You MUST But a Genuine Bigsby They Said

[ThreeChordWonder]

So I did.

A B3 for one of my SGs. I also bought a Towner bar, from Mr. Towner himself. I haven't opened that yet. I'm sure the Towner bar is fine, however.

What follows is about the Bigsby.

A B3, advertised as chrome, but actually (poorly) polished aluminum.

The casting molds obviously lost their sharp edges long ago. The Bigsby motif looks like it's half melted.

The plastic tip on the arm pulls straight off, no grip at all, and it looks and feels like a bit of old heat shrink.

But worst of all...

Buy a B3 they said. It'll fit an SG with a Towner bar they said.

NOPE.

At least 3/4 of an inch too long. The boss on the end of the thing even interferes with the bridge mounts.

It doesn't fit my 2015 Gibson SG Standard. It doesn't fit my 2023 bought Epi SG Special. It doesn't fit my SGV project either.

Bitterly disappointed both with the quality of the product and that it doesn't fit

 

[beaubrummels]

Looks like a B3 would barely fit on an SG on a good day. I had always thought only a B5 could fit on an SG.

They've had that 'melty' look for decades, since at least the 80's. Says sand cast aluminum right on the web site.
https://www.bigsby.com/products/vibratos/b3/

 

[ThreeChordWonder]

The website I bought from said CHROME. Which is what I wanted. If I had wanted a polished aluminum one, I'd have ordered a polished aluminum one. You dont order a white car if you want a blue one, do you? The polishing, however, is nothing to write home about anyway.

Mr Towner's own website says B3, advice I got elsewhere said B3, which is why I bought a B3, all be it not from Mr. Towner, lets be perfectly fair, His website said he was out if stock of B3s which is why I bought elsewhere.

It's going back anyway, and I'll buy a vibramate and a knockoff B5 for my knockoff SGV.

 

[Chris Pile]

Bigsby does NOT chrome them. It won't stick to diecast aluminum. Whatever idiot was filling out the info on the website saw a silver color and called it chrome.

 

[ThreeChordWonder]

Bigsby does NOT chrome them. It won't stick to diecast aluminum. Whatever idiot was filling out the info on the website saw a silver color and called it chrome.

Sorry, but aluminum CAN be chromed. It's a complicated process involving a copper plating first (the copper will bond to uncorrected aluminum, the nickel will bond to the copper, the chromium bonds to the nickel). See

https://www.arlingtonplating.com/substrates-specifications/plating-on-aluminum/

Anyway, it was advertised as chrome, and it isn't, which is good enough reason to send it back. if yoy advertise a car as white and it turns out to be blue...

 

[ThreeChordWonder]

503 error uncorroded not uncrrected

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I don't think I will ever get the appeal of Bigsbys. JMO.

 

[Mincer]

I don't think I will ever get the appeal of Bigsbys. JMO.

I don't either, but they certainly are on a lot of modern instruments.

 

[beaubrummels]

They are very smooth for articulate musical vibrato effects. They feel easy in the hands, the wide flat bar that you press on and the spring action.

By comparison, strat types for example feel a little wiry and cheap, low tech and their tension isn't even through the sweep of the vibrato; it gets way stiffer faster as you press down.

 

[Mincer]

I think history and tradition keep the Bigsby alive. Certainly more modern trems have been engineered better, and stay in tune better without adding a big hunk of metal to the face of the guitar.

 

[Chris Pile]

Sorry, but aluminum CAN be chromed. It's a complicated process involving a copper plating first (the copper will bond to uncorrected aluminum, the nickel will bond to the copper, the chromium bonds to the nickel). See

https://www.arlingtonplating.com/substrates-specifications/plating-on-aluminum/

I didn't stutter. You are NOT chroming the aluminum. You are chroming the copper. I worked in aircraft for decades, I know how metal working and metal finishing is done. I've done it.

 

[Chris Pile]

Certainly more modern trems have been engineered better, and stay in tune better without adding a big hunk of metal to the face of the guitar.

You make it stay in tune better by putting on even BIGGER hunks of metal - Floyds, Kahlers, Evertunes?

 

[ThreeChordWonder]

I didn't stutter. You are NOT chroming the aluminum. You are chroming the copper. I worked in aircraft for decades, I know how metal working and metal finishing is done. I've done it.

If you put chrome over copper over an aluminum part you end up with a chromed part.

Your cop out is like saying you don't buy a painted car, you buy painted primer.

And, for what its worth, I hold a UK Honours degree in mechanical engineering and have been practicing my art for close to 40 years.

 

[Securb]

I don't think I will ever get the appeal of Bigsbys. JMO.

They are not for everyone. I put one on my Iceman because it was the best route to go with the Fishman bridge. After playing it for years I love it. It does take a bit to get used to a Bigsby and do a bit more than just use it for a little wiggle. Once you are comfortable with the tremolo they are amazing.

 

[Demanic]

What are the advantages/disadvantages of Bigsby vs something like a Floyd or a Khaler?

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[Mincer]

You make it stay in tune better by putting on even BIGGER hunks of metal - Floyds, Kahlers, Evertunes?

Jeff Beck doesn't have an issue with a modern Strat trem, and his playing is really subtle. I actually don't care if people use Bigsbys, just not my thing. I also think Kahlers and Floyds could be redesigned.

 

[Securb]

What are the advantages/disadvantages of Bigsby vs something like a Floyd or a Khaler?

I would say a Floyd or Kahler is easier to control. A Bigsby is easier to install on a non-tremolo guitar, with no routing. The Bigsby for me is less maintenance, no spring tension to deal with or intonation. The string changes are also easier on the Bibsby, no tools are required.

 

[GuitarStv]

What are the advantages/disadvantages of Bigsby vs something like a Floyd or a Khaler?

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A bigsby has a very different travel. You've got to push a lot further to get a similar effect as a floyd, and it doesn't have the quite the same range and won't stay in tune as well. Properly setup though they stay in tune well enough, the lack of sensitivity makes them easier in some ways to use (the slightest touch on the bar and a floyd can take your notes out of tune), and the range is good enough (you can drop it down/up at least a step at the limits of travel) that they're quite musical.

 

[Demanic]

A bigsby has a very different travel. You've got to push a lot further to get a similar effect as a floyd, and it doesn't have the quite the same range and won't stay in tune as well. Properly setup though they stay in tune well enough, the lack of sensitivity makes them easier in some ways to use (the slightest touch on the bar and a floyd can take your notes out of tune), and the range is good enough (you can drop it down/up at least a step at the limits of travel) that they're quite musical.

I'm running my Floyd setup with all 5 springs. It won't move under a light touch.

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[ThreeChordWonder]

. A Bigsby is easier to install on a non-tremolo guitar, with no routing. The Bigsby for me is less maintenance, no spring tension to deal with or intonation. The string changes are also easier on the Bibsby, no tools are required.

This.

It was intended for an SG body, which is actually quite thin compared to others., so it has to be a "surface mount".