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Hi fellows, a friend of mine just dropped by with his guitar, the bridge pin for the sixth string won't stay put even though there is a slot,/groove that was made inside the bridge pin hole, any help would really be appreciated, should we patch/plug the bridge pin hole and redrill or widen the slot for the string inside the hole?

Here are some pics





Another problem that my friend faces is that he changed the factory mono pick up to a stereo one and is now left with a rectangle soundport, what would you do with that, bigger soundport or would you try to match the maple grain?

Another pic to better see



TIA

SergeSerge Poirier39087.6433912037

I'm not really a 'repair guy' so my advice is probably not worth much!
I'd put on the 6th string (and probably pull out 1-3) and have a look inside with a light and mirror to try to figure out what is happening.
The string slot in the bridge doesn't look particularily big to me (actually looks a bit undersize to my eyes), so I don't think that a big fill and redrill is necessary. My guess is that swapping the bridge pin for one that is in better shape might tell you something. Once you do the 'diagnosis' a switch to new (bone/ebony/horn?) bridge pins might do the trick. You might consider switching to solid pins and enlarging the slots if necessary (say if the hole in the bridge plate is a bit chewed), though this would not leave you 'an escape route' if something went wrong.

As far as the hole in the side, I'd probably be inclined to throw the electronics back in there. Otherwise, an overlay on the outside with a smallish soundport (or not- you could just do an intarsia overlay) would be a solution- but quite a bit of work. I could never match the maple grain- better to put something contrasting there, I'd think.

Interesting stuff, huh?
John

Serge, The pins don't seem to be all the way seated in the holes, which
could make the ball end of the strings sit under the end of the pins,
rather than next to the pin, which is where they should be. Look in there
with a mirror and verify that the ball is next to the pin. If it isn't, it
sounds like the hole need to be opened up a little so the pin's end can
reach down a little more past the bridge plate.

Hope this helps

long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

Thanks a million John, i really appreciate that, your advice is pretty much in line with what i had in mind.

Serge

Have the holes been reamed at an angle or just drilled?

Serge this is a ball seat problem. I suspect and think I can see excessive wear on the pin's slot. I think when you look inside you will also find a grove worn in the bridge plate that allows the ball pull back into the in hole catch a rough edge on the pin and pull up.

[QUOTE=Hesh1956]   Or you could flush mount an ash tray in there too....... [/QUOTE]

I like this idea. Put one like they used to have in the arm rests on airplane seats with a closing lid so the used butts don't fall out when you put the guitar on its stand.   

Pics can be a little out of scale, but the pins are not seated for sure and the angle from the pon up to the saddle seams pretty intense.

Mike

Hi Serge, I seem to have joined the party late, I have made panels in flamed maple to fill in preamp holes before, they are always visible but you can be pretty artistic with it. As for the photos the saddle looks way too high and the break angle to the pins is very steep. As for the Stew mac plate mate Hesh mentioned, I have made many of these out of wood that have lasted for years and have made some that were only for 1 or 2 strings. You might consider that for the low E if the plate is really chewed up. Hope this helps, feel free to PM me if you have any questions.
Your pal Evan

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http://www.NewYorkGuitarRepair.com

Sorry for taking so long to respond to all this tremendous help and many many thanks to all for the immediate response.

Bob Long, thanks, we must have been posting at the same time, sorry my friend, i also realised that i forgot to log out before leaving the house and might have given some of you the impression that i was a stuck up Bear, really sorry folks.

Thanks also to everyone for the great advices received here my awesome friends! Earlier on, my friend had to leave with his guitar so he made the decision to buy new bridge pins and put his former pick up plate and buttons that would just be repositioned there as a dummy pick up while the bran new one will be hidden inside the guitar, near the sound hole and under the bridge(IIRC). I didn't feel comfie enough to mess with his guitar since it's a high end Norman so i think he made the right decisions but i will remember your advices on this in case he'd purchase the wrong type of bridge pins.

Thanks again all

Serge

Thanks also Evan, we must have been posting at the same time too, it's been twice for me today!

Great idea, i think i'll wait and see how it will go with his new bridge pins first since he's supposed to buy better pins than the plastic ones he has on there now.

Oh and i forgot to mention that all the advices here are saved to file for any further questions my friend would have! Thanks!

SergeSerge Poirier39088.005162037

The problem may have been solved by the above advice, but just in case...

This used to happen to me a lot. Here's how I solved it (crumby plastic pins and all): Bend a tight hook into the ball end of the string. Put the ball into the hole just far enough to have it curl under the bridge plate. Insert the pin, making sure that it doesn't pull the string down with it. Tug on the string a bit while holding the pin down with your thumb, just to make sure that it's seated. You should see a bit of the end winding of the string coming up through the hole. This should solve the problem, unless the hole has worn just too darn large. In that case, pull out the pin and rotate it so the groove is aimed at the tail, and not the string. It works for me!

Great tips from you too Carlton and your suggestion to turn the bridge pin, having the groove aiming at the tail made me hit my head with a gentle slap, why didn't i think of that at first?

I'll wait untill he gives me some news about the bridge plate, i will save your solutions for him Carlton, thank you very much!

Serge