SE Mods

[Hopeful Sinner]

Chris,

It's yours braddah! Send me your addy....

 

[Hopeful Sinner]

Arghhhh!

The offer is much appreciated and i'd have jumped at it, but....

I bit the bullet earlier and ordered the Schroeder stoptail and metric locking studs!

I'll be giving away the Tonepros (Chrome) metric studs (And spanner thingy) once they arrive in 2 -4 weeks so if anyone wants them let me know!

That just sucks Mike, "pay it forward" is good!!!

Well, looks like the bridge will have a new home with Chris528...can't wait to see pics...

 

[Chris528]

Well, looks like the bridge will have a new home with Chris528...can't wait to see pics...

Thanks Jon!

This is the greatest forum ever!

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

That just sucks Mike, "pay it forward" is good!!!

Well, looks like the bridge will have a new home with Chris528...can't wait to see pics...

I'm still kicking myself!!!

TP locking studs on their way to Chris528 in a few weeks!

 

[mookyshoots]

Hey guys,

I finished my mods over the weekend and thought I'd share. My SE245 received the following:

Schaller locking tuners
Graphtech Tusq XL nut
Tonepros metric PRS locking studs
Martin Six String Customs Les Paul wiring harness (CTS 550k pots, Russian PIO caps, Switchcraft jack & switch)
Gibson speed knobs (black)

I already had a set of DiMarzio 36th anniversary pickups installed, so this now represents the end product. I decided to bypass the PRS lampshade knobs for now until I can find a better deal on them. She plays and sounds great, so it's money well spent. I am noticing a bit more sustain, which I can only assume is due to the locking studs creating better contact. Also, Matt's wiring harness is top notch, both in parts and workmanship. Top notch!

 

[dogrocketp]

The one mod I've considered absolutely necessary on both of mine (Singlecut Soapbar 7 Korina) are the Tone Pro metric locking studs. I've just sent an email to Tonepros asking why their brass inserts are smaller than the stock ones. The sustain difference is noticeable, and the bridge doesn't lean as much. I just wish it didn't lean at all.

 

[Victek]

I like them. Cheap as chips, seem like good quality and look just like the official se lampshade knobs.

Finally received a set of black lampshade knobs. I think they were literally on a "slow boat from China" They look good and they solve the issue of the dials being a little too easy to turn with the stock knobs. Thanks for info.

 

[carpincowboy]

Your most welcome.

 

[guitargeezer]

I'm late to the dance, but here's my Bernie. Thus far, I've just added nickel covers (50mm/52mm) and top hat knobs (and a new neck volume pot after I pulled too hard when removing the old knob :-(...)

Next will be some new tuners...just don't like the green ones.

 

[slev]

Nice Bernie! Why do they all seem to have such sweet maple caps...nickel covers look cool.

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

I'm late to the dance, but here's my Bernie. Thus far, I've just added nickel covers (50mm/52mm) and top hat knobs (and a new neck volume pot after I pulled too hard when removing the old knob :-(...)

Next will be some new tuners...just don't like the green ones.

You chose well Guitargeezer!

Covered buckers on the Bernie just look right!

I'm kind of in agreement about the tuner buttons. I do like that style on this guitar but slightly less keen on that greeny look to them. I'm in no rush to replace them though, and when I do they'll be of a similar style.

 

[guitargeezer]

Yeah, Mike, I really like the vintage keystones, so I'll stay in the family. Maybe Gibson's or Gotoh?

 

[guitargeezer]

My Bernie with 53/10's and Tone Pros bridge

Which Tone Pros bridge is that? Looks great!

 

[John Beef]

I'm late to the dance, but here's my Bernie. Thus far, I've just added nickel covers (50mm/52mm) and top hat knobs (and a new neck volume pot after I pulled too hard when removing the old knob :-(...)

Next will be some new tuners...just don't like the green ones.

Sweet. Where did you source the 52mm nickel covers? When I put some nickel covers on a set of SE pickups I had to use a Gibson cover which cost way more than it should have, easily as much as the entire pickup would sell for on the open market. I was surprised to find out Gibson of all brands made a 52mm cover.

 

[guitargeezer]

John, I actually found them on the Bay at $9.95 each, and they have the raw nickel (unplated for that aged look) covers for less. They were great to work with and shipped them immediately. The vendor is Philadelphia Luthier Tools and Supplies and I have absolutely no relationship with them...other than being a happy camper.

I had read that 52mm covers were hard to find, so I was blown away to find them so easily. And they were a perfect fit.

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

Time for some more Bernie mod pics...

Thought I'd give locking studs a mention in this post along with some pics to illustrate some points worth considering if you're thinking about getting some.

In this pic you can see the lean that goes on with the stock studs. I'm leaning it backwards but you get the idea.

This next series of pics is the Tonepros Metric Locking studs. As you will see they look quite nice but there are some issues with the SE bridge. The posts are quite narrow thus you have side to side play until locked down. You also have to use a supplied spanner to adjust the heights. They probably mate up better with a Tonepros bridge.

I'm waiting on the Schroeder bridge but I got the locking studs first. I'm in no rush to install it - indeed the slots will need cutting first so I'll wait until I take it to a tech's for a re-fret. The Tonepros studs are on their way to another member who has a Tonepros bridge. These are a better fit for the SE bridge. No side to side play at all and they can be adjusted from the top.

One thing i'm slightly surprised by is the amount of slop between the Schroeder studs and the inserts (Both stock and supplied). Because of this the bridge leans forward slightly. it's minor but I would have thought the tolerances would have been higher with these parts.

Do locking studs improve tone and sustain? Maybe a little but it's not dramatic. It's nice not to have the bridge fall off when changing strings though!

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

Whilst I was at it I gave the frets and fretboard some TLC... The next and perhaps last mod will be to have larger frets fitted later this year.

Just a re-cap of mods so far:

Bare Knuckle Mule Neck Pup, Suhr Doug Aldrich Bridge. BKP 550k pots. Orange drop cap .022. Graphtech Tusq Nut. Switch, jack and tuners are stock.

Original stock nut with a Graphtech Tusq XL one behind it:

 

[lgk1208]

Mike, looks awesome and you did a great job with the pics too. I wish I could take pics that good.

 

[godoy.rafa]

Finished another mod last night in my SE Custom 24. Here's the list:

- Seymour Duncan JB & Jazz
- Graphtech Black Tusq nut
- Graphtech Black Tusq saddles (for G, B and E only due to space issues)
- DiMarzio jack, pickup switch, pots
- Removed tone knob
- Placed push-pull volume knob where tone was
- Placed small Petrucci style 3-way pickup switch where volume was
- Nothing where old pickup switch was
- Grover 406C 3 X 3 Chrome Mini Self Lock Tuning Machine Heads (direct replacement for SE machine heads)

I think I'm done now, nothing else to do!

 

[garrett]

Time for some more Bernie mod pics...

Thought I'd give locking studs a mention in this post along with some pics to illustrate some points worth considering if you're thinking about getting some.

In this pic you can see the lean that goes on with the stock studs. I'm leaning it backwards but you get the idea.

This next series of pics is the Tonepros Metric Locking studs. As you will see they look quite nice but there are some issues with the SE bridge. The posts are quite narrow thus you have side to side play until locked down. You also have to use a supplied spanner to adjust the heights. They probably mate up better with a Tonepros bridge.

I'm waiting on the Schroeder bridge but I got the locking studs first. I'm in no rush to install it - indeed the slots will need cutting first so I'll wait until I take it to a tech's for a re-fret. The Tonepros studs are on their way to another member who has a Tonepros bridge. These are a better fit for the SE bridge. No side to side play at all and they can be adjusted from the top.

One thing i'm slightly surprised by is the amount of slop between the Schroeder studs and the inserts (Both stock and supplied). Because of this the bridge leans forward slightly. it's minor but I would have thought the tolerances would have been higher with these parts.

Do locking studs improve tone and sustain? Maybe a little but it's not dramatic. It's nice not to have the bridge fall off when changing strings though!

That's interesting with the TonePros studs. Are you sure they're the version meant for PRS wraparound? They look more like they'd be for a Tune-o-matic. I don't remember mine having that sort of gap, but I did mine back around '06. I'll have to take a look when I get home from work.

So that second set of studs is from Schroeder? They do look like a better design than the TonePros.

I agree on the effect. The guitar feels more lively, but that doesn't translate to much, if anything, amplified. I figure the bridge won't fall off and it makes me like the feel of the guitar better, so that's a pair of wins.