[Drew]

Ok, so I didn't get a chance to upload the pics I took to my ftp, but I operated on my PWH last night. Some bullet-point notes:

-it 99.99% fit. I'm going to have to sand down the bar side of trem cavity's side wall by maybe a mm or so, because it JUST barely contacts the wood. Basswood is soft enough that it'll wear away anyway, but I'd rather do it right.

-I'm still using the Edge trem studs. I figure, they lock, which is awesome, and that there's no pressing need to make the switch. So, I didn't even try to put the new ones in.

-I'm also still using the black Edge nut. Again, I'm not sure if there's any quality reason why it'd make sense to switch, and my PWH's nut is routed out ever-so-slightly off center towards the bass side. I've been playing this guitar so long now that it doesn't bug me, however for some reason when I put on the OFR nut, it was actually slightly MORE off center. So I didn't even string it up and went back to the black one. If there's a reason why I'd want to use the Floyd one, someone let me know and I'll at least give it a shot.

-the string retainer did NOT fit. It's a bit wider than Ibanez's, and the holes are drilled maybe a mm or two further apart. I could have redrilled them or something, but I didn't bother.

-I don't get why you guys keep swapping the Edge arm holder for an OFR screw in arm holder. Already it's bugging me how I have to finger-tighten it a little bit every few minutes if I'm using the bar.

-the OFR was actually LIGHTER than the LoPro by about 30-40 grams, something like 441 to 418. Yes, I weighed.

-I think the radius is a little flatter on the OFR than the LoPro, but not enough (so far) to really bug me. I can look into shimming it, if it does get on my nerves.

-I pulled the tremol-no, since the trem block is a little thicker/further back in the cavity, and the plastic bushings kept hitting the back of the body. Not sure what I'm going to do here - the pin-type arm holder didn't work, and I've contemplated just trimming the bushings, but there's still the screw jutting out... And even then, the block might be contacting the back of the body. I might just route it out a little deeper - I've been meaning to buy a Dremel, anyway.

-tonally, this thing seems a tad brighter than the LoPro, though that could just be the fresh strings. The overtones also seem a little clearer, but part of me is wondering how much of that is really the OFR, and how much of it is the fact that I was playing a funky 17-year-old bridge with lots of wear and corrosion, including right where the strings contact the body.

The verdict's still out, in short. At the very least, it's better than the particular bridge that was in there before. However, I haven't decided if it's also better than a new LoPro would be, or more pertinantly if a new LoPro would be $100 better than an OFR. I like it so far, but I need to log some serious playtime first.

[Toshiro]

I tighten that thumb screw so tight it doesn't loosen. I like the bar to stay where I put it though.

OFR's are a little brighter. The Edge trems are warmer. You're not crazy.

Cast metal(Edge) is also heavier than billeted steel(OFR).

I've yet to see a Floyd or Schaller made nut line up on any Ibanez. Which is why most people by Top Lock IIIs even though they're $50+.

Since it fits, I'd stick with the OFR-7. New LoPro Edge 7s are just stupidly high priced.

[Drew]

I wonder if my nut isn't original, then... I figured it was just a bad routing job on the part of Ibanez, but... You'd been a Jemsiter even longer than I, should a PWH have a matching cosmo black nut, or were they all black back then?

EDIT - no, it looks like they were always black...

[Toshiro]

Originally Posted by Drew

I wonder if my nut isn't original, then... I figured it was just a bad routing job on the part of Ibanez, but... You'd been a Jemsiter even longer than I, should a PWH have a matching cosmo black nut, or were they all black back then?

EDIT - no, it looks like they were always black...

You know, I dunno, though I tried to stay away from the JEM/UV heads. Might explain why the nuts on UVs look better than the bridges from that era.

[Drew]

I for one cannot wait to post pics on Jemsite. Considering the shape this guitar is in anyway, I'm going to get crucified.

OT - what's your avatar?

[Toshiro]

Originally Posted by Drew

I for one cannot wait to post pics on Jemsite. Considering the shape this guitar is in anyway, I'm going to get crucified.

OT - what's your avatar?

Good lord, I might have to read that thread.

Should I send Rich Harris pics of the bridge he sold me? He tightened that arm holder to the point of no return on it, only to have me swap it out for a chrome Schaller bar?

OT: It's the tip of a sword(see: profile pic).

[Drew]

That's absolutely fucking badass. That looked more like a cartoon than a sword - the "folding," I guess, on that blade is absolutely gorgeous.

The Schaller doesn't have a Wilkinson-like mechanism by chance, does it, where the tension is controlled by an allen key and not the thumbscrew?



I wonder if you could put a Wilkinson arm holder on a Floyd...

http://www.drewpeterson.org/new stuff/test_fit.jpg

(deleted the image tgs because the picture kept reloading every second for me...)

Not the greatest pic, but the thing screws in a la a normal strat trem (though, it's threaded on the inside, so it screws into a shaft - the outside is smooth), and then you control the amount of "tightness" of the bridge with an allen key pushing up against a rubber o ring inside the arm holder. It's the best design I've ever played, it functions exactly like a LoPro with fresh bushings or an OFR before the holder unscrews, but it never loosens. True, you sort of need (well, you don't need to, but it makes it a lot easier and it probably saves wear on the o-ring) the allen wrench to take the bar off, so if you're throwing the guitar in and out of a case a lot it sort of sucks, but while you're actually playing it flat out owns.

[Toshiro]

Originally Posted by Drew

That's absolutely fucking badass. That looked more like a cartoon than a sword - the "folding," I guess, on that blade is absolutely gorgeous.

The Schaller doesn't have a Wilkinson-like mechanism by chance, does it, where the tension is controlled by an allen key and not the thumbscrew?



I wonder if you could put a Wilkinson arm holder on a Floyd...

Nah, Schaller's bar is what's on your OFR-7.
That Wilkie idea sounds cool, but then where to get the arm holders/bars?

That's the temper line on the sword, though they use acid etching to make it stand out more. Still, makes the stainless steel wall-hangers most people have look like a steak knife.

[Drew]

Hmm. A google search turned up nothing. Still, for $89 for the whole thing, I'd almost just buy a second bridge if I knew it worked, just for the arm holder...

*mad scientist mode*

I may have to try to pull the holder from my Strat to see if it's a retrofit...

[7 Dying Trees]

Sounds pretty cool to me! Get some pictures up!

Then go over to jemsite and tell em it's a TRS