String Ferrules are TIGHT!

[doghouseman]

I am building a guitar with a recessed TOM bridge.  So it has string ferrules going through the body on the top, and string ferrules in the back, like a traditional telecaster with a string through bridge. 

These string ferrule holes seem to small!! it took me forever to get the ferrules through and I had to drill out the holes a little more which caused some chipping around the edge of the hole. 

Does warmoth normally do this? I have build other guitars before from Warmoth but they were all Strats, so nothing with a string through bridge.

 

[Cagey]

They're supposed to be very tight. Otherwise, you end up with sort of a "shock absorber" effect that deadens the strings a bit.

Sometimes, paint overhang from surface tension during application will make the hole seem too small, but it's not.

Ultimately, the right way to install them is using a drill or arbor press, but many folks don't have either of those tools around so they try to burn or pound them in. This can be made to work, but you need a needle file or something to clear the paint lip on the holes or you're liable to end up with chipping.

 

[line6man]

Yep, that is both normal and intentional.

Apparently a lot of people like to heat up their ferrules with a soldering iron. That helps a bit.

 

[doghouseman]

OK.  Another technique that I should have used was to use a bolt and some washers and a nut to pull the Ferrule into the hole by tightening the bolt.  I have done this with tuner bushings which are also very tight sometimes.

 

[mayfly]

I've found that the soldering iron trick to work well with poly finishes