Schaller Locks into Empress Wood (?)

[ComeHomeShane]

Has anyone ever changed the strap pins in an Empress Wood body guitar?

My G&L Jazz is empress. Super light, but also a much less dense wood. I'm very nervous about changing the pins to the Schaller locks in fear that the wood will just strip. I bought wood glue, got real wood toothpicks, etc. Should I use wood filler?

I don't have a lot of experience with this and if the empress wood is going to be unstable, I'd rather just leave it as it is.

Thanks,
- Shane

 

[RSBBass]

I would think you should be fine. I had never heard of "Empress Wood". Apparently it is Paulownia which has been used in guitars for a while. I have never heard of it having a problem holding screws. BTW, Empress is a re-branding, it has been known as "Princess Wood" since the early 20th century. I guess G&L didn't think Princess Wood would sell.

 

[ComeHomeShane]

Well, whatever they want to call it... the wood makes for a comfortable and balanced jazz bass that I can use on stage for hours! Thanks for the input

 

[96tbird]

DO NOT USE WOOD FILLER, it is only meant to fill in (hide) nail holes on exposed surfaces of furniture or woodwork for cosmetic purposes. It has no strength.

If you are able to use the original screw, thread it gently by hand until you catch the original threads in the wood; this avoids chewing the wood up.

if you need to use a new screw that is not the same as original, and it’s smaller, put a couple bits of toothpick in, a good dab of glue and screw it in while the glue is wet, wipe up glue with a damp rag. It will cure into a solid resin ‘insert’ that has the old and new threads locked in place.

 

[JRA]

i have two axes with paulownia bodies and both are great looking (that wood has cool, wide, attractive grain) and of course, they are lightweight --- the attraction!

but: don't over-tighten! and if you do = the toothpicks and glue routine for the fix. i use schaller strap locks and they work fine in paulownia. the fact that the axes are lighter makes it unnecessary to use heavy-duty hardware. good luck with your wood!

 

[sissy kathy]

Instead of strap locks, look into Diago Twistlock strap buttons. They have all of the advantages of a strap lock with none of the drawbacks.

You can reinforce the wood at the strap buttons by putting a drop or two of CA down the screw hole. The wood will absorb the glue and become much stronger.

 

[ComeHomeShane]

Thanks for the the advice everyone!

 

[Zooberwerx]

Instead of strap locks, look into Diago Twistlock strap buttons. They have all of the advantages of a strap lock with none of the drawbacks.

You can reinforce the wood at the strap buttons by putting a drop or two of CA down the screw hole. The wood will absorb the glue and become much stronger.

Repeated for emphasis. I use the super-thin CA and apply with a whip-tip. It soaks in the thread's grain and really toughens things up once cured.

Riis

 

[bpc]

Instead of strap locks, look into Diago Twistlock strap buttons. They have all of the advantages of a strap lock with none of the drawbacks.

I hate to disagree but.. There is one advantage regular strap locks have over these. Like normal strap buttons these will cause the holes in the straps to elongate over time. I mostly use strap locks as they clamp the strap and stop this happening. I guess the problem can be reduced by buying very expensive straps. I'm a budget kind of person and use low cost straps with low cost locks bought from china and that eliminates the problem of the strap holes elongating and eventually wearing through(and making the strap effectively longer and longer in the process. I suspect some of you guys are spending more on your straps than I spend on my basses so maybe this doesn't affect you?

 

[ComeHomeShane]

Repeated for emphasis. I use the super-thin CA and apply with a whip-tip. It soaks in the thread's grain and really toughens things up once cured.

Riis

What is CA? assuming it's some type of wood glue...

 

[202dy]

Cyanoacrylate glue. Super glue. In this application, low viscosity or liquid thin so that it can penetrate the threads established in the wood. If you're working on guitars it's always near by.

N.B. If you buy and use CA glue buy some debonder. Never pick up one bottle without the other. If you need to ask why you'll probably learn quick enough.

 

[vid1900]

Installing Brass Inserts to keep Strap Pins from pulling out.