Why bolt on?

[Silver]

I was talking to my friend's father the other day, he's a teacher who teaches workshop (ahem, 'Design & Technology') stuff to 11-16 year olds. He doesn't play guitar but for some reason has always wanted to build himself one (and learn how to play, presumably). I was talking him through all the different aspects of guitar design, showing him a few of my guitars, and he was taking a few of them apart to have a look.

I showed him a strat, and compared it to a neck-thru guitar that I have. I explained the strat is a bolt-on guitar.

He seemed incredulous! "But it's not bolted on though, is it? It's screwed on. Why don't they call it a 'screw on'?"

I hadn't really thought of it, so, anyone know?



Also, he couldn't seem to fathom the design of the synchronized tremolo on my strat and thought it was an absurd design. The design of my friend's Kahler seemed to make a lot more sense to him, and I think he said something about how no good engineer would have thought the synchronized trem was a good idea because of the amount of force applied to the trem claw screws?

 

[CTN]

Re: Why bolt on?

He is, of course, correct, on both accounts.

They are screws. You can get retrofit kits which use threaded inserts in the neck and actual machine bolts through the body that grip onto the threaded inserts. That'd be a true bolt-on, but Fender, to the best of my knowledge, hasn't ever done that. It's costs less and requires less labour to use screws than to use threaded inserts and bolts. marginally less, but there you go. Fender designs are things borne out of a desire to make the manufacturing process quick, easy and cost effective.

The naming thing, maybe it stuck because it just sounds better than "screwed on neck". Chalk it up to an oddity of the guitar industry.


The synchronized tremolo is a silly, cumbersome design, but it does work. I'm not actually sure what kind of forces are being applied on the screws, but a well set up floating trem requires that the string tension is balanced by the tension of the springs in the spring cavity. But they are springs, so in terms of the amount of force transferred to the screws, it is diminished by the fact that the spring itself dissipates some of that force by acting in two directions. It's kinda complicated, but what it comes down to is that even though there is a good amount of force on the screws that hold the spring claw, it's not as much as you would think from a cursory glance at the system. The thing he probably found issue with is the fact that the force on the screws is being applied directly, whereas on a kahler system the springs are in a sense isolated from the mounting screws that hold the whole system to the body. On a traditional fender style trem (or any of its derivatives, floyd rose included), they aren't isolated from the mounts. But like I said, it's not actually enough to make the system fail, as long as the holes aren't stripped out or drilled too wide for the screws.

 

[LReese]

Re: Why bolt on?

Kahler has kind of the same thing going on - its 'fulcrum' rides on 2 ball bearings. I think 1 key "advantage" (if you can call it that) is that the Kahler maintains string height when lowering or raising pitch. Seems to me that getting a little extra string height with the fulcrum type bridge when the bar is depressed works in my favor.

Its a pick your poison situation.

Back in those days (According to what Forrest White wrote) necks were meant to be a replaceable part. Wear down the frets - pop a new neck on... Lickety split.

 

[trevorus]

Re: Why bolt on?

A bolt needs a wrench, and a screw needs a screwdriver. So what?

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Why bolt on?

Vintage tremolos are great. They are simple and easy to work with and fix.

Bolt on screw in set neck neck through turkey neck flange joint and machine heads

 

[jon the art guy]

Re: Why bolt on?

Has there been a lot of catastrophic failure of the trem screws? I don't read about it much. It think its a "ain't broke, don't fix it" thing.

off u see did MRSAge, I m on tapa talk and auto correct is hating on me

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Why bolt on?

Has there been a lot of catastrophic failure of the trem screws? I don't read about it much. It think its a "ain't broke, don't fix it" thing.

off u see did MRSAge, I m on tapa talk and auto correct is hating on me

Easy fix, Just pull out when it feels good.

 

[LReese]

Re: Why bolt on?

Only failures I've heard of was the 2 point floyd posts that went directly in to the wood - with basswood and other softer woods.

I even remember SRV saying at one time he used the 2 outside bridge screws. Wasn't the case later on.

2 point is an improvement in feel. Coolest new neck joint I've seen is Tom Anderson's.

 

[tc]

Re: Why bolt on?

Guitarists are a funny bunch. We say bolt on instead of screw on, and tremolo instead of vibrato. It's Leo's fault.

 

[uOpt]

Re: Why bolt on?

Americans just like to use outright wrong words for things. I something about feeling cool and insiderish when only people who "have been there" get it.

 

[dystrust]

Re: Why bolt on?

Kahler has kind of the same thing going on - its 'fulcrum' rides on 2 ball bearings. I think 1 key "advantage" (if you can call it that) is that the Kahler maintains string height when lowering or raising pitch. Seems to me that getting a little extra string height with the fulcrum type bridge when the bar is depressed works in my favor.

Its a pick your poison situation.

Back in those days (According to what Forrest White wrote) necks were meant to be a replaceable part. Wear down the frets - pop a new neck on... Lickety split.

Another Kahler advantage (and why Jerry Cantrell likes them) is that unlike a Floyd, a Kahler won't pull sharp with heavy palm-muting.

 

[DreX]

Re: Why bolt on?

Also, he couldn't seem to fathom the design of the synchronized tremolo on my strat and thought it was an absurd design. The design of my friend's Kahler seemed to make a lot more sense to him

I haven't familiarized myself with every trem option out there, but what I love about the stock trem is that it has a small foot print. It's not a big, elaborate contraption that makes a guitar look overly technological.

and I think he said something about how no good engineer would have thought the synchronized trem was a good idea because of the amount of force applied to the trem claw screws?

I've never heard of those screws failing, and the design goal of the Strat was to be cheap, so to me, that detail is just more evidence of it's genius.

 

[Brian Griffin]

Re: Why bolt on?

Now I don't even know why the vintage tremolo is called 'synchronized'. What is so synchronized about it? And should I care?

 

[ExplorersRock]

Re: Why bolt on?

I love tech types... they get hung-up on the most meaningless details.

 

[CTN]

Re: Why bolt on?

Now I don't even know why the vintage tremolo is called 'synchronized'. What is so synchronized about it? And should I care?

marketing BS.

 

[DreX]

Re: Why bolt on?

Now I don't even know why the vintage tremolo is called 'synchronized'.

In contrast to a Bigsby, where the vibrato and bridge are seperate pieces. You don't have to worry about string hang ups on the bridge, but there's still the nut the contend with.

 

[DreX]

Re: Why bolt on?

I love tech types... they get hung-up on the most meaningless details.

It must be embarrassing to talk to non guitar people about it's design points and have to use the wrong terms to remain consistent with actual guitar lingo. It makes electric guitarists / luthiers look kinda dumb.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Why bolt on?

We say ... tremolo instead of vibrato.

'Bolt-on' is a minor error in the music world compared to using the word 'tremolo' (variations in volume) instead of the correct term 'vibrato' (variations in pitch). It sounds uneducated to people who know music. And that blunder leads to further errors down the road, as in 'trem-spaced' pickups. No wonder guitarists have trouble with credibility. It's bad enough we use tablature.

 

[CTN]

Re: Why bolt on?

It must be embarrassing to talk to non guitar people about it's design points and have to use the wrong terms to remain consistent with actual guitar lingo. It makes electric guitarists / luthiers look kinda dumb.

except that almost every industry has stupid lingo and jargon usage oddities that flies right over the heads of people who aren't in the know...

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: Why bolt on?

Many of these hardware and design aspects were the subject of patents. The patent applicant patent has to simultaneously define the new product in terms that are already understood AND establish originality and/or difference when compared to all other contemporary items.