j. pierce Posted May 22, 2007 Report Share Posted May 22, 2007 I'm a fan of Bigsby tremolos. The one thing that bothers me, however is that while the trem arm and rollers are plated, the bodies are just polished aluminum. It's actually a quite attractive look when the unit is new, but I can't keep that look going for the life of me. The aluminum oxidizes and gets gross over time, no matter my best attempts to keep it looking healthy. I think I just sweat too much when I play or something. I can keep plated hardware looking decent if I take care of it. But I don't want a gold Bigsby. Stewart Macdonald until very recently carried a B-7 knockoff (listed as an "Aluminum Vibrato" in there catalog) that from the description sounded like it was plated, but going to the page for the item says it's been discontinued. Anyone seen a nickel or chrome plated Bigsby-esque bridge? I've reworked my current plans for a different trem unit at this time, (I was on the fence as it was, this is a good excuse to try something I haven't before) but I'd really like to get a source for this for future builds, otherwise I'll be seeing about dis-assembling my B-5 and seeing if I can't get it plated somewhere. Or maybe I should just learn to like the gold and black finishes Bigsby offer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acousticraft Posted May 22, 2007 Report Share Posted May 22, 2007 (edited) If you clean and polish it you should be able to clear lacquer it to stop it oxidizing in the future Edited May 22, 2007 by Acousticraft Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
black_labb Posted May 23, 2007 Report Share Posted May 23, 2007 if you use a bigsby alot does it send the guitar out of tune? there would be some friction at the tunomatic bridge, and some more at the nut due to the angle from the headstock (i assume this is a lp or sg). im asing as i ahve an idea for a trem system and im curous how well it would work without replacing the tonomatic saddles and the nut with a graphite one or similar. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j. pierce Posted May 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2007 If you clean and polish it you should be able to clear lacquer it to stop it oxidizing in the future Is there a specific type of laquer I should be using, or a trick to it? While I've had luck getting paint to stick to aluminum using a self-etching primer, I've tried to put clear laquer over polished aluminum before with little luck. (All this is on Hammond enclosures for DIY stompboxes) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.