The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #26

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    I do have shims for the bridge P90. I love that Gretsch Bigsby but I thought it would look wierd to have the Gretsch logo on Gibby. I like the B6 because it i longer. I have never heard anything good about the Vibrola and just about every guitar I have has a Bigsby on it, so I'm at home with a Bigsby. I also have a Chet arm I like on it. Since this guitar has been changed in so many ways I doubt those are stock tuners. The buttons look like super cheap plastic and tuning the guitar really shows how bad these are. I go a vintage set from Stew Mac that should be nice.

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  3. #27

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    I think Kluson nowadays also has a cheaper Asian production line? The 3-on-plate Klusons on my 125 are perfect but more recently bought Klusons for ES-330 kit are not as nice... (but do the job).

    *edit: ah, I see that there is Kluson made in Germany (Kluson by Gotoh) and made in Korea, at least that is what the different boxes say of the Klusons I bought:


  4. #28

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    Video to come!


  5. #29

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    Looks good. The bridge volume knob is a little closer to the edge of the f-hole than it ‘should’ be.

    It’s probably a very versatile guitar, suitable for many music styles like this.

    Looking forward to sounds!

  6. #30

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    So I let my luthier do this. Usually I do my own work but I might not have been able to cut into the ES out of fear of jacking up an old instrument. The knob placement is the only thing I'm not happy with. I could move it and fill the hole if it really drives me crazy but for now I'm going to leave it. Native american rug makers always put a flaw in their rugs to signify that only the creator is perfect. That off set knob could be looked at that way and also make sure no one the future pawns this off as a real TDC.

    I'm going to do some minor tweaks today. I'm going to pull a spacer ring out of the bridge pickup and get the action down lower and balance out the pickups. I can tell you that the additional P90 did add the tonal range the way I had hoped. I played it for 3 hours yesterday and it stayed in tune better than before, so kudos to the Bigsby and Compton bridge (I'm running flat wound 10s on there). I will say it is much louder now with more sustain. The tone is just amazing.

  7. #31

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    Here is the video...


  8. #32

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    I wanted to add an update after playing it for a while. My big question was if the additional bridge pickup would hurt the sound. I was also unsure about the effect the Compton bridge and Bigsby would have. I'm excited to report that it really opened up the sound and possibilities of this ES. It was immediately obvious that the guitar had more sustain and was louder unplugged. The real improvement was the sound into an amp. That second pickup gives you the dark neck tone, the bright bridge tone, and ultimately the two pickups running together give you both and a very balanced way. The Kluson style tuners I bought from Stew Mac looked great but went out of tune frequently and would take a 1/2 turn to get a reaction from the string in some instances. I pulled those out (they are for sale) and ordered the Hipshot locking tuners. While waiting for those to arrive I went back to my standard 56 ES 125. The difference between the TCD and standard ES was immediately noticeable. I felt like I working to play the bigger bodied ES. Also the single pickup was super noticeable compared to the TCD. It was then I realized that the TCD was the winner for me and how I enjoy playing. The Hipshot tuners came in and I got them installed. They don't look as stock as my reliced Golden Age tuners but are leaps and bounds better for tuning and holding a tune. I sat down and played for two hours without issue. After all of this I realized that the TCD is the ultimate guitar for me. I can get convincing acoustic tones out of it and then get nice and raunchy blues tones. The feedback is so controllable that I would call it a feature. The end of this story is that I am in love with the TCD. It is now my number one (and I have a lot of nice guitars that got knocked out of that place). I hope some of this info might help someone in the future - THE END!
    Last edited by BillyHell; 11-06-2020 at 10:24 AM.

  9. #33

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    Seems like you have found your guitar! Enjoy it!

  10. #34

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    That is awesome! I can’t get my head around a louder acoustic sound because- I presume- an extra hole in the top. Congrats


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  11. #35

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    I think it was the Compton bridge that made it louder.

  12. #36

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    Quote Originally Posted by BillyHell
    I think it was the Compton bridge that made it louder.
    I’d not heard of them before. I take it you have no intonation issues. Intonation keeps bugging me from time to time, especially since i change string size from 9.5 (only D’Adario) to 11 (only trying). Could you tell me how it is?


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  13. #37

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    Quote Originally Posted by darkwaters
    I'd go for it. Between the mods and the headstock damage I'd consider it fair game.

    In addition, if the neck break repair gets the thumbs up, I'd use a dark wood stain to try to hide it a bit more. It looks nasty.
    I's paint a black stinger to hide that break.

  14. #38

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    When I added a Bigsby to my Gibson, I replaced the original bridge with a Wayne Compton bridge. I've even put these bridges on all of my Gibson's and Archtops now! Wow what an improvement in tone and sustain!

    Can't recommend Wayne Compton bridges enough!