Hi all, I'm new to the forums and was looking for advice regarding my strat.

Background:
I've had my American Standard strat for about 9 months now, been playing for about alittle over a year. I had a cheap generic (made in China) guitar which I had restrung once before.

My Problem:
I recently broke my A string during a gig and during the re-stringing process, I had some difficulty getting the whammy bar to just the right height because I changed the guage of my strings. Long story short, I was being a newbie and didn't realize that I had to consider that when buying strings. So I spent some time online trying to find out how to adjust the height, which I figured out eventually, and though I think the bar is at a reasonable height...

I was wondering
"Just how high should the bridge be off the guitar?"

The short answer: 1/8 inch.

The long answer: "• TREMOLO

•Stratocaster guitars can have four distinctive types of bridges. The most well­known
bridge is the vintage­style "synchronized" tremolo. The other three are the
American Series bridge, which is a modern­day two­pivot bridge; the non­tremolo
hardtail bridge; and a locking tremolo, such as the American Deluxe or Floyd
Rose® locking tremolos. If you have a non­tremolo "hardtail" bridge, proceed to
"Intonation (Roughing it out)." If you have a locking tremolo bridge, click here.

•First, remove the tremolo back cover. Check your tuning. For a vintage­style tremolo bridge,
a great way to enhance its performance is to pull the bridge back flush with the body
using the tremolo arm. Then loosen all six screws located at the front edge of the bridge
plate, raising them so that they all measure approximately 1/16" (1.6 mm) above the top
of the bridge plate. Then tighten the two outside screws back down until they're flush
with the top of the bridge plate. The bridge will now pivot on the outside screws, leaving
the four inside screws in place for bridge stability. For a two­pivot model such as the
American Series bridge, use your tremolo arm to pull the bridge back flush with the body
and adjust the two pivot screws to the point where the tremolo plate sits entirely flush at
the body (not lifted at the front or back of the plate).

•Allowing the bridge to float freely (no tension on the tremolo arm) using the claw screws in
the tremolo cavity, adjust the bridge to your desired angle—Fender spec is a 1/8" (3.2
mm) gap at rear of bridge. You'll need to retune periodically to get the right balance
between the strings and the springs. If you prefer a bridge flush to the body, adjust spring
tension to equal string tension, while the bridge rests on the body (you may want to put
an extra 1/2 turn to each claw screw to ensure that the bridge remains flush to the body
during string bends). Caution: Do not over­tighten the springs, as this can put
unnecessary tension on the arm during tremolo use. Finally, you may wish to apply a
small dab of Chapstick® or Vaseline® at the pivot contact points of the bridge for very
smooth operation.

_________________
-Kirk

GUITARS
'12 Sonoran Acoustic - black (dated 10/31/12)
'13 Standard Strat
AMP
Vox ac4c1-bl
PEDALS
Compressor
Big Muff
Vox Stomplab 1G
Carbon Copy Delay

Easy answer, however high you want it. Mine tend to sit around 3/8's" up so I can get a good amount of pull up (around a tone and a half on the G string).

Most like less, some like more. Jeff Beck has his sitting so it can pull up two whole tones on the open G.

_________________
No no and no

You're getting good answers here. Another way of deciding on the height, is to not use a ruler or feeler gauge, but to adjust the tremolo springs so that when you pull up on the whammy bar all the way (until the bridge hits the body), it's exactly one half step. Some guys find it useful in their style to have that 1/2 step up bend available. I like it just because it seems to put my floating bridge at a reasoanble height without me having to actually measure it.

Didn't see if anygone mentioned it here, but a normal part of your setup once you've determined the ideal height (for you) is to bend the whammy bar so that it's the ideal height (for you) off the top of the guitar when you use it. Just put the bar in a padded vise or anything that'll hold it securely and tweak it a liittle. One or two tries and you'll have it nicely customized.

Thanks all for the advice, I kind of had a scare last night as it looked like the trem was sitting too high off the body and I didn't want to fiddle with the screws for the springs (but ended up doing so anyway). Will see how far the sound changes on the current setting I have which is about 3/8 of an inch to half an inch off the body.

For the springs inside, are there special kinds of springs for our fender strats or will any available at the music store do?

I'd say I feel awfully welcome in the community because of your responses.

Bear in mind that at 3/8" off the body, you have tripled the Fender recommendation. This isn't to say that there aren't players who like to adjust the bridge to one extreme or another, but why would you want to start with an extreme adjustment?

I'm not suggesting you start with the Fender spec because I want you to do it "my way". I just want to see someone new to the instrument get the most out of it and using the standard specs is a good start.

Don't sweat adjusting the springs. That's what they're there for. If you find that the screws become difficult to turn as you get the bridge to the height you want, then it's time to add a couple more springs (assuming you don't already have five of them installed).

One final thought, and this may or may not apply to you. Every new Strat user, in order to understand his instrument, should take all the strings off his guitar, remove the tremolo springs, and remove the entire tremelo unit. Then take a look at how the thing actually functions....the relationship between the strings, the springs, and how the two balance the trem unit on its knife edge. I think a lot of the players who don't quite understand the unit would have an aha moment if they took time to fiddle with it.

Bear in mind that it was Leo Fender's intent that the guitar be made up of components that are easily disassembled and replaced or adjusted.

I recently jammed with a band, and the guitar player was playing a Peavey guitar with a fixed bridge. He said he had bought an American Strat but took it back right away because of the tuning issue, and got the Peavey. It was clear that he simply didn't understand that with a floating trem, every time you tune one string, it effects the others. Because he couldn't get his mind around that, he gave up on a excellent instrument.

I've been playing and maintaining Strats for years. On my American Deluxe I keep it parallel to the body and the width of a matchstick off the body. This may sound crude, but it works for quick adjustments in gigging conditions. Oh, I've had the Floyd, the Kahler, the Classic etc. and the 2-point trem is the best in my opinion, and I don't need a locking nut. Granted that I no longer play like I did in the eighties

That is one tasty looking strat you have there, love to see a better pic of it. I've got a deluxe in that aged cherry finish with mint pickguard, but that black 3 ply makes it look even better!