Firefly Pegasus - Need some tune-o-matic advice, please

[undergoose]

Good morning all! Just discovered and joined this forum this morning. 

I just bought a Firefly Pegasus (spalted maple) and have been getting familiar with it. 



In over 30 years of playing, I've only ever owned one other guitar with a tune-o-matic bridge, and that's the Firefly 338 that I bought a few weeks ago. 

I have a couple questions about the bridge on the Pegasus. The 338 is completely tight and fantastic, so I at least have a reference, but I'm a little stymied on what to do.

Problem 1: The saddle on the g-string is kind of floppy, up and down wise. When I strum down, it tilts down. When I upstrum it flips back up. It's only about 1/32" of movement; it feels like it's rocking back and forth like a tensioned see-saw on the adjustment screw, like the screw hole was drilled too low in the saddle.

It's really annoying because every time it flips back and forth, it makes that little "pink!" noise like strumming a string on the headstock.

Any input on the fix for this? Some of the stuff I've seen said I could try switching it with one of the other saddles and hope for luck, but that seems janky if the notches are different sizes per string.

Is this something I should contact Firefly's customer service about, or is this standard for a $250 guitar.

Issue 2: When looking down from the top of the guitar while playing, the bridge is leaned back about 5 degrees towards the tailpiece. I don't think the posts are bent, it seems like it's drilled into the rosewood at this angle. Is this a crafting issue or intentional design? The intonation is great, so I'm inclined to not worry about it, aside from giving my OCD the heebies when I look down at it leaning backwards like that.

All replies appreciated! I bought this guitar because it's so weird, and based on my love of the 338, I thought it would be great. It sustains for DAYS and sounds really good. The ergonomics will take some getting used to.

Thanks!
Karl

[newey]

undergoose-

Hello and Welcome to G-Nutz2!

I don't know much about TOM bridges, but someone else will be along here who does. The tilt-back posts might be standard, I dunno, but the g-string issue sounds like a defect. If it's under warranty, I would definitely take that up with their customer service people. Even on a $250 guitar, that doesn't sound like it should be happening.

Did you buy it online or in a store? If it's the latter, and if they have another one of the same model in stock, you might go and compare yours to that one and see if it has the same issues.

[undergoose]

Thanks for the quick reply. I think you might be right on the lean back. Seems like without it, the strings would also be resting on the back of the bridge. This odd tailpiece creates a pretty aggressive break angle. Here's a pic:


Here's a picture of the flippy saddle. It indeed seems like a defect. I was thinking of wedging a little piece of something in the gap and putting a drop of superglue on it. Seems hacky. I'll contact Firefly and see if they'll send a replacement bridge, or at least another saddle.

[sumgai]

'goose,


Sorry to have to report that your image links to Google won't work with our Forum's software- because Google requires a sign-in in order to access those images from your personal account. So here's what you can do:

When writing a post, or when starting a new thread, you can see a button labeled "Postimage Upload", on the left and just above of all of the icon menus. Use that button, and your image will be stored on a separate hosting site that our software can access with ease. If the new link appears at the bottom of your current text input, you can cut-and-paste it to position it wherever you might wish.

HTH



sumgai

[reTrEaD]

Feb 18, 2022 9:03:23 GMT -5 undergoose said:

Issue 2: When looking down from the top of the guitar while playing, the bridge is leaned back about 5 degrees towards the tailpiece. I don't think the posts are bent, it seems like it's drilled into the rosewood at this angle. Is this a crafting issue or intentional design? The intonation is great, so I'm inclined to not worry about it, aside from giving my OCD the heebies when I look down at it leaning backwards like that.

My guess: This is intentional. It the slots in the saddles are perfectly horizontal, that's not the best situation. By canting the bridge backward slightly, those perfectly horizontal slots now have the end closest to the active region of the string being the highest point of support for the string. This is a good thing.

Feb 18, 2022 9:03:23 GMT -5 undergoose said:

Problem 1: The saddle on the g-string is kind of floppy, up and down wise. When I strum down, it tilts down. When I upstrum it flips back up. It's only about 1/32" of movement; it feels like it's rocking back and forth like a tensioned see-saw on the adjustment screw, like the screw hole was drilled too low in the saddle.

It's really annoying because every time it flips back and forth, it makes that little "pink!" noise like strumming a string on the headstock.

Any input on the fix for this? Some of the stuff I've seen said I could try switching it with one of the other saddles and hope for luck, but that seems janky if the notches are different sizes per string.

Is this something I should contact Firefly's customer service about, or is this standard for a $250 guitar.

I think you should expect better from a $250 guitar. It may be a one-off defect on this particular g-saddle or perhaps it's a defect that occurs on all the g-saddles they make. It would be worth the time to report this to Firefly and see if they have a convenient solution. Perhaps they'll send you a replacement bridge or at least another g-saddle you can try.

It definitely seems like the threaded hole for the intonation adjustment screw is drilled closer to the bottom of the saddle than it should be. The saddle is being supported by the adjustment screw rather than the bottom flat of the saddle against the bridge body. You could bush-fix this by installing a thin metal shim between the bottom flat of the saddle and the body of the bridge. But since this is a new guitar, the proper fix would be a new bridge or at least a new saddle for the g-string.

[undergoose]

Thanks for the heads up on posting images. Was wondering about that! Pictures fixed

[blademaster2]

If you like everything else about it, you could try a warranty claim.

I recently bought a new set of saddles and screws from Stewmac for my guitar with a Tune-o-matic. Pretty inexpensive (around $30), and the new ones are fine. Try that perhaps? Failing that, replace the entire bridge would be the next step.

[swirling]

That guitar is drop dead gorgeous!


I would loosen the strings and turn the bridge assembly around (wooden base and all). I think you'll find it will be standing closer to straight, and the intonation screws will be easier to get at.


I suspect the rocking saddle is caused by the chrome plating being too thick in that spot. Can you remove the screw that goes through the saddle? Sometimes they are "captured". If you can remove them, then just file the bottom of the hole a bit so the screw sits lower and the saddle bottoms out properly.

[unreg]

undergoose, just to be clear, the proper thing to do with your new guitar is to contact Firefly to try and have them solve the problem. Sanding the bottom of a screw hole may be something to try if your guitar wasn’t new (i.e. if it wasn’t under warranty), but don’t sand the screw hole on your current guitar bc it’s in the phase where the manufacturer should fix/or replace the hardware. 🙂

Also, sanding screw holes seems destructive… especially if you aren’t skilled at sanding screw holes… to me, at least.