In our experience, shimming is just a fact of life with the HG. I'm going
to
disagree that it indicates that the instrument isn't structurally sound,
because all HG's need it from time to time.
Agreed. If I have been misunderstood, I apologize. I meant the operant word
to be "constant," as in constant adjustment. I think it is understood that
all instruments, even those properly designed and made, will require
adjustment from time to time. When adjustment becomes so frequent that
adjustable bridges are absolutely necessary, and damage or humidity has been
ruled out, it seems appropriate to look for deficiencies in structure,
design, or construction.
back. All of these are going to move a little bit over time. (If they
don't,
then the instrument is built very, very strongly, and it's not going to
resonate.)
Again, agreed. However, many instruments being built today are being built
using only the "lighter is better" paradigm. Of course, light is fine if it
is still strong, but it is easy to make things excessively light. This leads
to instruments that rapidly self destruct and *require* adjustable bridges.
In addition to the slow sinking under pressure, there are also the factors
of
temperature and humidity. Wood expands and contracts - this is a physical
fact that we can't get around.
True, but the instrument shouldn't exhibit gross swings in playability with
relatively minor changes in humidity. IMO, this is what "design" is really
all about - determining a reasonable balance to maximize sound while
maintaining structure and relatively stable playability.
I concur with Alden and Esa; deal with the cause, not the symptom.
I'm not sure I ever said that. What I said was that we'd tried it and it
didn't work very well for us.
Having followed your progress photos, it is immediately evident that your
instruments and construction methods are excellent. I thought if adjustable
bridges worked, you would probably be using them. I didn't mean to paint you
with Esa's brush. I inferred (incorrectly) that the primary reason you
didn't
use these bridges was that they were *unnecessary* for well-constructed
instruments.
GJR
