The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    hello,

    I was looking at purchasing a guitar. Is it normal for the bridge to be a little crooked and why would it be like this?

    thanks!Is it normal for guitar bridge to be crooked?-guitar-jpg

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  3. #2

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    Looks a little off. Did you try the guitar? Is the intonation correct like this? Maybe it’s just in the wrong place!

    With new strings it can probably be positioned in the right place.
    Last edited by Little Jay; 05-27-2020 at 12:15 PM.

  4. #3

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    It's a floating bridge, so it can be positioned wherever it needs to be for the most accurate intonation.

  5. #4
    I have not personally tried the guitar, but noticed the bridge from pictures on line. Would you be nervous of a guitar that needed that much of an angle to have appropriate intonation? I have never had a guitar like this.

    Thanks

  6. #5

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    I would think it more likely that they hadn’t set the intonation. Where is this advertised?

  7. #6

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    Short answer is: no!

    The problem is that the string compensation of the bridge saddle (upper part) doesn't fit to this guitar and/or string set. Especially the notch for the B-string looks overcompensated, a common issue of some newer wooden bridges. The result is that you have to crook the bridge (the base part) to get a halfway acceptable overall intonation for all six strings.

    Crooked archtop guitar bridge = ugly for the eyes and pointing to thoughtless workmanship. Easy to be changed.
    As a general rule, the base part of the bridge should be at right angles to the guitar's longitudinal axis, just the upper (saddle) part with the strings' compensation may be positioned out of line (crooked).

  8. #7

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    My first thought is that no one's tuned / intonated it (if intonated isn't a word © me )
    One of my guitars ended up in tune & intonated with a way worse bridge angle that that, I was on the verge of posting the same question here when new strings fixed the problem...

  9. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by Ol' Fret
    Especially the notch for the B-string looks overcompensated, a common issue of some newer wooden bridges. The result is that you have to crook the bridge (the base part) to get a halfway acceptable overall intonation for all six strings.
    All the vintage Gibson bridges have this more extreme compensation for the B-string. The newer Chinese bridges are less extreme.

    Vintage:


    Modern:


    (I have one of those newer Chinese bridges on my ES-125 and intonation is fine, btw.)

  10. #9

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    Most modern archtop guitar bridges are made in Asia today; I suppose that for cost concerns the bridges offered by Heritage and Gibson are also made in Asia. You can buy all sorts of guitar bridges with more or less B-string compensation in Asia, Europe and the USA - bridges are no national shrines. The compensation just has to meet the guitar (scale length) and the actual strings - given that the player (or the manufacturer) mind a good guitar setup at all.

    The results of intonation and compensation efforts can be measured, no guessing game here. We can't measure intonation on pics, but one reason why we see slanted archtop guitar bridges is that the extreme B-string notching can complicate the setting of an acceptable overall string intonation.
    The "jagged" or stairstep vintage Gibson design usually is less extreme/pronounced than the above one used by Heritage and many other manufacturers - if we could measure the distances in real life (yellow line on the pics: Heritage on the left, Gibson on the right).

    Is it normal for guitar bridge to be crooked?-archtop-guitar-bridges-heritage-vs-gibson-right-jpg


    No idea here why people like the look and function of the newer "jagged" bridge compensation. Once Gibson made nice and smooth looking and flawlessly working archtop guitar bridge saddles - I still use some of that simple design.

    Is it normal for guitar bridge to be crooked?-dscf4889a-jpg


    Of course, the intonation isn't spot on with these vintage Gibson bridges made of Brazilian rosewood, but acceptable for most players. At least, the bridge per se hasn't to be slanted on the soundboard. Btw., D'Angelico and D'Aquisto made similar smoothly curved and compensated bridge saddles. Other makers achieved to get the compensation even better, without resorting to the heavy TOM metal bridge, which may be ok for electric archtop guitars with less acoustic output.

  11. #10

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    That doesn’t look like a heritage bridge. StewMac maybe? The StewMac bridges are very nice quality and when properly fitted they sound fantastic. I’d consider it an upgrade. In 5 minutes, you can find the proper intonation and straighten that sucker out. If the B won’t intonate, swap out the saddle for a less extreme version. It may be too much for a 24.7” scale guitar.

  12. #11

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    Nobody has set the intonation on that sucker. It looks off. You may want to read this to find out why:

    FRETS.COM

  13. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by Ol' Fret
    I suppose that for cost concerns the bridges offered by Heritage and Gibson are also made in Asia.
    Heritage and Gibson do not source their wood bridges from Asia. The bridge in the OP's photo is most likely a Teller No.107 in rosewood, made in Bubenreuth, Germany. Over the years, Teller has supplied archtop bridges to various American companies, including Guild (American-made), Heritage, Stewmac and more.

    There is a long-standing tradition of European (mostly German) specialty suppliers, such as Teller, Schaller, ABM, Van Gent, and others, providing parts to American makers. This tradition is disappearing, mainly as a result of:
    -the ongoing argument between Porche automobiles (driven very fast) and brick walls;
    -cost.

  14. #13
    thanks for the responses

    so in summary from what I have gathered

    1) this is not a permanent problem/defect but can be rectified with a proper set up
    2) the bridge itself is likely ok - but again guitar needs a once over to get intonation correct

    - I have not played the guitar myself, just noticed the bridge being askew in pictures

    Thanks,