Holcomb intonation

[soap]

Dumb question time.

I'm trying to adjust the intonation on my Holcomb, but I can't figure out how to adjust the saddles. I've shined a light in there and it looks like there might be phillips screws in there? I've tried various sized phillips screwdrivers, but can't get them to turn, so I'm stumped.

 

[colinkanders]

Yep, it should be a small phillips to move the saddles back and forth.

 

[soap]

Thanks. At least I know I'm sticking the right kind of tool in there .

I've tried various sizes of philips screwdrivers, but I can't get it to budge. Since I can't see the screw head, I have no way of knowing if the screwdriver is the right size to engage with the screw. All I can do is stick it in there blindly and twist. Any ideas on what I might be doing wrong?

 

[colinkanders]

The only thing that comes to mind is to ensure that you've loosened the strings enough or completely removed them. If that's not it, I'm not sure why the saddles won't move for you.

 

[bde52]

Definitely important to loosen the string, especially if you’re trying to pull the saddle away from the neck.

 

[soap]

Ok, I've been able to get the screws to move. The problem is the use of a phillips screw. It's hard to get a screwdriver close enough to the body to seat squarely in the screw head. And it's hard to tell when you're actually moving the screw since you can't see the head when you're turning it. Maybe a hex head screw would have been a better choice than phillips?

 

[colinkanders]

Ah, I see...I bought an extra-long screwdriver years ago specifically for adjusting bridge saddles because I had the same problem (and I imagine everyone else has it too).