SufianSaeed
Oud Maniac
Posts: 52
Registered: 1-17-2015
Location: Tripoli
Member Is Offline
Mood: Feeling like A Resha
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Changing The Bridge
Hello everyone ,
thanks for the tips the last time i managed to fix my turkish Oud , This forum has an underrated amount of information hidden between its pages.
i got this New oud in Libya, we dont get much lately due to the war but this's a cheap one , it costed me something like 180/200 Dollars , the build
quality is alright and finish is okay but the bridge is plastic , yes literally plastic , i have no idea if thats really bad or just bad but i
installed new la bella strings just today , they're still stretching but there's a kinda of an echo'y sound to it , the action is higher than my
turkish oud , 4mm at the point where the neck joins the body compared to 3mm to the turkish oud , the guy said its an iraqi made oud in turkey .
String Length from nut: 58.5
From Top to bottom: 68.5
Fretboard: 20mm
am wondering if you guys have any tips regarding installing a new bridge or is it okay to play with the plastic one , i feel its affecting the sound a
lot.
[file]34339[/file]
[file]34341[/file]
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Jody Stecher
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1354
Registered: 11-5-2011
Location: California
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Are you sure the bridge is not wood which has been heavily coated with a shiny plastic finish? At any rate, removing a bridge without damaging the
soundboard is a job requiring both knowledge and skill. Replacing a bridge is a bit simpler IF you know what you are doing.
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Kostya_B
Oud Admirer
Posts: 5
Registered: 5-15-2015
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Hello everyone  ) Just joined this topic because I've got interested by the matter
of the bridge replacement. Like SufianSaeed here I've purchased a cheap oud from Turkey, but it has this problem: holes in the bridge are made with
such interval, that the 2 strings of each pair get placed too far from one another. At the same time, gap between each pair of strings narrows down.
As a result, playing becomes difficult.
Do you think I should send the instrument back, or is it worth trying to replace the bridge? Because otherwise it's quite decently built. BTW, the
bridge also looks "plastic", as SufianSaeed here says, but it is in fact wooden, which can be seen in the string holes where strings are inserted.
Just heavily varnished with some black stuff.
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jdowning
Oud Junkie
Posts: 3485
Registered: 8-2-2006
Location: Ontario, Canada
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Mood: No Mood
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It is unlikely that the bridge is made of plastic as it would be difficult to securely glue it to the wooden soundboard even with epoxy cement or
other synthetic glues. If it is made of wood and heavily varnished and you don't like the finish then one solution would be to remove the varnish
coating down to the wood by careful scraping.
To avoid replacing a bridge that has the string holes inaccurately positioned, the old holes may be plugged and new holes drilled with the bridge
still in position. This is a topic that has been covered a few times on this forum but this description of the procedure by forum member Fritz is
about as clear and precise as it can be
http://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/viewthread.php?tid=14844#pid10...
Be sure to mark the exact positions of the hole with a sharp pointed tool on the front face of the bridge (not the back as the drill may tend to
wander out of alignment). The scriber marks will act as a positive guide for the drill bit when starting to drill. Drill slowly(by hand - do not use a
power drill!) little by little, backing out the drill to clear any dust build up that may cause the bit to jam and break.
Use a standard mechanics twist drill bit (1 mm or so in diameter) - they are very cheap, made in China. The bit may be epoxy glued into a long wooden
dowel that will act as an extension piece to facilitate the drilling process. Protect the surface of the sound board with thin card temporarily taped
in place.
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Kostya_B
Oud Admirer
Posts: 5
Registered: 5-15-2015
Member Is Offline
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Quote: Originally posted by jdowning  | ...
To avoid replacing a bridge that has the string holes inaccurately positioned, the old holes may be plugged and new holes drilled with the bridge
still in position. This is a topic that has been covered a few times on this forum but this description of the procedure by forum member Fritz is
about as clear and precise as it can be
http://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/viewthread.php?tid=14844#pid10...
Be sure to mark the exact positions of the hole with a sharp pointed tool on the front face of the bridge (not the back as the drill may tend to
wander out of alignment). The scriber marks will act as a positive guide for the drill bit when starting to drill. Drill slowly(by hand - do not use a
power drill!) little by little, backing out the drill to clear any dust build up that may cause the bit to jam and break.
Use a standard mechanics twist drill bit (1 mm or so in diameter) - they are very cheap, made in China. The bit may be epoxy glued into a long wooden
dowel that will act as an extension piece to facilitate the drilling process. Protect the surface of the sound board with thin card temporarily taped
in place. |
Thank you very much. I also thought about that possibility. I like this one better than sending the oud back.
Thank you so much again )
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