Fred
Well-Known Member
By way of a backstory, I've spent the past few months trying to work out whether to sell my Nightswan or my RGA32. I was erring towards the Kramer for a long time, on the basis that I haven't played it in absolutely ages, because I really cannot stand floating trems. I change tuning a hell of a lot, and a Tremol-No just didn't cut the mustard for me (really nice idea, but no way near strong enough to take any serious changes in tuning).
However, I've always had a seriously soft spot for the Kramer, and so the RGA32 went to another home, with the plan being that I would block the Nightswan's trem properly and maybe indulge in some more mods further along the line. So I spent the morning hacking up a nice piece of mahogany and got to work!
This is the result. The little sliver on the spring side was only a temporary job until my housemate and his junior hacksaw came back to enable me to cut a piece with more precision than my tenon saw allowed. I've since fully blocked it on both sides of the trem block, but these pictures were taken before doing so:
So happy I did this... Now I remember why I fell in love with the guitar in the first place, my sustain has notably improved, and I can actually change tunings without losing the will to live in the process. Excellent news all round.
While I was in the mood for photos, I grabbed a few snaps of the Kramer's big brother (in terms of scale length and nut width, if not age!), my new USRG10AM. Both guitars have a Tone Zone in the bridge at the moment, but have a noticeable tonal difference, and an extremely noticeable difference in terms of feel. I couldn't compare them, other than to say I don't see myself being rid of either in a hurry!
Oh... and by means of a cautionary tale, this is why you should wait until the hangover wears off before wielding an unnecessarily sharp tenon saw:
Hope you enjoy the pictures!
However, I've always had a seriously soft spot for the Kramer, and so the RGA32 went to another home, with the plan being that I would block the Nightswan's trem properly and maybe indulge in some more mods further along the line. So I spent the morning hacking up a nice piece of mahogany and got to work!
This is the result. The little sliver on the spring side was only a temporary job until my housemate and his junior hacksaw came back to enable me to cut a piece with more precision than my tenon saw allowed. I've since fully blocked it on both sides of the trem block, but these pictures were taken before doing so:
![21234437.jpg](http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/6330/21234437.jpg)
![10714668.jpg](http://img846.imageshack.us/img846/4092/10714668.jpg)
![51301017.jpg](http://img860.imageshack.us/img860/4117/51301017.jpg)
![99813474.jpg](http://img842.imageshack.us/img842/5837/99813474.jpg)
![50107571.jpg](http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/8333/50107571.jpg)
![85498517.jpg](http://img641.imageshack.us/img641/1518/85498517.jpg)
![68139810.jpg](http://img859.imageshack.us/img859/3258/68139810.jpg)
![68046704.jpg](http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/1395/68046704.jpg)
![93947934.jpg](http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/9273/93947934.jpg)
![13159383.jpg](http://img831.imageshack.us/img831/6748/13159383.jpg)
So happy I did this... Now I remember why I fell in love with the guitar in the first place, my sustain has notably improved, and I can actually change tunings without losing the will to live in the process. Excellent news all round.
While I was in the mood for photos, I grabbed a few snaps of the Kramer's big brother (in terms of scale length and nut width, if not age!), my new USRG10AM. Both guitars have a Tone Zone in the bridge at the moment, but have a noticeable tonal difference, and an extremely noticeable difference in terms of feel. I couldn't compare them, other than to say I don't see myself being rid of either in a hurry!
![33221268.jpg](http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/7182/33221268.jpg)
![10321370.jpg](http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/2237/10321370.jpg)
![65908124.jpg](http://img836.imageshack.us/img836/7733/65908124.jpg)
![53384810.jpg](http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/791/53384810.jpg)
Oh... and by means of a cautionary tale, this is why you should wait until the hangover wears off before wielding an unnecessarily sharp tenon saw:
![94161228.jpg](http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/4849/94161228.jpg)
Hope you enjoy the pictures!