Easier to slip a shim under the box to raise it, and effectively "lower" the tailpiece. Crude device, but it does what I need it to.
Rand "Typos Inevitable" Moore said:
Hi Chuck Dubman,
That's a cool box tester alright! I'll have to give it a try. Let's see... it's basically a diddley bow with an adjustible height tail piece and the box is held in just by string tension. Couldn't be simpler. I know another CBN thread where this idea would be a hit. I think I'lll pass your idea on...
I see you have already posted your idea in the thread I was thinking of: John Maw's "Testing a box for bridge placement". That's cool. I went ahead and posted the photos there. Hopefully, it will help to put to rest "The Thread That Will Not Die".
It's a great idea... Thanks.
-Rand.
Rand "Typos Inevitable" Moore said:
Hi Chuck Dubman,
That's a cool box tester alright! I'll have to give it a try. Let's see... it's basically a diddley bow with an adjustible height tail piece and the box is held in just by string tension. Couldn't be simpler. I know another CBN thread where this idea would be a hit. I think I'lll pass your idea on...
That's a cool box tester alright! I'll have to give it a try. Let's see... it's basically a diddley bow with an adjustible height tail piece and the box is held in just by string tension. Couldn't be simpler. I know another CBN thread where this idea would be a hit. I think I'lll pass your idea on...
Speaking of diddleybows, this "diddley tester" saves a lot of time and hair pulling when figuring whether a given box or bridge location sounds "right." Makes a fun noisemaker in its own right, too. Poor man's Theremin!
Bridge = 1/16" metal strap, ~1" x 3", with a bolt or keystock saddle floating on top, and a piezo superglued to the bottom, 3/4" hole drilled in box top to give it clearance. Lots of room for creativity. Trying for 3/8" string height over the bridge, 1/8" over the 12th fret position, 1/16" over the nut.
Bridge is same idea as pic, which uses 3/16" birdseye, with discs recessed into the bottom, maybe a bit on the thick side. Gluing the piezos to the bottom surface would save a few steps and let me make the bridge thinner.
For a fretless, it's really a non-issue, as long as the strings don't hit the fingerboard when you place a slide on them. Check out Jack White building a Diddley Bow in this scene from "It Might Get Loud:"
He's using a Coke bottle for a bridge. Something lower than that will work. ;-) A slightly more serious answer would be that many builders use threaded 1/4" bolts for both nut and bridge / saddle, for both fretted and fretless. As Chuck says, it depends: on how deep or shallow the groove such a bolt nut sits in, whether or not you have a (typically) 1/4" fretboard flush with or above the top of the box, does the saddle bolt sit on the boxtop itself, or does it sit on a wooden bridge piece of whatever thickness...
Replies
Rand "Typos Inevitable" Moore said:
Hi Chuck,
I see you have already posted your idea in the thread I was thinking of: John Maw's "Testing a box for bridge placement". That's cool. I went ahead and posted the photos there. Hopefully, it will help to put to rest "The Thread That Will Not Die".
It's a great idea... Thanks.
-Rand.
Rand "Typos Inevitable" Moore said:
Hi Chuck Dubman,
That's a cool box tester alright! I'll have to give it a try. Let's see... it's basically a diddley bow with an adjustible height tail piece and the box is held in just by string tension. Couldn't be simpler. I know another CBN thread where this idea would be a hit. I think I'lll pass your idea on...
-Rand
Bridge = 1/16" metal strap, ~1" x 3", with a bolt or keystock saddle floating on top, and a piezo superglued to the bottom, 3/4" hole drilled in box top to give it clearance. Lots of room for creativity. Trying for 3/8" string height over the bridge, 1/8" over the 12th fret position, 1/16" over the nut.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCFXeChXfcI
He's using a Coke bottle for a bridge. Something lower than that will work. ;-) A slightly more serious answer would be that many builders use threaded 1/4" bolts for both nut and bridge / saddle, for both fretted and fretless. As Chuck says, it depends: on how deep or shallow the groove such a bolt nut sits in, whether or not you have a (typically) 1/4" fretboard flush with or above the top of the box, does the saddle bolt sit on the boxtop itself, or does it sit on a wooden bridge piece of whatever thickness...
Whatever works as a starting point -- and it's going to vary with whomever buys the guitar.
Stewmac has plenty of applicable info for a fretted setup, but nothing on fretless.
I think it should be what feels good for you, Do a "string height" search in the upper right side of this page and you'll find endless comments.