Wraparound bridge recomendations

[smjenkins]

I'm specing out a SG Jr. themed build that will use a wraparound bridge.  I'm wondering if folks here have any recommendations on which type works the best.  The one factor I'd like to maintain is as traditional a look as possible.  These are the options I've seen so far.  Will I be able to get good intonation with a fixed compensated design or the Wilkinson?  Other recommendations?

- Traditional, uncompensated: http://cgi.ebay.com/Gibson-Nickel-Locking-Wrap-Around-Bridge-w-Mounts-/200619817997?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item2eb5df7c0d
- Wilkinson: http://cgi.ebay.com/WILKINSON-GTB-WRAP-AROUND-STOP-TAIL-BRIDGE-COMBO-CHROME-/370515467154?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item5644715b92
- Fixed compensated: http://cgi.ebay.com/Guitar-Parts-WrapAround-LP-JR-Bridge-Tailpiece-CHROME-/400219733699?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item5d2ef47ec3
- Badass style: http://cgi.ebay.com/BADASS-STYLE-WRAP-AROUND-BRIDGE-STOP-TAILPIECE-CHROME-/370464312093?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item564164cb1d
- Tonepros: http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-TonePros-AVT2P-wraparound-Bridge-Tailpiece-NICKEL-/300556275480?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item45fa8ccf18

 

[dmraco]

the tonepros II is nice.  I love my Gotoh 510.
http://www.warmoth.com/Gotoh-510-Stud-Mount-Bridge-Chrome-P554C706.aspx

 

[Cagey]

If I had to choose from your list, I'd use the TonePros II. But, if I could go off the reservation, I'd use the Gotoh 510. It's a wrap-around, has a lotta mass, adjustable intonation, and very sturdy mounting. They also don't fall off and bang up your finish when you remove the strings. Plus, they're only $70 from Warmoth.

 

[dmraco]

If I had to choose from your list, I'd use the TonePros II. But, if I could go off the reservation, I'd use the Gotoh 510. It's a wrap-around, has a lotta mass, adjustable intonation, and very sturdy mounting. They also don't fall off and bang up your finish when you remove the strings. Plus, they're only $70 from Warmoth.

great minds think alike.  They also very closely resemble the stock SG setup.

 

[pabloman]

Sexiest bridge ever!!!

 

[Cagey]

Those are nice, and if it weren't for the Gotoh units they'd be my first choice. But, you have to buy studs, and it behooves you to buy the locking TonePros parts. So, you're $150 down for a stoptail bridge. Of course, that's StewMac. Chances are pretty good you could do better from another vendor.

 

[smjenkins]

Thanks for all the replies.  The Gotoh definitely looks interesting but it doesn't have the big screws on the side look of the original, which I like.  Right now I'm leaning toward the TPII.

 

[anorakDan]

I had a Badass on my SG Jr. and I loved it. If I were to do it again, though, I'd go with the Gotoh 510.

 

[Cagey]

Thanks for all the replies.  The Gotoh definitely looks interesting but it doesn't have the big screws on the side look of the original, which I like.  Right now I'm leaning toward the TPII.

I understand wanting what others have had in the past. There's a certain comfort in making the same choices others have made. Or, if you're old enough, it may be nostalgia.

But, seriously: vintage parts suck. On ice. That's why so many designers, engineers and musicians have endeavoured to improve those parts, and they have. Often dramatically. Look what Floyd Rose did for vibratos, or Sperzel did for tuners, or Graphtech did for nuts, or Bill Lawrence did for pickups... the list is long. Their designs beat the living snot out of what came before them.

Unless you're building something for a museum or a display/conversation piece or you have more money than brains and are simultaneously masochistic, why suffer the miserable performance and inherent design flaws of obsolete and outdated parts? Today we have fantastic bridges, tuners, nuts, pickups, etc. available, often priced the same or lower than the junk. Do yourself a favor and take advantage of them, while simultaneously showing your fellow players that you can think for yourself.

 

[anorakDan]

Anybody know anything about Hipshot's Baby Grand bridge? Would it be safe to assume that Warmoth's Gotoh 510 rout would work for the BG?

 

[Cagey]

No, it's not a safe assumption. It seems nothing ever is with guitar hardware, so you always have to check. In this case, we can get the mechanical drawings for both those bridges from Stewart-MacDonald's site and compare them. This is the Hipshot Baby Grand...

and this is the Goto 510...

It appears the mounting post centerlines are within .75mm of each other, which is pretty damn close, and the mounting post holes are the same diameter. In woodworking terms, those dims are spot-on. It's not called out, but looking at the drawings, it appears that the saddles will end up in very much the same space with the same range of adjustment. So, if it was me, I'd probably take the chance. Understand it's a chance, though. I have two Gotoh 510 bridges mounted to two different bodies here, and they both fit to their posts pretty damn close. I mean, I can't move them side to side. There's no slop. I don't have a Baby Grand on hand to play with. So, the question is: do you feel lucky? I don't think you'd need much luck at all, but nobody's claiming they're interchangeable.

 

[anorakDan]

Wow! Thanks, Cagey! I didn't expect such thorough research and speculation on my humble little question. Many thanks. I would most certainly give Warmoth a call to be sure if it would work, or if they could do a custom rout for the Baby Grand. I would have to mail the inserts to them anyway.

Thanks again!

 

[smjenkins]

Thanks for all the replies.  The Gotoh definitely looks interesting but it doesn't have the big screws on the side look of the original, which I like.  Right now I'm leaning toward the TPII.

I understand wanting what others have had in the past. There's a certain comfort in making the same choices others have made. Or, if you're old enough, it may be nostalgia.

But, seriously: vintage parts suck. On ice. That's why so many designers, engineers and musicians have endeavoured to improve those parts, and they have. Often dramatically. Look what Floyd Rose did for vibratos, or Sperzel did for tuners, or Graphtech did for nuts, or Bill Lawrence did for pickups... the list is long. Their designs beat the living snot out of what came before them.

Unless you're building something for a museum or a display/conversation piece or you have more money than brains and are simultaneously masochistic, why suffer the miserable performance and inherent design flaws of obsolete and outdated parts? Today we have fantastic bridges, tuners, nuts, pickups, etc. available, often priced the same or lower than the junk. Do yourself a favor and take advantage of them, while simultaneously showing your fellow players that you can think for yourself.

It isn't about nostalgia, it's about aestehtics.  I agree that improving the performance of  "vintage" parts is a great thing and in general, I will opt for these parts on my builds.  However, not if they have a visual impact that I am uncomfortable with.  And that is a persoanl thing.  For me, the visual part of the traditional wraparound bridge that I like is the the big screws on the side.  The TonePro II has that and still looks to be a significant improvement on the traditional one from an intonation perspective.  My $.02.

 

[Disco Scottie]

I have an Unk with the Wilkinson bridge. I really like it, very similar to the PRS stoptail (which is my favorite bridge of all).

 

[Cagey]

It isn't about nostalgia, it's about aestehtics.  I agree that improving the performance of  "vintage" parts is a great thing and in general, I will opt for these parts on my builds.  However, not if they have a visual impact that I am uncomfortable with.  And that is a persoanl thing.  For me, the visual part of the traditional wraparound bridge that I like is the the big screws on the side.  The TonePro II has that and still looks to be a significant improvement on the traditional one from an intonation perspective.  My $.02.

That's fine. And to put icing on your cake, the Tonepros post bolts aren't the sloppy things Gibson came up with 100 years ago. The tops screw down into the posts so the bridge is held firmly in place. That's a dramatic improvement over the post bolts you normally see that look like somebody liberated from Frankenstein's monster's neck. With their parts, you get the vintage appearance without the vintage headaches.

 

[smjenkins]

That's fine. And to put icing on your cake, the Tonepros post bolts aren't the sloppy things Gibson came up with 100 years ago. The tops screw down into the posts so the bridge is held firmly in place. That's a dramatic improvement over the post bolts you normally see that look like somebody liberated from Frankenstein's monster's neck. With their parts, you get the vintage appearance without the vintage headaches.

:laughing7:

 

[leo12.]

Schaller also do a wraparound bridge no 455. not SG jr correct but it looks closer than the 510, there's
plenty of adjustment.
i saw  & held one back in the early 80's, i was impressed with it . the studs don't lock on to the bridge.
The wraparound  slides into the back of the bridge.
You should also check the bridge radius with the neck radius of your build.
The Schroeder does look good on an SG, there is a black korina build in (a work in progress) that has pics of it.
No mounting studs come with the Schroeder bridge.

 

[reluctant-builder]

I was thinking of going with a Gotoh 510 for my eventual Musiclander build, but I'm wondering how I would adjust the radius, depending on the neck options I select.

I have TOMs on both of my Hagstroms and while I can adjust the saddles forward and backward, I can't move them up and down. In those cases, it doesn't seem to be a problem because, I suppose, the TOM is appropriate to the fingerboard radius. But what about when the bridge and fingerboard are chosen disparately?

Thanks.

 

[Cagey]

The original 510s had some minor saddle height adjustment to them, but they stopped making them that way. The newer ones are a hard 16" radius, give or take a bit depending how you cut the string slots. I'm not sure when the change occurred; my old one is better than 10 years old. But, the new ones work out well for compound radius Warmoth necks, which end up at 16".

 

[reluctant-builder]

I was told that, for a compound neck, a 13" radius would be a good compromise between the 10 - and 16-inch ... but, obviously, I have no idea. Am I wrong to think that I'd absolutely, no matter what, want adjustable saddles on a compound radius guitar?

I just saw TroubledTreble post a mockup of a VIP with a Gotoh 510. It's a sexy bridge, for sure. (http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=9040.msg255538#msg255538)

Does anyone know, offhand, a guitar that might be at Guitar Center that boasts a compound radius and a bridge with fixed saddles? I'd love to just try one out, even if it would be upside-down and backwards.