New saddles?

NelsonP

I've got a Fender Shiflett Tele. It comes with some bent steel saddles like those in the pic below.  I think they don't look particularly well made.

Is there any benefit in changing them for something else?

ICBM

No.

Unless the screw threads aren't cut properly and the screws don't go in straight, they're made perfectly well enough to do the job.

JustMe

I love Highwood Saddles.

I have a set on my Anderson Drop Top and I love everything about them.

Reasonably priced too.

Funkfingers

ICBM said:

No.

Unless the screw threads aren't cut properly and the screws don't go in straight, they're made perfectly well enough to do the job.

What he said.

Modern stamped steel Stratocaster bridge saddles are as bad as the original. Luckily, Leo Fender’s original cheapskate design happens to sound right.

NelsonP

Thanks for the replies. Is there a recommended way to get the screw heads to be flush? The neck has been shimmed slightly but they still sit pround and I'd like them to sit below the level of the saddle if possible.

Should I just buy new screws? What diameter?

ICBM

NelsonP said:

Thanks for the replies. Is there a recommended way to get the screw heads to be flush? The neck has been shimmed slightly but they still sit pround and I'd like them to sit below the level of the saddle if possible.

Should I just buy new screws? What diameter?

Shim the neck a little more - you'll only need a tiny adjustment probably, it's very effective.

Buying new screws won't help since they only come in a fixed set of lengths, and the next shortest will be too short. You could file the existing ones down by the right amount - but don't do what someone I know did and file the tops off!! You need to measure carefully how much is sticking up, and take the same amount off the bottom of the screw...

Bear in mind that the one real limitation with this design is that the screws should not be *below* the tops of the saddles - level with them is as low as you want to go, or they tend to fall out of the threads because the metal is quite thin.