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Best/Most Vintage Accurate Repro Bridges and Tailpieces?

CatManDoo88

Active member
Joined
Mar 3, 2019
Messages
156
When I was changing strings and oiling my fretboard tonight, I went to take my tailpiece off and the one side snagged on the post a little and when it came off a big chunk of nickel plating chipped off. I was shocked because I am pretty gentle with my guitar. Needless to say, it doesn't look pretty and I would like to replace the tailpiece. My CS9 has a VOS finish and it seems no one does their aging exactly the same. I figure I might as well replace the bridge at the same time so that the hardware looks consistent. What's the most accurate and sounding options out there? I've replaced a few things on my guitar with CreamTone Absolute Vintage parts, which I adore, but they don't seem to be selling nickel tailpieces or bridge currently. I understand Pigtail parts are well regarded, but I understand that they age rather quickly and turn dark. I would prefer to keep the hardware looking lightly aged. Any recommendations?
 

fernieite

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 3, 2010
Messages
609
I don't know what's the best or most accurate, but I have a Pigtail bridge and tailpiece. I've had these on the guitar for 10 or more years and haven't had them turn black. I think that was a bad batch of plating or something that happened years ago and was corrected.

Have you tried contacting Lonnie at CreamTone? Maybe he has another batch coming in the near future? Doesn't Mark's sell the same stuff?
https://www.marksguitarloft.com/catalog.php?cat=accessories
 

CatManDoo88

Active member
Joined
Mar 3, 2019
Messages
156
Thanks, fernieite. I did contact Lonnie, who advised that they were not offering Absolute Vintage bridge or tailpiece going forward due to plating issues with the tailpiece and the fact that they cannot put the required "Gibson ABR-1" marks on the underside of the bridge to constitute a true reproduction. He did advise that their other tailpiece and bridge is at least equal to the stock Gibson Historic parts, which is very tempting because I really love the look of their LIX patina.
 

Old Flame

New member
Joined
Aug 13, 2003
Messages
11
Pigtail. Ithink the website is pigtail.com

Awsome stuff, I have their ABR-1 bridge - excellent!
 

gmann

Well-known member
Joined
May 26, 2003
Messages
6,147
The folks at Crazy Parts have some great looking stuff.
 

Skydogfan81

Member
Joined
Dec 13, 2006
Messages
910
I've had pigtail hardware for a decade and all is fine (not black). The best stuff!
 

iknowpeanuts

New member
Joined
Feb 6, 2018
Messages
35
I got a set of pigtails recently and one of my saddle screws couldn’t fit and the slot had to be filed. The studs for the tailpiece were of the wrong size as well and my tailpiece had to be filed down for it to fit. Kinda iffy for the asking price.

that said, they do look and sound the business!
 

maxwedge

Member
Joined
Apr 6, 2010
Messages
674
I got a set of pigtails recently and one of my saddle screws couldn’t fit and the slot had to be filed. The studs for the tailpiece were of the wrong size as well and my tailpiece had to be filed down for it to fit. Kinda iffy for the asking price.

that said, they do look and sound the business!

I agree.
I've had problems with 2 guitars and Pigtail's stop tail piece. 1) 2009 R9, Pigtail tail piece and studs do not fit at all, their too wide. I barely got the stop piece to work by using Retospec studs that fit looser. 2) 74 Custom that previous owner had chromed everything and I wanted to put it back to gold. Same problem as the R9. I ended up using the Pigtail studs and a tail piece from Philadelphia Luthier that I had. Not going to file the tail pieces because the plating chips, been there and done it!
No problems with the bridges and the R9 really improved a lot.
 
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iknowpeanuts

New member
Joined
Feb 6, 2018
Messages
35
I agree.
I've had problems with 2 guitars and Pigtail's stop tail piece. 1) 2009 R9, Pigtail tail piece and studs do not fit at, all their too wide. I barely got the stop piece to work by using Retospec studs that fit looser. 2) 74 Custom that previous owner had chromed everything and I wanted to put it back to gold. Same problem as the R9. I ended up using the Pigtail studs and a tail piece from Philadelphia Luthier that I had. Not going to file the tail pieces because the plating chips, been there and done it!
No problems with the bridges and the R9 really improved a lot.

I feel your pain. I ordered the parts on two separate occasions and I thought it was just my arse luck that both times there was an issue with the parts. Quite a bit was taken off; not sure if it will chip in the future but i'll worry about it another day. I matched the abr-1 with lonnie's studs and thumbwheels and i kind of like the look of it. My guitar has never sounded better as a result, so they're staying.


34gspz9.jpg


2e0n5dy.jpg
 

maxwedge

Member
Joined
Apr 6, 2010
Messages
674
Yeah, the Pigtail is too wide and you had to file the outside ear. Part of the problem or all of it, is that the area where it hooks on the stud, the diameter of their studs is about .030" greater than original 50's studs. I matched up the tail piece with a 53, 74 and R9 and it look the same to me. Different studs is the solution imo.
 

iknowpeanuts

New member
Joined
Feb 6, 2018
Messages
35
Yeah, the Pigtail is too wide and you had to file the outside ear. Part of the problem or all of it, is that the area where it hooks on the stud, the diameter of their studs is about .030" greater than original 50's studs. I matched up the tail piece with a 53, 74 and R9 and it look the same to me. Different studs is the solution imo.

Your solution is much more sensible; for me I was just too tired to source for another set of studs lol. How tight is the fit of the retrospec stud in the bushing though? I liked the snug fit of the pigtail stud and bushing which was a big part of the reason i decided to keep the set
 

Hot_Snake

Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2010
Messages
197
For the tailpiece DMC were great.
Montreux looks great and are available.

For the studs : Retrospec.
 

maxwedge

Member
Joined
Apr 6, 2010
Messages
674
Your solution is much more sensible; for me I was just too tired to source for another set of studs lol. How tight is the fit of the retrospec stud in the bushing though? I liked the snug fit of the pigtail stud and bushing which was a big part of the reason i decided to keep the set
They fit good in the stock historic bushings so I didn't use the Pigtail bushings.
 

Arnold M.

Active member
Joined
Mar 29, 2018
Messages
296
the tailpiece/stud dimensions are all over the place ... DMC tailpiece with PigTail studs ? big gap .. True Historic tailpiece with Pigtail studs ?? zero gap .. there are no standards to my knowledge, it's all hit and miss .. I just measure the gap/lean between the tailpiece and stud with a feeler gauge, use some shim stock of the correct thickness, create a 1/2" circle, file out the inside bridge stud dimension, pop it in between the tailpiece and stud .. it's invisible, no gap or lean between tailpiece/studs .. and tailpiece sits level which I believe is the way God and Gibson designed it, cost of material ?? maybe $1.00 max and one hour of time .. easy peasy
 

electricsky

Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2008
Messages
341
Did someone try the Abr1 / inserts /thumbwheels , as well as bushings / studs and Tailpiece from Retrospec / historic make overs ?

do they have the same weight as original ones ?

I was looking for some original ones for a LP conversion project but the prices are really high , so i was wondering if i could find some that really look like the original ones , have the same dimensions and weight ( although it seems they can't put the abr1 logo anymore), giving the same tone .
I have been buying quite a few parts from different sources the past 10 years , including RS, Historic Collection , Kurrigan ...etc and crazy parts in Germany which sold me some inserts that were said to be like the original ones but were longer than the studs by 0,161" ( although i am not sure if original bushings were 1" or 1 1/4 ? ) and zinc plated whereas i learnt after original ones were raw although i suppose the plating might not change the tone (and also some aged key tuners that were rusty and unuseable , unfortunately i didn't see it soon enough as i had bought a few spare parts and did not use all of them directly ) and i had bought different abr1 , stop bars and bushings andstuds that were not right either , with different weight ...etc
So this time i really would like to find the right ones as i am tired to spend money for repros said to be spot on which are not !
 
Last edited:

electricsky

Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2008
Messages
341
Does anybody know the weight of the original abr1 , thumbwheels , as well as TP studs and bushings ?

if i remember well the original TP was about 31 gr and i just read a post on my les paul forum where a guy was saying the wired abr1 gibson weights 51 to 52 gr , the same as an original one .
correct me if am wrong but original thumbwheels were brass but the inserts were steel ,and the saddles were nickel plated brass as well ( and abr1 diecast zinc / zamac ) isn't it ?


I remember replacing the wired abr1 of some guitars wwith an historic collection non wired abr1 and found the tone much brighter , is it the same with original 50's abr1 , do they give a much brighter tone than wired ones or do they sound the same as wired ones ?

i know the metals used nowdays are not exactly like the vintage ones but i suppose ifi can find all the parts made of the same type of metal and with same weight , it shouldtake me close enough to the original ones .
 
Last edited:

Classic

New member
Joined
Dec 6, 2004
Messages
1,624
Does anybody know the weight of the original abr1 , thumbwheels , as well as TP studs and bushings ?

if i remember well the original TP was about 31 gr and i just read a post on my les paul forum where a guy was saying the wired abr1 gibson weights 51 to 52 gr , the same as an original one .
correct me if am wrong but original thumbwheels were brass but the inserts were steel ,and the saddles were nickel plated brass as well ( and abr1 diecast zinc / zamac ) isn't it ?


I remember replacing the wired abr1 of some guitars wwith an historic collection non wired abr1 and found the tone much brighter , is it the same with original 50's abr1 , do they give a much brighter tone than wired ones or do they sound the same as wired ones ?

i know the metals used nowdays are not exactly like the vintage ones but i suppose ifi can find all the parts made of the same type of metal and with same weight , it shouldtake me close enough to the original ones .

For the most part I agree however I thought the bridge posts were originally brass?
 

Classic

New member
Joined
Dec 6, 2004
Messages
1,624
Did someone try the Abr1 / inserts /thumbwheels , as well as bushings / studs and Tailpiece from Retrospec / historic make overs ?

do they have the same weight as original ones ?

I was looking for some original ones for a LP conversion project but the prices are really high , so i was wondering if i could find some that really look like the original ones , have the same dimensions and weight ( although it seems they can't put the abr1 logo anymore), giving the same tone .
I have been buying quite a few parts from different sources the past 10 years , including RS, Historic Collection , Kurrigan ...etc and crazy parts in Germany which sold me some inserts that were said to be like the original ones but were longer than the studs by 0,161" ( although i am not sure if original bushings were 1" or 1 1/4 ? ) and zinc plated whereas i learnt after original ones were raw although i suppose the plating might not change the tone (and also some aged key tuners that were rusty and unuseable , unfortunately i didn't see it soon enough as i had bought a few spare parts and did not use all of them directly ) and i had bought different abr1 , stop bars and bushings andstuds that were not right either , with different weight ...etc
So this time i really would like to find the right ones as i am tired to spend money for repros said to be spot on which are not !

Most of the Retrospec parts are/were held in high regard. The bridge was constructed differently to an original. The pigtail and DMC are built closer to spec
 

maxwedge

Member
Joined
Apr 6, 2010
Messages
674
For the most part I agree however I thought the bridge posts were originally brass?
As far as I've been able to gather you are correct, nickel plated brass. Pigtail Arb1 posts are steel but the wheels are brass.
 

maxwedge

Member
Joined
Apr 6, 2010
Messages
674
I agree.
I've had problems with 2 guitars and Pigtail's stop tail piece. 1) 2009 R9, Pigtail tail piece and studs do not fit at all, their too wide. I barely got the stop piece to work by using Retospec studs that fit looser. 2) 74 Custom that previous owner had chromed everything and I wanted to put it back to gold. Same problem as the R9. I ended up using the Pigtail studs and a tail piece from Philadelphia Luthier that I had. Not going to file the tail pieces because the plating chips, been there and done it!
No problems with the bridges and the R9 really improved a lot.
I Finally got around to putting the Pigtail stop piece on my 74 Custom using Retrospec studs and the combination worked great! The Retrospec studs are a bit looser looser for the vertical spacing allowing a bit more lean of the tail piece (unfortunately) but the diameter of the "hook" shank area is right on vintage spec. Pigtail needs to machine the center section down more, approx .035", to allow for more variances in the center/center spacing of the stud anchors in the guitars.
 
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