Vibrola Question

[JimH]

I'm thinking about getting a 61 Standard with Maestro vibrola. I've done a lot of reading about tuning stability and issues that people have with the angle of the trem arm. A lot of people say that their arm is too close to the body in playing position, or that it is too high off the body and they can't swing it back out of the way without it hitting the knobs or the surface of the body.

One thing I have not seen mentioned in the myriad threads I have read is string gauge. It comes from Gibson with .010-.046, and I'm guessing they designed the vibrola to work with this particular gauge. Since there is no way that I am aware of to make any adjustments to the unit, wouldn't it stand to reason that if you use lighter gauge strings, the arm will be raised higher off the body in playing position?

I like .009's, but I'm thinking I would have issues if I used them on this guitar. I can't go to a store and ask them to re-string it for me so I can try it out.

Has anyone has any success with different string gauges? Is there any non-permanent way to block the trem if I don't want to use it?

 

[duane v]

I've done two vibrola installs on SG's and not a single issue using .009's set.

I don't think there's a way to "block" the vibrola.

What is important is to make sure there are no burs on the bridge saddles and lubing them. Also cleaning up the nut slots and lubing those.

 

[JimH]

Did .009's raise the angle of the bar over the pickguard? Were you able to swing it back out of the way?

 

[duane v]

Did .009's raise the angle of the bar over the pickguard? Were you able to swing it back out of the way?

I have no obstruction with the tremolo arm.

 

[duane v]

There is my trmelo arm position with the .009's

 

[JimH]

Sweet. Thank you.

 

[Gibbo SG]

My two cents is, just use your preference string gauge and let the Vibrola situation be secondary to your tone. I use .011-.050 Ernie Ball Regular Slinky on my Vibrola'd SG, and those are my favorite ones so far, after thirteen years.
The tremolo works fine, for whenever I do get around to using it. Also, there are times when I restring and don't want to bother with the tremolo bar, and then I just install a different string retainer which has been cut short to exclude the bracket which normally holds the tremolo bar.

 

[papagayo]

If you want your SG with a Vibrola this bridge is perfect : low profile ABR-1 and dome thumbwheels. This bridge was stock on Vibrola guitars between 1960 and 1963, the bridge move with the strings and returns to initial position.
https://www.crazyparts.de/bridges--...bson-low-profile-nonwire-abr-1-nickel-set.php

 

[JimH]

If you want your SG with a Vibrola this bridge is perfect : low profile ABR-1 and dome thumbwheels. This bridge was stock on Vibrola guitars between 1960 and 1963, the bridge move with the strings and returns to initial position.
https://www.crazyparts.de/bridges--...bson-low-profile-nonwire-abr-1-nickel-set.php

Awesome! I knew about the thumbwheels, and I knew this bridge was used in the 60's, I didn't know there was a modern version. Thanks for that.

 

[papagayo]

Awesome! I knew about the thumbwheels, and I knew this bridge was used in the 60's, I didn't know there was a modern version. Thanks for that.

This is the best choice imho.

 

[JimH]

If you want your SG with a Vibrola this bridge is perfect : low profile ABR-1 and dome thumbwheels. This bridge was stock on Vibrola guitars between 1960 and 1963, the bridge move with the strings and returns to initial position.
https://www.crazyparts.de/bridges--...bson-low-profile-nonwire-abr-1-nickel-set.php

If I may ask the obvious and rhetorical question, why the hell doesn't Gibson just put these on the current vibrola models?

 

[Gibbo SG]

I would, but the standard configuration seems to work just fine. Does look cool, however!

 

[duane v]

I never needed domed thumbwheels on any of my vibrola SG's, though I do like low profile ABR1 but again I never needed one of those on any of my Gibson's as the Faber ABR1 has worked perfectly.

I've been playing with Kahlers, Floyds, Fender and other tremolos, and you need to consider your approach to guitars that have tremolos.

Vibrola Trems
1. Well cut / grooved nuts and bridge saddles are extremely important.
2. Adding nut sauce to the above components once a month is also very important.
3. Stretching your new strings adequately is very very important.
4. And most importantly, if you plan to use your Vibrola like EVH or Zach Wylde, then you'll be in for a world of disappointment. The vibrola is not meant for that type of playing. The vibrola effect is for an enhanced vibrato that adds a certain chime / haunting sound to chords and some phrasing effect for lead work.

 

[smitty_p]

3. Stretching your new strings adequately is very very important.

^^^^ This, this, and this!

I, too, have used a variety of vibratos - Fender, Maestro vibrola, Bigsby, Floyd Rose, even the old Washburn Wonderbar from the '80s.

All bets are off until the strings are done stretching and settled in. You can't adequately evaluate the tuning stability of any system until this is done.

 

[DaveSG]

Good thoughts here. I've owned a few vibrola-equipped SGs. Have 2 right now, 1 vintage and 1 custom built. For a while Gibson was having some issues getting the angle of the spring correct, and so on some SGs (it might have been more of a custom shop thing), the tailpiece angle was backwards, which completely jacked up the trem arm location, and it would be flopped up in the 'tucked away' position. Don't know how it is now, but the from the photo posted above it looks like it checks out fine. My custom built SG is neck through and is ultra stable, no tuning issues at all, and doesn't seem to carry the sensitivity that my true vintage SG Standard (and many Gibson SGs) have with regard to tuning stability. Some of that is probably just inherent in the design of the guitar...they are a bit more 'floppy' than most other guitars, and that probably exacerbates the issue with the vibrola.

But if you take the precautions above, you'll probably be just fine.

 

[lcw]

I had a USA 61 Std with Maestro for a while (‘22 model) and I really liked the angle it came at.

Strung with 10s the arm in stowed position was just off the body. Just clearing the tail piece when deploying it. But couldn’t go the other way as it would hit the knobs but I was fine with that. The cable would still be in the way anyway so it’s moot.

But because it was this low in stowed position, no risk of having the guitar case lid put any pressure on it when closed. And it wouldn’t get in the way of working the knobs.

 

[JimH]

I had a USA 61 Std with Maestro for a while (‘22 model) and I really liked the angle it came at.

Strung with 10s the arm in stowed position was just off the body. Just clearing the tail piece when deploying it. But couldn’t go the other way as it would hit the knobs but I was fine with that. The cable would still be in the way anyway so it’s moot.

But because it was this low in stowed position, no risk of having the guitar case lid put any pressure on it when closed. And it wouldn’t get in the way of working the knobs.

Thank you. This is the kind of info I was looking for. It seems to me that with lighter gauge strings there would be less pull on the spring, and the arm would be higher off the body when it is in playing position, and lower when it is swung back out of the way. Since I like .009 gauge, I am reluctant to get a Maestro for this reason.

 

[An Abiding Dude]

Thank you. This is the kind of info I was looking for. It seems to me that with lighter gauge strings there would be less pull on the spring, and the arm would be higher off the body when it is in playing position, and lower when it is swung back out of the way. Since I like .009 gauge, I am reluctant to get a Maestro for this reason.

Hi Jim,

I have a 2021 '61 Standard with the Maestro. An option for you if you're concerned about lack of tension on the bridge through the use of lighter strings is using hybrid 9s. The bass string gauges are from a set of 10s and the plain, treble strings are from a set of 9s, so I think the difference in string tension is pretty negligible. I prefer Rotosound Orange packs, but I also know Ernie Ball offers them as well. I don't use the vibrola arm often on that guitar, but as long as you don't go crazy on it, the tuning stability is pretty decent. A lot of the time I keep it in the position shown in Icw's photos above. I basically bought it because I love the aesthetic of the lyre tailpiece, but have come to love the feel of the neck and the overall playability. Good luck figuring out what works for you best.

 

[Hillebert]

Hi @ all,

I am from Germany and this is my first post here. :-) I had a ´81 SG Std. which was my first guitar from 1988 untill 1991 when I got a brand new Stratocaster which was my main Guitar for 30 Years. Recently I came across a good deal on a ´61 Standard Faded 2022 Model. A good friend and bandmate of mine used to own a 1970 SG Standard with Vibrola which was a killer Guitar. I am loving my new SG, it is way better than I remember my old 1981.

Anyway: The Maestro on my guitar looks and feels exactly as @ ICW describes, so I can second that. What I noticed is, that the ABR-1 Bridge with these models seems to be very low. I measured a neck angle in between 2 and 2,5 Deg. (measured by iPhone), so that seems to be rather shallow. But: The sort of "hybrid" Nashville / ABR-1 Bridge on these models can be screwed all the way down. What I really like about the SG´s with Maestro besides the look is, the shimmery sound even when the Vibrato is not used. It makes really a nice sound and I absolutly like the "Bare Knuckle" Look and Feel of the Guitar. The faded Lacquer gets nice polished playspots. :-)