm a teeny bit smarter now.

 

[TripHazard]

Well, that was hilarious gave me a good chuckle. I could give you run for yer money with Navy words
RE: number of springs, its all down to personal taste in terms of tension and feel on the bar. No easy answer, but you have to just experiment with numbers of springs and amount they are screwed in at the claw. If I want something I can just tap and get a nice flutter, i generally go with 2, and set the screws in for a 1.5 mm floor off the body. Luke has similar, but I think he floats the back higher up off the body. John Mayer has five springs and a deeper screw in of the claw so that the bar is stiffer. Its all down to personal preference.
Short answer - you can stay with 3 and be fine, but you'll want to set the tension on the springs to how it works best for you (floating to any degree or flat to the body)