putski
First Lieutenant  Posts: 1 Registered: 2/1/2010 Status: Offline
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posted on 2/1/2010 at 23:13  |
I have a Ibanez Roadstar Pro 540R Radius.
I'm new to guitar. Could you please tell me how to change strings.
I don't know what gauge strings are on it, but the springs are set for
light gauge. I bought ghs boomers GBXL 009 (xtra light).
The bridge is already touching the guitar body in back so I'm just gonna
change all strings at once. No sense in going string by string since it's
already compromised right?)
Could you please go in steps because it seems everything I've read is all
over the place. Meaning when do I make sure the bridge is straight?
Do I block it or tighten the strings to pull the bridge level?
Thanks for your time
[Edited on 2/2/2010 by moderation]
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GuitarMuscle
Captain   Posts: 161 Registered: 5/4/2004 Status: Offline |
posted on 2/2/2010 at 01:43, Reply 1 |
The best thing is get yourself a polishing cloth or even a t-shirt will
work and lift up the bridge and place the cloth under to hold the floating
bridge level. This will make changing the string alot easier.
Now just change your strings, then stretch them, then tune to your favorite
tuning.
Now if the bridge is tilted back or up and not level you will have to
adjust the springs on the back cavity until the bridge stays level.
Tightening the screws will make the bridge raise up toward the neck and
loosening them will do the opposite. You may have to re-tune as you adjust
the springs since the strings are new. Don't forgot to lock down the
locking nut(s) after your done tuning.
Hope this helps.
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Yelgath
First Lieutenant Posts: 4 Registered: 3/18/2010 Status: Offline |
posted on 3/18/2010 at 06:46, Reply 2 |
I'm not sure what GuitarMuscle means by lifting up the bridge. If your
bridge is already not properly set up then here's what I would do.
Changing the strings is easy. Change one at a time even if you don't think
it's necessary. If you don't know how:
Unlock the pressure pads on the nut of the neck with an allen wrench.
Unwind the tuning peg. At the bridge, the string is clamped there also.
Loosen that with an allen wrench also. Take the old string out. If might
get caught, but just play with it until it comes out. Put a new string in,
lock it t the bridge, then once you're done with the strings put the
pressure pads back on. Retune, stretch them, and retune again. You'll need
to stretch and retune at least a couple times (You didn't mention what
model tremolo it is you have, so you may or may not need to clip the balls
off the strings.)
It's easy and it's nearly impossible to screw up your guitar just changing
strings. Also some extra info.. After you change the strings...
If your tremolo isn't straight you can do a fairly easy quick fix... Grab a
screwdriver and tighten or loosen the springs in the back until the bridge
is parallel with the body. If you need to tighten them remember to loosen
the strings first. If you're strings are tight then you make the bridge
pull even more you could break brand new strings. That would suck.
A last note of advice... Tremolo systems ARE IMPERFECT. They can be
INCREDIBLY frustrating especially if you're new at guitar. If you can't get
yours to stay in tune, I really recommend you just block it. Whammies are
fun but they are not stable unless you really know what you're doing, and
having a guitar that's always out of tune can really discourage you from
playing. It would be better to block the whammy than just be playing an out
of tune guitar all the time and be pissed off.
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