Re: Hardtail vs Floyd
I suppose you ought to go out and try both and see what you like. Personally, I'm not a fan of the feel of a Floyd, especially under palm muting (even worse is a floating floyd, were the pressure of my palm seems to raise pitch). But when it comes to tremolo tricks, nothing beats a Floyd.
In terms of tuning stability, authentic floyds are very stable (not as stable as a hardtail, but still very stable). The question may boil down to trem vs. hardtail. If that's the case, then is there any reason why you have to own a Floyd? I've got a Wilkinson on my Ibanez with locking tuners and graphite nut, and as long as you don't dive bomb as low as possible, it stays in tune very well. Just a thought.