Is there a new trem in town?

[rockandroller]

20 years ago I was in the thick of things in the custom guitar world, and there were numerous interesting bridges that came along (and apparently faded out fast).
Does anyone currently make a roller bridge with individually height-adjustable saddles ?
I know there is always Kahler... but I'm kind of jonesing for something like a jazzmaster setup, (separate tailpiece!) only with the ability to easily fine tune both height and intonation. Not a big fan of tuneomatic posts, either.

Any wild and wacky hardware companies out there? I looked at the Guyker offerings but they are pretty tame

 

[stratamania]

Not Jazzmaster like but perhaps this may be of interest.

Vintage Tremolo | 1305

Vintage Tremolo with roller saddles The baseplate of hardened steel and the solid spring block of the Schaller Vintage Tremolo ensures an outstanding sustain. The Roller bridge saddles fix the strings in their optimum position. It is also a perfect…

schaller.info

 

[rauchman]

Not Jazzmaster like but perhaps this may be of interest.

Vintage Tremolo | 1305

Vintage Tremolo with roller saddles The baseplate of hardened steel and the solid spring block of the Schaller Vintage Tremolo ensures an outstanding sustain. The Roller bridge saddles fix the strings in their optimum position. It is also a perfect…

schaller.info

I believe this uses Floyd Rose post spacing.

 

[Tretgeraet]

I believe this uses Floyd Rose post spacing.

It does, but at a different intonation point, or in other words; it must be further away from the nut to intonate correctly.

 

[rauchman]

It does, but at a different intonation point, or in other words; it must be further away from the nut to intonate correctly.

Great info. I wonder how much the saddles can be adjusted to compensate.

 

[stratamania]

I believe this uses Floyd Rose post spacing.

It does

It does, but at a different intonation point, or in other words; it must be further away from the nut to intonate correctly.

It can retrofit a Floyd Rose, so I am not sure where you have that information from.

 

[ThisIsHuhWow404]

Fender made the Panorama Trem from the AP Jazzmaster available as a separate unit. It’s only advertised as having a wider range, nothing about height or intonation. It’s also very expensive.

 

[Tretgeraet]

It can retrofit a Floyd Rose, so I am not sure where you have that information from.

From building this:

I took a lot of measurements on my 7/8 S-Style that is routed for non-recessed Floyd, on the Schaller Lockmeister that sits on that 7/8 and on the Schaller Vintage Trem pictured above.

I ended up placing the studs 4mm further away from the neck pocket than on the S-Style and if I would do it again, I would add another 2mm.

Because to properly intonate to lowest string I had to shorten the spring.

I wouldn't recommend it as a direct replacement for a Floyd, neither does Schaller, at least not to my knowledge.

 

[rockandroller]

hmmm. I guess I should have had a peek at those famous purveyors of fine guitar hardware: Warmoth!
I just spotted two 'trem-friendly' bridges there with adjustable height!!

https://warmoth.com/jmb1c

and (even better, I think)

Modified Mustang® Bridge

Features saddles that adjust individually, making it ideal for use with any fretboard radius. Available in Chrome.

warmoth.com

If I can just find some roller saddles to retrofit them, I could be off to the races...

 

[Hodgo]

I think rollers are fairly out of vogue, but maybe that’s just me. Seems like the hip offset folks are using Mastery or Belrok bridges.

 

[stratamania]

From building this:
View attachment 66476
I took a lot of measurements on my 7/8 S-Style that is routed for non-recessed Floyd, on the Schaller Lockmeister that sits on that 7/8 and on the Schaller Vintage Trem pictured above.

I ended up placing the studs 4mm further away from the neck pocket than on the S-Style and if I would do it again, I would add another 2mm.

Because to properly intonate to lowest string I had to shorten the spring.

I wouldn't recommend it as a direct replacement for a Floyd, neither does Schaller, at least not to my knowledge.

There are many people that have replaced a FR bridge with this bridge on 25.5" scale without having to adjust things like you have on a 7/8 build.

From Schaller...

It is also a perfect replacement for Fender® Stratocaster®* tremolos with standard 74.3 mm (equivalent to the distance between the height adjustment screws).
https://schaller.info/en/vintage-tremolo/1305

The only Stratocaster style tremolos with that post spacing have FR type post spacings. The name vintage only really applies if you are converting from an FR style bridge to something a little more “vintage” as otherwise there is nothing really vintage about the bridge.

 

[Tretgeraet]

There are many people that have replaced a FR bridge with this bridge on 25.5" scale without having to adjust things like you have on a 7/8 build.

Well congratulations to them, I don't see how they managed to do that and I personally wouldn't recommend it as a direct replacement for a Floyd.

It's a nice trem though, smooth action, stays in tune quite well.

But if someone is looking for a Floyd replacement I'd advise them to contact Schaller Support first and ask them, if they will guarantee it will correctly intonate as a replacement for a Floyd Rose, Schaller Tremolo oder Schaller Lockmeister or recommend it as such.

 

[Spud]

I think rollers are fairly out of vogue, but maybe that’s just me. Seems like the hip offset folks are using Mastery or Belrok bridges.

he he you said "Vogue"

 

[TBurst Std]

I think rollers are fairly out of vogue, but maybe that’s just me. Seems like the hip offset folks are using Mastery or Belrok bridges.

Mastery for the win

 

[jjwu]

Sounds like you want a good ol' Kahler. Warmoth does a kahler rout but in my own failed experience their guitars just don't accommodate it. You need a THICK shim to get proper saddle height and even then just barely.

The wackiest stuff I've seen is Sophia. Wacky in a good way. Kahler and ABM also have double locking trems that don't require cutting the ball ends. Not wacky, but very cool.

No idea what guitar this is and it doesn't look like rollers, but overall a 2-piece style trem. Though he leaves the bar out and just palms behind the saddles. Looks custom and expensive but the playing is friggin awesome.

 

[stratamania]

Well congratulations to them, I don't see how they managed to do that and I personally wouldn't recommend it as a direct replacement for a Floyd.

It's a nice trem though, smooth action, stays in tune quite well.

But if someone is looking for a Floyd replacement I'd advise them to contact Schaller Support first and ask them, if they will guarantee it will correctly intonate as a replacement for a Floyd Rose, Schaller Tremolo oder Schaller Lockmeister or recommend it as such.

Given you have made one of a one-off design guitar based on a 7/8 scale using this tremolo, I don't think you have anywhere near enough data points or empirical evidence to say it will or will not intonate in all cases.

As with any parts, it is up to the individual user to evaluate specifications for their own use case, in any event.