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Thanks Allen, I wish I had a 10th of the talent I've seen in here! Still though, you're making me adjust my hat size a tad :D

Darren Wright said:
That's too bad, can you post a pic of the pin and the bridge. I'm curious how you did them. My Washburn has slots in the peg for the string to slip up through and the ball end usually is outside of that slot between the bottom of the bridge/soundboard and the pin, so not really a way for it to pop out.
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Yeah Darren, I believe I messed up drilling the holes, didn't have a tapering bit thingy-do so drilled to what I thought was close enough :eek: and used a tapered round file to finish. Another thing I just found out is that my inside bridge support is a touch on the thick side, the peg tips don't pass thru and so the ball ends don't completely either :bang:.....Thinking I'm going to plug the holes in the body, build a new bridge and find the right bit/dimensions for the pegs.

One positive from this fiasco is, I used tite bonds hide glue which made taking the bridge off a piece of cake...a little heat from a blowdryer and a paint scraper and presto...

Here's a few shots just the same...
001.jpeg 002.jpeg 003.jpeg
 
Ah, I do like the look of the pins, but could always tie the ends too...

badbridge.JPG
 
Darren Wright said:
Ah, I do like the look of the pins, but could always tie the ends too...

badbridge.JPG
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Except that the rest of the guitar is built for steel strings. He put the nylon strings on it just as a low-tension trial.

Ken, the tapered holes for the bridge pins are pretty important, although I'm guessing you already figured that out now. :D A tapered reamer is a handy tool for a lot of things on the luthier's bench...
 
Ken Cook said:
Yeah Darren, I believe I messed up drilling the holes, didn't have a tapering bit thingy-do so drilled to what I thought was close enough :eek: and used a tapered round file to finish.
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Holy smokes those reamers are $$'s!!
http://www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools/Tools_by_Job/Bridges/Bridge_Pin_Hole_Reamer.html

Also an interesting idea - could probably jig something up without actually buying this
http://www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tool.../Bridge_Pin_Hole_Slotting_Saws_and_Files.html
 
Ryan Mooney said:
Holy smokes those reamers are $$'s!!
http://www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tools/Tools_by_Job/Bridges/Bridge_Pin_Hole_Reamer.html

Also an interesting idea - could probably jig something up without actually buying this
http://www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tool.../Bridge_Pin_Hole_Slotting_Saws_and_Files.html
Click to expand...

Nothing special about the Stewmac reamer other than the price. Here's a much more affordable version:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/GuitarTechs...rg=20140407115239&rk=3&rkt=30&sd=301394605546
 
So, I have the replacement bridge roughed out, saddle slot cut, height set and only needing final outside shaping/sanding to go. What I could use help with from you guitar tech types is how to go about using the reamer. The reamer is supossedly good from 3 to 5 degrees, and my pegs call for a 3/16th bit for the holes...but I haven't found much on-line{though I haven't devoted much time} to finding what the steps are...Do I drill the 3/16th holes at a ninety to the body and the reamer will set the 5 degrees I need automatically with a similar 90 degree attack? Or am I to set up a gage of sorts to angle the bit{s}?

The reamer probably won't show before monday so I have time for more searching, but I trust there's more than enough firsthand knowledge here, which surely beats trusting hear-say on the web, besides I need someone I somewhat know, to blame when I screw things up :rofl:
 
I'd drill the holes at 90º to the face of the body, and also run the reamer at that angle. The idea of the reamer is to simply make a tapered hole that mirrors the taper on your bridge pins. I'd experiment with some scrap before committing to the real thing. ;)

Bone_Bridge_Pins.jpg

PinBridgeCaught.jpg
 
Thanks for that Vaughn, for some reason I kept thinking it meant the peg hole itself was at a 3 or 5 degree angle. Like the peg head leaned away from the saddle/nut at a 5 degree angle... and that's another example of why I never claim to be smart :rofl:

So am I correct in assuming, the reamer is actually used just to seat the peg-head correctly? Or is the destination to have the peg hole taper top to bottom, and if the latter, how does one regulate the depth? This probably will answer itself once I get the tool in hand and do a couple of test shots as you mentioned...the more I think, the more confused I become :huh: :D
 
Keep in mind I'm more of a string twanger and bender than a luthier, but as I understand it the entire hole should be tapered, which will match the taper of the pin. As far as regulating the depth, when I've replaced bridges I always just snuck up to the hole size I needed by reaming a little bit, testing the fit, then repeating until everything fit right. If you do a few test holes you can probably use a piece of masking tape to mark the appropriate depth on the reamer so that all the holes are consistent.
 
Thanks again Vaughn, it's no wonder the pegs went flying, I had the holes at an angle and used a tapered round file that I'm sure left only the peg head holding on for dear life :eek:...add this to my 'looks simple enough, I can handle this' list...calls for a double> :eek::eek:...and to think, I've spent many a night at a Holiday Inn over the years{smh_lol}
 
Also note the bridge plate under the bridge on the inside of the body. ;) Without it, the strings are pulling on the bridge itself, which is relying on a simple glue joint. With it, the strings are pulling on a broader surface on the backside of the guitar face and not really putting any tensile stress on the bridge joint. (They're putting a compressive force on the bridge plate instead of a tensile force on the bridge joint. In this application and grain orientation, the wood has a higher compressive strength than it does tensile strength.)
 
Just getting back to it....plugged the old peg holes this evening....tomorrow after trimming, the bridge glue up...
DSCF0012.jpeg


and on another good note, I'm this >*< close to having 'almost' the whole shop back to myself. We condensed a ton of the wife's "save" stuff, delegated another ton to next years garage sale, got about half of it put up in the shop attic. Probably end up leaving her 2 floor to ceiling shelves {2'x4'x6 'ea.}, but other than that> :woohoo:more floor space...this is why the guitar has been on the back burner{well, that and the honey-do's}....pix to follow when finished.
 
Gonna have to get off my keister and finish this thing up...Mailman brought me a package today full of guitar string sets :eek:... :woot: the gift came from a guitar God {as well as a guitar hoarder :D} out in Albuquerque NM. This should be all I need now, to hit the big time :D ...

Thank you very much! I'd mention you by name, but I'm sure you don't want all those groupies knowing you by something other than your stage name.....You definitely rock my friend :headbang:


and for those who might be wondering, I've been knee deep in a garage/shop re-do along with a bench build as room allows...be back at finishing it up soon............I hope :thud:
 
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