Why is the bridge on a guitar not perpendicular to the strings? And how does one figure out what angle it should be at on our home made builds? It doesnt seem to be that way on a ukulele.
—B

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I angle mine so that each string plays a perfect (har!) octave when fretted at the 12th fret (or dulcimer equivalent). I pretty much always have to move the bridge at an angle to get each string intonated - if that is the word. Bigger strings seem to need a slightly more room.

(which then brings me to wonder if the frets need to be angled, too , and then I pour a glass of wine.)

My question is more the opposite: why do some instruments have the bridge perpendicular to the strings? How can that position work for all string gauges?
My understanding is the density (eg mass -- no, they are not Catholic) of the lower/thicker strings makes the intonation of these this way in a equal tempered stringed instrument (standard guitar). I have a GREAT article on this if you want.

What angle? Play it and find out where it needs to be. Simple as that. Adjust as you see fit. My Cohiba 4 string it angled opposite that of a standard guitar but I had to find that out.

Uke might not suffer as much being the scale its at. Dunno for sure.
Precision bridges have adjustable saddles for intonation adjustments. CBG builders without precision bridges, guess by angling the bolt/ink pen/ stick/ screw/bridge, as an attempt to guess at correcting intonation. Another person see's this, and copies it, and the next guy see's it and it just goes on and on without anyone really knowing why it is done. Intonation is a science, not a guess. Using the proper bridge with adjustments will help get you there, but until them, we just angle the economy bridge thingy.

copy and pasted
Intonation(or tone) refers to the need for each string to be a slightly different length in order for the proper pitch to be produced at each fret.
The intonation of a guitar is correct when each string is the exact length it needs to be. The adjustment of this length is made possible by individual saddles, one for each string, which are mounted on the bridge with a screw. This way, one can turn the screw and the saddle will move forward or backward, effectively lengthening or shortening the vibrating length of the string. If your guitar does not have these adjustable saddles, you may as well skip the rest of this document. ( that means us CBG builders that do not use real bridges)
Regardless of the tone, if the string as a whole is at the correct pitch, all harmonics will sound correctly because they are, by definition, exact multiples of the frequency of the entire string.
Just put it straight it'll work fine!
The best way I've found to figure out how to angle it is start with it perpendicular to the strings. Play the harmonic at the 12th fret on the high string, then play the 12th fretted note. Are they the same? If not, then adjust the treble side of the bridge until they are. Then, do the same with the bass side. This will get you pretty close... probably as close as can be gotten.

Don't have frets? Don't worry about it, then :-) Just play and enjoy!
Another thought, chasing intonation with a bolt for a bridge, and sloppy nut slots that are bigger then the string size, is useless. CBG's are not made to be flawless ( then can be) but enjoyed the way they are with all their raw, home made, tabletop, back porch engineering. Just get on it and go.
Usually i don't fix the bridge down so it remains adjustable.
Thanks for all the great info. I have a fear of gluing anything down on my guitar. Now I know why. My bridge is just sitting on top and it does sound pretty good as is. I have been contemplating ways to affix it and allow for adjustments, but that alludes me at this point. Ahhh, the next one . . . .
I like to leave everything adjustable as well. I don't glue the box shut and always have bolt on necks, because I hate the idea that all the bits will never be adjustable!

Brendan deVallance said:
Thanks for all the great info. I have a fear of gluing anything down on my guitar. Now I know why. My bridge is just sitting on top and it does sound pretty good as is. I have been contemplating ways to affix it and allow for adjustments, but that alludes me at this point. Ahhh, the next one . . . .
I don't glue my bridges down. I let them float, and then I figure I can move them if I someday decide to put on different strings. A pencil mark is there for ballpark location in case the bridge travels for some reason.

I don't expect my guitars to be flawless, but I want them to play as well as they can. The floating bridge is pretty simple, and it works well for me. (also, skootching back the bridge a tiny fraction - there is a thread somewhere about that)

I try to make each instrument a funky little jewel. So while there are no rules per se, my rule for me is to try for the best sound and playability out of a stick and a box.

Brendan deVallance said:
Thanks for all the great info. I have a fear of gluing anything down on my guitar. Now I know why. My bridge is just sitting on top and it does sound pretty good as is. I have been contemplating ways to affix it and allow for adjustments, but that alludes me at this point. Ahhh, the next one . . . .
What Diane and Mort Said ...
you make cbg builders sound like a bunch of monkey see monkey do morons. and they arn't im sure there are quit a few members here who could build and setup some very fine guitars but choose to build cbg. and they know perfectly well why the bridge is at an angle and how to get the right angle.

Mortimer Snerd said:
Precision bridges have adjustable saddles for intonation adjustments. CBG builders without precision bridges, guess by angling the bolt/ink pen/ stick/ screw/bridge, as an attempt to guess at correcting intonation. Another person see's this, and copies it, and the next guy see's it and it just goes on and on without anyone really knowing why it is done. .

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