Aligning the studs for trem

[sdp1234]

I'm building my first guitar body with my son. I am very uncomfortable with mounting the trem. Does anyone have a good way to align the trem and drill the holes for the studs. I've used a template from a book but it seems like the slightest bit off and the strings will be out of alignment with the neck. Is there any to align the bridge after the studs are installed. Any studs with a concentric adjustment?

[JustanotherCro]

I'm having the same problem, I'm putting a wilkinson trem in. I'm not sure exactly where to drill. I don't have a template either. I'm also unsure on what size to drill the holes for the bushings.

Sorry, I didn't mean to hijack your thread. I just figured we're in the same boat.

[daveq]

What kind of trem are you installing?

[sdp1234]

I want to install a Wilkinson. I think it is a VT 50 or VS 50. I was going to install a Kahler flatmount because it looked easier but I can't find a good one at a reasonable price.

[daddy ray]

I'm building my first guitar body with my son. I am very uncomfortable with mounting the trem. Does anyone have a good way to align the trem and drill the holes for the studs. I've used a template from a book but it seems like the slightest bit off and the strings will be out of alignment with the neck. Is there any to align the bridge after the studs are installed. Any studs with a concentric adjustment?

for floyds i use a template from stew/mac

i have done them without a template as well

be ultra precise in your layout (measure twice cut once) making sure that your layout line for the trem studs is 90 degrees to an established centerline that incorporates both neck & body

when it's time to drill use a drill press if you have

also use a forstner or brad point bit to assure that your stud hole is centered on your layout

very slight discrepancies can be corrected by slightly loosening neck screws and shifting the neck in the pocket to align the strings to the edge of the fingerboard

do this with high & low e strings in place

hope this helps

[daveq]

I have not used a Wilkinson yet but I think the post bushings are similar to a floyd, right? The best advice I can give (realizing that I have only installed three floyds so far) is to practice on some scrap. If you want to take it as far as putting a neck pocket into the scrap, that might be cool. You could skip that part, and just draw a center line on the scrap and check the bridge alignment with a laser line (or straight edge) after mounting it on the scrap piece.

I did this a few times when trying my first Floyd install. I actually have done it since then also since it makes me so nervous to make a mistake so critical as this.

Once you have confidence in your template it's just a matter of proper execution. Things like the brad-point (mentioned by daddy ray) and using a center punch will help.

I use a drill press and clamp the body down. I lower the drill bit (while running) just enough to see where the hole will actually be until it looks right. My brad point bits don't always drill the hole where the point comes down (the points are slightly off-center damn it!!) so this is why I do this. It's OK if I make small indents while getting it lined up since they usually get drilled out as the bit gets lowered into the body on the final pass.

Be very careful putting the bushings in (if the Wilkinson uses them). I have had one body split when doing this. I pounded it in too hard/fast.

I hope all of this helps a little at least. The practice piece takes precious time but it has saved my butt many times.

Good luck - if you end up with any tips - I'd like to hear about them. I might want to install one of those some day - they look great for the price.

Dave