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Post subject: tuning issues
Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 7:38 am
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Hey guys,

I have an EJ strat which is an amazing guitar.
I am running 3 springs and have had the bridge setup
by a Fender tech..
I am having trouble with the guitar staying in tune when I use the whammy bar.
Should I try and lube the nut?

Ant ideas??


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Post subject: Re: tuning issues
Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 7:41 am
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sweet strat wrote:
Hey guys,

I have an EJ strat which is an amazing guitar.
I am running 3 springs and have had the bridge setup
by a Fender tech..
I am having trouble with the guitar staying in tune when I use the whammy bar.
Should I try and lube the nut?

Ant ideas??


Yeah lube the nut - you may need to add more or adjust your tension springs (ie they look like this now |||, maybe change them to /|\ - that keeps it more stable and LOADS of people do it. I had the same problem so I had 2 more springs put in the back - that works great for me (clapton does it too!) :)

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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 7:44 am
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You should go back to 5 springs... that's what the EJ was designed around!


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Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 7:51 am
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An EJ STrat is a Strat, and it wasn't "designed around" a five-spring set-up anymore than any Stratocaster was.

The number of springs you use is a choice based on how stiff you want the strem to be or how much float you want: That's all.

A floating Strat trem, when properly balanced with the tension of the strings you use (and each brand and set exerts a slightly different tension, so changing string brands will require you reset the trem) really, truly does stay in tune when the nut is cut properly. Dan Erlewine's book gives excellent instructions for getting a Strat trem in balance.

Lube is a stop gap. A nut that needs lubrication isn't cut right.


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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 8:21 am
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I'm all about five springs, too. I had put 11s on my Strat when I first got it and it wouldn't stay in tune (the factory had 9s). Adding the two extra springs helped quite a bit.


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Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 8:27 am
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Once again:

You can use whatever number of springs works for you, as long as you get the springs in balance with the string tension. Hence the name "Synchronized Tremolo." The tension of the springs is synched with the tension of the strings.

If your guitar doesn't stay in tune, it's because you either don't have the trem balanced or your nut isn't cut right.

I use three springs in my Strat with the bridge floating at least a 1/8", and it stays in tune all the time because it's properly balanced and the nut is perfect.


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Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:07 pm
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Call me a noob, but I always assumed setting the trem was an issue of screwing around with more or less springs and springs of greater or less tension. That's not the case?


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Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:12 pm
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A trem with 5 springs is stiffer to use and may return to pitch faster than a trem setup with 3 springs, BUT if set up properly there should be no tuning issues with any number of springs.

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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:20 pm
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CAFeathers wrote:
A trem with 5 springs is stiffer to use and may return to pitch faster than a trem setup with 3 springs, BUT if set up properly there should be no tuning issues with any number of springs.



Exactly.


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Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 1:40 pm
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Also make sure the springs are silver. Silver springs for vintage bridge and black springs for two-point.


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Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 3:52 pm
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I have found that most peoples tuning issues has to do more with not knowing how to string the guitar properly than anything to do with the nut or springs.


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Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:58 pm
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Strataholic wrote:
Also make sure the springs are silver. Silver springs for vintage bridge and black springs for two-point.


This is the second time I've seen someone post this. Forgive me for being gullible... but is this true? I have a two-point (Floyd Rose) trem... with 3 silver springs. The guy at GC looked at me like I was nuts when I asked about black springs.

I don't have any tuning stability issues, but I'm curious about this whole "black spring" issue. Is this a late April Fool's joke?

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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 5:56 pm
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ClearwaterZiggy wrote:
Strataholic wrote:
Also make sure the springs are silver. Silver springs for vintage bridge and black springs for two-point.


This is the second time I've seen someone post this. Forgive me for being gullible... but is this true? I have a two-point (Floyd Rose) trem... with 3 silver springs. The guy at GC looked at me like I was nuts when I asked about black springs.

I don't have any tuning stability issues, but I'm curious about this whole "black spring" issue. Is this a late April Fool's joke?


According to Dan Earliwine, they are color coded as they have different dimensions and different tensions.


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Post subject:
Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 3:56 pm
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Sweet Strat, do you have new strings on the guitar? If that's the case, it might be something as easy as you need to stretch the strings. I haven't done too much string stretching myself, so someone here or maybe do a Google search for "string stretching" will help.


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Posted: Mon Apr 28, 2008 8:09 pm
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I have my trem set to float. Normally if I just dive and let up my bridge it will come back flat. If, after a dive, I flick up on the bar, it will usually snap back to pitch. But this obviously won't work if the trem is flush to the body.

I also confirm that springs made by different companies vary in tension which affect your setup if you swap them out. Black springs are softer than silver springs. Though I have an Am Dlx with the two point fulcrum I swapped out the blackies for some of Dan Erlewine silver springs and I like their response better than the stock springs.

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