orioninthesky Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 hey guys i was using the stew mac fret scale calculator to find bridge post distance for a tuno matic bridge and im just curious why, when i enter 22 frets and a scale length of 24.75 the posts of the tuno matic bridge are spposed to be at 24.811" (±0.030") from nut to center of treble-side post. Mount bass-side post 1/8" further from the nut. isnt this a bit far for the scale length of 24.75" can you guys explain why this is so? thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Should be fine. Draw it out in full, accurately placing the bridge. The center of the post will be a touch further back than the maximum forward position of the high E saddle, I'm betting. Even the high E needs a little bit of compensation, after all. Trust it, it's fine (and also: number of frets does diddly to affect bridge positioning). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikbojerik Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 The number of frets does nothing to determine the scale length....so I don't know why that would be part of the calculation (I've never used the StewMac calculator). The only possible reason to include the number of frets is if the calculator assumes (or wants as input) the fret # where the neck joins the body. For example, on Fender strats the neck joins the body at the 16th fret. If you joined the neck to the body at a different fret, then obviously the bridge position would move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveq Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 I haven't used it either but the bridge position should only be a matter of scale length. I don't understand why number of frets or where the neck pocket is would matter at all? I think it was a good suggestion to draw it out or at least grab the bridge (if you have it on hand) and place it on a flat surface and do some measurements. The saddles may end up being closer to the nut than the post placement and that may explain the larger distance. Even though I have built many gutiars, I still lay everything out before drilling any holes. I like to have most (if not all) parts on hand before I start so I know what I may run into. If you have the parts, that should help you figure this one out. I wish I could tell you for sure if that is correct but I'm not a TOM guy and I don't use that scale. Stewmac has great customer service - maybe you could ask them to verify that you are using this thing correctly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanb Posted October 15, 2005 Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 The only reason the number of frets is there is that it controls the number of fret positions it reports. If you ask for 22 frets, it gives you measurements for 22 frets. You could always ask for more frets and ignore the higher ones. I guess they just do this so people don't have to print out more than they need ... not a big deal. The calculator is very accurate. The dimension for bridge position is taking into account an adjustment for the distance between the saddle points and the posts. I haven't used a T.O.M., but I would be confident in the numbers. However, you should still always verify the measurements. Measure the bridge, and see if the saddles will end up in the correct position using the dimension from the calculator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted October 15, 2005 Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 OK, after all this crap about the intonation of a 24.75, I decided to pull my Epi, (which is a cheaply made copy of a Les Paul) and measure for myself to see what the heck is going on. I came up with 24 27/32" (24.84375)(you can either got with 7/8 or 13/16, the difference is minimal and would be corrected by the intonation screw) from the edge of the nut at the 1st to the center of the trebel side E. Now, the distance to the E saddle after intonation is an accurate 24.75" (3/4") from the nut. I don't know if the applied the 24 9/16" scale to Epis, but it looks right on the money for the Stew Mac Scale calculator. I really don't understand why so much disscussion about the scale lenght on the 24.75" guitars? Especialy after using a system that had been used for years and that is the same one that Stew Mac use to make their fretboards. Abd like Dave, I don't see the need of knowing were the body meet the neck at the cut outs. The only relevance I would like to know is were the edge of the heel ends in reference to the frets, and just if I'm making a neck for a premade body (Strat, tele,...). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparky Posted October 15, 2005 Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 It's just for intonnation correction. A tenth of an inch is not that big...check out their numbers for a schaller roller bridge. All I know is I put my roller bridge about on center (doh!) and whattya know, all of my rollers are as far back as they will go. I get fine intonnation out of all but one loser string. I would trust thier numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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