Question Help with Tremolo for StingRay guitar

[defiantjazz]

Hey y'all, tried doing a search but couldn't find any info so hoping I'm posting this in the right place.

Need new help with tremolo block, post updated below

It's been a good number of years and I'm looking to replace the bridge on my StringRay RS Guitar (Modern Trem) with a Hipshot 6 String US Contour Tremolo Bridge. Would this be a drop in with no modification needed (it being the American Standard tremolo routing convention and all)?

I'm not able to make and compare the measurements right now so wondering if anyone can shed some light on this. Hipshot's dimensions diagram here for convenience.

Thanks in advance, cheers.

 

[DrKev]

HI there!

That bridge is not a drop-in replacement. I'd be willing to bet that nobody makes a drop in replacement for the Music Man modern classic bridges (which are the bridges on the StingRay, Cutlass, Sabre, St Vincent, Valentine, and Mariposa guitars (and possibly the 6 string Majesty?).

(I think "American Standard" here refers specifically to "Fender American Standard Stratocasters". There is no standard in Fender, or America, or anywhere for tremolo specifications.)

What you need to know...

The pivot stud spacing is 2.900" which is very wide, notice the studs are placed outside the saddles.

String Spacing is 0.425" (2 1/8" E-to-e).

Music Man uses mounting studs threaded directly into the wood, Hipshot drills larger and uses a brass insert for the studs.

 

[defiantjazz]

HI there!

That bridge is not a drop-in replacement. I'd be willing to bet that nobody makes a drop in replacement for the Music Man modern classic bridges (which are the bridges on the StingRay, Cutlass, Sabre, St Vincent, Valentine, and Mariposa guitars (and possibly the 6 string Majesty?).

(I think "American Standard" here refers specifically to "Fender American Standard Stratocasters". There is no standard in Fender, or America, or anywhere for tremolo specifications.)

What you need to know...

The pivot stud spacing is 2.900" which is very wide, notice the studs are placed outside the saddles.

String Spacing is 0.425" (2 1/8" E-to-e).

Music Man uses mounting studs threaded directly into the wood, Hipshot drills larger and uses a brass insert for the studs.

Hey Doc, appreciate your quick reply and thanks for saving me some 150 dead bens. That's a bummer, I've been looking for an excuse to give Hipshot bridges a go, hear nothing but good things about them. Maybe for another project then. Thanks again!

Cheers

 

[defiantjazz]

Hello everyone, updating this thread with another issue I have -

I cannot for the life of me get my tremolo arm to swing freely (I'm using the factory standard tremolo arm that came with the guitar) and since I'm doing a complete axe tear down I thought to thoroughly inspect what the issue might be. It's a little hard to see even IRL but might it be possible that the grub screw controlling the tremolo arm tension has broken off inside the thread?

I removed the grub screw (bottom of block) controlling the tremolo arm depth for comparison and they look... fine?

As a last measure if I should need to replace the block, any recommendations for a steel type with the correct string spacing?

Thanks in advance!

 

[DrKev]

You need to find a way to get that grub screw out. It needs a 1.5mm allen wrench. It's hard to tell from the photo but looks like the head of the scew is stripped, which is due to frequent overtightening and/or the wrong size wrench. The bottom grub screw just stops the arm going too deep. It's the spring clip (the "wire" that's held in place by the big screw) that clips into the notch at the end of the trem bar that locates and secures it in position.

(BTW, the saddle height adjustment screws are also 1.5mm and the intonation adjustment screws are 2mm or 5/64").

Note that it's not just a matter of string spacing but attachment screw size and position and string hole positions and block dimensions. I don't know if anyone makes aftermarket blocks for EBMM instruments. (I'd be such a tiny portion of the market nobody I not sure it would be economical for anyone to bother).

Contacting EBMM customer service is your best bet.

 

[defiantjazz]

You need to find a way to get that grub screw out. It needs a 1.5mm allen wrench. It's hard to tell from the photo but looks like the head of the scew is stripped, which is due to frequent overtightening and/or the wrong size wrench. The bottom grub screw just stops the arm going too deep. It's the spring clip (the "wire" that's held in place by the big screw) that clips into the notch at the end of the trem bar that locates and secures it in position.

(BTW, the saddle height adjustment screws are also 1.5mm and the intonation adjustment screws are 2mm or 5/64").

Note that it's not just a matter of string spacing but attachment screw size and position and string hole positions and block dimensions. I don't know if anyone makes aftermarket blocks for EBMM instruments. (I'd be such a tiny portion of the market nobody I not sure it would be economical for anyone to bother).

Contacting EBMM customer service is your best bet.

Sorry it's difficult to see from the images, I'm having a hard time myself trying to eyeball it too. I've gotten the grub screw out actually so the first image I posted is after removing the screw and the cavity still has threads. Thankfully the screw itself isn't stripped, doesn't look broken either. I compared it with the bottom grub screw, they both look alright I think.

I'm baffled because even after entirely removing the grub screw (the one that supposedly adjusts tension) it has no effect on the spring clip so my tremolo arm still has resistance when moving. I'm starting to think maybe it's the arm itself, maybe it just came with a thicker diameter one. I'll try and work it out some more, failing that I'll just contact EBCS.

Once again thanks for your valuable advice doc, I really appreciate it.

 

[DrKev]

Ah, I get it now! Ok, so the StingRay trem arm should be 3/16" diameter. But there is another trem arm (for the Petrucci's, St Vincent, and the Morse Y2d and Axis Floyd) guitars which is 1/4". Did you get the wrong one? Do you have a calipers you can measure the arm diameter with?

If you need to you can get a new one here...

Music Man Tremolo Arm - 3/16" Diameter

Music Man tremolo arm for Luke III, Albert Lee, StingRay guitar (not Dustin Kensrue model), Valentine, Silhouette Special, Axis Super Sport, and Cutlass (not Jason Richardson model) Vintage Music Man Tremolo Bridge or Modern Classic Music Man Tremolo Bridge equipped models produced after 1998.

shop.music-man.com

 

[defiantjazz]

Ah, I get it now! Ok, so the StingRay trem arm should be 3/16" diameter. But there is another trem arm (for the Petrucci's, St Vincent, and the Morse Y2d and Axis Floyd) guitars which is 1/4". Did you get the wrong one? Do you have a calipers you can measure the arm diameter with?

If you need to you can get a new one here...

Music Man Tremolo Arm - 3/16" Diameter

Music Man tremolo arm for Luke III, Albert Lee, StingRay guitar (not Dustin Kensrue model), Valentine, Silhouette Special, Axis Super Sport, and Cutlass (not Jason Richardson model) Vintage Music Man Tremolo Bridge or Modern Classic Music Man Tremolo Bridge equipped models produced after 1998.

shop.music-man.com

Just measured the trem arm that came with my StingRay, it is indeed 3/16" diameter so it's definitely the skinnier of the two. So frustrating lol, I'm going to see if there's some way to fix this silly issue. Thanks again man.