G6137TCBPantherCenter-Block
ChrisVinnicombe
Will a simple mod transform this Panther from house kitty to jungle cat?
Lasttime around, despitebeing hopelesslysmitten withthisinstrument, Ihadn’tyetfoundthe cojones to releasethePantherintothewild atagig.Why?Chieflybecause thecombinationofthefactory Adjusto-MaticbridgeandBisgby B3Cdidn’tproduceenough downwardpressureonthe saddlestopreventthelowE poppingoutofitsgroovewhen attackedwithgusto.Thefullforce ofmyclumsyrightpawinalive settingwouldknockthatsixth stringoutofitsseatthroughouta set,wreakingtuninghavocand causingunwantedheadache afterunwantedheadache.
Happily,helpwasathand. AdamBowden-Smith,European productmanageratGretsch Guitars,informedmethathe’d managedtocurethesame problemwhileplayinginasurf bandbyinstallingaRockingBar bridge(approx£80).These chrome-,nickel-orgold-plated brassbarsareanold-school Gretschdesigndevelopedinthe 1950sinconjunctionwithChet Atkins.Notonlydotheyrock smoothlybackandforthwhen usedwithaBigsby,buttheyare alsonotchedinawaythatismore resistanttolateralstring movementthantheaverage tune-o-matic-stylesaddle. There’sfarlesscontrolover intonation,ofcourse,butas fittingoneisacompletely reversible,30-secondmod, Ioptedtogiveitawhirl.Withthe Panther’sstringsslackened,it wassimplyamatterofliftingthe Adjusto-Maticoffthebridge posts,replacingitwiththe RockingBar,realigningthe stringsintheirslots,adjustingthe actiontotastewiththe thumbwheelsandtuningbackup topitch.Easypeasy.
Theresult?Theadditionofthe RockingBargivesthePantheran evenmorevintageaesthetic,and addingalumpofsolidbrassinto theequationhasitstonalbenefits too:butmainly,despiteattacking thelowEstringwithasmuch venomaspossible,Icouldn’t makeitpopoutofitsnotch. Theredon’tseemtobeany detrimentaleffectsasfaras radiusorintonationare concerned,butanyonewho’s lookingtoperformasimilarmod couldalwaysoptforoneofthe Tru-Arcradius-correctbar designs(www.truarcbridge works.com)oraCompton CompensatedBridge (www.comptonbridges.com)for amoresophisticatedsolution.
Armedwithaguitarthat’snow morethanrobustenoughforthe task,Itooktothestageformy firstliveshowof2014and,well,I haven’thadasmuchfunonstage inages.Asidefromaccidentally knockingthepickupswitch towardstheneckonacoupleof occasions,playingthePanther forawholesetwentlike clockwork:notonlydidthose Filter’Tronssoundgreat,butthe stabilityoftheBigsbyallowedme tothrowcautiontothewindand givethewhammybaraserious leathering.Remarkably,despite closingwithourset’scustomary cacophonouswalloffeedback andguitarabuse,Itookthe Pantheroutofitscasethenext morningtofinditwasstillinone piece(phew!)andwasalso perfectlyintune.NowIjusthave tocallAdamandconvincehim thathedefinitelydoesn’tneed thiswonderfulguitarbackany timesoon…