Need a bridge

[Barry Wilson]

Hey guys/gals. I could use some help. I have a Gold Tone OM800. it has a piezo under saddle bridge. I have an LR Baggs radius pickup coming for it and thought I might as well change the bridge as well since it is hollowed out for the piezo wire.

I looked on mandolin store website and only saw mandolin bridges. any ideas where I might find a suitable bridge?

I am thankful to live above a music store with a decent luthier but they don't carry "replacement" bridges for this. mandolins yes but.... He is working on my strat right now and I take something down each month for some work or other.

Thanks for any advice I can get here. I want to order right away

[allenhopkins]

Gold Tone sells an OM800 replacement bridge. for 34 bucks. Looks like it's solid to me, but a phone call before ordering might be a good idea.

[Barry Wilson]

appreciated. I can get them to order that one in for me. mine doesn't have the bone top and is split down the middle. I just figure a solid piece will sound better. I love the sound acoustically now but that piezo makes me cringe, even with the gig pro, which is better.

[s1m0n]

Need a bridge

I can get you a great deal on one in Brooklyn.

[MikeEdgerton]

appreciated. I can get them to order that one in for me. mine doesn't have the bone top and is split down the middle. I just figure a solid piece will sound better. I love the sound acoustically now but that piezo makes me cringe, even with the gig pro, which is better.

Go to the source:

https://www.goldtone.com/product-cat...dolin-bridges/

or

See if Steve at Cumberland Acoustic can make you one.

http://www.cumberlandacoustic.com/

or

Check out the Red Henry bridge info:

http://www.murphymethod.com/index.cf...t&contentId=87

[Barry Wilson]

Thanks guys. I emailed the Gold Tone link to my guys downstairs and will go talk to them shortly. The ordered my mandola and banjo in for me from there, so it's a given. I assumed it would be the same split bridge.

s1m0n, I will see what the guys say and drop you a line when I come back upstairs

I will write cumberland too as I love the mandolin bridge on "The Loar" of mine.

[acousticphd]

Thanks guys. I emailed the Gold Tone link to my guys downstairs and will go talk to them shortly. The ordered my mandola and banjo in for me from there, so it's a given. I assumed it would be the same split bridge.

s1m0n, I will see what the guys say and drop you a line when I come back upstairs

I will write cumberland too as I love the mandolin bridge on "The Loar" of mine.

Before you get another, I'd advise you to get a real OM or mandola replacement bridge, compensated for 3 wound/1 plain courses. Most of the OM800 you will see have an adjustable bridge, not the 1-pc bridge in the link. That in itself is confusing, but I wouldn't get either the 1-pc or the adjustable bridge, as both have a mandolin-type compensated saddle. (Neither the Saga (Trinity College) or Goldtone people apparently realize there is a difference, and should be a difference. )

The wound 2nd course of an octave mandolin (or mandola) should have its bridge saddle all the way forward, ie, with the least compensation of the three wound strings. This has been discussed here a few times before. If, on the other hand, you're using (or would rather use) a heavy plain steel string for the 2nd course (A), you would want a bridge compensated like the one they sell.

[Barry Wilson]

My mandola has the same type 1 pce bridge. I was looking at the instruments and that looks like the bouzuki bridge.

[acousticphd]

Yes, the bridge compensation is the same on all their intruments, regardless of scale/intended string gauge. I imagine it is probably the self-same bridge on mandola, OM, and bouzouki. Really the people at the company don't understand or care about the difference re: saddle compensation.
You can just live with the intonation error it produces, or look for properly compensated bridge.

[Mandobart]

I've still got my Michael Kelly Octave plus as my loaner/beater OM. I bought her from Elderly a few years ago. I could never get the intonation quite right, so I took her to my local guitar tech who made a new compensated saddle (top part of the two piece bridge) for me, cost about $40. Now the intonation is perfect.

[mandroid]

a solid bridge can be fabricated by your friendly local luthier , and in the process fitted to the top precisely

and have the intonation offsets dialed in by how they are cut,

and you can get the top edge bone inset too if you wish ..

the red henry blank may be a place to start
but a piece of wood is even more open to your options

[murphy method site is about lessons and Books Now]

[MikeEdgerton]

The Murphy link above is to the bridge page.

[CelticDude]

I can get you a great deal on one in Brooklyn.

No, sorry, I already bought it. Guy gave me a good deal too.

[Bernie Daniel]

No, sorry, I already bought it. Guy gave me a good deal too.

Was shipping included?

[Barry Wilson]

The store downstairs brought in the Gold Tone bridge. Word of warning.... it isn't tall enough to mate it to the body. I have to glue some ebony to the bottom and re sand.