To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

S

SJ318

New member
Hello,
I paid a lot of money years ago for a J.Beck Strat as I wanted that LSR factory setup, etc. Really wanted to use a trem and stay in tune.
Since then, I have set up 4 or 5 Strat types (Warmoth,Squires,etc.) and (bone,corian and others not withstanding) I have found that a TusqXL works EQUALLY as well keeping the guitar in tune, "locking tuners" being assumed as part of the mix. Therefore, I feel when buying a neck, as that is all I will ever need need now, I don't care about LSR's, and in fact would rather have a TusqXL, with them I can control the radius as well as stay in tune.
Am I right or am I right?
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

I put a Gotoh 6 screw vintage trem in a Squeer with an LSR nut and love it.
Remember the LSR is a perm.
PC
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

I'm really picky about components on a strat, and a Tusq XL nut is one of the greatest upgrades for tone, feel, and tuning. I can't bond with any guitar that has a metal nut. Bone or Tusq gives a soul to a guitar, and I know that doesn't make sense, but it does to me.
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

I've got an LSR on one of my Warmoth and have had no cause for concern over its performance. I'd happily put one on a guitar again.
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

both graphtech for strats/teles and lsr have a major problem at least for me : huge E-E spacing. I have yet to find one with 42mm width and E-E < 35mm . So I just put the cheapest nut I can find, put some super-vee sauce and make it stable, usually very easily. super-vee sauce has worked for both ordinary plastic nuts and black tusq. I remember my Ibanez ARZ800 with black tusq nut had HORRIBLE tuning performance. After a treatment with the sauce it became very stable. So I guess tusq is not so self-labricating.
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

Don't just use TusqXL for the nut but for the saddles.
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

I have LSRs in both of my Strats. I don't have anything with a TusqXL but I would imagine as with all gear they are both great options but different. Just go with whatever grinds your coffee. If you want to prop up the strings with a number 2 pencil it makes no matter to me. You are the one playing the guitar.
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

it is my understanding that the Tusq doesnt have teflon
and the TusqXL does
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

To Greekdude,
The black tusq is way different than the TusqXL. It is a self lubricating Teflon design, and I also had trouble with a narrow nut area being very small, and the tusqXL folks sent me a new tusqXL non slotted nut for that one. I just copied the last worn out junk plastic nut for spacing, and it was great. Mine was a very narrow one due to the frets not going all the way out to the end of my fretboard on the first 4-6 frets, like a 41 space, and it worked out great. I guess saying that twice is enough.
SJB
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

^^ How did you cut the slots? Any special nut slot tool or did you make it yourself?
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

I had an LSR nut put into a custom build that I got about 15 years ago.
b835119b1475545230beef234eac3418.jpg


I changed that out for an Earvana a few years ago.
bab7d1e8f9798a73b29f01260babb99b.jpg
(not really in focus)

This, along with a Super Vee trem, and Nut Sauce make for a really stable guitar with no tuning issues.

I'm a convert to Earvana nuts. I've put one on my latest build. They do wonders for low fret intonation, and they're made of a self lubricating material. I always use nut sauce in any contact points as well.
 
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Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

I had a JB strat w lsr nut. Wouldn't stay in tune. I put a callaham bridge on my mim strat w 50's style tuners. Stays perfectly in tune... I had previously put locking tuners on everything I own.
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

To Greekdude,
I bought a very diverse and large collection of nut files from Amazon and many collected as I grew up. Plus I had to teach myself how to do it on the road alone with no money if one needed doing. My collection from all these sources are very long, about 6 inches maybe, fine rat tail round ones and triangle ones and square ones that all start off nail head narrow and gradually get thicker away from the tip.
After I am done with those I go from 600 to 1500 sandpaper in 4 steps, then to finalize and polish the slot, I use an old trick a very old luthier showed me on not only the nut, but also as a finishing touch on metal saddles, which were a new thing in my day, and that is to take a matchbook cover and rub all the slots (nut and saddle) fast and using all the edges for each slot, then cut the edges to start over on the next slot/saddle, this way we didn't waste six whole match book covers, but recycling the same cover by cutting it down for each use.
Of course, there was no "recycling" in those days. We just said, save what you can!
On Amazon, I think it was under fine tools for hobby making, woodworking fine tools, that sort of area. I should mention, my finished nut worked beautifully, but looked like crap where I always dinged up parts of the nut that didn't affect it's use!
SJB
 
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Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

simonbaker,
Wow, finally a guy who has Super V. You have the non-locking one correct? The one with flexible metal and the screws are tight, 6 right below the bridge pup. That is very fascinating. I used to work with several flex metal designs. So, how is it? I think those look like locking tuners. Is it a little better or way better than what you had before, and please what was your old trem, a Fender?
I am truly interested in a Super V but can't find any real owners, just sales vids. And also, I know the basics of Fieten and Earvana, how do they work higher up?
Also, is the Earvana nut better for intonation than the LSR, by that I mean coming back to tune the way you had, tuning stability as opposed to nut design. I hope I am being clear in my question. Coming back to "0" point or where it was prior to trem use.
Thank you very much,
SJ
 
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Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

^^^ I have super-vee as well! the 4-screws version. I had the arm broken, when strung up with 10's. It was taken care by the seller. With 9's it works very nice. Better stability I think. But if the guitar sounds great with the stock parts, super-vee will not add anything to it.
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

greekdude,
Where did the arm break? By the plate or inside the block?
And how is the new one they sent you, did they say you had a bad one and the replacement should be better and last a long time. Very interesting to me. Been thinking about those and the Stetsbar for my non-trem guitars.
Thanks g-dude,
SJ
 
Re: To all who have used LSR & TusqXL for their trems.

tubecrunch,
I had the same thing happen on my J.Beck. So I made the slot where the string hits the plate before the saddle long enough by hand, which took a few hours, so the string leaves the block and touches NOTHING on the way to the saddle. Now it works much, much, better.
I can slack the strings but it still comes back in tune +or- a cent on a string or 2. But with normal vibrato it is quite stable. Tell me, does the Callaham also go straight from the block to the saddles with out touching the saddle plate? I ask this as I am curious if you put the Callaham bridge on the J.Beck strat would it now work as well as it does on the mim Strat.
Really interested, as Callaham would be the only one besides a Super V I would consider.
Thanks so much, hope you see this
SJ
 
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