Usa Legacy Issues/questions

[jwmallett]

I purchased a 2010 honeyburst usa legacy custom with swamp ash body. I paid more for this guitar than any other electric and when I received it, the action was pretty high. I attempted to adjust it but not having any luck and not much experience with adjusting tremolos I came here for information. Everything seems straight forward and I even called the factory to verify a few questions such as the 3/16" measurement is not the way they do it at the factory on newer models. Anyway, I have gotten the tremolo set as well as the proper arc on the bridge saddles and the proper slight angle down on the tremolo by adjusting the bridge spring screws....The action is still too high, so I decided to check the nut and low and behold it was slightly lower than the explanation here so I purchased a new tusq nut and filed it and got it to "specs" as per the info on this site. I was able to lower the action but not by much. I compared the neck angle to neck angles on a couple of other guitars I have and it seems the neck angle is slightly off, sloping too much toward the strings which explains why it would buzz if the action was lower, right now they are right at 1/4 inch ( and we arent talking about truss rod adjustments here, I know how to do that and it didnt help nor would it help this situation) if I took the neck off and shimmed it on the back side to make the neck angle slope less by a couple of degrees that should do the trick, but what is the best material to do this with? Seems odd a guitar of this $$$ and caliber would have this issue....Albeit I will have it higher than on my other guitars because I plan on using a slide and want to be able to apply a enough pressure without the slide bumping into frets...but it is still to high at 1/4 inch, i was hoping between 1/8-3/16 ....next issue
The tremolo springs , love the tremolo....except when I bend a note with my finger and play another note it is out of tune because the tremolo springs are stretching, this sounds bad(out of tune). I am guessing more springs or is there a better way? .....Next issue
The temolo wont go up a full note since the underneath part of the tremolo bridge peice bottoms out in the cavity....I am guessing rout out that area more, thats a no brainer(any tips, im pretty confident with a dremel but is there a better solution or which attachment do you recommend?... seems like it should have already been done enough to raise a note one step from the factory....anyway this raises another question.
If it was not meant to go up another step, will this mean I have to do something special with the temolo springs since the tension would be reduced more, perhaps causing the springs to completely decompress which may cause issues staying attached to the bracket or tuning issues etc , if so I pondered some sort of spring mechanisms on the screws themselves allowing the bracket to be retracted back toward the bracket screws allowing the springs to stay snug on the bracket but that in itself may cause tuning issues...maybe im overthinking this.....nah, cant be!
And finally, that pesky whammy bar keeps getting loose after playing it for just a few minutes and I keep having to tighten the allen screw, do i really have to put thread lock or is the nylon peice really that inconsistent at staying in shape.
Ive had this guitar 3 months and am not happy with how it came adjusted, at first glance the issues seem minor but I have spent more time trying than any other guitar Ive had and they were all half of the cost of this one, I just cant beleive I have to do all this to it for it to be right.... although I can tell when the adjustments are made I know I will LOVE this guitar because IRONICALLY it has great craftsmanship and is a beautiful instrument... maybe the tech at the factory was smoking crack that day or the place that sold it was tinkering around with things, but that seems unlikely. who knows maybe they like their action super high and didnt pay much attention to the neck. maybe they dont like to raise notes with the tremolo beyond a half step without it into the body
I know the factory would be glad to take it in and fix it for me but I dont mind a little project and really dont want to wait, plus the shipping costs etc
I dont stop my post will end up being called the great wall of text.....*looks up*....too late!

[darwinohm]

JW, I it is a bummer that you are having so many issues. But I sense several issues. One is action, the second is buzzing and the third is the tremolo range. I am not certain where you are at on everything but I think i would step back and address the issues again and start where the logical place to start would be. First of all , if you want to raise a whole note, I would adjust the tremolo to do that and you may need to raise it by adjusting the posts. Back off the string tension when you do this.. That is the starting point. then you need to address the action and it sounds like you have shimmed the neck. I do that all the time to get the low action that I like. I do not want a saddle laying on the mounting plate. I generally have .045 on the high E and .060 on the high E at the 12 th fret. That is easy to do but may require a shim on some models. I have never had a Legacy that I could not get low action on without a shim. I think that you are looking for an action higher than I would so you can use a slide. Once the action is set on each outside string, the remaining saddles are adjusted for the radius (!2 inch) using radius gauges ). Then you adjust the neck relief for about .005 at the 7 th fret and if you have buzzing, then you have a problem. You then have to determine if it is a fret issue or an uneven neck. This is a pleked model and I have several of them and they are all perfect. Also I am suspicious about having to replace the nut and I am not totally convinced that it is correct now. There have been so many things done and i sense that you may not be sure where anything is at anymore. I think you should have a good G&L tech look at it and start over. I have set up many guitars and the key is to identify the problem, and then solve it. You have been addressing several problems and it still isn't right. This guitar is under warranty. The issue with sting bending/tuning can be reduced with more springs on the trem. Generally big string benders play Tele type or fixed bridge guitars for that very reason. I may not have helped you much but I will just about guarantee you that this guitar can be set up for what you want to do, and will do it well although I think that raising a whole not on the trem is a stretch. Hope that this helps-- Darwin

[jwmallett]

I bought this guitar online, had I had a local store here I would have never bought this guitar if the action was that high. Yea its a bummer, that it came to me this way. If this is normal then the logic is not sound for this to be factory spec considering how much trouble it is to lower action and how easy it would be to raise if someone actually wanted higher. Anyway, I guess Ill have to shell out more money to ship the guitar to a factory tech even though I feel I shouldnt have to. Especially one of this costs. I have already setup the axe as per info on here and then the info on bridge height and saddles and action specs straight from the factory. I have always setup my own guitars, yet they didnt have tremolos but still, something cant be physically right with the way the neck bolts on, this is the only thing I can think of as to why I cant get it lower and I cant understand why this would be spec. Anyway, Thanks much for you time and info.

[Craig]

There have been some recent setup changes, see: Current Factory setups for DF vibrato G&L guitars. Also, see: DF bridge bending range. Both of these posts are in our G&L Knowledgebase, G&L Tech Tips sub-forum.

You might also consider taking it a local G&L dealer and ask if they will do a setup under warranty.

Hope this helps.

[jwmallett]

Hey Thanks Craig

Hmmmm....Looking at those pics and referring to the post "set-ups answering some questions" when you say you like the tremolo to "angle backwards" do you mean upwards ? Im asking since I noticed in the pics the tremolos look like they are going upward from bolts to bridge saddles.

Those measurements are a bit different, doesnt seem like its that much different but I guess thats enough for me to check it out again...

No local dealer here, its a 4 hour ride one way and I just dont have the time or $$$ for that kind of expense.

[Craig]

Hey Thanks Craig

Hmmmm....Looking at those pics and referring to the post "set-ups answering some questions" when you say you like the tremolo to "angle backwards" do you mean upwards ? Im asking since I noticed in the pics the tremolos look like they are going upward from bolts to bridge saddles.

Those measurements are a bit different, doesnt seem like its that much different but I guess thats enough for me to check it out again...

No local dealer here, its a 4 hour ride one way and I just dont have the time or $$$ for that kind of expense.

That post, Set-Ups, answering some questions, was originally posted by rcbmusic@sunflower.com on November 14, 2005 on the G&LDP. He will be the one to answer your question
about what he means. The factory setup has always been to have the bottom of the bridge parallel with the body, not angled up or down.

I suggest that you use the Current Factory setups for DF vibrato G&L guitars post as a starting point because this is the way the factory currently does their setups. Also check out this post, too: String alignment issues and a simple cure. Follow these two posts and you should be able to get your instrument back to the factory specs.

If you still are not able to get it to factory spec, you should contact the dealer you purchased it from and ask them to help
you get it setup properly under G&L's warranty.

I do understand your disappointment and frustration, and do hope that I could be of some help.

[jwmallett]

Yessir, thanks a million, I really do appreciate your guidance. Peace.

[sirmyghin]

Strings going out of tune when you bend is part of every floating tremolos. That is part of the game, as at level, string tension balances spring tension, you change equilibrium position when you bend.

If you want to get the action lower, but the tremolo sitting higher off the body (so you can pull up further) you need to shim the neck to increase the neck angle. It is a vintage style trem, I wouldn't be expecting double lockling floyd type pull ups.

Overall it sounds like you really don't know how to do a setup, so there is lots of reading for you to do and then some hearty practice. Most stores don't have very good setup guys, by my meticulous standards, not to mention every player has different preferences. We don't all want it set up the same way.

[jwmallett]

Clearly I am green to this site and G&L. But I could confidently do a setup if the info was in one place and not scattered about or links on the site pointing here to look for a manual which is outdated. Many of the posts although helpful are misleading. I spent ALOT of time only to find out I have the wrong info. Sure I know I could have gotten the info from a tech at G&L but I am just like the previous poster, I dont trust others to setup my guitar and noone is going to care like I do or know what I want as much as me, so I work on my instruments myself as well and decided to come here and figure it out for myself. Maybe if the link on the site pointed to a sticky here which had the proper info all in one place with year/model specific eras of when the info changed, instead of pointing to a gallery which contains an outdated manual ignorant newcomers like myself wouldnt get frustrated and waste hours sifting through posts only to get it wrong. Dont get me wrong I am very appreciate of this site and feel every large company should have one to help and inform their customers. I also know this is a MAJOR undertaking to create and also to maintain. Hopefully this comes across as a helpful and useful suggestion so others dont experience what I did, then again I seem like the first one to suggest it after all of this time, and I dont see people complaining about the info being hard to find, maybe I am just stupid. WATCH IT BUDDY

[Craig]

Clearly I am green to this site and G&L. But I could confidently do a setup if the info was in one place and not scattered about or links on the site pointing here to look for a manual which is outdated. Many of the posts although helpful are misleading. I spent ALOT of time only to find out I have the wrong info. Sure I know I could have gotten the info from a tech at G&L but I am just like the previous poster, I dont trust others to setup my guitar and noone is going to care like I do or know what I want as much as me, so I work on my instruments myself as well and decided to come here and figure it out for myself. Maybe if the link on the site pointed to a sticky here which had the proper info all in one place with year/model specific eras of when the info changed, instead of pointing to a gallery which contains an outdated manual ignorant newcomers like myself wouldnt get frustrated and waste hours sifting through posts only to get it wrong. Dont get me wrong I am very appreciate of this site and feel every large company should have one to help and inform their customers. I also know this is a MAJOR undertaking to create and also to maintain. Hopefully this comes across as a helpful and useful suggestion so others dont experience what I did, then again I seem like the first one to suggest it after all of this time, and I dont see people complaining about the info being hard to find, maybe I am just stupid. WATCH IT BUDDY

You make a good point about clarification of the setup posts we have in the G&L Knowledgebase, G&L Tech Tips sub-forum.
I have added notes to those posts to indicate which production years they apply to.

Thank you for your suggestion.

Hope this helps.

[sirmyghin]

Clearly I am green to this site and G&L. But I could confidently do a setup if the info was in one place and not scattered about or links on the site pointing here to look for a manual which is outdated. Many of the posts although helpful are misleading. I spent ALOT of time only to find out I have the wrong info. Sure I know I could have gotten the info from a tech at G&L but I am just like the previous poster, I dont trust others to setup my guitar and noone is going to care like I do or know what I want as much as me, so I work on my instruments myself as well and decided to come here and figure it out for myself. Maybe if the link on the site pointed to a sticky here which had the proper info all in one place with year/model specific eras of when the info changed, instead of pointing to a gallery which contains an outdated manual ignorant newcomers like myself wouldnt get frustrated and waste hours sifting through posts only to get it wrong. Dont get me wrong I am very appreciate of this site and feel every large company should have one to help and inform their customers. I also know this is a MAJOR undertaking to create and also to maintain. Hopefully this comes across as a helpful and useful suggestion so others dont experience what I did, then again I seem like the first one to suggest it after all of this time, and I dont see people complaining about the info being hard to find, maybe I am just stupid. WATCH IT BUDDY

Fair enough, I guess I am outside the box that the only thing I have ever read directions to set up is a truss rod, primarily as I need to know what kind of truss rod is in the instrument. Everything after that is a lot of tweaking, or in the case of a floating bridge, a physics problem.

A floating bridge should generally sit level to the body, this only occurs when the tension of the springs equals the tension of the strings. Spring tension is the product of spring displacement, and spring stiff. Lengthen a spring, more force is generated, the converse is true. How you adjust that will be a factor of the string guages you use.

Height of bridge is a preference thing, but as I said if you want it higher, you need to shim the neck (to lower the nut relative to the top of the body). Any post based trem this is as simple as adjusting the post heights. I like to keep the bass side a little higher than the treble so I can dig in when I want. The wound strings are typically lower tension anyway.

Shimming the neck will force you to raise the bridge, so it does not choke out on the high side of the neck. Generally don't by 80's wankers to 'get a deeper trem cavity'. Ibanez routes a bit deeper to prevent the fine tuners from dropping down too easier. I shimmed my ASAT slightly to get slightly better action also, even though it has a Saddle Lock. This was a very small shim, might of added about -1 degree to the neck, but it made a huge difference. Less than 1mm of shim really.

In the end the Dual Fulcrum might look a bit different, but it is adjusted just like any other bridge. Think of it as a floyd without a locking nut.

[CGT]

My dual-fulcrum tremolo is very stable with respect to tuning, but I received it set up not to float, angled backward toward the body rather than level. I considered adjusting it so I could pull up a bit, but realized that pulling up takes more effort than actually bending a string and doesn't sound as good. I don't do divebombs on the downside either, I just use the to add a jangly effect to chords and for the occasional Floydian sustain.

Since you seem to understand the physics of this better than I, Sirmyghin, I'm wondering if keeping it set this way improves sustain and whether changing to a lighter gauge strings would a) make it level and b) affect tone, as I absolutely adore the way it sounds right now and don't want to mess with it.

[sirmyghin]

My dual-fulcrum tremolo is very stable with respect to tuning, but I received it set up not to float, angled backward toward the body rather than level. I considered adjusting it so I could pull up a bit, but realized that pulling up takes more effort than actually bending a string and doesn't sound as good. I don't do divebombs on the downside either, I just use the to add a jangly effect to chords and for the occasional Floydian sustain.

Since you seem to understand the physics of this better than I, Sirmyghin, I'm wondering if keeping it set this way improves sustain and whether changing to a lighter gauge strings would a) make it level and b) affect tone, as I absolutely adore the way it sounds right now and don't want to mess with it.

That is a dangerous game, I don't think sustain is going to be noticable one way or another, and such a small contact probably not so much anyway. I have never noticed a lack of sustain from my fully floating floyd to my saddle lock bridge. Generally speaking, sustain would be influenced by damping in the system, aka energy leaving the system. More contact could very well lower your sustain a bit, as you would be giving more area vibrating on the body. The body is more likely to have higher damping that the steel of the trem, I would wager anyway. (working on the assumption you are levelling it flat to the body, which would likely have its own issues, involving saddles needing to get very high). Floating, I can't comment either, you remove one source but may add another (the springs). If it isn't broke, and it does what you want I am of the don't fix it crowd.

By the way JW, what you can do to lessen the strings going flat when you bend is use stiffer springs, I keep my floyd a bit heavy on the spring side. The thing to watch for is to make sure that you still have some displacement on the string, so when you pull up the springs don't try to unhook, or your don't actually have to compress them.

[jwmallett]

Thanks alot both of you. I actually was a bit worried I would come off as nitpicky. Will get this puppy straight and figure out if it needs to ship this weekend, but I doubt it since the neck looks perfect in itself.

[Muleya]

I just recently got a new Legacy from the factory, and it came in very good shape. I had to make some adjustments when I put on 0.09 strings rather than that the factory 0.10s, but it works pretty well. I have noticed that the action is not as low as it is on some of my other guitars, but it's very close, and I think that some of it may just be my lack of experience...while I've played electrics for many years, I've only ever needed to make minor set up adjustments, so doing anything too involved intimidates me!

I think this has been settled already, but this type of tremolo really isn't meant for raising pitch by a whole step. As you suggested, you'd really have to rout out the body under the bridge like they do on the double-locking systems. Though you might be able to acheive that by tilting the bridge toward the strings, like the Fenders. This would give you more range in that direction, though you'd lose some range to lower pitch...and then you lose some of the advantages of this type of tremelo...see next point.

As far as the pitch of other strings raising when you bend a note...to reduce this you need to set your bridge so that it is parallel to the body of the guitar. If there is any angle, the added tension from bending the string will pull on the bridge and change it's angle and thus the pitch of the other strings. That's one thing I hated about the vintage tremolo on my Fender MIM Strat. With the G&L DF Vibrato, if you keep the bridge parallel to the body, you minimize this...the additional tension will not affect the bridge angle, or if it does it's very minimal. I do a lot of string bending and this is pretty much a non-issue for me. BTW, the number of springs won't affect this very much.

I'm not sure what's going on with the tension set screw for your tremolo arm. I've got two Legacies, and I rarely have to adjust them at all...maybe like once a year, if that! Something else must be going on with yours. You might see if the dealer can get you a new nylon collar or set screw? Or you can try e-mailing G&L, they're pretty helpful. When I bought my USED Legacy, it didn't come with any of the allen wrenches. They aren't listed on the store website, so I e-mailed G&L to find out where I could buy a set, and they mailed me a set free of charge! That was for a used guitar, even! Since yours is new, I'm sure they'd be happy to do that.

[jwmallett]

It was an assumption on my part that it would go a full step up, I still need to learn to use the tremolo and adjusting the bridge parallel will get me at least a half step whereas before I think it may have been like a quarter step. Honestly I dont think I will need to use the whammy for that, it just seemed to be logical in a musical sense to go up a whole step and it didnt seem like it would be a big issue. I have set the bridge parallel as well as lowered the bridge back down. If memory serves I beleive I was following a 3/16 spacer as well as the slight backward angle, combining two different ideas from two different areas was not the right thing to do. I usually do not have issues setting up a guitar and assumed something this slight would not make that much difference, but apparently it is more critical than I assumed. I have noticed a little string buzz still but I havent really finished adjusting the bridge saddles to account for neck radius, plus the nut I bought may not be the same radius as the neck. Can someone chime in on a 2010 legacy radius is it 12? or is it 10?

Although the action isnt quite as low as I am used to , it is much better and satisfactory since I plan on using a slide. Even if I cant get rid of the slight buzz I am experiencing now, I imagine a little practice on lighter touch will help ALOT in that regard although I never really had to do that as it was unnecessary.

As far as that goes, I have tightened it a little tighter than usual, had to move the bar a bit cause it was stiff, and that may do the trick. I didnt want to torque to hard and smash the nylon but at this point I know it cant hurt because if that is not the issue, then it may be faulty.

It sure would be nice if they provided a spec sheet showing the measurements/radius , size allens, how to adjust tremolo, etc. when you buy one, It sure would make things helpful and Id rather then a certificate.

[Craig]

Can someone chime in on a 2010 legacy radius is it 12? or is it 10?

See the G&L Knowledgebase, General G&L Questions sub-forum: What are the USA neck size options, past and present? [hint: G&L never had a 10" radius neck ]
Also, look at G&L's spec page for the Legacy.

It sure would be nice if they provided a spec sheet showing the measurements/radius , size allens, how to adjust tremolo, etc. when you buy one, It sure would make things helpful and Id rather then a certificate.

See: New Serial Number Plates as this post shows the new Custom Build Specifications certificate and Can you tell me which allen wrenches I need for my G&L?

Because factory specs do change from time to time, it makes more sense to put the information online. And that's what we are trying to do with the G&L Knowledgebase sub-forums and the Instrument Manuals and Wiring Schematics Gallery Album.

There is also a Search function here, too.

Hope this helps.

[jwmallett]

ok, and how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie roll pop?


I have my guitar intonated now, and there is no buzz and the action is where I want it and can go lower. It really wasnt that difficult to adjust it properly, which was the case for my other instruments. I guess I had a string of bad luck. Throw that it in with being busy at work and home and being anxious about playing this baby with the right feel. I was in too much of a hurry and jumped on the wrong posts, which I guess at the time seened like they were the only ones that addressed the problems I was having.

Craig, You went above and beyond the call of duty for me and I appreciate that. And didnt once get annoyed or have an attitude, which is less than I can say from what Ive seen from other forums. And you werent even once a smartass, unless you count that one time you said I could use the search function. lol. Its text I really cant tell! I promise Ill make use of it from now on before I post any more questions.

I would also like to thank the rest of you for spending the time to help me. Looks like I wont need to ship it after all.

[sirmyghin]

I think this has been settled already, but this type of tremolo really isn't meant for raising pitch by a whole step. As you suggested, you'd really have to rout out the body under the bridge like they do on the double-locking systems. Though you might be able to acheive that by tilting the bridge toward the strings, like the Fenders. This would give you more range in that direction, though you'd lose some range to lower pitch...and then you lose some of the advantages of this type of tremelo...see next point.

As far as the pitch of other strings raising when you bend a note...to reduce this you need to set your bridge so that it is parallel to the body of the guitar. If there is any angle, the added tension from bending the string will pull on the bridge and change it's angle and thus the pitch of the other strings. That's one thing I hated about the vintage tremolo on my Fender MIM Strat. With the G&L DF Vibrato, if you keep the bridge parallel to the body, you minimize this...the additional tension will not affect the bridge angle, or if it does it's very minimal. I do a lot of string bending and this is pretty much a non-issue for me. BTW, the number of springs won't affect this very much.

You don't want to have the bridge pitching forward, as it can decrease tuning stability a bit, also, whether the bridge is level or not doesn't change the string bending thing, that is going to happen regardless. The bridge tilts because of the levels of tension change, not because the string is pulling on an angle, just that it is pulling more. More springs lessens the deflection of the bridge, because springs in parallel have an additive resistance (opposed to resistors, which have inverse resistance in parallel). This additive resistance means that the deflection to make up the force difference is smaller, so the bridge moves less, and thus the other strings have less drop in pitch.

Think of it this way, I bend a string, and the tension is increased from 17 to 20 lbs of pull. So the springs need to make up another 3 lbs of pull, or the system is not in equilibrium (aka accelerating). So I have 2 setups, one with 2 springs (stiffness k), one with 3. As F= k *dx for a spring, 3 = 2k * dx and 3 = 3k * dx respectively. As you can see the second setup (with 3 springs) only deflects 1/k, while the first with 2 springs deflects 3/2k. This deflection is going to determine your pitch drop.

[Muleya]

I only suggested pitching the bridge forward as a possible solution to increasing the ability to increase pitch...but I don't think it's a good idea, myself! I pointed out that it will decrease stability.

The angle of the bridge DOES matter for string bending. If you think in terms of vectors, especially. The angle of the bridge will only change when the force vector is different from the angle of the bridge. If the two are perfectly lined up (parallel), additional force will not change the angle. Think of a door...make a line from the hinge to the latch. Pulling the door in that direction will not rotate it. You have to apply a force at an angle to that if you want the door to rotate. And the larger that angle, the more movement you get (or, conversely, the less force it takes to get the same amount of movement). It basically becomes a torque issue, and the further the vectors are from being parallel, the greater the torque.

And I agree that the springs CAN HELP to work against this, it will reduce the effect, but I don't think the springs are strong enough to completely eliminate it unless they are so strong they essentially turn it into a fixed bridge!

[sirmyghin]

They won't completely eliminate it, but neither will keeping your bridge in a proper set up (level). I keep a VERY stiff floyd, and a floyd is always level and it greatly decreases the issue. The knife edges are the pivot, and you are already applying moment as the string rests will above the pivot, so the bridge angle will change. The work around is you would need the posts to be level with the string as it exits the bridge. At minimum, if your saddle is bottomed out we are still talking 5-7mm moment arm. Hence how springs is the solution, not counting on the bridge to not generate a moment, as it will.

[Muleya]

That is true, I had thought of the fact that the strings sit above the pivot. But by having the bridge set level, you minimize that moment arm. But I was playing last night and closely watching my bridge and listening for any slight change in pitch for the unbent strings. I could not detect the slightest amount of bridge movement or change in pitch, even for fairly significant bends. I think I've got 3 springs on it, though I'm not entirely sure, I'll have to check. Anyway, it's got as many springs on it as it leaves the factory with, I haven't changed that.

Obviously, both the bridge angle and the springs work together here. Which of the two plays a greater factor, well, it would take more experimentation than I have equipment for or interest in doing. In my mind, it's the angle, but I could well be wrong!

[sirmyghin]

That is true, I had thought of the fact that the strings sit above the pivot. But by having the bridge set level, you minimize that moment arm. But I was playing last night and closely watching my bridge and listening for any slight change in pitch for the unbent strings. I could not detect the slightest amount of bridge movement or change in pitch, even for fairly significant bends. I think I've got 3 springs on it, though I'm not entirely sure, I'll have to check. Anyway, it's got as many springs on it as it leaves the factory with, I haven't changed that.

Obviously, both the bridge angle and the springs work together here. Which of the two plays a greater factor, well, it would take more experimentation than I have equipment for or interest in doing. In my mind, it's the angle, but I could well be wrong!

I use 10s on my OFR, with 3 springs 2 of which are 'normal' 1 of which is a Gotoh "Power spring", these springs are serious business . My trem is actually a bit too stiff right now due to that. Might have to go back to 2 power springs, each of which is pretty much 1.5 springs on its own.