Floyd Rose + Compund Radius Fb = ?

[shanter]

you dont usually glue shims. im sure the force in which the string put onto the bridge hold the shims in place.

think about it, if you glued them youd be screwed if you wanted to change your radius.

[krazyderek]

im sure the force in which the string put onto the bridge hold the shims in place.

umm.... actually it's the little bolts that hold the saddle in place, just slide them under and clamp down the saddle, kinda tricky when you first adjust the intonation, but once that's done you shouldn't have to think about them ever again.

[ryanb]

This has mostly been said already, but ...

Original Floyd Rose bridges are all 10" radius, except one model that is 15" (I believe). The nuts are also 10". OFR saddles are of different heights, to build in the radius. But they can still be shimmed to alter the radius.

Schaller trems are apparently 14". I don't know much about those.

Ibanez Edge series trems are 16" radius usually (or actually slightly flatter). The saddles are all the same height. The radius is set by the shims under each saddle, so it can be made to pretty much whatever you want. Nuts are a little harder, normally being 16" or occasionally 10" (like on the JS).

Finding the right nut radius is the real trick, since the bridge can pretty easily be adjusted, but the nut radius is fixed. You might want to mix brands to find the combination you need.

A 10" nut and 16-20" bridge makes a really good combination with a compound fretboard. Nothing unusual about that. With a 16" or flatter radius board, the compound shape is much less significant, so a 16" cylindrical fretboard works pretty well too.

As mentioned, saddle shims can be purchased or made from thin brass, steel, or aluminum stock. They are cut to the shape of the saddle, and have a hole for the saddle/intonation screw. The screw holds the shim in place. The shims won't make intonation any harder unless you are doing something wrong.