ES4-B 1st Build

[darthdamo]

You could look at gluing a piece of timber next to the existing block, then re drill with the bench drill.
Personally, I would tie a length of string to the 3point hunk of junk and swing it violently around your head then launch it onto your least favourite neighbours roof.
Then buy a Babicz 3point Full Contact replacement.
Babicz beats anything on the market, especially that slipshod oops hipshot crap.
Dont get me started on slipshod, it would have to be the most expensive fishing sinker I have ever bought.
Crappily made, badly finished and stupidly expensive for the piece of shite you end up with.

I'm so excited about the $130 I've apparently thrown into the ocean!
Sorry for my bad recommendation fender3x..

[fender3x]

I am in no position to cast stones! Hopefully YMMV

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[tonyw]

I'm so excited about the $130 I've apparently thrown into the ocean!
Sorry for my bad recommendation fender3x..

They get some good reviews, i have things on guitars people have put the crapper on, (certain brand lockers etc) and i have found them to be good units, you never know until you use them yourself, one mans cup of tea is another mans dish water.

Everyone has their hates in guitar parts and brands, dont get me started on mine

[fender3x]

Hey, you wear a guitar, and it has a girl's shape. I think that's part of why I can't be completely rational about them.

Put a note in to Babicz to see if they have some sort of adapter. Would like it to fit without too much fussing if I invest $140 in one.

If it is going to take some fussing, I may just buy one with a bunch of screws that will for sure have plenty of wood to bite into. I like the G&L and the Schecter best, and they're no more expensive than Babicz or hipshot...and they are wide enough to cover my mistakes with the plugs. If I get one and it does not seem like a good option, Frankenjazz will be happy with it.

Does the ESB-4 use fender-normal string spacing?

Also, since I have to buy one, which type of plug cutter would you folks recommend.

BTW, Tony, am hoping I can get my ESB close to the color you have in your avatar...

[fender3x]

FWIW, just got email from J. Babicz himself. Unfortunately there is no adapter for archtops.

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[fender3x]

Will be looking forward to the review by Darthdamo...but am beginning to think that won't work for me either. Took another look at the hole, and at least 1/3 it is in the cavity rather than the center block. I *think* I can put a dowel in, and have ordered some 7/8 dowels. Got a little piece of maple and have a plug cutter on order. I may be able to patch the hole, but I am not confident that I can make the hole under it solid. I think that is pretty much ruling out ANY three point bridge.

Measured the G&L bridge I have here to see how it would work. The good news is that if I could figure out how to get it adapted it would cover the patched holes. The bad news is that it's so wide that the side screws would not bite into the center block.

OK, so now returning to Wokkaboy's idea of a two point bridge and trapeze. The patches will be visible, because the two point goes in a bit forward of where the three point's go in. That's good from a strength perspective, bad from an aesthetics perspective. But with a two point and trapeze I should not have to worry about pull outs since the tailpiece will pull the strings down on to the bridge. When I put the bridge in the right place, it should be centered enough over the center block. Won't have tons of meat on the two edges, but should be enough if pressure is down on the bridge rather than trying to pull it up. At least that's what I am thinking at the moment.

Hoping that I can get my plugs well enough matched so that the scars won't be too bad.

Saying very bad things under my breath about the placement of these holes.

[fender3x]

I think I am going to have a lot of left over parts when this is all finished. Seems like I order parts more than I do anything else.

I ordered this bridge:

http://i.ebayimg.com/18/!B-FV7TwBmk~$(KGrHqZ,!igEzN)Pgcf1BM7qPz)mdg~~0_1.JPG? set_id=8800005007

...basically a heavier duty two point tune-o-matic with a stop tailpiece. Was not sure about the stop tailpiece. It comes with one...but I have since determined that it won't fit. I am not evern sure that the two ferrules for the two point are going to be entirely in the center-block. The center-points of the ferrules should be at 93mm. It's difficult to get an exact measurement of the center-block, but my best guess is that it is no more than 98 mm wide. So there should be just enough meat for the ferrules, and the pressure on them will be downward, so it should be OK.

However, Gibson style stop-tailpieces all appear to put the studs at 98mm apart. Too wide for the center-block in this beast. So, that will not work as an alternative. I think one might be able to use a Warwick two piece, but they are pricey, might need to be adapted and you'd need to send to Germany for them.

So, my build will most likely be getting a trapese tailpiece. As luck would have it, only one that I found will actually fit:

http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/FjsAAO...nFB/s-l300.jpg

I hate the little curly-cues, but all the others that I could find were too long. Even the ones that say "short" were too long.

While I wait for the mail to start bringing me things, I went back and did some more measurements, and found out that the pickup cavities are also a bit south of where they should be. I can compensate a bit with the pickup rings, but not enough...

I want to avoid routing on top of archtop, and have been looking for an alternative. So far the best I have come up with are to get some lipstick tubes. They should fit in the existing cavities as long as I am able to modify the mounting hardware, as well as create some sort of a custom pickup ring to cover the gaps.... Nothing to it (he said under his breath).

This is starting to look like a long road...

[fender3x]

I am getting some lessons is in reading the fine print. The bridge I ordered turned out to be a massive piece of Korean metal. Looks great, and I am sure that I will use it for something. Unfortunately, not for this project. It turned out to be too wide for my center-block. So, I ordered a 2nd tuneomatic two post bridge where the centers of the posts are 85mm apart. Figure 90-92 to the outer edge of the studs. I figure the center block is about 95 mm. Should be close, but hopefully the holes will be all in the wood.

However, using a two point bridge with a trapeze tailpiece turns out not to be a piece of cake either. First problem is that when I do the measurements, the bridge needs to be so far back on the body that only the shortest tailpieces I could find would work. Even with these, there's only about an inch between the saddles and the tailpiece. But when I dry fit, I saw another problem. The saddles are a conventional 18mm apart, but the string spacing on the tailpiece is only 15mm.

So, I said some bad words, and went back to the internet to see if I could find a trapeze with the right string spacing...and I could not. Not a short one anyway.

Finally what I did was I ordered some string ferrules. Usually these would be used for putting the strings through the body. I thought about doing that, but figured the break angle would be too extreme. So my current plan is to replace the part of the trapeze where the strings attach a bar made of maple, and use the string ferrules to get the proper spacing. I'll need to bend the trapeze a bit to get everything to fit, and am not positive it will work, but right now it's the best idea I have.

I have to say that the bridge issue on this beast is a bit of a nightmare. The three-point bridge has the problems all have noted above. I two point might be a better solution, but the center block is too narrow, for gibsonesque stop bars, and the bass is two short for most trapeze tailpieces. A lot could be solved by making the center block just a bit wider, and drilling for a two point bridge and a stop tailpiece.

That said, what I really would prefer would be to find a stop tail piece like you find on the old Alembic or Warwick basses. Or maybe make one. Any ideas along those lines would be VERY welcome!

https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/t5...NjUyOA%3D%3D.2

https://reverb-res.cloudinary.com/im...k3f5uapy7p.jpg

[Brendan]

Something like this?
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Chrome-4-...MAAOSw3ydVjU0Y

[fender3x]

Something like this?
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Chrome-4-...MAAOSw3ydVjU0Y

Don't know why I didn't see this until now. Actually if you want one of those, I have one I can sell you... I have the Korean made version. The post holes for the bridge are wider than most Gibsons, and wider than the center-block in an ESB-4 kit. The tailpiece is even wider. So if there's a thunderbird builder out there whose body is undrilled, I'd be happy to send it. Heavy and appears pretty good...just too wide for my needs.

The Alembic style or Warwick have screws that go between the strings and would definitely be in the center-block. I haven't been able to find these though in the aftermarket. Also have not been able to find a tailpiece with the proper string spacing. Looking at modifying a trapeze tailpiece to fit