stratocaster tremolo bar

[imChinOaChicken]

i decided to get a new fender strat so i can learn some guitar stuff. im really new to it and dont know if im setting the tremolo bar right.

the store salesman told me to just screw it on. when i do it it feels kinda loose and usually finds itself resting on the pickup selector switch which doesnt work very well because when it drops its hits the selecter down and i soon find it on its lowest setting.

how should the tremolo bar be setup?
(please describe how it whould look and feel when set up right.)

thanks

[AxtoOx]

I own 2 strats but seldom use tremolo. Mine are American Deluxes so they push in and don't screw in, but my MIM did. It should hang loose so it drops out of the way when you are not using it, then you'll have to get used to reaching down for it when you need it. On my American Deluxes it pushes in and just swings loose. Same on my PRSs, but like I said, I seldom put them on. They get in my way unless I'm playing a song that I need it on.

If it's hitting your selector swithch, back it out. It souldn't screw down tight.

[funkalicious101]

it really doesnt matter but its kind of a pet peeve of mine that leo couldnt get his effects straight. its actually a "vibrato" arm.

[imChinOaChicken]

so it should swing around?
i guess i never noticed that...

when i get it loose enough to swing freely, it feels loose in the screw hole. i can move it without moving the bridge.

thanks

[Rugaar]

Do you have the little spring in there? That keeps it snug so it doesn't feel sloppy. If you don't have the spring you can try one from a ball point pen. Or wrapping the threads of the trem bar with teflon tape works pretty well, too. (that's what I do on mine)

[HomeBrewTJ]

Originally Posted by funkalicious101

it really doesnt matter but its kind of a pet peeve of mine that leo couldnt get his effects straight. its actually a "vibrato" arm.

how about wammy bar?

[funkalicious101]

Originally Posted by HomeBrewTJ

how about wammy bar?

i guess, but then when you throw the digitech whammy pedals in there......... very different effects.

[AxtoOx]

Well, on "Joe's Garage" Zappa calls it a "Statocaster w/ a Whammy Bar".

[AxtoOx]

Originally Posted by imChinOaChicken

so it should swing around?
i guess i never noticed that...

when i get it loose enough to swing freely, it feels loose in the screw hole. i can move it without moving the bridge.

thanks

Which model of Strat did you get if you don't mind me asking. Something doesn't sound right. You should be able to snug it up without hitting your selector switch. Some people use them that way, especially back in the day, now most would rather it swings freely. That's why the American Deluxe is designed the way it is. It can't do anything but swing, almost floppy.

[lemur821]

It shouldn't be hitting the switch. It's supposed to angle away from the body of the guitar. Does it do that? If not, check to make sure your bridge is level.

[imChinOaChicken]

i didnt find any spring so im guessing it never came with one or it simply fell out....
the tape thing worked nicely though. with the eletrical tape, i can get it above the selector switch with a smooth amount of friction to keep it in that parallel position to the ground when not in use.

thanks

oh and how angled should the bridge be? the bar is almost parallel to the guitar body with slight lean towards towards it

[AxtoOx]

Originally Posted by imChinOaChicken

i didnt find any spring so im guessing it never came with one or it simply fell out....
the tape thing worked nicely though. with the eletrical tape, i can get it above the selector switch with a smooth amount of friction to keep it in that parallel position to the ground when not in use.

thanks

oh and how angled should the bridge be? the bar is almost parallel to the guitar body with slight lean towards towards it

Mine is pretty much level, but American Deluxes have different harware than the others. Did you ever say what model it is. That would help some.

[lemur821]

The bridge should be pretty much parallel to the body, and the bar should angle away just a tad.

[imChinOaChicken]

sorry about that. its a standard off-the shelf mexi. black with maple fretboard. i plan to get a black pickguard on it. i love the look of David Gilmour's black strat.

so the bridge should be pretty much parrallel to the body? on the owners manual, it suggests that the bridge should be 1/8 of an inch away. whould i go ahead and lessen the angle of the bridge?

thanks

[AxtoOx]

I just pulled out my MIM, it's just like yours, haven't played it in years, but I did play it for years. Mine is a little higher than 1/8, but it's always been just fine w/ me. How high is yours? Is the action too high? Unless it's out of whack, I'd just play it.
I think I got mine when they first started making the standard in Mexico. The maple neck has that nice golden color to it now.

[steve21]

Originally Posted by funkalicious101

i guess, but then when you throw the digitech whammy pedals in there......... very different effects.

Uh, the original "Whammy" functions are made just to emulate the sounds of a whammy bar.

And if your'e that into semantics just call 'em wang-bars.

[funkalicious101]

Originally Posted by steve21

Uh, the original "Whammy" functions are made just to emulate the sounds of a whammy bar.

And if your'e that into semantics just call 'em wang-bars.

........... they are, for some reason i never made that connection (i'd put my money on that 1+ octave up jazz)

i'v always called them vibrato arms.

[lemur821]

Originally Posted by imChinOaChicken

so the bridge should be pretty much parrallel to the body? on the owners manual, it suggests that the bridge should be 1/8 of an inch away. whould i go ahead and lessen the angle of the bridge?

If it's not level, then probably so. It should be about the same distance away all around. I'm not 100% clear on what your setup is like though. If it's the type that hinges on a bunch of screws I can't say for sure, as I have little experience with those. If it's an adjustable height two-point system, then IIRC you want to make it level, and adjust to the proper height with the screws which are there for that purpose.

[Poop-Loops]

1) If your bar of whammies screws in and is loose, then it's missing a spring.

2) Don't have the spring? You're in luck. Use a spring from any old click-pen. It should fit fairly well, although you might have to use some paper or something so the bar itself doesn't go through the spring hole.

Or you can just leave it loose. Personally, I like to leave my lying on the ground. I don't like them whammies. =/

[tplyons]

A whammy bar that isn't tight isn't functioning properly? BS.

Screw it in all the way so it's tight and it should stay right where you want it. Otherwise, it'll be loose.

I screw mine in one turn before being tight so it drops when I'm not using it. I tend to palm the bridge.