Bridge splitting

[mgrowe]

Hye,

My SE has a problem. The bridge seems to be splitting apart

I have tried contacting my UK distributor by e-mail but they have not replied to my e-mail.

Is there a replacement that will not cost me a third of the price I payed for the whole guitar out there? (Thought it was lifetime guarantee but if you can't get them to reply then I guess it is not really).

 

[carpincowboy]

Se parts are available in on ebay but you will pay over the top odds. Prs dont post parts outside of the u,s.
Try wilkinson. They are cheap but great quality.

 

[justmund]

Can you post a photo?

 

[mgrowe]

picture

Can you post a photo?

I am trying to but canot work out how to as it asks for a URL and it is on my PC so I just want to upload it

Will try this

 

[mgrowe]

Can you post a photo?

I did but it did not appear for some reason. I have posted it at http://www.6stringheaven.com/threads/10106-PRS-bridge-splitting!! as well

 

[justmund]

You need to host the photo somewhere on the web and link it (like Picasa or Flickr). I can't see that photo as I don't have an account with that other forum. Perhaps you can navigate to the photo/s, open it in a new window, then post an image here using that web address (it should end in .jpg). Thanks

 

[mgrowe]

You need to host the photo somewhere on the web and link it (like Picasa or Flickr). I can't see that photo as I don't have an account with that other forum. Perhaps you can navigate to the photo/s, open it in a new window, then post an image here using that web address (it should end in .jpg). Thanks

It is here if the paste above does not work

http://www.flickr.com/photos/59368786@N04/8734924122/in/photostream

 

[mgrowe]

this is a link to teh photo again that I hope works

http://www.flickr.com/photos/59368786@N04/8734924122/

 

[mgrowe]

put photo up and can see it but no one is replying. Ah well guess I just don't buy another PRS

 

[justmund]

Well sorry for not seeing this earlier, if I had, I would have replied. You know 99.9% of us don't represent the PRS company right? It doesn't really bother most of us if you buy another PRS or not.

Anyway, it's a little hard to see what's going on in the photos but it looks like the black coating on the bridge is lifting and not the actual bridge is splitting. It also looks like there is a lot of corrosion going on, by the colour and oxidation evident on your pickup slugs and mounting screws. I would say that this is being affected by the environment, maybe you have corrosive sweat or live by the beach, and maybe not wiping down the guitar after use.

Can you tell us more about the guitar, how long you've had it, do you have similar corrosion issues with other guitars, the environment you live in etc.

 

[vchizzle]

Odd, I've never seen anything like that. I agree that there's a lot of corrosion/rust there on the pickup. But I have pickups that have ended up that way. Never a bridge do anything like that. I have no experience with the black plated bridge though.

 

[Danerada]

That's a lot of corrosion going on there. I think you would be lucky if that were warrantied by any guitar maker.

 

[László]

It looks like the plating is lifting, as opposed to the bridge splitting. That comes from wear causing an opening for corrosion to get under the plating, which then lifts as the corrosion bubbles up. It used to happen to chrome parts on cars before manufacturers started making more extensive use of aluminum and plated plastic trim.

Where do you keep that thing? It has corrosion everywhere!

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

put photo up and can see it but no one is replying. Ah well guess I just don't buy another PRS

Hi Mike. Sometimes new posts get missed. At the time you posted it many Americans would have been in bed and the Europeans would have been at work.

I was literally expecting to see a pic of your bridge splitting in half. Glad to see it's not that. As others have mentioned this is a simple (If annoying) case of the black plating coming away due to oxidization / corrosion.

This won't be covered by Warranty though unless the plating was defective to begin with. I doubt that though.

I don't know where you'd get a black plated bridge from. Maybe the one you have could be touched up?

Some of it may be your environment, although I don't see why Cambridgeshire should be any different to where I am.

Looks to me like this is mainly caused by your sweat. The worst area is right where your palm would make contact. I have an old Squier Strat that had bad corrosion around the bridge pup screws and pole pieces.

For now this is mainly cosmetic. You need to make sure you clean the guitar own after playing or even during. get some Fast Fret to use on the strings after playing and keep other metal parts wiped down and it shouldn't get any worse.

 

[justmund]

I also got wondering if you (or the previous owner?) wore a watch or studded bracelet on your right hand?

This could have disturbed the black plating/paint and made a path for sweat etc to get under and cause this issue.