I have a strat am. dlx....the 2 pivot bridge is flush with the body at the rear end...however whenever i hit a loud open string i hear a rattling along with the vibration...when i put my palm gently on the bridge it stops rattling (this is without the trem bar plugged in)...also if i lightly bang on the arm rest part of the body (just above the bridge) i can hear a knocking sound (like something is banging against something or is loose)...
anyone have any idea's what it is?...could it be a spring has become detached, or is too loose? (i can't find my precision screwdrivers to take the back plate off...i am gonna go out and buy some tomorrow , but i am curious)...has this happened to anyone before?...something seems definitely to be loose.
if i press down on bottom of the bridge (esp. near the trem hole side), the rattling stops (without doing so by simply gently banging on the rear of the body you can hear it rattle)...or if i take a thin piece of folded paper and slip it between the bridge and body on the trem hole side it will stop the rattle...it is obvious that the bridge (which is supposed to sit flush) is not entirely resting flush and in fact has just enough space (on the one side) to rattle against the body when vibrated or bumped in any manner....should this be a spring adjustment?...should it be tightened?...any advice greatly appreciated (sorry it has taken me so many posts to narrow this down).
Could be a couple of things, if, when you get the back cover off, the springs are securely attached, try loosening the spring claw screws and floating the bridge a little higher to see if that stops the rattle. If that stops it, then you can decide between leaving the trem floating or blocking it. You might also want to look at the string saddles and make sure that they are adjusted to level so that you aren't getting vibration there. Less likely would be something like the trem block itself being loose. If you have a regular household screwdriver, phillips head #2, that should fit the screwheads on the back cover. Sometimes you have to slightly tighten a screw before you can back it off (just ever so slightly!).
Good luck.
Life's journey can be hard at times, but you have to realize that you are the only one with the power make it a worthwhile experience.
yea i agree, take the back plate off and have a look while reproducing the rattle.then slide the paper in and see what is actually loose before you assume and start tightening or loosening stuff.
#4491....
i definately don't want to block it...but i do want it to rest securly flush to body while still being able to push down on the trem bar....it'll be a bit stiff but i like it that way....so i'm thinking tightening the springs so it rests perfectly flat and dosen't rattle when knocked etc....as it seems to me it "almost" flush with the body which is allowing it to rattle against it when knocked a bit or i hit an open string loudly and it vibrates.
just took back plate off...one of the 5 springs is missing...the guy who set it up must have removed but the least he could have done would have been to put it in my case!!...and it is on the side that causing me trouble!...i need a replacement i think...as this is not enough tension....why wouldn't he put the spring he removed back in the case???
He may have removed it becuase five strings are alot of tension. And the springs may not have been stretched enough to allow you to pull up on the bar without springs coming loose. My Floyd rose I use three springs. Which allows for the springs to stretched to allow me to full pull without adding extra stress to the system and guitar.
Joe
o.k. took the cover off...first thing i noticed was the old tech who did setup...took out one of my 5 springs and didn't put it back in my case, so i am short a brand new spring that came with this guitar (that ticks me off a bit)...the side the spring is missing from (it is second to the end of the trem bar side that is missing), is the side causing the most problems...it is the block itself which is rattling inside the cavity against the body...
i tightened the 2 claw screws and that stopped the rattling but whenever i push down on my trem and then let got it clunks...this is the trem block clunking against the wood of the body inside...i know i had my american series setup so the bridge was flush to the body and was able to use the trem in this manner without any knocking sound when i let go of the trem bar and it sprung back into normal flush position...
so i think i may take it in and say , "hey what happened to my spring?...and how come this is happening? please setup again and fix it!"...it's been 2 months since the purchase at long and mcquade so HOPEFULLY i won't have to pay for it...as it wasn't a great setup...action was beautiful...but these knocking trem block sounds shouldn't be happening , and i think the removed spring should have been put back into my case as it seems i could have used it (i had to really tighten the claw screws to stop the rattle).
the only other solution is to have my bridge high enough off the body that the block willnot come into contact with the body at all...and i don't want this...i want to be able to use my trem bar (lowering pitch only) and have the bridge resting flatly on the body without a clunk occuring everytime i release the trem bar into normal position,
any thoughts?...and thanks for the help.
He may have removed it becuase five strings are alot of tension. And the springs may not have been stretched enough to allow you to pull up on the bar without springs coming loose. My Floyd rose I use three springs. Which allows for the springs to stretched to allow me to full pull without adding extra stress to the system and guitar.
Joe
i see but the problem is ...i told this guy i wanted the bridge flush with the body and was only intersted in pushing down never pulling up...the fact that he would just discard the extra spring instead of putting it in my case it is a brand new guitar after all... (he also took it upon himself to remove the plastic from the pick guard ...how did he know i wasn't going to try to sell it)...anyways it ticks me off...and to have the knocking trem block on top of it all ...well it just seems that aside from the action and intonation , he did a shitty job esp. with the trem....he was a really old guy and i don't know if he had that much experience with non vintage fender strat bridges (he actually said to me that he wasn't a "fender guy himself"...way to instill confidence)...anyways i think i'll take it back to one of the other techs at L& M this week and it better be free!
i guess to simplify...what i want is the bottom (rear) of my bridge flush with the body (this will not enable me to pull up...but only push down...which is what i want)...but i do not want it so when i let go of my trem bar after doing so it clacks against the body and makes a clunking sound (the block against the wood)...also if loosened a bit to avoid this i am back to rattling when vibrating or being tapped with my palm...clearly this was a poor setup.
