• Registered: 2008-04-14
  • Posts: 147

Topic: Bone Saddles

Hey guys!

Just wondering if anybody has had any experiences with bone saddles or nuts... sure some of you have. Do you like them? I'm thinking of putting one in my Almansa 457 classical, maybe if I like it my Guild. Would I have to get them shaped? I know I could do it at my music store, but there's a big wait for that and I take lessons. Should I try it myself? I know it's easy to put it in, but would I have to shape it or could I get it preshaped? I'm not gonna shape it myself. Any thoughts or opinions?

Thanks, Mark

Linusguitar's Website

  • Registered: 2008-10-02
  • Posts: 192

Re: Bone Saddles

I've wondered about this myself. What does it do to the tone and playability of a guitar? Where do I get a bone saddle? How do I shape it?

  • From: Louisiana
  • Registered: 2008-11-06
  • Posts: 863

Re: Bone Saddles

I had some repair work done to my Epi and the gentleman put a bone bridge and a shim on mine.It seems to have a brighter sound and the shim could be removed if I wanted the strings lower.

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deadstring's Website

  • Registered: 2008-04-14
  • Posts: 147

Re: Bone Saddles

Hmm. I heard from one of my teachers that they had like 100$ worth of sound, so I might check it out.

Linusguitar's Website

  • Registered: 2010-01-04
  • Posts: 41

Re: Bone Saddles

I agree. I like bone saddles and nuts. Sometimes I just go to the pet store, buy a bleached cow bone and carve my own - cheap but stinky. Still, they sound really good.

Joe
Roadie & Reviewer
GoodGearGuy.com

Joe D. Roadie's Website

  • From: carson,washington
  • Registered: 2009-09-22
  • Posts: 350

Re: Bone Saddles

Hey Lin, I have a woosdstock model Washburn(1980) acou/elec that I like alot. Can't tell you if it sounds better with bone for it came with bone nut and saddle but I feel it probably does. One advantage might be the lack of the little grooves made by the strings on the saddle?? Resonates better also??   Mike

Our intuitions serve us well

7 Reply by badeye (edited by badeye 2010-02-11 19:30:06)

  • badeye
  • The Blues Fixer
  • Offline
  • From: Cape Breton Island, Canada
  • Registered: 2006-09-02
  • Posts: 3,381

Re: Bone Saddles

Joe D. Roadie wrote:

I agree. I like bone saddles and nuts. Sometimes I just go to the pet store, buy a bleached cow bone and carve my own - cheap but stinky. Still, they sound really good.

Hey Joe,  I have an old deer antler someone gave me years ago, would that work for a saddle and nut ??  its very dense material.


badeye   cool

one caper after another
  • Registered: 2010-01-04
  • Posts: 41

Re: Bone Saddles

Antler would probably work nicely. People use mastadon ivory, laminated mother or pearl and all manner of things. Left over scraps of Corian counter top material is excellent too. I bet antler would smell just as bad if you use power tools on it.

Joe
Roadie & Reviewer
GoodGearGuy.com

Joe D. Roadie's Website

  • badeye
  • The Blues Fixer
  • Offline
  • From: Cape Breton Island, Canada
  • Registered: 2006-09-02
  • Posts: 3,381

Re: Bone Saddles

Thanks Joe, I have a band saw to cut it down to size and carving tools and files. Think I will fashion both and install next string change.      I will record the sound before and after to compare.


thanks again,,    Badeye   cool

one caper after another
  • Registered: 2010-01-04
  • Posts: 41

Re: Bone Saddles

Excellent. I will be anxious to hear the comparison. Isn't it true that deer (including moose and elk) drop their antlers at the end of the breeding season? If so, a walk in the woods this spring might result in finding more bridge and nut material than anyone could ever use, for free.
BTW badeye, if antler is anything like bone, set your bandsaw to a slow speed to reduce the awful burning-hair smell.

Joe
Roadie & Reviewer
GoodGearGuy.com

Joe D. Roadie's Website

  • badeye
  • The Blues Fixer
  • Offline
  • From: Cape Breton Island, Canada
  • Registered: 2006-09-02
  • Posts: 3,381

Re: Bone Saddles

Thanks for the tip Joe, will do.



badeye   cool

one caper after another
  • Registered: 2006-07-27
  • Posts: 31

Re: Bone Saddles

I use nothing but bone for nuts and saddles on my cigar-box creations.  One of the advantages of bone is that it's very hard, so that the string will not "bind" in a bone nut as you're tuning.
I hacksaw out the rough shape (I use pet store doggie bones) and then do the final shaping with my Dremel and a sanding wheel.

  • From: North Carolina
  • Registered: 2007-02-08
  • Posts: 1,912

Re: Bone Saddles

To Quote Bob Colosi... "Bone increases clarity and sustain, provides better overtones, and provides a better high to low end balance.  It provides a much more “focused† high end and punchier low end,  and is not at all shrill like some plastic saddles render the guitar.  Additionally, bone will long outlast the factory installed plastic saddles."
  That pretty much sums up my experiences as well... I have bone saddles in 5 of my acoustics, Tusq in one and am shaping an Ivory one now for the newest addition. It's the best upgrade in tone for the money that you can make (IMO).
  As far as shaping them... You can order square blanks or ones that have been radiused to match your fretboard so you have only minimal fitting/adjusting to do. If you have a spare, you can remove the one you have in now and send it to get it matched and then just put it in... It really all depends on how much you want to invest.
   You can find bones saddles at almost any music store. StewMac is a great online supplier that I use often http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Nuts,_saddles/Acoustic_bridge_saddles/White_Bone_Saddles.html?actn=100101&xst=3&xsr=42 Also Bob is a great guy to deal with http://www.guitarsaddles.com/products.asp Even ebay has loads of them...

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