seymour
Harley Benton Club Junior Member
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Post by seymour on May 6, 2023 5:57:02 GMT
Hey folks, For any of you who bought the left handed 25th Anniversary T-25th, be sure to take a close look at the bridge they supplied. I received a left handed guitar in beautiful condition, but I took a close look at the Wilkinson compensated saddles and realized they had installed a right-handed saddle set. You can re-arrange the saddle order and almost get away with it until you reach the low E string. It's break point on the saddle was well forward of the A string. I happened to find a lefty Wilkinson saddle kit on Reverb for $13 with free shipping, so I went ahead and ordered even before contacting Thomann. I didn't expect them to ship me a replacement from Germany. Thomann replied and asked for more pictures. We went back and forth on emails. The new saddle set arrived fast and I replaced that one saddle and the intonation is now good. Thomann responded today saying their expert requested for a video proving it won't intonate. I already changed the saddle and it's pretty damn obvious on the pics I sent. I sent them updated pictures with the correct saddles today.
Link below. Red lines added to show the break points for the strings. Note where the Low E string hits the saddle. Too far forward. The saddle from the lefty kit fixed it. On these Wilkinson kits, the two outer saddles are the same and the inner saddle has reversed bevels. I rarely see lefty kits and I usually have to buy two right handed kits to get what I need to make a left handed set.
I may have just been unlucky, but I figured there's a chance I'm not the only southpaw with a bum saddle. If you've got one too, let them know!
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seymour
Harley Benton Club Junior Member
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Post by seymour on May 6, 2023 17:41:41 GMT
I'm surprised Thomann wanted more proof - the product images on the Thomann site clearly show a left handed set of bridges so the difference with what was shipped to you should have been obvious to them. Unless they don't understand how compensated bridges work, having to supply a video seems completely unnecessary. Their customer support is normally pretty good so I'll be interested to know the outcome.
I was surprised too. I think I was four emails replies into this subject before I showed irritation. I just wanted the error acknowledged and I didn't care so much about a $13 refund. In my last email I told them they need to make this right for others who may be affected.
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Post by tojla on May 7, 2023 14:51:20 GMT
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seymour
Harley Benton Club Junior Member
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Post by seymour on May 9, 2023 2:15:05 GMT
Looks like they accidentally flipped the bass side and middle saddles. You have the correct saddles, just in the wrong places.
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seymour
Harley Benton Club Junior Member
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Post by seymour on May 9, 2023 2:29:09 GMT
It's the correct saddles.... for a right handed kit. You have to think "mirror image" of what you are used to. To work for a left handed guitar I need a saddle identical to the one on the far left. The fix: Here it is with the outer saddle replaced. This is the exact saddle arrangement as the left handed Wilkinson kits. On both left and right handed kits, the two outer saddles are the same and the middle is reversed. A lefty kit needs two of the "middle" saddle from the right handed kit.
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gilmourd
Harley Benton Club Junior Member
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Post by gilmourd on May 9, 2023 13:26:30 GMT
It's the correct saddles.... for a right handed kit. You have to think "mirror image" of what you are used to. To work for a left handed guitar I need a saddle identical to the one on the far left. The fix: Here it is with the outer saddle replaced. This is the exact saddle arrangement as the left handed Wilkinson kits. On both left and right handed kits, the two outer saddles are the same and the middle is reversed. A lefty kit needs two of the "middle" saddle from the right handed kit. Ah, I totally derped on the fact that it's lefty. Sorry! I almost wonder if it would be to their benefit to have all the saddles be identical and have each side be a triangle instead of the bevel on just the topside. That way you can flip the saddle over if you need to compensate for intonation the other way around AND it means they only have to manufacture one part instead of two. Are the bottoms of the saddles flat (like a Fender '52RI saddle) or round?
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seymour
Harley Benton Club Junior Member
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Post by seymour on May 10, 2023 2:20:39 GMT
It's the correct saddles.... for a right handed kit. You have to think "mirror image" of what you are used to. To work for a left handed guitar I need a saddle identical to the one on the far left. The fix: Here it is with the outer saddle replaced. This is the exact saddle arrangement as the left handed Wilkinson kits. On both left and right handed kits, the two outer saddles are the same and the middle is reversed. A lefty kit needs two of the "middle" saddle from the right handed kit. Ah, I totally derped on the fact that it's lefty. Sorry! I almost wonder if it would be to their benefit to have all the saddles be identical and have each side be a triangle instead of the bevel on just the topside. That way you can flip the saddle over if you need to compensate for intonation the other way around AND it means they only have to manufacture one part instead of two. Are the bottoms of the saddles flat (like a Fender '52RI saddle) or round? That's a brilliant idea on lefty/righty saddles! So I they responded to my last email and they made me whole. They credited me the cost of the saddles as I requested. They have released many left handed models in hard-to-find colors and I really hope they keep that going.
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Post by edwardmarlowe on Aug 30, 2023 12:11:09 GMT
Yes, HB really are superb for left handers. So many of the big brands are ****poor that way - have you ever looked at Squier, for example? Fender are much better than they were pre-player series, but still not great. I'm hoping HB bring out their Gretsch-styles (Big Tone?) left handed.
I've not tried one of these Teles, but have the JA25th on back order, hopefully arriving mid-late September. Really excited to have a left hander in that - relatively speaking - offbeat/offmainstream style. Similarly, my MR Classic is a style I've looked for left handed for over thirty years.
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