RhinoTime
Joined: 01/04/08
Posts: 447
Loc: West Sussex UK
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Hoping for advice on locking trems.
#943133 - 25/09/11 06:46 PM
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I'm building up a strat at the moment and have decided it has to have a locking trem.
So looking at prices there seems to be three common options:
1. Floyd rose
original - Approx £200+
2. Schaller licenced copy - Approx £150
3. Ebay
licenced copy - Approx £40
I'm discounting the Ebay ones as I have my doubts
about licencing and quality. (I'm pretty sure that at least a few of them are poor quality
pirate copies made from 'steel' with the physical characteristics of plasticine)
I'm discounting the Floyd Rose one as the Schaller is cheaper, and I suspect every bit
as well made.
Am I wrong? Are there other options I'm missing out on.
Opinions gratefully received.
Thanks, Grant.
--------------------
I've never liked a solo violin, you need at least five for a proper fire.
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. . . Delete This
Here be Dragons
Joined: 23/06/08
Posts: 3888
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Re: Hoping for advice on locking trems.
[Re: RhinoTime]
#943142 - 25/09/11 06:55 PM
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i have both schaller and original floyds... (and ibanez, and others)
personally, i find the Floyd original , (and mind , it is a real one.... ) is by far
the best damn responsive , stable, delight to use of the lot of em.... seriously....
sounds good too!!!
in order of what i think the best playing trems
are...
1 Floyd original (on a heartfield talon)
2 Lo Pro Ibanez floydie
thing on my Jem, is next,
3 the schaller on my charvel...
4) later ibanez
trem on my RG
5) other licensed trems on assorted guitars.
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zenguitar
active member
Joined: 05/12/02
Posts: 7592
Loc: Devon
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Re: Hoping for advice on locking trems.
[Re: RhinoTime]
#943212 - 26/09/11 12:05 AM
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And I can assure you that our Welsh dragon really does know his Floyd Roses. Discounting
the ones he's mentioned, he has set up 100's of them over the years. If I was
going the Floyd route, I would also opt for an Original. A fantastic piece of
engineering. Andy 
-------------------- When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.
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. . . Delete This
Here be Dragons
Joined: 23/06/08
Posts: 3888
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note, ( blushes , aww Andy..... )
i'm less keen on the floyd rose II
... they don;t last as long.... the knife edges wear faster....
also
worthy of note, (but needs careful maintenance at all times)
Vigier did a
version that used ball bearings instead of knife edges,... was rather good on the
excalibur that passed thru my hands a few years ago...
Yamaha did a nice
one many years ago , on their MSG and RGX custom/std models... likewise, not knife edges
... but a curved bearing surface.
(it also had an ingenious method of
securing strings without cutting the ball ends off... )
Kahler trems were
excellent, but again, higher in maintenance requirements, and MUCH harder to find parts
for....
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TheChorltonWheelie
Joined: 22/09/09
Posts: 867
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Re: Hoping for advice on locking trems.
[Re: RhinoTime]
#943236 - 26/09/11 07:56 AM
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Quote RhinoTime:
1. Floyd rose
original - Approx £200+
2. Schaller licenced copy - Approx £150
3. Ebay
licenced copy - Approx £40
It's worth noting that the official Floyd Rose is still made my Schaller, and has been
since the very late 1970's. Floyd couldn't manufacture nor guarantee the consistency of
quality on his own built versions, that's why he approached Schaller to do it for him.
Don't waste your money on any licenced item, they make look like a Floyd but the
quality of Schaller's casting techniques, and the materials they use, are far, far
superior than anything that comes from the middle east. For the sake of £200, buy the
best.
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TheChorltonWheelie
Joined: 22/09/09
Posts: 867
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Quote Off duty BBQ lighter AKA Idris:
i'm less keen on the floyd rose II ... they don;t last as long.... the knife
edges wear faster....
I'm
not sure about that comment, I have Floyd's that are 20 years old that don't have that
issue. I've just inspected the seats on my lo-pro Floyd on my HMT and there isn't any wear
at all.
Having said that, it's a 5 minute job to re-profile the seats,
something that any decent luthier would probably charge £10 for.
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. . . Delete This
Here be Dragons
Joined: 23/06/08
Posts: 3888
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Re: Hoping for advice on locking trems.
[Re: TheChorltonWheelie]
#943244 - 26/09/11 08:20 AM
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let's start with the fact that the original, REAL floyd rose, is NOT A CASTING.
it's machined from case hardened steel.
(and thus the price
differential)
the baseplate of the FRII is deliberately made from softer
material to affect the tone....
unfortunately that has side effects on
the long term wear of a trem that actually gets used...
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TheChorltonWheelie
Joined: 22/09/09
Posts: 867
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Quote Off duty BBQ lighter AKA Idris:
let's start with the fact that the original, REAL floyd rose, is NOT A
CASTING.
The main body is
machined, the parts that are normally associated with wear are cast, and it's Schaller's
choice of materials and their casting process that sets them apart from the inferior
licenced versions.
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Korff
Loose Cannon (Reviews Editor)
Joined: 20/10/06
Posts: 1978
Loc: The Wrong Precinct
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Aren't Kahler back in business? I really liked the Spyder trem on my old HM Strat, dunno
if they're still making them...
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TheChorltonWheelie
Joined: 22/09/09
Posts: 867
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Re: Hoping for advice on locking trems.
[Re: Korff]
#943296 - 26/09/11 10:56 AM
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Quote Korff:
Aren't Kahler back
in business? I really liked the Spyder trem on my old HM Strat, dunno if they're still
making them...
Kahler have
resurfaced, but they sold all of their spares to an ex-employee about 2-3 years ago, http://www.wammiworld.com/, so all
legacy parts go through him. I seem to recall him telling me that he'd bought the tooling
too, certainly on some of the small parts, but it has been a while since I spoke to him.
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Dynamic Mike
Joined: 31/12/06
Posts: 1471
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Re: Hoping for advice on locking trems.
[Re: RhinoTime]
#943478 - 27/09/11 12:43 AM
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Back in my Spandex Mullet dive-bombing days I loved the Washburn Wonderbar 2001. Flat
mounted, bullet-proof and by far the easiest to fit & maintain for a non-pro. Some
seem to fetch silly prices ($300+) on Ebay now, but worth looking out for if you haven't
routed the body yet.
--------------------
Not much in life worth running for. Or from.
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RhinoTime
Joined: 01/04/08
Posts: 447
Loc: West Sussex UK
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Re: Hoping for advice on locking trems.
[Re: RhinoTime]
#943692 - 27/09/11 09:13 PM
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Thanks for all the comments.
On balance I think it's going to be the Schaller for
me.
Thanks,
Grant.
--------------------
I've never liked a solo violin, you need at least five for a proper fire.
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TheChorltonWheelie
Joined: 22/09/09
Posts: 867
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Re: Hoping for advice on locking trems.
[Re: Dynamic Mike]
#943744 - 28/09/11 07:52 AM
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Quote Dynamic Mike:
Back in my
Spandex Mullet dive-bombing days
You mean those days have gone?!??!?! No one told me..............
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