Post by guitarcam123 on Mar 21, 2009 20:06:48 GMT -5
Warning:The Floyd Rose is famous for its range, but be careful when buying one, they are a lot of work to restring and setup and can get very frustrating. I do not recommend buying a cheap FR, they don't keep tune and fall to bits.
I am not responsible for anyone ruining their guitar, this is here for your benifit
INSTALLATION
Templates
You can simply buy these from stew mac or make your own
You will need:
Bandsaw, router
Ball bearing router bit
Plywood or something similar
These, Measurements in mm, inches available
Pic 1
Pic 2
Pic 3
Pic 4
1: Draw up pics 1 & 3 on the plywood.
2: Cut out the drawings on the Plywood with a Bandsaw, Jigsaw, Handsaw or router
Routing for the nut
1: Using the jig shown on this website route for the nut.
If you don't have enough room on the end of your fretboard you can use a wood filler or a bit of wood and make a small platform on the headstock. Dont cover up the truss rod
Routing the body
1: Fill in the holes from your old bridge using wood filler or dowels
2: Put your neck on for a mockup and measure from the nut to the 12th fret. double that measurement and that is your scale length and where the strings should meet the saddles
3: Clamp your body down to something flat and secure. Make sure the clamps won't get in the way of the router
4: Using clamps or double sided tape, put the template onto the body in the right place
5: Using the router with a ball bearing bit, route out the cavities to the right depth shown in pic 2
6: Now that you have routed the body put your floyd in as a mockup and measure where the holes will be for the bushings. (LFR sometimes differ)
7: Using a drill press and a slightly smaller drill bit than the bushings drill the holes for the bushings
8: Hammer the bushings in using a hammer and a piece of wood. (Use glue if you want to)
Routing on a carved top
1: Make the template on some sort of wood about 1/2" or so thick. Make sure you put the cutout right in the middle of the board. The board must be wide enough to reach over the whole body
2: Make sides the same height as your guitar
3: Nail the sides to the top
You should have something that kinda looks like a table
(like this) ___________
.............|................| (excuse the dots)
4: Put it over the body and route out the cavity. This way you are routing on a flat surface
Routing for a Seven String Floyd:
Use the above tutorials only using these measurements...
Pic 1
Pic 2
Pic 3
Pic 4
BASIC SETUP
Order of setup:
Restringing and tuning
Action
Intonation
INTONATION
You need to get the intonation right or else your guitar will play out of tune.
If your guitar is 25" scale the distance between the nut and the 12th fret must be 12 1/2" and the same distance from the 12th fret to where the string meets the saddles on the bridge.
So you must adjust each saddle forwards or backwards so that each string is the right scale.
To do this you must:
1: Measure the distance between the nut and the 12th fret and double to find the scale length.
2: Loosen the saddles one at a time and move either forwards or backwards so that each saddle is the correct scale length and tighten again and tune up your guitar.
3. Now with a tuner play an open string, then the 12th fret of that string. If the 12th fret is sharp move the saddle back, if its flat move it forward.
SETTING ACTION
To make the action higher, loosen/ make the studs higher.
To make the action lower, tighten the trem posts. If its as low as it can go at the bridge but its still high you can either lower the nut or give the neck a neck angle by adding shims.
RESTRINGING
If your completely restringing do it one string at a time
Single Locking
1: Unclamp the nut
2: Feed the string through the saddle
3: Pull the string up the neck (not to tight) and then over the nut, under the string retainer and into the tuner. Tune up your guitar tightening or loosening the claw so that the bridge is floating level with the guitar.
5: Clamp the nut.
6: Fine tune your guitar using the fine tuners on the bridge
Stringing Double Locking Floyd
1: Unclamp the nut
2: Snip the ball ends off your strings and clamp them in the saddle
3: Pull the string up the neck (not to tight) and then over the nut, under the string retainer and into the tuner. Tune up your guitar tightening or loosening the claw so that the bridge is floating level with the guitar
4: Clamp the nut and fine tune using the fine tuners at the bridge
videos for the Double locking floyd rose:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwNVjNohOt4
au.youtube.com/watch?v=IePfzUzlDng&feature=related
FR RANGE
SINGLE LOCKING AND DOUBLE LOCKING DIFFERENCES
Single locking trems use plain old strings, sliding in from the rear, over the saddle and then through the locking nut to the tuner. This is a good choice for someone that doesnt pull hard or divebomb alot. The double locking trem is a bit more complicated to string up but certainly more stable. The string is more stable for harder trem use.
Different Types of FRs
Original Floyd Rose
Floyd Rose II
Floyd Rose Pro
Floyd Rose 7 String
Floyd Rose Speedloader Tremolo
Floyd Rose Speedloader fixed bridge
Floyd Rose Single Locking
First Floyd Rose made
Les Paul Floyd Rose
Ibanez Edge
Ibanez Edge III
Ibanez Fixed Edge
Ibanez Low Pro Edge
Ibanez Double Edge
Ibanez Edge Zero
Ibanez Edge Pro
Licensed Schaller Floyd Rose
Licensed Gotoh Floyd Rose
Licensed Guitar Fetish Fast Loader Floyd Rose
Licensed Mighty mite x3
Standard Licensed Double Locking Floyd Rose
Standard Licensed Single Locking Floyd Rose
Kahler Spyder
Buying a FR
I can not stress this enough, unless you have loads of patience and money to buy new strings, DON'T buy a cheap floyd rose. They are made of cheap, soft metals which allow strings to make grooves and sharp edges in them leading to string breakage. With a cheap FR it will affect your tone, sustain, won't keep in tune and will not be able to set up very well. I suggest that you bite the bullet and spend the extra money for an Oringinal, Schaller, Gotoh or some sort of floyd similar in quality, it will be good in the long run
Helpful Websites
www.georgemangos.com/floyd/index.htm
www.floydrose.com/video.html
www.floydrose.com/originaltremolo.html
www.glowingtubes.com/p/FloydTuning.htm##disc
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_Rose
I am not responsible for anyone ruining their guitar, this is here for your benifit
INSTALLATION
Templates
You can simply buy these from stew mac or make your own
You will need:
Bandsaw, router
Ball bearing router bit
Plywood or something similar
These, Measurements in mm, inches available
Pic 1
Pic 2
Pic 3
Pic 4
1: Draw up pics 1 & 3 on the plywood.
2: Cut out the drawings on the Plywood with a Bandsaw, Jigsaw, Handsaw or router
Routing for the nut
1: Using the jig shown on this website route for the nut.
If you don't have enough room on the end of your fretboard you can use a wood filler or a bit of wood and make a small platform on the headstock. Dont cover up the truss rod
Routing the body
1: Fill in the holes from your old bridge using wood filler or dowels
2: Put your neck on for a mockup and measure from the nut to the 12th fret. double that measurement and that is your scale length and where the strings should meet the saddles
3: Clamp your body down to something flat and secure. Make sure the clamps won't get in the way of the router
4: Using clamps or double sided tape, put the template onto the body in the right place
5: Using the router with a ball bearing bit, route out the cavities to the right depth shown in pic 2
6: Now that you have routed the body put your floyd in as a mockup and measure where the holes will be for the bushings. (LFR sometimes differ)
7: Using a drill press and a slightly smaller drill bit than the bushings drill the holes for the bushings
8: Hammer the bushings in using a hammer and a piece of wood. (Use glue if you want to)
Routing on a carved top
1: Make the template on some sort of wood about 1/2" or so thick. Make sure you put the cutout right in the middle of the board. The board must be wide enough to reach over the whole body
2: Make sides the same height as your guitar
3: Nail the sides to the top
You should have something that kinda looks like a table
(like this) ___________
.............|................| (excuse the dots)
4: Put it over the body and route out the cavity. This way you are routing on a flat surface
Routing for a Seven String Floyd:
Use the above tutorials only using these measurements...
Pic 1
Pic 2
Pic 3
Pic 4
BASIC SETUP
Order of setup:
Restringing and tuning
Action
Intonation
INTONATION
You need to get the intonation right or else your guitar will play out of tune.
If your guitar is 25" scale the distance between the nut and the 12th fret must be 12 1/2" and the same distance from the 12th fret to where the string meets the saddles on the bridge.
So you must adjust each saddle forwards or backwards so that each string is the right scale.
To do this you must:
1: Measure the distance between the nut and the 12th fret and double to find the scale length.
2: Loosen the saddles one at a time and move either forwards or backwards so that each saddle is the correct scale length and tighten again and tune up your guitar.
3. Now with a tuner play an open string, then the 12th fret of that string. If the 12th fret is sharp move the saddle back, if its flat move it forward.
SETTING ACTION
To make the action higher, loosen/ make the studs higher.
To make the action lower, tighten the trem posts. If its as low as it can go at the bridge but its still high you can either lower the nut or give the neck a neck angle by adding shims.
RESTRINGING
If your completely restringing do it one string at a time
Single Locking
1: Unclamp the nut
2: Feed the string through the saddle
3: Pull the string up the neck (not to tight) and then over the nut, under the string retainer and into the tuner. Tune up your guitar tightening or loosening the claw so that the bridge is floating level with the guitar.
5: Clamp the nut.
6: Fine tune your guitar using the fine tuners on the bridge
Stringing Double Locking Floyd
1: Unclamp the nut
2: Snip the ball ends off your strings and clamp them in the saddle
3: Pull the string up the neck (not to tight) and then over the nut, under the string retainer and into the tuner. Tune up your guitar tightening or loosening the claw so that the bridge is floating level with the guitar
4: Clamp the nut and fine tune using the fine tuners at the bridge
videos for the Double locking floyd rose:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwNVjNohOt4
au.youtube.com/watch?v=IePfzUzlDng&feature=related
FR RANGE
SINGLE LOCKING AND DOUBLE LOCKING DIFFERENCES
Single locking trems use plain old strings, sliding in from the rear, over the saddle and then through the locking nut to the tuner. This is a good choice for someone that doesnt pull hard or divebomb alot. The double locking trem is a bit more complicated to string up but certainly more stable. The string is more stable for harder trem use.
Different Types of FRs
Original Floyd Rose
Floyd Rose II
Floyd Rose Pro
Floyd Rose 7 String
Floyd Rose Speedloader Tremolo
Floyd Rose Speedloader fixed bridge
Floyd Rose Single Locking
First Floyd Rose made
Les Paul Floyd Rose
Ibanez Edge
Ibanez Edge III
Ibanez Fixed Edge
Ibanez Low Pro Edge
Ibanez Double Edge
Ibanez Edge Zero
Ibanez Edge Pro
Licensed Schaller Floyd Rose
Licensed Gotoh Floyd Rose
Licensed Guitar Fetish Fast Loader Floyd Rose
Licensed Mighty mite x3
Standard Licensed Double Locking Floyd Rose
Standard Licensed Single Locking Floyd Rose
Kahler Spyder
Buying a FR
I can not stress this enough, unless you have loads of patience and money to buy new strings, DON'T buy a cheap floyd rose. They are made of cheap, soft metals which allow strings to make grooves and sharp edges in them leading to string breakage. With a cheap FR it will affect your tone, sustain, won't keep in tune and will not be able to set up very well. I suggest that you bite the bullet and spend the extra money for an Oringinal, Schaller, Gotoh or some sort of floyd similar in quality, it will be good in the long run
Helpful Websites
www.georgemangos.com/floyd/index.htm
www.floydrose.com/video.html
www.floydrose.com/originaltremolo.html
www.glowingtubes.com/p/FloydTuning.htm##disc
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_Rose