Tim O'Sullivan
Well-known member
10's all the way for me. I cant see me ever going back to 9's!
- Thread starter lchender
- Start date
rrhea
Well-known member
The problem is likely binding at the SADDLES, guys. If you've taken care of the nut and have the spring tension right it doesn't matter what gauge of string you use.
Bigger strings do not sound better than skinnier strings, just different. And what different sounds like is always subjective.
Nevertheless, drop a dab of 3in1 oil on each of your string where they contact the saddle and then work the trem... I think you'll be amazed. And it will stay on there a good while, too. Just repeat as needed.
Ryan
Bigger strings do not sound better than skinnier strings, just different. And what different sounds like is always subjective.
Nevertheless, drop a dab of 3in1 oil on each of your string where they contact the saddle and then work the trem... I think you'll be amazed. And it will stay on there a good while, too. Just repeat as needed.
Ryan
Still the same !!
Well I'm back, ten months on from posting my original reply and its still the same. I've reverted back to gauge 9-42's and have had two different nuts fitted (currently using a graphite nut).
I've spent £125 ($250) on two professional inspections and setups and its been examined from end to end ... it simply won't remain in tune for more than a few minutes after gentle trem use and the tech's have run out of idea's.
I've contacted Ernie Ball US in the hope they can suggest something but I'm down to suspecting something fundamental like a faulty trem or a concealed crack somewhere but I'm really clutching at straws
Tony
Well I'm back, ten months on from posting my original reply and its still the same. I've reverted back to gauge 9-42's and have had two different nuts fitted (currently using a graphite nut).
I've spent £125 ($250) on two professional inspections and setups and its been examined from end to end ... it simply won't remain in tune for more than a few minutes after gentle trem use and the tech's have run out of idea's.
I've contacted Ernie Ball US in the hope they can suggest something but I'm down to suspecting something fundamental like a faulty trem or a concealed crack somewhere but I'm really clutching at straws
Tony
Astrofreq
Well-known member
I hear you. I have a guitar that does the same thing. Tried alot of things, finally stopped using the trem, which is a really sucky solution, but I can't be going out of tune every time I touch it.
For me, I'll probably only buy hardtails from now on if possible, or Floyds.
For me, I'll probably only buy hardtails from now on if possible, or Floyds.
greeny
Well-known member
I find this a bit amazing and it must be ultra frustraiting.
I've had no issues at all with my ASS trem (set flush). I would have hoped that the techs would have spotted anything fundamental wrong with the trem. I was wondering if somehow the string wraps were catching in the trem.? Have you tried Fender Bullets or similar type strings?
I've had no issues at all with my ASS trem (set flush). I would have hoped that the techs would have spotted anything fundamental wrong with the trem. I was wondering if somehow the string wraps were catching in the trem.? Have you tried Fender Bullets or similar type strings?
gerry d
Well-known member
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2005
- Messages
- 389
I've read this thread right from the begining, I also had a tuning issue with my Luke but finally I found a solution which worked for me... my guitar has the same trem as yours.. heres what I found... the problem wasn't at the nut.. it had to do with the break angle that the strings left the plate and then onto the saddle.. what I discovered was that if I set the 2 E saddles flat and set the action by adjusting the trem posts and then set the A D G B saddles accordingly to the fingerboard radius... my trem then worked a lot better... just my findings... Gerry.
Kevan
Well-known member
Plagiarized from a couple of my own posts on another forum:
When I started getting into trems, I did tons of research on the whole 'lip balm'/chapstick thing. Sure- it *can* work, but it won't last very long at all. Also, it can trap moisture and cause premature corrosion. Wax is a GREAT sealant. It's been used for tens of thousands of years to seal everything from King Tut's beer to French Revolution pardons.
With trems we're dealing with metal-on-metal contact. There are hundreds of inch-pounds of pressure on those two little knife edges....and then we wiggle them back and forth!
It's basically the same as a car engine. In an engine there is LOTS of metal-on-metal contact. We use oil or grease to prevent those pieces of metal from malforming (breaking down), galling, or seizing. What happens to un-lubricated trems is that the metal contact points get damaged because of the lack of lube, and the occurance of galling. Galling is bad, and is the leading cause of MyTremWon'tComeBackToZero-itis.
Here's a video I did on how to clean and lube your trem posts and knife edges:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noOAnVb3kEg"]YouTube - Tremol-No Clean & Lube Video[/ame]
It's pretty damn easy.
Factories have never lubed trem posts. Why not? Probably because no one told them to, or because it would cost $0.002 per trem to add lubricant.
If you're looking for lubricants for your trem posts and knife edges, check with your local auto parts store or hardware store. Ask them for a "PTFE-based lubricant in gel form". Graphite-based is also good. Try to avoid the powdered graphite though; it's messy as hell.
I've seen some 'stop brake squeal' packets at auto parts store counters that are good sources of PTFE-based gel. I think they're $0.99, and one pack would do about 4 guitars for a couple of years. I'll check further into those packets next time I hit the auto parts store.
The List:
BTW- Getting tech info and facts from Jemsite is like getting abstinence advice from Jenna Haze.
[END]
When I started getting into trems, I did tons of research on the whole 'lip balm'/chapstick thing. Sure- it *can* work, but it won't last very long at all. Also, it can trap moisture and cause premature corrosion. Wax is a GREAT sealant. It's been used for tens of thousands of years to seal everything from King Tut's beer to French Revolution pardons.
With trems we're dealing with metal-on-metal contact. There are hundreds of inch-pounds of pressure on those two little knife edges....and then we wiggle them back and forth!
It's basically the same as a car engine. In an engine there is LOTS of metal-on-metal contact. We use oil or grease to prevent those pieces of metal from malforming (breaking down), galling, or seizing. What happens to un-lubricated trems is that the metal contact points get damaged because of the lack of lube, and the occurance of galling. Galling is bad, and is the leading cause of MyTremWon'tComeBackToZero-itis.
Here's a video I did on how to clean and lube your trem posts and knife edges:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noOAnVb3kEg"]YouTube - Tremol-No Clean & Lube Video[/ame]
It's pretty damn easy.
Factories have never lubed trem posts. Why not? Probably because no one told them to, or because it would cost $0.002 per trem to add lubricant.
If you're looking for lubricants for your trem posts and knife edges, check with your local auto parts store or hardware store. Ask them for a "PTFE-based lubricant in gel form". Graphite-based is also good. Try to avoid the powdered graphite though; it's messy as hell.
I've seen some 'stop brake squeal' packets at auto parts store counters that are good sources of PTFE-based gel. I think they're $0.99, and one pack would do about 4 guitars for a couple of years. I'll check further into those packets next time I hit the auto parts store.
The List:
- GOOD = Any medium to heavy weight grease (from white lithium up to bearing grease).
- BETTER = Graphie-based lubricant (like BigBends Nut Sauce).
- BEST = Teflon-based (PTFE) lubricant.
BTW- Getting tech info and facts from Jemsite is like getting abstinence advice from Jenna Haze.
[END]
thanls
Kevan,
Very informative, thanks for taking the time to reply. I'm going to check out your video and follow its instruction. I've also been in touch with the folks at EB. One option may be to send the instrument back to them but being in the UK this is likely to be hugely expensive. I'll keep this thread updated on my progress.
Cheers,
Tony
Kevan,
Very informative, thanks for taking the time to reply. I'm going to check out your video and follow its instruction. I've also been in touch with the folks at EB. One option may be to send the instrument back to them but being in the UK this is likely to be hugely expensive. I'll keep this thread updated on my progress.
Cheers,
Tony
sim
Active member
I have an old OLP as a backup git that was sometimes sharp sometimes flat after depressing the bar. I replaced the trem springs and it was as good as gold after that. It has a Floyd and the tiniest bit of spring stretch can cause all sorts of tuning problems.
smacdonald359
New member
I'm goin out on the limb here..I have a new Cutlass sss Raspberry burst that I love...I was having issues with the trem returning sharp on the low e and high e...as everyone else has been saying..I could pull on the strings abit and they would return to correct pitch..I changed strings, lube the nut and hoped for the best...NOTTA..still does it...Im not a huge trem user to begin with but this is a brand new guitar and i have read all kind before i bought about how well the trem returns to pitch..so took the strings off and did a little deeper inspection..this is bizzare but I found soldier inside the low e nut slot!!!...NO SHIT..soldier!!!..im not sure what happened here..this guitar is about a month old from retailer...I actually phoned them to see if I had in fact bought a new guitar, they assure me it was new..so Im left with a bizzare feeling of not really understanding this...only thing i can think of is someone put on a larger string guage and tried to open up the low "e" nut slot with the tip of a soldering iron, but this is suppose to be a new guitar, that dosent make sence to me..LOL..i cant see Ernie Ball doing that from factory..and the retailer has assured me the guitar is new..so im at a lose for words here...I will say the retailer has agreed to replace the nut for me...but its crazy, you cant see anything wrong with the nut to the naked eye..I had to use a 50x loope to see it...Im sure this was my issue , having nut changed and im sure all will be good..i included a pic i was able to capture using my loope with phone camera... the yellow circle was where there was a piece of solder that i knocked out, you can actually see the hole where the soldier melted into the nut...the red circle shows there is still more soldier in there,,and the blue circle is the ledge that the hot soldier iron left with soldier on the end of it
as well...keep in mind this is a pic at 50x through my phone camera...pretty bizzare!!!!