Out of Tune

[silvergp05]

I have a modified 350 with a Bigsby and a Bowtie that keeps going out of tune. It's strung with Ernie Ball 10's. Usually the G causes problems when it's a plain string but I don't have problems with the G. It's in tune all the way up the neck. The whole guitar goes out after 1 song. I do play solos on the Ric but it's getting unreliable. Maybe Lennon was right, it's just a rhythmer?????

[squid]

Try a heavier string gauge. I find 10's (especially the Ernie Ball Slinky set) to be a tad too light on guitars that have vintage-style vibratos. If you simply must have 10's on this guitar, then try a different brand. I actually really like the "Burns" brand strings on my Rickenbackers. They are a little bit finicky, but if you string them up properly, they last forever and seem to stay consistently in tune.

[tennis_nick]

you may be having some binding issues around the nut area. Make sure the nut slots are clean and clear or burrs, add some lubricant to make things slide, I usually use pencil lead on my Gibson, but bought some Big Bend nut sauce yesterday, I'll let you know how it goes!

Besides that, you can go up to 11's, and even drop down to Eb, to retain similar tension.

[jingle_jangle]

I think this is a string brand issue. Slinkies are just too, well, slinky...are you noticing any changes in action or neck relief?

[beatlefreak]

Also make sure the bowtie isn't moving, as the base just sits on the guitar body.

[tennis_nick]

I seem to recall 350's giving a REALLY sharp angle over the bridge when used in conjunction with a Bigsby B5 style bridge. one thing you can do to alleviate some of the pressure (and eventual friction) by bypassing the tension bar altogether.

[jingle_jangle]

Kris raises a good point...a combination of sharp angle (especially sharp on a 350 due to the body's geometry) and a bowtie, which is not anchored to the guitar's surface in any way, can result in tuning problems. Double-face tape (Permacel is a great brand)--two dots cut out with a paper punch and placed on the two ends of the bridge--will take care of that issue.

[silvergp05]

Thanks for comments....I'll try all of these suggestions. If all else fails I can always go back to the factory bridge....it always bothers me that the bowtie has to be right up against the bridge pickup for the intonation to be correct. The angle therefore is determined by the position of the pickup. I have a photo of John Lennon in my office that has him with his original 325 and there is a good 1/4 inch between the bowtie and the pickup.......