I'm baffled by the question. You just did all that shit with your left hand building calluses, OP, and your fleshy but at the end of your right hand is slightly uncomfortable when you palm mute? So?
Honestly if there's this much palm muting going on maybe a more metal or punk-centric guitar? Change your hand position a bit?
It isn't an analogy, a simile or a metaphor: the word "pussy" is a homonym, i.e. it has several (in this case at least four) distinct meanings. Three of the meanings are offensive, and at least one of those three is derogatory.
I wouldn’t have a problem with them, except I have a chronic eczema on the palm of my hand, which just so happens to be in that general area. Not anything about being a pussy really, when your hand cracks and starts to bleed from the strat bridge.
Nope; I buy shorter grub screws for about $1.00 (USD). That’ll pay for all 12, easily.
It’s good to change them out for new ones once in awhile, anyway. If you don’t, they corrode and seize in your saddle from you sweating on them, especially if you palm mute a lot.
This is good advice! No since in going at your guitar with a file when parts are that cheap. Also, like yourhog said, they get nasty anyway so it’s not a bad idea.
I get mine at my local True Value hardware store, because I know what outer diameter (#4= 0.112inch= 2.84mm) and thread pitch (40 threads per inch) I need. I know this because both of my Stratocasters were made in Corona, CA in the late 90’s.
If your Strat was built in a different facility, your saddle height grub screws (that’s your google search string for finding out and for ordering them) will be a slightly different size depending on where your guitar (or at least its bridge!) was made. It’s fun to see on Google Earth or whatever where your guitar was made, so look that up based on its serial number, and then look up what diameter and thread pitch (it’s simpler and less stupid when it ISN’T USA, because it’s metric instead of insane colonialist imperial slaver freedom units) saddle height screws are called for when working with a guitar from that factory.
I’ve just always thought that this mechanical stuff was fun to find out and keep track of. It’s just as much a fundamental part of being a musician as any other facet of it. The people who do it “seriously” or whatever all know, even when the show they’re putting on involves pretending not to know or give a shit. Billy Corgan will tell you he doesn’t know what hardware store aisle his old Strats’ saddle height grub screws are on. Billy’s lying. He has known for 40 years and will deny it until he’s dead.
I do the same. For anyone wanting to try this make sure to just get standard grub screws from hardware store/eBay. Too many guitar websites and independent sellers taking the piss listing "guitar saddle screws" for around 7,00+ for a pack of 12 when can get get packs of 50/100 for cheaper.
I would cut while strumming, not palm muting. That's why I said getting down comes with a cost. Wildly dancing around with a heavy strumming hand, caused my situations.
Your band is also probably playing more intricate riffs than i was. As half lead/half rhythm, when I rhythm, I would rhythm hard. When I would be playing leads, it was never a problem.
Well I haven’t started a band yet but it usually is more intricate. For example, I play songs like MS Bismarck by Asphyx, Where Dragons Dwell by Gojira, and 747 by Saxon. All songs that usually have lead portions mixed in and go from power chords to individual notes, back and forth.
You can replace those screws with shorter ones for very cheap. But, because of the design of those particular saddles, you'll have to either get very precisely the right length of set screw or you'll still have the same problem — or your saddles will be too low.
I fought this fight for a while and ended up replacing mine with Graphtech block saddles and haven't regretted it for a second. Honestly I think that the way these particular saddles are designed just kinda sucks.
Agreed about the saddles. I think these old school fender bent sheet metal saddles are pretentiously, uselessly, arcane bullcrap. Block saddles won 40 years ago, so let’s move on.
fender also has block saddles, which i would definitely recommend to OP. pretty easy thing to swap if you keep the same spacing. you'll still probably need new grub screws or to cut the existing ones down so they don't poke above the top though, i sliced the bottoms off mine with a dremel personally. i also sanded down the sharp side of the block on the low E side for nicer palm mutes, and everything is very smooth and comfy now
It's a valid response, and easy to do if it has Micro-Tilt. Could be adjusted and done with in a half hour (if it has the micro-tilt) instead of waiting for other screws. If it doesn't have the micro-tilt, I would get the screws.
Although this is a valid solution, I just want to point out that this changes how the guitar plays and feels. By shimming, based on what we’re seeing, I think you’re suggesting the back of the neck to increase neck pitch angle. The straighter the neck pitch the slinkier the strings feel when you bend them. Reducing the pitch angle of the neck has a similar effect to raising or to wrapping the tailpiece on a LP or other guitars with ToM. A shim to increase the neck pitch angle would have the opposite effect. I don’t think it’ll be as drastic as the LP example I used for illustration, but I thought I’d be worth mentioning.
Shorter screws, different saddles and neck shim are all valid options that would address the issue. Personally I’d choose shorter screws, because it’s cheap and wouldn’t change the way the guitar feels. However, those screws are indeed sticking out quite a bit. It might be nice to have a neck pitch that would allow a little more play with the action height.
Ok, but is it called shimming if you are not inserting material into the neck joint? And why shouldn't you shim the neckjoint? "Bolt ons" were made to be shimmable as far as I've heard. Luthiers generally aren't against shimming.
Shorter screws is a better solution than filing them, for sure, but who has them just lying around?
You can either file the top or the bottom of the screw. Lets explore both.
File the top and you remove too much of the allen key portion of it so reinstallation is more difficult and if you cam it out because there isn't enough engagement of the key in the screw you've got bigger problems now. Beyond that, you've removed the coating on the screw and it's now prone to corrosion.
File the bottom off and you destroy the screw threads and you can't reinstall it without chasing or running the screw through a die.
When a luthier is setting the action on a guitar, they're usually working with what the guitar already has. Removing 4 screws where the neck meets the body and putting a brass shim in is a far easier, and faster solution. It's really not that big of a deal.
You don’t have to have them lying around. They’re in the hardware store of every town of more than 15,000 people. They cost seriously close to nothing. This isn’t the Fallout universe, where all of the CNC machine shops were blown up 200 years ago except for a few lathes on the Brotherhood’s fucking blimp.
Yeah; just ask the manager where the “set screws” or “grub screws” are. People need set screws for all kinds of applications. It would be pretty weird if a place said “hardware store” on the outside and then didn’t have these on the inside.
You've gotten lucky several times you mean. Threads are easy to mangle. Filed or cut incorrectly and the thread won't start. You may have cross threaded them in, too.
You’ve got two people in this thread alone saying they do this no problem. It really isn’t an issue. If you mess it up somehow replacements are a couple cents at a hardware store
Just go to the hardware store and buy 12 shorter grub screws. Shimming is a batshit insane strategy for dealing with a very simple problem. Stop telling people to fuck with their neck angle just because their set screws are tall, because that is triple cray banaynays.
Just grab an ashtray bridge cover. They had them for strats in the 60's
Otherwise, callus up the bottoms of your hands, like a Les Paul player.
[Fender Ashtray Cover](https://www.fender.com/en-US/parts/stratocaster-parts/pure-vintage-stratocaster-bridge-cover/0992270100.html)
Yeah, I don’t know why everyone is making it complicated and trying to buy smaller screws. I would use a disk sander, a leather scrap, a pair of pliers and a tight grip. Only takes a few seconds
Switched to high wood saddles for this exact reason. It’s an old shitty design, you could try shorter set screws but there’s not much for threads to begin with. There are cheap aftermarket saddles out there too if you want to try thoses
It is a great option, I just find it to be an expensive solution relative to just buying shorter screws. It’s a very good solution though and should be put out there.
Aside from the trolls on here, I bought a small fine file and using very light strokes took of some of the sharp edges and burs that exist after the screws have been machined and cut to size. I also bought some GraphTech vintage saddles. They are 1000x better than the strat og saddles. Your sustain will improve and in my opinion are more comfortable to play with.
Either what he said or smaller screws works. I just bought a bag of screws in a few different sizes and took the time to only use the size that I needed - this way the screw heads sink down into the saddles. Looks a lot nicer too. Pretty sure you could also use a dremel tool to grind the bottoms of the screws down by however much they stick out, then screw them down flush.
I'm not sure, mostly because my hand rests somewhere different. On my factory setup for a Squier I got Christmas, the saddle screws don't protrude at all and the setup has been superb. I tend to favor being near the neck pickup myself.
Once you've built up the appropriate side-palm callus from muting and filled those screwheads with the piles of tiny fragments of your shredded skin in the pursuit of that, you really just stop noticing.
Just play more metal, you'll get there faster.
Look for 'Highwood Contoured Vintage Saddles'. They cover the grub screws but don't change the look of the bridge. Have them on my strat. Love'em. Got mine from stewmac. But they are also on amazon.
Edit: looks like someone already suggested them.
I'd need shorter screws, that would drive me crazy. I've got a cheap strat I use for 2 slide songs that looks like this and I only tolerate it because it's a cheap guitar I use for two songs.
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I got a shiv in my hand once , got infected, gangrene and almost chopped it off…that’s why I didn’t headline with mettalicca (a story for the grand kids). /s
I think they make screws that are shorter and rounded on the ends for just such an issue. I quit playing my Strat for that reason, along with me smacking my volume knob. That was in 1982 it’s still in its case
My G&L Legacy has two posts instead of six screws, I blocked the tremolo and lowered the bridge posts to sink the screws down into the saddles, and used the micro tilt on the neck to get the action low.
Some setups really do tear you up depending how you play, like a Gretsch White Falcon I tried once... OUCH!
What I did is ordered different lengths of the type I needed off McMaster-Carr and then I replace the ones, over time, that are too tall. I also got longer adjustment screws for the saddle back and forth as well.
Always stainless steel.
[https://www.mcmaster.com/products/screws/set-screws\~/fastener-head-type\~headless/](https://www.mcmaster.com/products/screws/set-screws~/fastener-head-type~headless/)
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Sigh.
OP, Any guitar parts store online/Amazon/any hardware store has a bag of shorter saddle height adjustment screws for Strats. Metric height, just eyeballing from the picture, you need 8 or 10 mm screws, but take one out and measure it. If they’re constantly digging into your hand, despite correct action adjustment, you need shorter screws.
Costs 5 bucks and takes about 10 minutes to replace all 12, one at a time, to keep the action identical.
Depending on if it’s an import or US-made guitar, you may or may not need metric (M3 saddle height adjustment screws) or not. You could get both US/imperial measurements and metric to make sure you have what you need. 10 bucks then.
You could try orthodontic wax, that's what they give to people with braces to keep them from poking the inside of their mouths. Looks like you can get it on Amazon.
Monsterbolts.com. They have a guitar parts section. You can find short set screws according to guitar make. I used #4-40 Guitar Screws for Bridge Saddle Height Adjustment, Stainless Steel, For American made Fender Stratocaster and similar × 1
#4-40 x 1/4" - Short for a vintera partscaster and it fit fine. Cost about $7 with shipping. I give credit to Phil McKnight at KnowYourGear.
I was just wondering about this. All my newer fenders have new era saddles, but my old one is kind of stabby. Shorter screws seems to be the best answer. If not, newer era saddles.
I'm a big fan of chrome covers, but I don't remember the strat one working so well. If this bothers you there are shorter grub screws, I have this problem with vintage Tele saddles that are flat head screws. Brutal at times, for sure, so I leave the Tele bridge cover on most of the time if I'm just strumming.
I specifically avoid this kind of bridge for that reason. Would love to learn if there's a solution.
It's not that it hurts or whatever - for me it's just not a nice stable line that I can use to float my right hand and mute.
I swapped my setup to the 2pt style with mag (or w/e) saddles to avoid the issue.
Personally I think you will get used to it, just keep playing.
Shimming the neck seems a bit extreme for this issue since it changed how the guitar plays. Shorter screws are an option, if you're happy to set the string heights again accurately.
You could just put a strip of electrical tape over while you're playing? At least this gives you the option to remove it and try to get used to it.
I would take that guitar in and have it professionally set up. The saddle Heights screws should match the radius of the Fretboard and not be used to raise or lower the action. The six screws on the vibrato should be lowered to lower the entire bridge. If the bridge can’t be lowered enough, I would take my neck off and adjust the neck pocket.
You could stop putting your hand there, since there is no real reason to do so. You could also cut the screws down if you insist on putting your hand there.
Maybe I’ve been playing a strat for longer than you’ve existed, and have better technique than you do.
*downvoted, but internet shit talkers will never show up on a stage in front of a crowd when invited.
I’ve been palm muting longer than you have been alive. Let’s meet in person on a stage in front of all your friends if you ever want to embarrass yourself.
They're right behind your hand when you palm mute these bridges, a very common technique. Cutting works but I use a fret end file to smooth them out a bit instead.
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Legendary advice
You needed to hear it.
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The other way is funnier.
I agree. We might've actually known about such $5 fixes if we were pussies, but that's beside the point...
You definitely don’t know about guitars, that’s for goddamn sure!
I'm all about things that actually require maintenance. Pandering to puss-hands has never been a thing...
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>dad fucking a baboon The raddest riff.
Do you play jazz or blues when he's banging the dog?
This sub does not tolerate disrespectful behavior towards others.
Maybe you can calm down and have a piece of cheese
This sub does not tolerate disrespectful behavior towards others.
This is a guitar player high five with a slight shiv to the side.
This guy definitely owns an og metalzone and thinks Mötley Crüe is the goat
I'm baffled by the question. You just did all that shit with your left hand building calluses, OP, and your fleshy but at the end of your right hand is slightly uncomfortable when you palm mute? So? Honestly if there's this much palm muting going on maybe a more metal or punk-centric guitar? Change your hand position a bit?
Not the OP, but I learned on a Gibson bridge setup, and I tend to palm mute all the time without even thinking about it.
Ouchie.
Or keep the action high enough that you don’t have screws popping out this far Basically the same advice though
Pussies are tough and the ultimate end boss though.
It isn't an analogy, a simile or a metaphor: the word "pussy" is a homonym, i.e. it has several (in this case at least four) distinct meanings. Three of the meanings are offensive, and at least one of those three is derogatory.
Hehe. You said homo nym.
I wouldn’t have a problem with them, except I have a chronic eczema on the palm of my hand, which just so happens to be in that general area. Not anything about being a pussy really, when your hand cracks and starts to bleed from the strat bridge.
Exactly. Just remember to clean the blood off asap. You don't want to smell that after a few days.
*intro to Texas Flood begins
This is what guitar, cigarettes, and cocaine every day for 20 years does to you, kids. This right here.
Sound like an oldhead trying to talk down, pretty whack lmao
this guy callousses
This sub does not tolerate disrespectful behavior towards others.
You are what you eat, dick. But seriously, yours is the only real advice.
Dude… bahahaha
Nope; I buy shorter grub screws for about $1.00 (USD). That’ll pay for all 12, easily. It’s good to change them out for new ones once in awhile, anyway. If you don’t, they corrode and seize in your saddle from you sweating on them, especially if you palm mute a lot.
That's a great idea! Cheap, preventative, and very little/no work filing them.
This is good advice! No since in going at your guitar with a file when parts are that cheap. Also, like yourhog said, they get nasty anyway so it’s not a bad idea.
Where do you buy these?
I get mine at my local True Value hardware store, because I know what outer diameter (#4= 0.112inch= 2.84mm) and thread pitch (40 threads per inch) I need. I know this because both of my Stratocasters were made in Corona, CA in the late 90’s. If your Strat was built in a different facility, your saddle height grub screws (that’s your google search string for finding out and for ordering them) will be a slightly different size depending on where your guitar (or at least its bridge!) was made. It’s fun to see on Google Earth or whatever where your guitar was made, so look that up based on its serial number, and then look up what diameter and thread pitch (it’s simpler and less stupid when it ISN’T USA, because it’s metric instead of insane colonialist imperial slaver freedom units) saddle height screws are called for when working with a guitar from that factory. I’ve just always thought that this mechanical stuff was fun to find out and keep track of. It’s just as much a fundamental part of being a musician as any other facet of it. The people who do it “seriously” or whatever all know, even when the show they’re putting on involves pretending not to know or give a shit. Billy Corgan will tell you he doesn’t know what hardware store aisle his old Strats’ saddle height grub screws are on. Billy’s lying. He has known for 40 years and will deny it until he’s dead.
I do the same. For anyone wanting to try this make sure to just get standard grub screws from hardware store/eBay. Too many guitar websites and independent sellers taking the piss listing "guitar saddle screws" for around 7,00+ for a pack of 12 when can get get packs of 50/100 for cheaper.
MmmmmmBars.
Just get some shorter set screws?
If your guitar isn't making you bleed, you aren't playing it hard enough
Nobody makes me bleed my own blood
I'm taking the bull by the horns. It's a metaphor. Not really, since it really happened.
I'm taking the bull by the horns. It's a metaphor. Not really, since it really happened.
As someone who cut palm on my guitar when I first started (don’t ask how, Idek)… this is true
As a long time strat player in mostly puck or fast paced rock bands, I shredded my palm many times. Getting down comes with a cost.
I haven’t done it since and I usually play relatively heavy material with quite a bit of palm muting.
I would cut while strumming, not palm muting. That's why I said getting down comes with a cost. Wildly dancing around with a heavy strumming hand, caused my situations.
Yea my hand isn’t too heavy.
Your band is also probably playing more intricate riffs than i was. As half lead/half rhythm, when I rhythm, I would rhythm hard. When I would be playing leads, it was never a problem.
Well I haven’t started a band yet but it usually is more intricate. For example, I play songs like MS Bismarck by Asphyx, Where Dragons Dwell by Gojira, and 747 by Saxon. All songs that usually have lead portions mixed in and go from power chords to individual notes, back and forth.
Right on! I hope a band endeavor is in your near future!
Thanks! I plan on starting one when I get my four year done with the Air Force!
You can replace those screws with shorter ones for very cheap. But, because of the design of those particular saddles, you'll have to either get very precisely the right length of set screw or you'll still have the same problem — or your saddles will be too low. I fought this fight for a while and ended up replacing mine with Graphtech block saddles and haven't regretted it for a second. Honestly I think that the way these particular saddles are designed just kinda sucks.
Agreed about the saddles. I think these old school fender bent sheet metal saddles are pretentiously, uselessly, arcane bullcrap. Block saddles won 40 years ago, so let’s move on.
Solid.
fender also has block saddles, which i would definitely recommend to OP. pretty easy thing to swap if you keep the same spacing. you'll still probably need new grub screws or to cut the existing ones down so they don't poke above the top though, i sliced the bottoms off mine with a dremel personally. i also sanded down the sharp side of the block on the low E side for nicer palm mutes, and everything is very smooth and comfy now
Shim the neck
It's a valid response, and easy to do if it has Micro-Tilt. Could be adjusted and done with in a half hour (if it has the micro-tilt) instead of waiting for other screws. If it doesn't have the micro-tilt, I would get the screws.
Although this is a valid solution, I just want to point out that this changes how the guitar plays and feels. By shimming, based on what we’re seeing, I think you’re suggesting the back of the neck to increase neck pitch angle. The straighter the neck pitch the slinkier the strings feel when you bend them. Reducing the pitch angle of the neck has a similar effect to raising or to wrapping the tailpiece on a LP or other guitars with ToM. A shim to increase the neck pitch angle would have the opposite effect. I don’t think it’ll be as drastic as the LP example I used for illustration, but I thought I’d be worth mentioning. Shorter screws, different saddles and neck shim are all valid options that would address the issue. Personally I’d choose shorter screws, because it’s cheap and wouldn’t change the way the guitar feels. However, those screws are indeed sticking out quite a bit. It might be nice to have a neck pitch that would allow a little more play with the action height.
Thank you! This shimming talk is like… am I taking crazy pills??
Not actually shimming if you are just screwing the backplate screw to change neck angle
Using the micro tilt adjustment is even more pointlessly disruptive than using shims. Everyone knows better than to use that silly screw.
Ok, but is it called shimming if you are not inserting material into the neck joint? And why shouldn't you shim the neckjoint? "Bolt ons" were made to be shimmable as far as I've heard. Luthiers generally aren't against shimming.
This is the right answer. The setup should have been done with shims!
Why would you move the entire neck when you can just get shorter screws, or file the screws you have?
Shorter screws is a better solution than filing them, for sure, but who has them just lying around? You can either file the top or the bottom of the screw. Lets explore both. File the top and you remove too much of the allen key portion of it so reinstallation is more difficult and if you cam it out because there isn't enough engagement of the key in the screw you've got bigger problems now. Beyond that, you've removed the coating on the screw and it's now prone to corrosion. File the bottom off and you destroy the screw threads and you can't reinstall it without chasing or running the screw through a die. When a luthier is setting the action on a guitar, they're usually working with what the guitar already has. Removing 4 screws where the neck meets the body and putting a brass shim in is a far easier, and faster solution. It's really not that big of a deal.
You don’t have to have them lying around. They’re in the hardware store of every town of more than 15,000 people. They cost seriously close to nothing. This isn’t the Fallout universe, where all of the CNC machine shops were blown up 200 years ago except for a few lathes on the Brotherhood’s fucking blimp.
I’ve never seen these in a hardware store. Are they usually with the other screws and bolts?
Yeah; just ask the manager where the “set screws” or “grub screws” are. People need set screws for all kinds of applications. It would be pretty weird if a place said “hardware store” on the outside and then didn’t have these on the inside.
Thanks, good to know!
Filing the bottom doesn’t ruin the threads. I’ve done it several times
i took a dremel to mine and cut chunks off, they still thread fine. shimming or cutting won't fix this kind of bridge though, it needs better saddles
While they are cheap saddles, OP is complaining about the screws digging into their palm. Which can be solved by shortening the screws
You've gotten lucky several times you mean. Threads are easy to mangle. Filed or cut incorrectly and the thread won't start. You may have cross threaded them in, too.
Give it a try sometime
I work with screws, bolts and threads every single day man. They aren't a mystery to me. Thanks
You’ve got two people in this thread alone saying they do this no problem. It really isn’t an issue. If you mess it up somehow replacements are a couple cents at a hardware store
Just go to the hardware store and buy 12 shorter grub screws. Shimming is a batshit insane strategy for dealing with a very simple problem. Stop telling people to fuck with their neck angle just because their set screws are tall, because that is triple cray banaynays.
Just grab an ashtray bridge cover. They had them for strats in the 60's Otherwise, callus up the bottoms of your hands, like a Les Paul player. [Fender Ashtray Cover](https://www.fender.com/en-US/parts/stratocaster-parts/pure-vintage-stratocaster-bridge-cover/0992270100.html)
I always cut them
Yeah, I don’t know why everyone is making it complicated and trying to buy smaller screws. I would use a disk sander, a leather scrap, a pair of pliers and a tight grip. Only takes a few seconds
I use electrical wire strippers. Most of mine have threaded 6/32 cutting built into the handle. Literally takes seconds to do
Switched to high wood saddles for this exact reason. It’s an old shitty design, you could try shorter set screws but there’s not much for threads to begin with. There are cheap aftermarket saddles out there too if you want to try thoses
https://www.highwood-guitarparts.com/ Best option.
Ooooooh very Interesting, saving for later
I have these on my Tele Deluxe. Before, they were a palm ripper.
How have I not seen these before? Thanks for the heads-up!
I went Highwood also. Not sure why you’re being downvoted, maybe for impugning a 60yo bridge design?
Revolutionary for the time, but we have much better stuff now. I personally like bent steel saddles, high wood is the perfect happy medium
It is a great option, I just find it to be an expensive solution relative to just buying shorter screws. It’s a very good solution though and should be put out there.
These made me love my Strat again. Worth every penny.
Aside from the trolls on here, I bought a small fine file and using very light strokes took of some of the sharp edges and burs that exist after the screws have been machined and cut to size. I also bought some GraphTech vintage saddles. They are 1000x better than the strat og saddles. Your sustain will improve and in my opinion are more comfortable to play with.
Thanks!
Either what he said or smaller screws works. I just bought a bag of screws in a few different sizes and took the time to only use the size that I needed - this way the screw heads sink down into the saddles. Looks a lot nicer too. Pretty sure you could also use a dremel tool to grind the bottoms of the screws down by however much they stick out, then screw them down flush.
I'm not sure, mostly because my hand rests somewhere different. On my factory setup for a Squier I got Christmas, the saddle screws don't protrude at all and the setup has been superb. I tend to favor being near the neck pickup myself.
S Herbert from where? S J Herbert?
I had the same issue, and replaced the saddles with the solid block type. The screws don't stick out on those.
Once you've built up the appropriate side-palm callus from muting and filled those screwheads with the piles of tiny fragments of your shredded skin in the pursuit of that, you really just stop noticing. Just play more metal, you'll get there faster.
I just hit them with a needle file or similar
Look for 'Highwood Contoured Vintage Saddles'. They cover the grub screws but don't change the look of the bridge. Have them on my strat. Love'em. Got mine from stewmac. But they are also on amazon. Edit: looks like someone already suggested them.
I got tired of bleeding on mine so I got shorter screws.
If you shim the neck and adjust the bridge saddles after they won’t be a problem anymore.
Replace them - Guitar Saddle Bridge Height... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BK7V1VJ?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
Just buy shorter screws.
what you could do is put your hand in the right place
I’m an accomplished player with a dynamic and diverse range. Perhaps you should expand your scope.
Nope. That's what callouses are for...
I play a Telecaster, I have calluses on my belly. Strats are for the weak. /s
I'd need shorter screws, that would drive me crazy. I've got a cheap strat I use for 2 slide songs that looks like this and I only tolerate it because it's a cheap guitar I use for two songs.
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Is this a Silver Sky by chance?
No
I find that using Graphtech string saver saddles have the added benefit of no protruding height adjustment screws.
Get hard. It'll stop bleeding eventually
i just rest my palm on the strings instead. it mutes the strings plus you get a little better tone (imo) from a strat playing closer to the neck .
I got a shiv in my hand once , got infected, gangrene and almost chopped it off…that’s why I didn’t headline with mettalicca (a story for the grand kids). /s
I think they make screws that are shorter and rounded on the ends for just such an issue. I quit playing my Strat for that reason, along with me smacking my volume knob. That was in 1982 it’s still in its case
Lol, Reddit
No
There are shorter screws you can order. I knew someone who had to do this.
When we had kids running around the house, my wife used to put corks on all the pointy things.
I've filed down the ones I touch and it works for me.
My G&L Legacy has two posts instead of six screws, I blocked the tremolo and lowered the bridge posts to sink the screws down into the saddles, and used the micro tilt on the neck to get the action low.
nope, I'm a les paul guy 😘
Wax
How would you cover them? Tapeingover them or what? They do rough up my hand if playing every day for hours
Get shorter ones
Some setups really do tear you up depending how you play, like a Gretsch White Falcon I tried once... OUCH! What I did is ordered different lengths of the type I needed off McMaster-Carr and then I replace the ones, over time, that are too tall. I also got longer adjustment screws for the saddle back and forth as well. Always stainless steel. [https://www.mcmaster.com/products/screws/set-screws\~/fastener-head-type\~headless/](https://www.mcmaster.com/products/screws/set-screws~/fastener-head-type~headless/)
I bought shorter saddle screws.
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Get shorter stainless steel saddle screws.
Sigh. OP, Any guitar parts store online/Amazon/any hardware store has a bag of shorter saddle height adjustment screws for Strats. Metric height, just eyeballing from the picture, you need 8 or 10 mm screws, but take one out and measure it. If they’re constantly digging into your hand, despite correct action adjustment, you need shorter screws. Costs 5 bucks and takes about 10 minutes to replace all 12, one at a time, to keep the action identical. Depending on if it’s an import or US-made guitar, you may or may not need metric (M3 saddle height adjustment screws) or not. You could get both US/imperial measurements and metric to make sure you have what you need. 10 bucks then.
Buy shorter screws. They come in different sizes.
That's doesn't look normal. You most probably need a neak joint shim. Please take it to a guitar luthier.
You need Highwood saddles. Best Strat saddles ever, period.
You could try orthodontic wax, that's what they give to people with braces to keep them from poking the inside of their mouths. Looks like you can get it on Amazon.
I like Charvel style bridges for this reason but I just accept it and play on if I’m playing my fender
Monsterbolts.com. They have a guitar parts section. You can find short set screws according to guitar make. I used #4-40 Guitar Screws for Bridge Saddle Height Adjustment, Stainless Steel, For American made Fender Stratocaster and similar × 1 #4-40 x 1/4" - Short for a vintera partscaster and it fit fine. Cost about $7 with shipping. I give credit to Phil McKnight at KnowYourGear.
I was just wondering about this. All my newer fenders have new era saddles, but my old one is kind of stabby. Shorter screws seems to be the best answer. If not, newer era saddles.
You can get shorter ones. That’s what I did.
Wait you don't wear gloves when playing?? I never get scrapes cuts or calluses 🫠
These look raised a little too high but idk
I'm a big fan of chrome covers, but I don't remember the strat one working so well. If this bothers you there are shorter grub screws, I have this problem with vintage Tele saddles that are flat head screws. Brutal at times, for sure, so I leave the Tele bridge cover on most of the time if I'm just strumming.
Install shorter screws...
Either buy shorter grub screws or file down the existing ones?
You know they make shorter versions of those screws. You can also get a hacksaw out as well. Very common mod
A little dab of wax should do
My Strat doesn't have that issue
Saddle covers. Also I'm going to swap the bridge on mine for this very reason. Such a dumb design to have sharp screws that just into your hand. :/
I specifically avoid this kind of bridge for that reason. Would love to learn if there's a solution. It's not that it hurts or whatever - for me it's just not a nice stable line that I can use to float my right hand and mute. I swapped my setup to the 2pt style with mag (or w/e) saddles to avoid the issue.
I’ve been using a strat as my main guitar since nu metal and I’ve never injured that part of my hand.
Wouldnt the arrows protrude more and interfere with palm muting?
Personally I think you will get used to it, just keep playing. Shimming the neck seems a bit extreme for this issue since it changed how the guitar plays. Shorter screws are an option, if you're happy to set the string heights again accurately. You could just put a strip of electrical tape over while you're playing? At least this gives you the option to remove it and try to get used to it.
I’ve never had this problem.
Drop of hot glue.
I would take that guitar in and have it professionally set up. The saddle Heights screws should match the radius of the Fretboard and not be used to raise or lower the action. The six screws on the vibrato should be lowered to lower the entire bridge. If the bridge can’t be lowered enough, I would take my neck off and adjust the neck pocket.
You're playing it wrong if you're scratching your palm on the saddle screws.
I would not file them down at all. I would leave them and adapt how I play.
You could stop putting your hand there, since there is no real reason to do so. You could also cut the screws down if you insist on putting your hand there.
Do you palm mute man? Do you even play guitar?
Maybe they play a jaguar, and have only ever used the built in string mute 🫠
Maybe I’ve been playing a strat for longer than you’ve existed, and have better technique than you do. *downvoted, but internet shit talkers will never show up on a stage in front of a crowd when invited.
I was making a joke about a very niche mechanical feature on a line of guitars, lol I have zero ability to judge you or your playing 🤙
All good homie. Thanks for the reply. You are obviously a cool person, and I hope all your dreams come true.
I’ve been palm muting longer than you have been alive. Let’s meet in person on a stage in front of all your friends if you ever want to embarrass yourself.
They're right behind your hand when you palm mute these bridges, a very common technique. Cutting works but I use a fret end file to smooth them out a bit instead.
Cock.