Highwood Contoured Saddles (For Strats)
If your guitar's saddles look like this:
then you know how uncomfortable it is to play without getting your hands chewed. We all love our vintage guitars but there is an age-old problem here: the protruding height-adjustable Saddle screws!
HIGHWOOD CONTOURED SADDLES
The Highwood Contoured Saddles are the next logical evolutionary step for S-style saddles.
Contoured you say? That's right. Meaning without the screws sticking out the top of the Saddles. Our innovative Saddles are made from exceptional quality Steel and are nickel coated directly onto the steel body to provide you with pure vintage tone!
HG Contoured Vintage Guitar Saddles have more mass giving you longer sustain, clearer note separation and definition, improved harmonic response and touch sensitivity. These smooth feeling Saddles still retain a lovely vintage look.
Each HG Saddle set comes with stainless steel intonation and height adjustment screws and springs. An allen wrench is also included.
Please note: our Saddles are hardened, but not as much as some other brands. We have noticed that extremely hardened Saddles can change the tone of your guitar, sometimes making your guitar sound 'pingy'. That's because they add upper mid and high to your tone. We believe Leo got it pretty darn right.
NO MORE SLIPPERY BUSINESS
Every Highwood saddle comes with an indented slot in the center (just beside where the two screws are) for your strings to sit on snugly. This ensures that your strings always return to the same position after bending so your guitar always remain in tune!
Anyone with experience with Fenders would know about the tuning instability after an intense bend. Fender saddles have a smooth and flat surface, thus causing the strings 'slip' around too much and not return to the same position after a big bend.
Trust me, the tuning stability is the 2nd immediate upgrade you'll notice once you install these saddles!
CHOOSING YOUR SADDLES
Saddles come in 3 sizes. Follow the guide below to find out which model you should take
If you know your E to e string spacing,
56mm string spacing -> 11.2mm set
Some known sizes:
ERNIE BALL MUSICMAN
Ernie Ball Musicman Cutlass - 10.5mm saddles
FENDER
Fender American Special Stratocaster - 10.5mm saddles
Fender American Stamdard Stratocaster - 10.5mm saddles
Fender American Professional Stratocaster - 10.5mm saddles
Fender American Professional ii Stratocaster - 10.5mm saddles
Most Fender Stratocaster after year 2008 - 10.5mm saddles (unless it's s vintage reissue)
Fender Japan Stratocasters typically uses 10.8mm saddles
Fender American Vintage Stratocaster - 11.2mm saddles
Fender Vinterra 50s/60s Series Stratocaster - 11.2mm saddles
Vintage (or vintage specc-ed) Fender Stratocasters - 11.2mm saddles
SUHR
Most Suhr guitars uses Gotoh 510 bridge. Standard size is 10.8mm.
If you had customized to narrow spacing saddles, it is 10.5mm
If you had customized to vintage specs saddles, it is 11.2mm.
PRS
PRS Silver Sky - not a direct fit, but 10.8mm pops right in
PRS Silver Sky SE - 10.8mm
INSTALLATION & SETUP
If you'd like to seek our professional assistance to install and setup the saddles for your guitar, please feel free to reach out to guitar tech Jacob Lai at www.instagram.com/techworks.sg or simply leave us a message in the contact form!