Swapping hardware, anything to be aware of?

mikernaut · 06-19-2012, 02:17 PM

So I just got a old ESP Horizon that has silver hardware and I'm wanting to swap it for black hardware. Currently it has a reverse headstock with no name ESP tuners and a Original Floyd Rose with locking nut.

So I'm wondering if I will need any specific versions of each part. I'll have to take the Floyd off and see if it has any version marking on it. I would hate to buy parts online to have them not work out.

Thanks in advance for any input.

The Only Factor · 06-19-2012, 07:23 PM

To help clarify things on this particular swap:

The Floyd: You should be fine as long as it's not an older Synclair trem that was used on a lot of the really early ESP's. Those trems are hard to come by now and parts are not cheap or easy to get. One thing I CAN tell you is to measure the post width of your current Floyd. This will help make sure you get the right one for your swap. I do know and can say that a lot of Floyd Rose and licensed Floyd trems tend to have different post wirdths, so make sure you measure yours to be on the safe side.

The locking nut: There are several widths for these locking nuts, and I do know that there are different numbers to represent which is which. Again to make sure and to be safe, measure yours from edge to edge, and get an E to E string spacing. These 2 measurements will be key in getting the right one. Also, that "number" i was mentioning may be stamped on the bottom of the nut when you take yours off. See if it is, and that should be the one you go with.

The only other thing with the locking nut will be whether yours is screwed to the neck from the string side of the nut or from the back of the neck. This will be a major factor in getting the new one and the right one.

Tuners: The ones on there now are ESP tuners. I would say you can get a set of black ESP tuners from Guitar Parts Depot, but I have no idea what happened to them or if they are even still in business. This sucks because they had and carried anything and everything parts wise that were specific to ESP guitars and basses. But no stress, the replacements you can get from Stew-Mac will be the Gotoh tuners - HERE - should be exactly the ones your looking for as far as size and as close to the factory looking ones you can get.

Knobs: Only thing here is to make sure you get the ones for split shaft pots. The ones for solid shaft pots tend to not screw on and sit correctly, and are always kinda crooked once tightened up. Split shaft pots (for dome knobs anyway...) are your best bet here.

That should be about it. Good luck and hope this helps!!!

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06-19-2012, 02:17 PM	#1
mikernaut pixel pusher Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Madison WI Posts: 2,384 Thanked: 80 Feedback Score: 5 reviews	Swapping hardware, anything to be aware of? So I just got a old ESP Horizon that has silver hardware and I'm wanting to swap it for black hardware. Currently it has a reverse headstock with no name ESP tuners and a Original Floyd Rose with locking nut. So I'm wondering if I will need any specific versions of each part. I'll have to take the Floyd off and see if it has any version marking on it. I would hate to buy parts online to have them not work out. Thanks in advance for any input.

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06-19-2012, 07:23 PM	#2
The Only Factor Banned Join Date: May 2012 Location: Everywhere & Nowhere Posts: 424 Thanked: 3 Feedback Score: 0 reviews	To help clarify things on this particular swap: The Floyd: You should be fine as long as it's not an older Synclair trem that was used on a lot of the really early ESP's. Those trems are hard to come by now and parts are not cheap or easy to get. One thing I CAN tell you is to measure the post width of your current Floyd. This will help make sure you get the right one for your swap. I do know and can say that a lot of Floyd Rose and licensed Floyd trems tend to have different post wirdths, so make sure you measure yours to be on the safe side. The locking nut: There are several widths for these locking nuts, and I do know that there are different numbers to represent which is which. Again to make sure and to be safe, measure yours from edge to edge, and get an E to E string spacing. These 2 measurements will be key in getting the right one. Also, that "number" i was mentioning may be stamped on the bottom of the nut when you take yours off. See if it is, and that should be the one you go with. The only other thing with the locking nut will be whether yours is screwed to the neck from the string side of the nut or from the back of the neck. This will be a major factor in getting the new one and the right one. Tuners: The ones on there now are ESP tuners. I would say you can get a set of black ESP tuners from Guitar Parts Depot, but I have no idea what happened to them or if they are even still in business. This sucks because they had and carried anything and everything parts wise that were specific to ESP guitars and basses. But no stress, the replacements you can get from Stew-Mac will be the Gotoh tuners - HERE - should be exactly the ones your looking for as far as size and as close to the factory looking ones you can get. Knobs: Only thing here is to make sure you get the ones for split shaft pots. The ones for solid shaft pots tend to not screw on and sit correctly, and are always kinda crooked once tightened up. Split shaft pots (for dome knobs anyway...) are your best bet here. That should be about it. Good luck and hope this helps!!!