Jaguar / Mustang Tremolo in a Maple Cap?

Fuengi

Hypothetically, could one install a Jaguar vibrato unit in a maple cap that is chambered below the cap? 

I'm presuming the routing wouldn't be too muc of an issue, just the force on the unit - would it pull the cap up over time? 

Funkfingers

How thick is the hypothetical maple cap? Is it flat or carved/arched? Do you know where the weight relief cavities are beneath the cap?

Fuengi

Hypothetically, it looks like this one. 

Fuengi

It's also London Plane, not maple, but nice and thick because it was hypothetically made by GSP. 

ICBM

Are the 'side rails' of that end cavity spaced so that the four outer screws of the JM tailpiece will go into them? ie the inner space smaller than about 70mm wide and the outer edges more than about 90mm apart? It looks like that's about right, although hard to tell from the photo angle. If they are, then it's not a problem at all. The front two don't take a very significant load, even if they miss the centre block.

Fuengi

ICBM said:

Are the 'side rails' of that end cavity spaced so that the four outer screws of the JM tailpiece will go into them? ie the inner space smaller than about 70mm wide and the outer edges more than about 90mm apart? It looks like that's about right, although hard to tell from the photo angle. If they are, then it's not a problem at all. The front two don't take a very significant load, even if they miss the centre block.

I'll have a measure up. Should be able to get a fairly accurate measurement from this photo and the cutaways to estimate where the side rails are. 

Funkfingers

The front two screws are the ones I'd be worried about. It depends on the distance between the bridge and the vibrato tailpiece string anchor.

Fuengi said:

London Plane, not maple

Thank Clapton that the vibrato is Jaguar/Jazzmaster, not Mustang.

Fuengi

Funkfingers said:

The front two screws are the ones I'd be worried about. It depends on the distance between the bridge and the vibrato tailpiece string anchor.

I can set that where I choose provided I miss the bridge, right? 

Funkfingers

Looking at the Mastery MV vibrato tailpiece, its outline does away with the front two fastening screws altogether. 

The downside is that the unit is fugly compared to the Jazzmaster/Jaguar outline.

ICBM

Fuengi said:

Funkfingers said:

The front two screws are the ones I'd be worried about. It depends on the distance between the bridge and the vibrato tailpiece string anchor.

I can set that where I choose provided I miss the bridge, right? 

Don't worry about it - they're under no upward force at all, they're purely in shear which will be fine even in a relatively thin top. If you try to get them to go into the centre block you'll have the tailpiece too far forward. It's the outer four that are under almost all the load.

ICBM

Funkfingers said:

Looking at the Mastery MV vibrato tailpiece, its outline does away with the front two fastening screws altogether. 

The downside is that the unit is fugly compared to the Jazzmaster/Jaguar outline.

This one?



Actually I think that would look really good on this guitar. If you set it far enough back - and with the caveat about the side rail spacing - it should be possible to get all six screws into the centre block wood.

Fuengi

ICBM said:

Funkfingers said:

Looking at the Mastery MV vibrato tailpiece, its outline does away with the front two fastening screws altogether. 

The downside is that the unit is fugly compared to the Jazzmaster/Jaguar outline.

This one?



Actually I think that would look really good on this guitar. If you set it far enough back - and with the caveat about the side rail spacing - it should be possible to get all six screws into the centre block wood.

I tend to agree, I prefer this shape marginally to the JM / Jag tremolo.