Gibson J-45 Bridge

[thedoctor]

I have a 1960's J-45 that was repaired(cracked bridge) about 8 years ago by Gibson. After returning it twice for a buzz on the A string I took a long look at it myself with inspection mirrors. A thin nut with a star lockwasher was loose under the bridge and the buzz went away after I tightened it. My question is, where the heck did these four nuts/bolts come from? Gibson glued all their bridges exclusively didn't they? Not that it matters because the bridge cracked again in the same place this year so I am replacing it with a handmade duplicate. Still, I would like to know if those nuts belong.

[octavedoctor]

I have a 1960's J-45 that was repaired(cracked bridge) about 8 years ago by Gibson. After returning it twice for a buzz on the A string I took a long look at it myself with inspection mirrors. A thin nut with a star lockwasher was loose under the bridge and the buzz went away after I tightened it. My question is, where the heck did these four nuts/bolts come from? Gibson glued all their bridges exclusively didn't they? Not that it matters because the bridge cracked again in the same place this year so I am replacing it with a handmade duplicate. Still, I would like to know if those nuts belong.

Gibson may have glued all the bridges on new guitars, but what the repairer chooses to do to ensure an effective repair is a different matter. There are many reasons why you might choose to reinforce a repair in this way. Sometimes clamping pressure isn't enough, sometimes it isn't practical to support the soundboard, sometimes you're on a budget or time restriction and you need to get the job done as quickly as possible. Sometimes you just don't have confidence in the glue...

if a glue joint has failed once, it can fail again.

Don't worry about it. Lock the nut in place with dab of nail varnish to stop it coming loose again.