So on my stratocaster, there is a small hole at the bridge and I assumed this was a place for the whammy bar. Is that right? And can I buy one to add on to a guitar or not? And someone tell me the exact purpose of a whammy bar please :)
Yes you are correct. All I did was talk to the store where I bought my guitar from and they gave me one that worked. One tip though, it might be a good idea to if you go to a music store to take the guitar with you if you aren't sure of the make of the guitar, since i wasn't totally sure what size whammy bar i needed. Although chances are, if it's a fender strat, they'll know which one.
Whammy bars are a fun little tool that makes the bridge on your guitar move off the guitar and thus lowering the pitch of the strings: it's kind of like a bar that can bend the strings down, rather then up like you can do with your fingers. Whammy bars are kind of a novelty because many people overuse them but i think they are very useful.
Steve-0
Oh...well thanks. So they can be removed and put back on? Well then if it bends the strings down, am I in danger of breaking a string by doing so?
Oh...well thanks. So they can be removed and put back on? Well then if it bends the strings down, am I in danger of breaking a string by doing so?
Yep, they just thread in and out like a screw. The very first thing I ever do with one is remove it. :D
As far as bending the strings - there is always the possibility of breakage when doing anything that stretches them, but in the case of a whammy bar (tremolo system, properly) it's pretty safe if you don't try to bend it waaaaaay past where it's "supposed" to go. If you have it pulled up so far that it's liable to nick the finish on the guitar if you let go of it, it's probably too far. :lol:
Totally, don't bend it too far...........(or push in my case - seems to be a dfferent system on a Yamaha sgv 800)
I pushed mine to the limit, my high e string snapped, whipped accross my arm and gashed me! (ok, a small wound, but it stung like crazy! Think paper cut but worse!) :P
Still, they are defo worth having, I think it looks much nicer having this cool arm swinging instead of a a gaping hole (exaggeration i know)
Plus you can 'bend' and entire chord, which is a nice effect
On the downside, it does tend to put your strings out of tune if used often :(
I'm with Pilot - I've always taken 'em straight off first thing, and put them somewhere safe!
I notice there are tons of just the bars - for Strats, Floyd Rose trems, all sorts - advertised on eBay - $5.00 seems to about the asking price :) Look under Musical Instruments/Parts, Accessories and search for "whammy" ...
