Intonation adjustment: To screw or not to screw, that is the question.

[greencow]

Hi,

I had a couple of days off and did some long overdue cleaning and maintenance on some of my instruments and a question came up that I haven't really though about before.

On some bridges you have a screw to adjust your intonation, like on fender bridges for example:

And then on other bridges you have a screw to unlock the saddle and you can then freely move it around, something like this Sandberg for instance:

It always seems to take me a bit longer to get the intonation right on the second style of saddle as I don't really have any way to measure howmuch I moved the saddle, where as with the screw I can go 1/2 turn on the screw, check to see where we are, go another 1/4 turn etc. It really feels much more controlled, especially if there is limited time to do the adjustment. I sort of fail to see the benefit of option 2, other then the saddle being locked in place when you take the strings off, but I've never really had a saddle on option one not go to the correct place with the string tension applied. the only time I've had an issue with it was with a fender telecaster where the screws were too short to adjust the saddle for a lighter string set.

Is there anything I am missing here that option 2 gives us or is the old faithful fender design really objectively better?

 

[Turnaround]

No advantage to design 2 - at least not to the user. For the designer it simplified things since he didn't have to figure out where to put the intonation screw once he decided that locking down the saddle was more important than ease of intonation.

 

[bolophonic]

I wound up with a cheap bridge once of the #2 variety and I eventually sent it to the very bottom of the unusable scrap layer at the very bottom of my parts drawer. If someone needed a locking mechanism on intonation adjustment, a G&L bridge locks the saddles in place with one screw once you are finished setting up.

 

[Zooberwerx]

I have no problem with ABM-esque locking saddles...don't care much for the Spector saddle blocks, though. Once unlocked, I use a round hardwood chopstick and small mallet for the detail work...not kidding.

Riis

 

[Turnaround]

I have no problem with ABM-esque locking saddles...don't care much for the Spector saddle blocks, though. Once unlocked, I use a round hardwood chopstick and small mallet for the detail work...not kidding.

Riis

I think the thing that is most effective with those bridges is swearing.

 

[RSBBass]

since I can't remember ever having the saddle intonation position change on the screw type bridge, I don't understand the need to lock it in place.

 

[marchone]

I find the Fender HiMass bridge to be a pretty good design. In my opinion it’s an improvement over the OG bent bridge design in that the latter can move sideways unintentionally. At least it’s happened to me.

I don’t understand the need for the set screws on the last bridge.

 

[gln1955]

The stock Maruszczyk bridge is like your example with the set screw. I don't like it much and if I changed strings a lot it would be a real PITA.

 

[Scorchio]

Can I ask a stupid question, seeing as I'm researching and I wound up here...

The bridge on my USA Jazz is pretty knackered and corroded - time to replace - so does a Himass bridge mount in the same holes? And does it make any intonation/neck-tension difference that strings will no longer feed from the rear of the body?

Thanks in advance,
George

 

[Scorchio]

Scratch that... I took it out, gave it a damn could clean and put it back in. Didn't crumble to dust, came up nice, and looks great back in place. Going to replace the control plate, though, as the chrome's pretty tired on that.

 

[sissy kathy]

Scratch that... I took it out, gave it a damn could clean and put it back in. Didn't crumble to dust, came up nice, and looks great back in place. Going to replace the control plate, though, as the chrome's pretty tired on that.

The control plate will probably clean up just as nice.