I recently replaced the original bent-steel guitar saddles on my Fender Player Stratocaster with block saddles. Should you do the same?
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Bent Steel Guitar Saddles.
The traditional choice, and standard issue on my Fender Player Strat, as well as, surprisingly, the new American Pro II series. (Up until recently USA Strats featured block saddles).
Bend Steel Guitar Saddles – The pros.
Looks – Utterly subjective. Some prefer them, I don’t.
Authenticity/Resale value. If you really want that classic Stratocaster look, these are the way to go, and if you come to sell, make sure the original parts are included.
Tone. Again, subjective. Some say bent steel saddles have more harmonics/top end, and more ring.
Feel. Some prefer the feel of bent steel under the palm, rather than the flat block surface.
Bend Steel Guitar Saddles – The Cons.
Limited height adjustment. As you can see from the pic, bent steel saddle height adjustment is limited to the thickness of the saddle, which isn’t much. I had a massive issue with the 8mm height adjustment screw on my top E in that I simply couldn’t get the action high before the screw ran out of thread. Ever tried sourcing replacement height adjustment screws? Don’t even bother.
No string guides. Another huge issue. I want my strings to sit dead-centre on the saddle to avoid buzzing and maximise string life, but with bent steel, there’s no string guide to make this simple. True, given time, the string will wear themselves in naturally, but then that could cause burrs on the saddle, leading to buzzing and string breakage.
Stability. And yet another issue. The saddles have a habit of sliding about, causing the string to go off-centre and buzz.
Durability. Bent steel saddles are lighter and more delicate than block saddles, so won’t stand up to the abuse as much. They’re also intricate, meaning they’re more difficult to clean and maintain, for example getting into all the nooks and crannies to remove dirt and dust is more of a pain.
Overall, the above four points seem like bad design, and yet I know millions will disagree!
Tone. Some say bent steel lacks the sustain and fundamental of block saddles.
Block Guitar Saddles
Fitted as standard on USA Fenders up until very recently (no idea why). The modern, reliable, no fuss, function over form choice.
Block Guitar Saddles – The Pros
Looks. I think they look better if you’re going for the modern strat look. They are cleaner and more business-like.
String guides. Curing the issue above with bent steel with very little fuss.
Much more height adjustment range. The height adjustment screws now travel through the whole block, meaning you can set them as high or low as you wish.
Stability. More solid and with straighter edges, block saddles stay put a lot better than bent steel saddles.
Durability. The exact opposite of the argument made against bent steel saddles. Block saddles are sturdier, will last longer, and are easier to maintain.
To sum up, in my opinion, block steel saddles are a far superior design.
Tone. Some say block steel saddles have more sustain and fundamental than bent steel saddles due to their larger mass.
Block Guitar Saddles – The Cons
Looks. Some players prefer bent steel saddles for the traditional look.
Authenticity / Resale value. I’ve retrofitted my Strat with block saddles, keeping the originals if ever I came to sell. It’s important for resale value.
Conclusion
Block saddles solve all of the inherent design issues of bent steel saddles in a no-nonsense manner. I also prefer the look of block steel saddles, finding bent steel saddles too fiddly-looking and over-engineered.
In fact, there seems to be very little to argue the case for bent steel saddles, other than what could very well be the myth of a more ‘ Stratty’ tone. Personally, I couldn’t tell the difference tone-wise.
Oh, and I managed to pick up a nice set of nickel plates block saddles for only just over £10! (see below).
So the answer is yes, you should definitely upgrade to block saddles, asap!
