How to Fix a Tall Guitar Bridge Pin!

Anonymous

February 22, 2019

Howdy folks, Jake here. Here is a little follow up with more detailed info to address a couple questions I received. This video was done with a factory guitar and it’s factory pins in mind. All of the other pins of the same diameter were seated fine, just the 6th string wasn’t. It wasn’t the hole being too small that was the problem, because I could clearly see that wasn’t the case…though I should’ve been more clear on that point, I will concede. When I do these videos they are off the cuff and admittedly sometimes I leave out information that I take for granted. I’m not writing a script and reading from that or anything.

Secondly, when I’m talking about the burrs I see on the bridge pin. The ball end of the string rests under the bridge plate but contacts the bridge pin. These burrs were exactly in the place where that occurs. Which clearly tells us that the pin is being forced against the ball end of the string and that the ball is digging in to the pin right there in that spot preventing it from slipping past the ball end and seating fully. So, in this case within this context, the fix is to simply remove a little material from the problem area and it will fix the problem, which it did.

Lastly, I demonstrated that I was shaving the length of the pin, but didn’t specifically say to do that. You don’t have to use a knife, sandpaper would also work. Sometimes the hole could be too small and need widening (but that was going to be a separate video.) Keep in mind also, a bridge pin is a much easier and cheaper thing to replace than a bridge. Even if there is a single pin hole out of spec that “could” be widened, it’s better for the vast majority of folks watching these videos to simply shave down that pin and get the results they want…rather than investing in the proper tools and training to properly widen a pin hole.

Like always, there can be vast examples of other possibilities, but most of these we do address the common issues and the common fixes for them. Thanks Folks!

-Jake

Howard Hetzler

February 21, 2019

Also taper the end of the pin to make the ball end of the string slide into place without fighting it.