Yamaha SF700 Nashville style bridge position

JCA2550

The intonation is adjusted pretty much dead on but there's no wiggle room left.

Should I plug and re-drill the bridge posts 3mm further back?

PhilKing

You could turn the B&E saddles around and get a bit more space to adjust.

JCA2550

PhilKing said:

You could turn the B&E saddles around and get a bit more space to adjust.

Not a bad shout actually, I'll see if I can free the adjustment screws as they seem pretty much captured in the body of the bridge? 

Winny_Pooh

Neck relief suitably done? 

ICBM

This model is notorious for this problem - Google image search and have a look at all the others! If it was me, if it will intonate correctly, even with the saddles tight up to the back, I wouldn't change it. There's no need to modify it just to get a theoretical extra allowance for travel that you don't actually need.

I seem to remember the intonation screws are threadlocked into the round captive nuts at the other ends and aren't easy to remove, but heating the nut with a soldering iron should free them - mind the fumes in your eyes.

JCA2550

ICBM said:

This model is notorious for this problem - Google image search and have a look at all the others! If it was me, if it will intonate correctly, even with the saddles tight up to the back, I wouldn't change it. 

Yep, I've noticed the same with the SF series, but oddly not with the SGs which had the same hardware. It's as if the 24 fret neck somehow confused things. Measured to the centre of the bridge posts and they are about 2.5mm short.

JCA2550

Winny_Pooh said:

Neck relief suitably done? 

Yeah almost dead straight. 

ICBM

JCA2550 said:

Yep, I've noticed the same with the SF series, but oddly not with the SGs which had the same hardware. It's as if the 24 fret neck somehow confused things. Measured to the centre of the bridge posts and they are about 2.5mm short.

I don’t understand it either, Yamaha’s designers just got the bridge position wrong, and didn’t correct it before it went into production.

From memory, the ones I’ve worked on would all actually intonate correctly... just! The slight advantage is that you can always avoid the strings contacting the back edge of the bridge.

The Fender Cyclone has the same problem too - it’s as if using the Gibson scale length confused them.

punchesjudy

Mines the same pretty much. Looks like I’ve got more room to turn the saddles around but it’s intonated anyways so doesn’t bother me. Just leave as is imo. 

JCA2550

Have a wis