PDA

View Full Version : SG-1F build - The Red Lady



Wiggles
15-04-2013, 01:34 AM
Hi All,

Finally got started on my first build yesterday, thought i'd throw some pics up to show off/keep me motivated. It's an SG with the flame cap, i'm painting it Wudtone Carmine Gypsy.

Headstock:

I wanted the headstock to be a bit different to the usual Gibson/Epiphone shapes, but nothing too complicated. I really like the 'devil horn' look the SG has going on, so I thought i'd carry it over to the head stock.
I drew up a little sketch on the pc and printed out a template to scale. Traced the template onto a scrap bit of pine to practice on and got cracking with my fully professional set of luthiers tools (cheap coping saw, hacksaw and some Aldi metal files) what was that saying about the right tool for the job?

The test turned out OK (the photo makes it look worse than it is) i figured out that i need to cover both sides in masking tape to limit splintering.
http://i.imgur.com/oRR2IUbh.jpg

I also tested out how well masking and painting the face will work seeing as there's no binding
http://i.imgur.com/Tel9rq4h.jpg

Turns out - not great. I got some bleed through where the paint bled through the pores of the wood just slightly. Plus, i'm not sure that i can keep the Wudtone off the face and that can't be good for the paint to stick to. So i'm thinking i'll do the whole neck and headstock the one colour.

Wiggles
15-04-2013, 01:47 AM
Well, it seems that the imgur links i posted worked ok, so on we go.

Took the plunge with the real headstock, taped it up in packing material to protect it from bumps and scrapes, masked up the H/S and traced the design on from the paper template.

http://i.imgur.com/KtkjYQ2.jpg

Set up the high tech clamping system

http://i.imgur.com/oeY3hse.jpg

Rouged out the shape with the coping saw

http://i.imgur.com/r9NjAJ2.jpg

Then file the bejeesus out of it until it's very close to final shape.

http://i.imgur.com/98JMiUu.jpg

some 60 grit to take out the file marks and adjust the curve, and 120 grit to smooth off.

http://i.imgur.com/pdzYmFVh.jpg

Turned out pretty good, it's *almost* symmetrical, and there's some slight variation in cut angles if you look closely. Overall, i'm pretty happy with it. I was tempted to do a more exagerated shape to the horns, but i was worried they'd break off too easily, so i've gone with the more subdued shape more like the smaller horn on the body.

http://i.imgur.com/mJOhsI6h.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/QwpIq1Wh.jpg


Some tips worth passing on:
Do a test piece
Tape both sides before cutting to reduce chips.
Cut with a mm or 2 margin and 'sneak up' on the shape with the file (filing is a legitimate wood working technique, just not usually with the files i used :p )
Know when to stop - it'll never be perfect and you can make it worse trying to fix it if you're not careful!

Final sanding and Wudtone to come.

adam
15-04-2013, 01:51 AM
“A work of art is never finished. It is merely abandoned.”

E.M. Forster

Looks good Wiggles. I'm not a fan of Devils Horns anything, but that actually suits the guitar.

And yes, a jigsaw is a worthwhile investment.

keloooe
15-04-2013, 02:30 AM
Looks great Wiggles!

sfkhooper
15-04-2013, 05:22 AM
Not my fav headstock either, but have to admit you've done an incredible job. Well done! Nice filing too. Pretty easy to end up with unintended rounding-off, but looks like you've kept it pretty square.

Wiggles
15-04-2013, 05:43 AM
Thanks guys, even the ones who don't like it :P

More photos!

Test assembly went well, neck fit is tight and straight. Nut to 12th fret to bridge is pretty good (~2mm difference to the middle of the saddle adjustment, should be spot on once installed).

http://i.imgur.com/hIpFqxY.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/G8ilWQf.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/CIQEN4a.jpg

Final sanding was done in 240 grit and then gone over lightly with 0000 steel wool.
Masked up and ready for deep colour.
http://i.imgur.com/KAh2mkU.jpg

The body really soaked up the deep colour, i was worried i wouldn't have enough to cover body let alone the neck as well! Had enough in the end, with a little left over. The neck didn't take nearly as much as the body, so i might give it another deep coat to get it closer to the body.

I loved the flame top... mostly. As you can see, there's a couple of pale spots. I'm not sure what the story is there, it was all sanded the same and there was no glue or anything else splattered there that i could see.
There were a few spots on the edge as well, the couple of factory repaired dings that i'd taken to with the brass wire brush and sanding as mentioned in that other thread. But there was a couple of other spots around it that just didn't take the stain.

http://i.imgur.com/hQBTP1Kh.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/bfwXAZG.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/AWjQIge.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/ygz0kMj.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/pkcO9hZ.jpg

Any ideas what's going on there? Did i do something wrong (or not do something that i should have)?

The back came up nicely, i think i'd have been better off with the non-flame SG. I'm a little bit disappointed with how this one turned out.

sfkhooper
15-04-2013, 05:55 AM
Looks like you have a similar thing going on to me. There's something in the wood, maybe an especially sappy area, maybe something spilt on it in the factory. It's not something that's going to be easily fixed at all. Check out my build, you'll see a similar thing going on.

Gavin1393
15-04-2013, 06:31 AM
It looks like that $&@$ glue......... Although not sure why there would be glue on an SG since there is no binding.....weird?

Otherwise it could be a 'polished' spot where either your efforts or the factories have sanded a spot to the point wjere it has become polished and hence will not take in any stain.

To me, this looks like the glue.....but at a loss as to why it is there.....

dingobass
15-04-2013, 06:36 AM
Yep, it's glue....

adam
15-04-2013, 06:38 AM
Wiggles and Hooper, I've just alerted Dingo Bass to your issues and hopefully we'll get his advice. I fear, however, that he's just going to say you both haven't removed the glue with enough sanding.

I'm not sure what glue residue is doing on the SG-1F, unless it's from the flame cap, but it looks to be in an odd position.

I don't think either of you should live with these results. I'm sure amongst everyone here, we can work out what's causing the stain not to take and then figure out a workaround for both of you.

I wouldn't be putting any more coats on though. Hang tight till we work something out.

Wiggles
15-04-2013, 06:40 AM
Is there any way to fix it or at least minimise the impact?

Gavin1393
15-04-2013, 06:41 AM
Oh of course, its a Flamed Maple Cap you have there, definitely the glue. Maybe worth having a chat to Adam and DB about your options with regards to getting this one right?
What I would be doing right now is getting out my sand paper and having another go at removing the glue that is more central to the guitar body.
I am concerned about the glue at the sides as the caps are usually incredibly thin at the edges and you run the risk of sanding through the cap. This then means you need to remove some of the edging or you are forced into doing a Burst finish to hide the exposed parts where the cap used to be.

DB, any thoughts on this?

Gavin1393
15-04-2013, 06:46 AM
I have had another look at your body of the guitar and can tell you it is definitely the glue. I think you might need to redo the sanding job on the top. You will need to take extreme care not to sand through the cap.
Have another go with the steel brushes where the paint hasn't penetrated the wood. Follow the grain with the brushes as you scour the wood. Then to finish, lighty sand the wood with 180 grit.
Good luck!

adam
15-04-2013, 07:04 AM
Just hang tight guys, DB's been in touch and we've now sent an urgent email to the Factory asking what glue they're using. When they answer (they're usually very quick), we'll come up with a procedure for removing the glue as part of the preparation. (And we'll do a dedicated video on it!)

I guess you'll both probably need to be sanding back to wood around these spots (if not the whole top). We will supply you with any Wudtone you need, at no cost, if you run out because of this.

Remember, as DB says, there's always a work around.

dingobass
15-04-2013, 07:07 AM
OK, try Gavin's wire brush technique, going with the grain
Then give it alight sand with 180 grit paper and dab the Wudtone on.

Leave it to cure for two days and then dab on more, again leave it for two days.

Do not steel wool between coats until you have put the first base coat on.

Gavin1393
15-04-2013, 07:47 AM
I have gathered all the intel on the glue issue and posted it all under one thread - hope this is useful to you!

it is here: http://pitbullguitars.com/?page_id=42&mingleforumaction=viewtopic&t=242.0

sfkhooper
15-04-2013, 07:49 AM
Hi Adam, I don't think it's glue in my case. a) it's in a helluva weird spot as there are no joins there and b) the mottled look suggests it's more a natural occurrence than man made. I appreciate your concern, but I'm keeping the oddity and pressing on. Do you guys look them over before shipping? I only ask because it really was quite obvious from the moment I unpacked. Don't stress though, I'm not unhappy.

adam
15-04-2013, 08:22 AM
hey Hooper, in answer to your question, Phil W does look over every guitar he ships and he's a carpenter by trade, so he would certainly have noticed that knot. I guess, like me, he figured it was a nice bit of feature grain that should look good with the finish. I don't think he or I would've expected the result you got.

I'm glad you're going to keep going with it and I'm sure between DB, myself and all the other very helpful people here, we can get that top looking sensational.

Wiggles
15-04-2013, 10:42 AM
Thanks for the replies everyone. I won't have another chance to work on it again until Tuesday night, so i'll have a go then.

Plan of action is vigorous (but careful) brass wire brushing, 180 grit paper taking care not to go through the cap then dabbing Wudtone. I'll take pics of any progress.

I have enough deep colour to cover the repair areas, but i wanted to give the neck another coat to get it closer to the body and might not have enough to do both. Is 2 coats of deep likely to do what i want on the neck? or should i expect the neck to be a lighter shade to the body? or will more base coats on the neck bring the colour up later?

4runner
15-04-2013, 10:47 AM
Seems to be a common problem, i have similar markings in the exact same areas. Difficult to view when sanding and it feels flat when you do. Really only noticeable when you start staining.

wokkaboy
16-04-2013, 05:26 AM
Hi all,
I have similar marks where wudtone hasn't soaked in on my PRS-1F(pic attached), I assume this is glue as well. I wasn't sure if it was something in the cap but will probably have to try and sand it out

my SG-1F didn't seem to have any glue on the cap but finding the outside area of the cap isn't soaking in the black magic woman as much as I'd like, might be more sanding for me !
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/wn59b-2013-04-13-10.05.24.jpg

Gavin1393
16-04-2013, 09:51 AM
Yep, dreaded glue. You will need to be very careful at the edges where the cap will be incredibly thin. It's very easy to sand right through the cap and then staining isnt an option . Best advice is to look at doing a burst with a solid exterior in this circumstance.

Wiggles
17-04-2013, 07:36 AM
Update time.

Got some better photos of the issue
http://i.imgur.com/Fh3REuL.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/0m6xpkb.jpg

Wire brushed and sanded, was very concerned that i'd bust through the cap. Did a few little glue spots around the side and near the neck pocket as well.
http://i.imgur.com/qgrDZQl.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/hMgPdhGh.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/rKc98SC.jpg

Dabbed on some deep colour to the repaired areas and hung up to dry.
http://i.imgur.com/lCOHgSK.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/f2RQUt5.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/9R6zkTP.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/02ElZxM.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/CSU4eqE.jpg

(Sorry for the dodgy pics, the flash washes out the detail and no flash gives grainy pics.)

I'll leave it there for 2 days as DB advised then dab some more on. I have the tiniest amount of deep colour left, should just about do another round.

I'm pretty happy with how the repaired area took the deep colour, but there's now a darker ring around the repair that i hope i can hide with the base coats to come.

The glue spots near where the neck attaches to the body didn't come up as well as i'd hoped, but it's very difficult to get in there. I might have another go at them, otherwise i can ignore that part as it's difficult to see.

dingobass
17-04-2013, 08:09 AM
Hey Wiggles,
You are well on the way to defeating the dreaded glue drama!

As for the dark ring effect, you can over come this by carefully steel wooling around your touch up area and then once you have the repaired area as close to the body colour as possible, go over the whole lot with another deep colour coat.

let it cure for a few days and then give it a light steel wool and start on your base coats.

you mentioned that you are low on the deep colour. No probs, email me and we will sort you out.

Wiggles
17-04-2013, 08:25 AM
Cheers mate, i'm hoping i can get a little bit more flame effect to show up in the repair with a second application. The photos look like i've gone right through the cap, but IRL you can see a hint of it coming through.

Just to double check i'm on the right track, i'll:
* leave it for the next 2 days
* dab some more deep colour straight on the repaired areas (no steel wool)
* leave for 2 more days.
maybe again give it more until the repair is the correct colour.

Then:
* steel wool the darker area to get it to match the rest of the body \\
* do a whole coat of deep colour.

dingobass
17-04-2013, 08:44 AM
Hey Wiggles,

Right on the money! 8-)

Wiggles
17-04-2013, 08:53 AM
Cheers mate, just wanted to have the instructions all together for when i come back days later and forgot what i'm up to ;)
I've emailed Adam to arrange some more deep colour as i couldn't find your email address.

Thanks for all the help & advice.

dingobass
17-04-2013, 08:57 AM
dingobass@pitbullguitars.com

Gavin1393
17-04-2013, 09:30 AM
Hey DB

Email? Did your 1800 number get turned off with the analog signal today?

keloooe
17-04-2013, 09:49 AM
Haha, I like that!!! Adam hasn't set up that number yet has he???

Wiggles
25-04-2013, 02:17 AM
Replacement deep colour arrived Monday - thanks DB/Adam!

Applied some more to the repair yesterday, no photos as there isn't a lot to see. It looks much better now, flame effect starting to show nicely. I'll see how it's going over the weekend and post up any interesting pics.

Wiggles
27-04-2013, 11:23 AM
Got back into it yesterday.Steel wool on the darker area around on the repair took some of it down, but it's still noticable.

2nd coat of deep colour makes it look good, i'm hoping that i can do clever things on the base coats to make the repair less obvious (especially on the back).
http://i.imgur.com/VCoL3GC.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/Hr7tUOu.jpg

Also did another coat of deep on the neck, it's pretty close to the body now.
http://i.imgur.com/ZywxGeb.jpg

So i'll leave it to cure for a bit before getting into the base coats. The carmine gypsy has a red and a mahogany base coat, should i alternate between the two? Or should i mix them together and apply as one?

Brendan
27-04-2013, 12:05 PM
Looks like you've fixed it up quite a bit, but I know - you'll know it's there - pitty it wasnt a bit closer to the neck and covered by the pickguard. Nice colour overall though and good luck.

dingobass
27-04-2013, 01:32 PM
I would go another deep colour coat first.
Try to avoid the darker areas as much as possible and you should be able to get a more even colour spread.

When this has cured, give it a good rub down with the steel wool and it should come up beautifully.

As for the mahogany base coat, usually one coat is enough to change the colour to the cherry.
Of course this is always up to your taste, and you may want to add more to deepen the colour.

Wiggles
28-04-2013, 01:44 AM
Thanks Brendon, The area under the pick guard is pristine :p It's fine, adds character i suppose!

Cheers DB, i'll give it another hit with deep colour and see how well i can even it out.

Brendan
28-04-2013, 04:50 AM
Whatever the outcome it's already starting to look impressive. That's why we go for stains and natural wood to get that natural look...

Wiggles
02-05-2013, 07:53 AM
Went another coat of deep colour on Sunday as suggested, looks better. No photos, since it's difficult to see the difference.

I moved on to a coat of Mahogany base coat last night, makes quite a bit of difference.
Repair areas are (kinda, sorta) starting to look like grain features!

http://i.imgur.com/g2IYsts.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/Uf1xIlT.jpg

I'm going to do a couple of coats of Carmine over the next week or so and see how it's looking. I was aiming for a real blood red, so i might go for another Mahogany depending on how it goes.


In other guitar making news - My wife made me this for my birthday 8-)

http://i.imgur.com/6HxdyWJ.jpg

adam
02-05-2013, 08:10 AM
Hey, that's really coming together nicely, Wiggles. Love the cake!

keloooe
02-05-2013, 09:30 AM
Yeah, the cake looks great!!! I might ask for a les Paul style cake for my birthday (which is drawing near now, Adam *promised* me a ST-1 kit and DB *promised* me the body mod and the Cherry Flamenco, to get my mind off the LP... WHATEVER YOU GUYS DO, DON'T TELL EITHER OF THEM!!!!)

Back to the subject, the SG is starting to go a bit more of a blood colour, like you wanted Wiggles, maybe a bit more Mahogany and you might actually be fine!

dingobass
02-05-2013, 09:45 AM
Cheeky Pest! :D

Gavin1393
02-05-2013, 09:46 AM
Quote from keloooe on May 1, 2013, 18:30
Yeah, the cake looks great!!! I might ask for a les Paul style cake for my birthday (which is drawing near now, Adam *promised* me a ST-1 kit and DB *promised* me the body mod and the Cherry Flamenco, to get my mind off the LP... WHATEVER YOU GUYS DO, DON'T TELL EITHER OF THEM!!!!)

Back to the subject, the SG is starting to go a bit more of a blood colour, like you wanted Wiggles, maybe a bit more Mahogany and you might actually be fine!

Your secret is safe with us Pest!!

Wiggles
07-05-2013, 12:37 AM
Put on another coat of red base. Starting to look reallly good now :)

http://i.imgur.com/IEagul6.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/3f3f6w2.jpg

I also wanted to give a shout out to mytoolstore.com.au, they've got a bunch of guitar stuff available http://www.mytoolstore.com.au/categories/Guitar-tools/

I picked up a Stewart Mac radiused sanding block and it worked out cheaper through them than buying from overseas (once shipping is added). There was a hold up with stock when i ordered mine and they took the time to give me a phone call to let me know which was nice.

They also sell 3M self adhesive paper by the meter.

Gavin1393
07-05-2013, 04:16 AM
I had a look at the store, it is all STEWMAC stuff. A fairly hefty margin on some of the stuff but I suppose if you are only buying one item it might save you a few dollars, Stewmac shipping is so cheap anyway when you are buying a whole bunch of stuff like some of us do. But I will bear them in mind... good to hear they have carried on the great service of STEWMAC.

Wiggles
07-05-2013, 04:28 AM
Yep, it's def stew mac kit. It was $17 postage on a $15 sanding block from stew mac direct, so it saved me about $4 overall to buy from the local mob.

I only needed the block. If i bought all the stuff i wanted, i'd have easily spent 3x as much on tools as i did on guitars!

Gavin1393
07-05-2013, 05:19 AM
Quote from Wiggles on May 6, 2013, 13:28
I only needed the block. If i bought all the stuff i wanted, i'd have easily spent 3x as much on tools as i did on guitars!

...and therein lies the danger!

I find myself adding 'tons' of stuff to my StewMac order that I 'might' need to justify paying the freight!

keloooe
07-05-2013, 06:31 AM
That probably is the best part of SM, the freight is flat rate $25 (or so I heard!), which means yiou can pile on some pretty expensive stuff and have minimal freight costs!!!

Wiggles
07-05-2013, 07:57 AM
Hmmm, i just did a test checkout on their page, def. costs more than $25 postage!

dingobass
07-05-2013, 12:59 PM
SM postage rates go by weight. When you have spent as much cash as Gavin and I have with them, you learn how to construct your order to avoid a hefty postage.

Sure, they may not be the cheapest, but I can have my order delivered within 3 working days which is faster than getting it sent over from the "Far East"!

Just had a look at the site... OUCH! The mark up on most things is crazy! With the Aussie dollar being worth more than the US dollar, it makes good sense for me to shop with SM.

Wiggles
27-05-2013, 06:01 AM
Ok, i've done the last few coats and the colour is now where i want it (finally!)

Do i need to do anything special when the clear coat? Do i steel wool in between coats as well?

dingobass
27-05-2013, 09:40 AM
Hey Wiggles,
A light steel wool between coats just to keep it nice and smooth.
Make sure that you put the top coats on really REALLY thin... about four or five coats with a 48 hour wait before you apply the last and she will shine!

Wiggles
27-05-2013, 09:45 AM
Awesome, Cheers DB.


[b]she will shine!

I hope not, it's a satin finish! :P

Wiggles
11-06-2013, 03:26 AM
So after a marathon long weekend effort, i've glued up the neck, wired the electronics and finished assembly!

http://i.imgur.com/Gp9oJcRh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/VGwEMvMh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/GlX7lHKh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/JgWFJuUh.jpg

Looks great, plays... ok. Pickups sound great but the action is too high and i don't seem to be able to get it down as far as i'd like.

It's a little difficult to see in the pic, but there's approx 3.5-4mm of gap between the 22nd fret and the low E string. That measurement is with the bridge adjustment bottomed out and the truss rod adjusted to minimum relief (the low E and A strings are buzzing on the first 3 frets, so it really needs a more relief).

http://i.imgur.com/hByt4HKh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/95NFR24h.jpg

Should i have done something differently during construction? or am i asking for absurdly low action? :p

The only adjustment i can see would be to file the bottom of the bridge where it contacts the adjusters, but that's a bit extreme.

P.s. Please ignore the little bit of bare wood showing at the neck joint, i made a slight miscalculation when masking up. The neck is definitely in the pocket all the way!

wokkaboy
11-06-2013, 03:40 AM
Hi Wiggles,
looking good, I built a SG-1F last month and forget what the action is like, I'll check mine out tonight and see if its as high as 4mm at the 22nd fret. Sounds like the neck needs a fret level

Wiggles
11-06-2013, 03:45 AM
Thanks Wokka boy, that'd be great if you could measure it.

Frets are level, i spent quite a bit of time leveling and polishing them Saturday :)

wokkaboy
11-06-2013, 04:01 AM
Hi Wiggles, no worries, sounds like a truss rod adjustment then.
From memory I had to screw my bridge down to the minimum height, also the angle that the neck is glued will affect the action. From memory I couldn't get my action super low but I'll confirm tonight and get back to you tomorrow

Gavin1393
11-06-2013, 04:15 AM
Hi Wiggles, did you follow the intonation thread here when setting up your guitar?

http://pitbullguitars.com/?page_id=42&mingleforumaction=viewtopic&t=186

and did you do a proper fret levelling as shown here:?

http://pitbullguitars.com/?page_id=42&mingleforumaction=viewtopic&t=179

Gavin1393
11-06-2013, 04:18 AM
Perhaps you can take another picture at the bridge area because the glare had hidden the detail. I think your action is way too high.....

dingobass
11-06-2013, 05:32 AM
Hey Wiggles.

Easy work around time!
TOM bridge saddles are often a touch too high, so to drop the action you can file the bridge grooves deeper.
Normally these grooves are just deep enough to hold the strings.
Start playing a few Pete Townsend wind mill power chords and the strings will probably jump out of the grooves :)

Normally you would files the saddles with nut slotting files, but with some care you can do the job with fine jewellers files.

File the saddle grooves one at a time, just pop the string out of the saddle, give it a few strokes with the file pop the string back in and check the action. Repeat until the string is at the right height and move onto the next string.
A small amount of filing can end up being a massive drop in action, so take your time.

Wiggles
11-06-2013, 05:39 AM
Hi Gav,

Yep, frets were leveled as per that thread (well, i didn't remove the nut). I did the texta trick and lightly sanded with a 12" radius stewmac block. Cleaned them up with some 800 and 1200 paper then polished with 0000 steel wool. The factory nut may be a touch high, havn't tackled a nut change before.
The fret buzz i mentioned was because i lowered the relief a litle further than optimum trying to lower the action (not the correct way to do it i know, i thought it might just do the trick) - i'll reset it back to proper neck relief.

http://i.imgur.com/muGGCEeh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/oqYQaIoh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/w731ja2h.jpg

(Sorry for the dodgy photos, my phone doesn't like close-ups. I'll try and get a hold of something better if you need better shots)

Haven't done the intonation yet, was trying to get the action down to final height before i tackled that job - as adjusting relief and action would change intonation.

rhay
11-06-2013, 05:43 AM
Good looking machine, well done. Another sub-$200 kit that looks like a $2000 guitar!!

Wiggles
11-06-2013, 05:58 AM
[b]
Easy work around time!
TOM bridge saddles are often a touch too high, so to drop the action you can file the bridge grooves deeper...


A-ha!
Sweet, i'll set the neck relief properly and have a go at filing the saddles.

Cheers mate.

Gavin1393
11-06-2013, 06:25 AM
Before you start filing the bridges, and this was the reason I asked for additional pictures, just check for me that the bridge posts are properly seated. The 'glary' and now 'out-of-focus' shot seems to indicate that the bridge posts are protruding higher than I would have expected....

You might simply need to seat it properly and that will save you filing the saddles!

Wiggles
11-06-2013, 06:34 AM
Ah, i see.

Nope, they're definitely home.

Gavin1393
11-06-2013, 06:48 AM
Ok, it just looked to me like the fluting that surrounds the base of the bridge posts seemed to be protruding. I would have suggested carefully deepening the bridge post cavity. But since this is not the case then proceed as DB suggested.

Wiggles
11-06-2013, 08:21 AM
Ah, got you. It's probably the knurling on the adjusting wheels that you can see.

Looks like i don't have suitable files, i'll have to track something down. doing some measurements based on the info from your link says that the nut height is a touch too high, so i'll have to look at that before i start filing things down.

Although i do have a full contact hardware tune-o-matic on my other guitar that could come over for a visit. It has individual string height adjustment...

wokkaboy
11-06-2013, 09:19 AM
Hi Wiggles,
I checked my SG-1F and the bridge is set about 3-4mm above minimum height and string height at 22nd Fret is about 2.5mm so not sure why your bridge is at it's lowest setting and isn't low enough.
Is it possible to remove the adjusting wheel and the bridge sits on the post ? looks like there's just enough clearance for the beveled part of the bridge, otherwise maybe replace the adjusting wheel with a thin washer so bottom of the bridge is just above the body.
Might look a bit funny but could be a simple solution to drop the strings about 2mm
Let us know how you go

Wiggles
11-06-2013, 10:02 AM
Wokka - Nah, not possible i'm afraid. The thumb wheels are part of the adjusting post, so no good there.
I've put on the height adjustable bridge i've got and even bottomed out it's still a touch too high. I'm thinking that i should have installed a small shim under the neck, but it looked ok during the dry fitting. In fact, i thought the pickups would be too high!

Oh well. I'm away for work the rest of this week, i'll have to have a look at it next weekend.

wokkaboy
11-06-2013, 11:04 AM
Oh yer forgot the thumb screw was one piece. How about replace this with thread the same diameter, screw this into the bridge plug ?