Improving Ibanez Edge Arm Torque

[ShredCow]

Hey guys,
This is a very simple mod and I'm suprised that few know about it or have tried it. I have done it before and helped others with the mod too... the results are impressive.

NOTE
The mod is applicable to Ibanez Edge, Lo Pro Edge, Edge Pro (they use the same Arm Assembly) .. for other trems, its going to be a $20 risk (yes, the schaller arm costs that) so its up to you. Also, due to manufacturing tolerances and what not, sometimes the schaller arm might not fit without a bit of filing, very rare. Anyways, its up to you to do it.

Many of us Ibanez Edge users know that sometimes, the push-in Edge arm just does not stay in place... worse, its prone to wobble. So we tighten screws, add nail varnish/super glue/liquid paper to the arm bushing grooves so on so forth... but these solutions are temporary.

SO! Here is a REVERSIBLE mod that WILL give you the following improvements for as long as its on.

• 1. Keep the arm in place.
  2. No more wobbles
  3. Increased responsiveness
  4. Superior flutter

And this is the mod.
Replace your Edge arm & arm holder with a Schaller Floyd Rose arm assembly (available from Davis).

Before we continue, here are some points you want to take note.

• 1. The Schaller arm will sit further from the body, so expect a bit of adjustment on your side.
  2. The allen screw provided with the Schaller assembly will be too short, you will need to replace it with a longer screw (Only applicable to Ibanez Edge series)
  3. The Schaller assembly is not good for those who prefer a swinging arm... the Edge arm is superior for that.

So for those of you who are sick of an arm that never seems to stay in place... here goes...

http://www.jemsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34038&highlight=replacing

Note, when replacing the schaller allen screw.... you got to make sure the screw is not too long as it goes thru the chamber where the arm goes in... so the longer the screw, the less of the arm can go in... simple solution, use nuts and washers to obtain the ideal length.


If there are any questions, feel free to pm/message/email me. Have fun!

 

[BlackMoo]

Alternatively, you can superglue your Ibanez Trem arm into the trem like me . Ok sorry Edge owners, bad joke =( .

 

[SoulJah]

I've been using the lo-pro edge system for about 7 years now and it's driving me mental.

I tried my best to stop my trems from wobbling when I do flutter andother whammy bar stunts, but now all I get is a loud THUD instead of the intended flutter.

http://www.magnusolsson.com/setup/loose_trem_arm.htm

I even tried the tutorial listed on Magnus Olsson's page, but the problem still remains.

I'm gonna try out this mod.

Thanks for posting!

 

[ShredCow]

Hey Souljah... glad it helped! This mod really works... I can vouch for it myself...the arm will stay put, finally!

Actually, what magnus olssen has on his site is correct... but after lots of wear, you have to change brushings (when using nail varnish to fatten up the arm don't work anymore) but you only have 2 pairs of brushings, and 1 is already on the arm. You can order more from www.ibanezrules.com but they are expensive.

Anyway, do note that if you want a free swinging arm, the schaller is a poor choice...

 

[penguin]

din know that Davis stock up that part...
use to mod my ibanez trem with the floyd screw in type..

I believe Steve vai mod one of his jem to this similar spec in the 90`s.

btw bro wats the model no...so as not to buy the wrong part..

cheers..

 

[ShredCow]

Its just called the Schaller Floyd Rose arm, from Davis...

Will fit on OFR and Schaller plus many licensed floyds...

 

[edo83]

it's a cool mod...very helpful indeed. As with the others, the loose trem arm drives me nuts lol. If anyone's going to do this over the weekend, let us know how easy/difficult it would be?

 

[ShredCow]

Well, if any of you find it a tad ... well... risky... just bring it over... i can do it for you.

 

[hullabalooeeks]

few questions.

Firstly, When i remove the plastic brushings( the 2 white thing on the arm), and put nail varnish, can i put them back? If not where can i get them from and how much?

Secondly, the mod is to make it a screw on kind is it?

 

[ShredCow]

Well, you take off the brushings, then apply a little (A LITTLE!) nail varnish/liquid paper/super glud into the grooves (do 1 groove first)...

Then put on the brushing again.. the idea is to increase the width of the arm just a little so it fits better.

If you want to buy more brushings, www.ibanezrules.com sells them for something like 12USD for a pack of 12 brushings.

The mods above is not to make the Ibanez Arm into a screw on, but to replace it with a Schaller Arm.

Anyway, if anyone wants the best of both worlds, get a Gotoh Floyd Rose arm assembly...you can adjust it to be a push in with free 360 movement while being able to adust torque and arm height... or you can make it a screw with limited arm movement but tigher arm torque. Where to get? I don't know yet.

 

[ShredCow]

Hey, has anyone done this mod so far? Please give some reviews as to how useful it is.

 

[edo83]

I'll post my short review of it up here.

The Schaller Floyd arm was retrofitted on my Ibanez RG1550 with an Edge Pro trem.

For Edge Pro users: as the base of the trem is quite thick, the supplied allen head screw cant be used to secure the Schaller arm holder on the trem. A longer screw has to be used and compensated with washers as it's too long. If no washers are used, the screw will take up the space needed by the new trem arm....which you cant screw it into the holder.

I'll definitely urge all of you who's having nightmares dealing with the pop in arm to replace it with the Schaller. Why?

1) No more nylon washers replacement for the pop in arm
2) Use of tight fitting arm and suddenly it just limps down like some deflated balloon.
3) Very responsive to the manipulation of the trem arm

To me point #1 is the biggest drawback for us over here at least, there's nowhere that i know of which sells the nylon washers. Ordering from overseas costs a bomb just for small pieces of plastic. Plus it wears off pretty fast even for a mild trem user like me.

#3 is one of the biggest improvement over the pop in arm. Some of you may realise that using the pop in arm, there's a miniscule distance to travel before the trem starts reacting to pulling/diving. With the screw in arm, it's absolute movement.....of course it takes time getting used to also with the shorter arm.

Cosmetically, i don't find it an eyesore when the screw in arm is removed. No big issues nor cons and i again strongly urge those with problem with the pop in to replace it. Period.

Lastly, all thanks to Shredcow helping me with the replacement screw and washers. We had fun with that AMAZING guitar of poo's and talk eh? :lol: Next time it's DVD session!!