News And Updates

I have made a few sets of bridges in alternate colors - for marketing purposes but also for the future EGS demo builds.

Incidentally, I am unexpectedly sold out of bridges as of today 20 January. I would expect the next batch to be ready in about 6 weeks. This is a great opportunity to order custom colors since I can fit them into production at a much lower cost. Contact me if you are interested in placing a pre-order.

A picture says more than a thousand words, so here are a few:

Click on the images for larger versions.

I have put the EGS demo up on YouTube.

Here are some of the vital statistics about the participants:

• Jonas Isaksson - main instrument is the clarinet, believe it or not. Although he prefers the violin… I, for one, am pretty impressed with his guitar skills.
• Nisse Blomster - jazz improvization and musical theory student from Uppsala, often appearing with the band Blue Stripe.
• Daniel Palmqvist - solo artist and guitarist of The Murder of My Sweet.

And some vital stats about the guitar itself:

• Weight: 1850 grams/4 lbs
• Swamp ash back, stained “Ebony Black”, treated with Watco Danish Oil. Large tone cavities cut both top and bottom.
• Curly maple top (5 mm thickness), finished with Watch Danish Oil. Black veneer strip in centre.
• Three-piece wenge neck with cherry veneer strips.
• Ebony fretboard.
• Carbon fiber truss rod.
• Super wide/high frets
• 25.5″ scale length on low E, 25″ scale on high E string
• Strandberg EGS fixed bridges
• Lace Alumitone humbucker pickups
• 5-position pickup selector (front HB, front SC + rear SC out of phase, front HB + rear HB series, front SC + rear SC in series, rear HB.

I have had the privilege of supplying a custom colored bridge to amazing luthier Michael Spalt. Michael himself is a bit pre-occupied with relocation plans and website overhaul, but until something more extensive can be arranged, here are a few pictures for your viewing pleasure!

Oh, and did I mention that the complete instrument weighs 1,9 kgs (4 lbs 4 oz)?

As advertised previously, I have been working on converting a knock-off Les Paul Special (kind-of) to a headless design. Since the subject in question is actually not playable (neck is bent beyond repair), I have not attempted to make it a nice looking instrument. Instead, I am merely trying to illustrate some of the levels of freedom you get with EGS.
Here is the end result:

I began with the converted Tune-o-Matic tailpiece that I have shown earlier.

And a $100 guitar that was given to me as scrap.

Here, I have routed a ditch behind the tuners to allow access for the fingers.

For the head, I decided on an adventurous design, again only to illustrate the flexibility of the EGS string locks.

You lock the strings from the inside of the “V”:

The end result again:

Now, I don’t have the Tune-o-Matic available as a standard product. Please do contact me though if you have one that you would like to have converted. In the future, I may develop this concept further, but for now I will rely on standard parts.

Lately, I have been working with two Italian luthiers: Michele Benincaso and Paolo Scorpioni. What is interesting is that they both wanted custom tailpieces for Tune-O-Matic bridges. Michele wanted a replacement that would fit into his current build and Paolo wanted a solution to enable him to make a 7-string headless guitar.

Michele with his build when we first met. It is a truly beautiful instrument he is building. It will be composed of (almost) all Swedish parts, including pickups from Lundgren.

Here is the string anchor that I developed for Michele. The plan is that this will double as a string anchor for the double-ball end string solution that I am working on.

String anchors fitted. The effect is quite dramatic compared to what a standard tailpiece would have done.

Now, Paolo’s needs were entirely different. I have gotten my hands on a couple of discarded Les Paul Jr type guitars that I intend to convert into headless solutions like the Castaway Strat project. Here is a sneak peek:

I have simply enlarged the holes in the existing tailpiece and inserted my tuners. Stay tuned for more info in the up-coming LPJR conversion project.

Meet me and Michele at the FUZZ guitar show in Gothenburg the coming weekend, April 18-19. He is exhibiting the guitar above and a few basses (his specialty). I will have some bridges and maybe my converted strat with me.

Next steps are adjusting approximate string height and mounting the bridge.

First, I unwind the tuners to their maximum range.

Next, I thread the string through the tuner.

And fasten it in the string lock.

All six strings mounted.

All six strings fastened. The result is stunning! I have been very impatient to get some of this work done, as may be apparent from some of the woodwork, but it’s done and it works amazingly well.

Next installment will cover adapting a pick guard and finishing the guitar. I am not yet sure whether to mount the Lace Alumitones that I have laying around or if I should go more conventional.

After completing the routing of the body, it is time to turn to the neck. I have decided to keep the original neck with a minimum of modifications. Note that it is possible to mount my string locks in many different ways, including removing most of the head.

I begin by drilling 1.5 mm holes through the side of the head and through the bottom of the tuner holes.

I then enlarge the top portion of the holes to 6 mm.

Now, I can insert the string locks through the tuner holes. I insert the fastening screws through the side holes and tighten. These hardened screw heads will form the seat that the strings will rest against when locked. This provides good durability and they may also be exchanged if they ever get worn.

This is what it looks like from above.

Here, I have mounted all six string locks.

Viewed from the side, you can see the locking screws. Next installment will cover assembly of the complete guitar.

I decided to route a slanted “groove” in the body to allow for the fingers to reach underneath the tuner knobs.

I made it approximately 30 mm wide and 10 mm deep.

A tremolo fitted for reference. Next installment will cover modifying the neck to fit the string locks.

Below, I have drilled the holes for the mounting posts. They are drilled to a depth of the bushing height + 4 mm since I intend to route the recess to a depth of 4 mm. I drill them before routing the recess in order to have a flat surface with my taped guide marks still on it to drill on.

Next, I used the mounting post holes as reference points for the recess.

The next installment will cover how I route the clearance for fingers to tune, below the tuner knobs. The jury is still out on how to achieve this in the best and most aesthetically pleasing way.