warr guitar set-up question

[crowbar1115]

after a few weeks of tweeking and changing my tuning i finally settled on a crafty tuning (E A D G C<> C G D A C) and i love love love it! the only drawback is i started getting some serious buzzing on my low c string on the bass side. i raised the string a little bit and got more buzzing, lowered it and got more buzzing and finally put it back to where it was...and got MORE buzzing. now the string is basically dead and will not fret a single note. all the other strings sound fantastic, i have no clue what happened. also i hear a clicking sound when i try to move the string height and i am afraid i may have somehow stripped the interior of the saddle height adjustment piece. the sadlle will not move up or down now even though i feel tension on the hex wrench. i have no clue what to do. please help!!! thanks :confused:

[PhoBucket]

First, contact the guys at Warr Guitars, and go with what they say above all else. That being said, it sounds like you may have cross-threaded the saddle and the easiest solution is to order a replacement saddle.

Changing the tuning frequently can put stresses on the neck, and you may have caused some frets to come unseated. Was the bass string buzzing at all frets, or just a few?

[crowbar1115]

at first frets 1 through 8 sounded very good with some buzzing on 9-24. then the second i adjusted the saddle height all frets went to crap and never recovered. it is driving me nuts because i just found a tuning that i fell in love with. and i can't stand not having that rumbling low end.

[PhoBucket]

If you end up needing to get a replacement saddle, while you are waiting you can put a shim underneath the front of the problem saddle as a temporary fix. Anything that is the right thickness to raise the saddle to the desired height, but small enough not to effect the otrher saddles should work. The shim should be helpd in place by the pressure of the saddle only.

Do not attempt to fix it to your instrument permanently or with any type of adhesive. The first commandment of instrument repair is Do No Harm.

[Tom Drinkwater]

Are the saddles graphite or metal? Can you rethread graphite like steel or aluminum? I hear that it is brittle and can snap under pressure.

[crowbar1115]

if need be what is the best way to remove the saddle? remove the string then remove the saddle all together or is there a better plan of attack?

[PhoBucket]

Tom makes a good point. The graphite saddles are not as malleable as steel, and will break if you over-tighten the screw that is holding them onto the base plate.

In theory, you shouldn't need to entirely remove the saddle, just loosen the string, unscrew the hold down screw, slide the shim under the front of the saddle, re-attach the hold down screw (being careful not too over-tighten it), and then re-tune the string the string.

If you do need to remove the saddle, remove the string first, then detach the saddle from the base plate.

All of this is assuming you have the VS-100 style bridge saddles.

[arsacane]

At least in my Warr Raptor, I have to loose the screw that holds the saddle against the base plate BEFORE adjusting the height of the saddle. If you try to raise the saddle without loosening the attachment screw, it will block the the saddle and if you force the height adjustment screw you will dammage the threading in the saddle... I guess that was what happened to you.
Call Warr Guitars and ask for a replacement saddle, you should have it in a few days and it shouldn't be expensive.


Cheers, Daniel.

[crowbar1115]

well...mark warr called me and gave me some good advice for my problem. i followed his instructions and still got no results. i have to assume the height adjustment screws in my saddle are shot. i swapped the saddle with one from a string i hardly use and got great results!!! but i could not adjust the height at all for the other string. even worse i accidentally cut too much of the string when restringing it... the end of the string was so tangled i could not feed it through the body and trimmed off like 1/2 an inch too much... now that i am done being a moron i will order a new string and play my killer 9 string artist :D

[crowbar1115]

upon rereading my last post i realized it could be misconstrued that the advice i received was bad advice.this could not be further from the truth. mark gave me very detailed advice for the problem but the saddle it self was shot and most likely that was my fault. his advice however gave me better tone and playability which to me overrides a bum saddle any day of the week. he also gave me very detailed info that will prevent future problems of the same nature.i apologize if it sounded like i was putting down his advice.