Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

For those who own guitars with a tune-o-matic bridge, what is the significance or benefit of having a guitar with one. I know several of the Gibsons come with this.

The Tune-o-matic is Gibson's take on a fully adjustable bridge. It was one of the first such bridges, along with the Melita used by Gretsch & others. The Rickenbacker 300 series bridge, which came along roughly 2 years later, is loosely based on the Tune-o-matic design.

I've seen several Ricks over the years with Tune-o-matics installed. It is widely regarded as a very bad idea.

Dan: Like Scott said, tune-o-matics are roughly equivalent to a standard Rick bridge. Both bridges can vibrate. The tune-o-matic has threaded height adjustment posts that get loose, and the Rick bridge has the height adjustment screws that can have the same problem. The saddles on both bridges are similar.

Thanks for the explanation.

Gretsch has 'em, Fender has 'em, and they are available on the aftermarket to fit almost everything that doesn't.

The tuneomatic is a versatile bridge, however, some are less precise than others. With spring, without spring, fixed, floating, there are many different styles. I recently talked to someone from Europe with a tuneomatic on their Rickenbacker! I see that graphtech now has saddles for the tuneomatic. This bridge works well on my Epiphone Casino.

Peter: Some people swear by the nylon saddles for Casino tuneomatics. All of my many Casinos have had steel saddles, and they sound fine to my ears.

Randy: I agree that the metal saddles sound fine. I had nylon saddles on my Casino for a period but found that I missed the sustain. It seems that at least McCartney's Casino had the nylon sadles, perhaps all three.

While we are on the subject of McCartney, what is the story of the Red Wings label on his Texan?

I think it has been on there since the Wings era.

Or maybe he is a "Hockey Night In Canada" fan! LOL