Can't deck 2 point trem

[muttonbuster]

I think you’re on a different topic here.

How so? He said he wants to deck it, as in sit the bridge down on the body. The guitar was designed and setup for the bridge to be 1/8" off the body. So if you deck it, the action on each string needs to come back up 1/8" by either raising the saddles, or fooling with microtilt or shims to bring the neck down. I"m more for raising the saddles, because it puts the strings coming off the nut right back in the plane they're supposed to be in for the whole length of the neck.

 

[Quikstyl]

Hey all. Picked up a new Strat today. I haven't owned a 2 point trem before and went about setting it up the way I like, only to discover I can't fully deck the trem. The post side sits about a 32nd off the body and can't go lower.

I'm OCD and this is irking me a little. Can I get shorter posts/higher threads or am I just stuck with the gap? I know it won't make a difference once I block the trem, just curious if it's a known thing and can be "fixed".

My 97 American Standard is decked since I never use the trem. I just put 5 springs on it and use Super Slinky 9's. If I need to get wiggly I play the 89 HM with a Floyd original.

 

[StratUp]

Why is it designed to not deck?

Looks like I'll be blocking it as I'm not a trem user and prefer the stability.

Fender give you a tremolo. They didn't expect anyone to want to make it a hard tail.

 

[SpringTank]

Fender give you a tremolo. They didn't expect anyone to want to make it a hard tail.

It would be nice if Fender started offering HTs again, but when you find a nice one, it doesn't really matter (to me) what kind of bridge it has. A great guitar is a great guitar.

 

[Wound_Up]

Hi Gene. I never use trem and so my intention was to deck it, but if I can't then I suppose I'll block it.

I try to avoid adding unnecessary weight to my guitars, but it's only 7.4 lbs.

You could always remove the entire assembly and bolt a hardtail bridge to the guitar. That'll remove the entire block, claw, and springs since you won't be needing any of it with the hardtail.

 

[SpringTank]

I have a Vintera 50s Modified Strat with the two-point tremolo.
I never plan to use the trem, and I find the tuning problems with a floating tremolo intolerable.

So I blocked it, MY way!

I made an oak block to place behind the trem block, carefully shaped to exactly fit the space there.
It has perfect contact with the metal surface of the trem block, and with the alder of the body to the rear.

THEN I made a hard maple wedge to place in FRONT of the trem block. The wedge is cut from an aged maple violin bridge blank.

View attachment 608943


The block and wedge are sized so that the bridge plate is perfectly parallel with the guitar top, with a small gap of about 3/4 mm between the bridge plate and the paint.
The gap is even all the way around, but the bridge plate is NOT actually touching the top.

View attachment 608944

The combination of the close-fitting oak block and the maple wedge LOCKS the bridge solidly in place, just as well as if the bridge plate was decked against the top.

Tapping on the top anywhere around the bridge, or ON the bridge, shows it to be as rock-solid as a hard tail bridge would be.

And, since I didn't change the (perfect) factory setup of the trem, a future owner can simply remove the wedge and oak block, and be ready to whammy!

Looks nice and clean! You've inspired me to do the same. Just picked up a couple nice pieces of oak at Lowes, one for each side of the block. Will let y'all know how it goes.

 

[SpringTank]

View attachment 608864

This is the same height as mine. It's that last 32nd of an inch I was talking about. But as has been pointed out, the 2 point system seems designed to not go lower, fully resting on the body, like a 6 point can.

 

[SpringTank]

This is the same height as mine. It's that last 32nd of an inch I was talking about. But as has been pointed out, the 2 point system seems designed to not go lower, fully resting on the body, like a 6 point can.

After looking at a number of 2 point trems, many seem to rest on the body. I'm not sure why mine can't.

 

[Scott Baxendale]

Hey all. Picked up a new Strat today. I haven't owned a 2 point trem before and went about setting it up the way I like, only to discover I can't fully deck the trem. The post side sits about a 32nd off the body and can't go lower.

I'm OCD and this is irking me a little. Can I get shorter posts/higher threads or am I just stuck with the gap? I know it won't make a difference once I block the trem, just curious if it's a known thing and can be "fixed".

You can always block it instead.

 

[Andrew Wasson]

I have a Vintera 50s Modified Strat with the two-point tremolo.
I never plan to use the trem, and I find the tuning problems with a floating tremolo intolerable.

So I blocked it, MY way!

I made an oak block to place behind the trem block, carefully shaped to exactly fit the space there.
It has perfect contact with the metal surface of the trem block, and with the alder of the body to the rear.

THEN I made a hard maple wedge to place in FRONT of the trem block. The wedge is cut from an aged maple violin bridge blank.

View attachment 608943


The block and wedge are sized so that the bridge plate is perfectly parallel with the guitar top, with a small gap of about 3/4 mm between the bridge plate and the paint.
The gap is even all the way around, but the bridge plate is NOT actually touching the top.

View attachment 608944

The combination of the close-fitting oak block and the maple wedge LOCKS the bridge solidly in place, just as well as if the bridge plate was decked against the top.

Tapping on the top anywhere around the bridge, or ON the bridge, shows it to be as rock-solid as a hard tail bridge would be.

And, since I didn't change the (perfect) factory setup of the trem, a future owner can simply remove the wedge and oak block, and be ready to whammy!

This is really the only way I'd do it. It maintains the correct geometry for the 2 point and it'll be solid.Nice job.

 

[Mind Flayer]

For strats that I don’t want to float, I just screw the springs in to the point where if I bend one string up, it won’t cause the other strings to change pitch. I can still bend down if I really want to, but usually in those cases I just remove the trem arm entirely.

I have also used the FU Tone trem stopper, which is easy to install and works great.

 

[Eagle]

I know it won't make a difference once I block the trem, just curious if it's a known thing and can be "fixed".

I went this route and forgot about decking it at all. I inserted a wooden block which keeps the back of the bridge raised about 1/32" off the body, and left only 2 springs it it (positions 2 & 4), then tightened the spring claw down to about 3/8" from the body. Granted, I do have to catch the block and then reposition it when I change strings, but the string tension holds the block firmly in place when I play, do whole note bends, etc. I don't use the whammy bar at all, ever.