crow55 said:
is it possible to route a standard gibson explorer for a OFR myself?
Personally, I wouldn't try it. Now, I don't know exactly which model of Gibson Explorer you've got (maybe post a pic or two or some specs?), but I'm assuming it doesn't already have a tremolo, correct? Most, if not all, Gibson Explorers have Tune-O-Matic bridges and stop tail pieces so, if you wanted to install a tremolo on one, not only would you have to rout for the tremolo on the top of the body, but also for the tremolo spring cavity in the back and
that is a huge pain in the @$$. Additionally, because Explorers have Tune-O-Matic bridges, they also have an angled neck pocket to compensate for the height of the bridge so you don't end up with an action that's 3/4" high at the 12th or 17th fret. Tremolos (especially recessed tremolos) are intended for use on guitars with straight necks. On a bolt-on guitar, this wouldn't be that much of a problem. You can simply remove the neck, shim the neck pocket and then put the neck back on and have it be straight. However, you said you have a
Gibson Explorer. As far as I know, all Gibson Explorers have set necks and set necks can't really be removed. I mean, it's technically
possible, but I wouldn't want to try it.
crow55 said:
is there any routing involved in installing a kahler tremolo?
Like I said above, unless your Explorer already has a tremolo, you'd have to rout for the tremolo spring cavity in the back of the body. Other than that, I don't know a whole lot about Kahler tremolos, so I couldn't tell you how much routing would be involved on the top of the body.