Replacement Bridges - Alternatives?

[spongebob]

I fitted a Hipshot to my 4003 a few months back. Love how it feels and plays, but I've got a saddle issue which has caused a few problems.

Hope to have that fixed with some Loctite Blue.....fingers crossed.

However, if for any reason that doesn't work and I out it, what other non-Ric bridges are viable alternatives?

I don't mind extra holes as long as they're covered. Love the look of the Badass, but I have to buy from the US...and don't you need some kind of plate around it to make it fit?

So what's out there?

[Kopfjaeger]

Yes, the bad *** is going to need to be mounted where the recess is routed for the factory tailpiece so you will need to be creative to fill or cover that area to give a firm a level surface to mount it to. The bad ***' foot print is substantially less than that of the Hipshot and the factory tail piece.

Sepp

[Lefty4003S8]

Some years back, I outfitted my 4001 with a Bad'''' bridge. Yes, you WILL need a plate to cover up the rout for the RIC tailpiece.
And, yes, the Bad''' does leave a smaller foot print.

As a footnote....I am sorry I made this mod. and plan to put a RIC bridge/tailpiece back on my bass. I NEVER had a problem with the original,
and made the mistake of doing this because THAT was what was done at that time

[jps]

As a footnote....I am sorry I made this mod. and plan to put a RIC bridge/tailpiece back on my bass. I NEVER had a problem with the original,
and made the mistake of doing this because THAT was what was done at that time

Peer pressure?

[Lefty4003S8]

Yeah....Geddy made me do it!!

[philipharris]

If you want to lose that Hipshot, let me know, pm if you prefer.

[Gilmourisgod]

I haven't seen anything better than the Hipshot. It the only one I've seen that mounts without leaving a hole you have to cover. It's a vast improvement over the stock bridge, which looks great but is obsolete in design and painful to adjust. Rickenbacker should have licensed it instead of trying to legal up on Hipshot IMHO, but that ship has sailed, as they say. I actually went out and bought a Badass 2 bridge for my old 4001 during my brief Geddy wannabe period, but got cold feet and left it off. It's also a much better designed bridge, but looks a bit borky. Keep the Hipshot.

[jayfbv]

I haven't seen anything better than the Hipshot.

I had the Leo Quan part and replaced it with the normal Hipshot A style before the Ric one was available. It mounts flush. (I had to make a maple filler piece.) I bought it from Stew-Mac. I think they come in aluminum or brass and I ended up with which ever one Stew-Mac carries. I should get a new picture for my avatar.

[spongebob]

Got some Loctite (style) blue on order. For some reason, it was quite hard to find over here!

Will try to fix it over the weekend. Hoping for success, as alternatives seem in short supply, and I do like it, but only when it doesn't let me down at a gig!

[Gilmourisgod]

What's the problem with the Hipshot saddles? Do they move? the best bridge I've had was on my G&L 2000 bass, which has a set screw that locks all the saddles together, brilliant Leo Fender design. Are you thinking the locktite will keep the saddles from moving around? I really wish Rick would upgrade the old bridge design while keeping the same look, seems like it would be pretty easy to do. I suppose even a moderately capable machinist could custom-make a new set of saddles with individual height adjustment, hard to believe nobody has done it already. I suggested as much on another thread and got personally flamed by John Hall for suggesting such sacrilege, what an honor! If anybody has done this retrofit, please let us know or post photos.

[Badanovski]

I have an aluminum hipshot & the height adjustment screws vibrate loose dropping the saddles. People with the brass version don't seem to have that problem. Supposedly the new aluminum version has been fixed. I used teflon tape on mine. It works Ok. Still the stock bridge looks much better. Might be my imagination but I could swear with the teflon tape I've lost some highs.

[spongebob]

Same problem as mine, aluminium too.

Got some variety of Loctite Blue on order - hard to get over here for some reason - hoping that will fix the issue.....

[cassius987]

The Hipshot is definitely the only irreversible replacement besides Dane Wilder's custom modifications of the stock tailpiece. I have spent many hours thinking about alternatives in the past... they just don't exist as far as I know.

I find the Hipshot saddles' problems really annoying and yet it is overall a pretty good design barring this recurring "feature". Even if you have a very good neck angle problems can develop easily enough (I used to think it was a neck angle issue as many perfectly playable Rics still have a rather low neck angle, but I later realized this was not sufficient explanation as I have a strong counter-example in my possession).

People already mentioned the threaded saddle height adjusters moving over time, but the other problem is the saddles side-to-side movement which is a tone-robbing energy pit when you are playing. It is possible you will never see it, but I can always hear some amount of it on strings with lower break angles (i.e. the G string) if the saddles aren't shimmed. I always shim the saddles with small aluminum washers to prevent this. They are held in place by the tension (the last washer should be a very tight fit). As for those threaded inserts, a microscopic amount of glue seems to the trick in my experience.

I remember once I sold a Hipshot and a height adjuster worked its way out in shipment... they buyer (an RRF forum member) accused me of negligence but later found the adjuster in the packaging after I asked them to give it a close look. I guess we should all be shipping these bridges with a small ziploc bag around them so no small parts get lost.

I do agree with calls for RIC to phase out the stock bridge except on vintage reissue models (let the purists keep it this way), but it's not a hill I'm prepared to die on in this forum, so I tend to keep quiet about it. (I also think some people who complain about the stock bridge really exaggerate its deficiencies so sometimes find myself coming to its defense.) It doesn't matter how much we kvetch anyway, as long as 4003s are continuing to sell the market has firmly told RIC not to mess with the formula too drastically.

[iiipopes]

It gets even more intense: the newer 4003 bridges at least have the traditional spring loading in the intonation screw. My 4002 has a bridge frame where both sides are threaded, so instead of making conventional adjustments, you have to measure the amount the intonation is out, disassemble the bridge, unscrew the intonation screw completely, re-set the saddle, re-install the intonation screw and screw it down snug, reassemble the bridge, and then retune the strings. Fortunately, I only had to do that when I got my 4002 in the early '90's, and haven't had to touch it since. I don't have the courage to drill out the threads and upgrade to current bolts and springs.

[johnallg]

Iain, if you go with the BADASS II bridge, you will need a plate like this: