MichaelW
Well-known member
I tried that but I didn't help enough on the unwound strings. I wound up using 2 of the cheap saddles I got off Amazon. As far as I can see they're the same as the pricey Vibramate ones. I could not get the low E and A to intonate correctly with the even parallel slots so I used one of the "Gotoh In Tune: saddles for those strings, The wound strings were not the ones that were popping out so it all worked.
I also got a taller spring for the Bigsby. The stock spring is 7/8", I replaced it with a 1 1/8" spring. And now it feels too tall
.I probably need a 1" spring.
I also cut some slots in the tip of the saddle adjustment screws with a Dremel wheel so I could adjust the intonation from the pickup side since the back side is not accessible once the Bigsby is installed.
I'm also really surprised at how stable this Bigsby B5 is for tuning. I've only used the import version (B50) and as far as I can tell visually the mechanics are identical. Yet the US made one feels more solid, has less play and stays in tune better.
Edit: I just read that the only difference between the import version and the US version is that the Import version (B50) is die-cast aluminum and the US made one is sand cast.