# String ferrule 'Blocks'



## Ayr Guitars (Oct 24, 2016)

Hey everyone! I've had people ask me about solid brass blocks rather than individual ferrules on hardtails & teles. 

Very happy to say I've found a source - and I will be using these on a few upcoming builds. I have the opportunity to bring in a batch. They are custom made in the U.K., which affects the landed price. 

Few questions for the group:

1) would these add appeal if you were buying a guitar, or having one custom built?

2) would you be interested in having one retrofit into your current guitar?

3) How much would you pay to have one supplied and installed?

I appreciate your help - answers to the questions above will help me decide how many to bring over. 

They come with 2 spacing: one for hardtail Strat / Hipshot and another for Tele. They come in a variety of finishes; I was planning to bring in Chrome only to start with.


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## Guest (Nov 20, 2016)

Do these blocks add anything tone/sound wise? 
or is it just for aesthetics?
If the former, then 
1) yes
2) maybe
3) as little as possible. lol .. kiddin' .. I wouldn't know how to price something like this.
I'll wait for a few more replies and if the answers to #3 sound reasonable, I'll edit this post.


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## Tone Chaser (Mar 2, 2014)

My Godin LG Signature has a brass looking tone block in it. It does sound very good. I think that it helps to make the LG a very versatile guitar.


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## Ayr Guitars (Oct 24, 2016)

laristotle said:


> Do these blocks add anything tone/sound wise?
> or is it just for aesthetics?


I do anticipate they will have a (positive) impact on tone. Not able to elaborate on that just yet.... the reason people have specifically asked for them are for tone and sustain. Sort of like a steel sustain block from a tremolo bridge, only in a hardtail.


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## vokey design (Oct 24, 2006)

They sure do look great.


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## cboutilier (Jan 12, 2016)

1) yes
2) yes
3) 200 bucks probably.


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## Ayr Guitars (Oct 24, 2016)

I ended up bringing in a few of these to try them out and they arrived a few days ago. With some template work complete, I fit these into 3 bodies I'm working on. Really impressed with the quality - these are a huge improvement over individual ferrules.

Available in 2-1/16" and 2-1/8" spacing.


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## knight_yyz (Mar 14, 2015)

Not sure if it will be an improvement or not, but I can see this changing the tone slightly especially since all the ball ends will be in the same piece of metal.


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## Ayr Guitars (Oct 24, 2016)

knight_yyz said:


> Not sure if it will be an improvement or not, but I can see this changing the tone slightly especially since all the ball ends will be in the same piece of metal.



I think they will offer some advantage. And I like the look of these a lot more. Granted, they are considerably more costly than ferrules.


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## knight_yyz (Mar 14, 2015)

I guess in theory it's like having a very small trem block without the whammy bar


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## Ayr Guitars (Oct 24, 2016)

Yes, that's exactly it.


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## metrick (Jun 16, 2015)

Tone Chaser said:


> My Godin LG Signature has a brass looking tone block in it. It does sound very good. I think that it helps to make the LG a very versatile guitar.


DIY brass block, duplicate from Godin LGX guitar. Work in progress, brass block purchased for 4$.
















Sent from my LG-H812 using Tapatalk


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## mrmatt1972 (Apr 3, 2008)

Seems to me installing the block would be less work than individual ferrules. Good idea.


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## Ayr Guitars (Oct 24, 2016)

mrmatt1972 said:


> Seems to me installing the block would be less work than individual ferrules. Good idea.


The way I have things set up, the blocks actually end up being more time. than ferrules.... I have a dedicated drill press set up to do the ferrules with an alignment pin in the table. Makes quick work of it. 

The blocks require a separate template on the back, takes time to align and there is additonal router set-up time.


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## metrick (Jun 16, 2015)

Ayr Guitars said:


> The way I have things set up, the blocks actually end up being more time. than ferrules.... I have a dedicated drill press set up to do the ferrules with an alignment pin in the table. Makes quick work of it.
> 
> The blocks require a separate template on the back, takes time to align and there is additonal router set-up time.


Definitely required skilled luthier to do it right, as you can see from my brass block, the holes are not perfectly aligned. I am just a hobbyist learning as I go.


metrick said:


> DIY brass block, duplicate from Godin LGX guitar. Work in progress, brass block purchased for 4$.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Sent from my LG-H812 using Tapatalk


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## Völkl instruments (11 mo ago)

Ayr Guitars said:


> Yes, that's exactly it.


Ok, I’ve been looking for this post for a while. Must have been an issue with my computer after signing up… 
I posted about this before I found it, so hopefully some other users reply.

I think it offers many qualities. As far as the metal choice is concerned brass (will offer more low end resonance, with a lot of bell like sustain. Because of its heavy mass it will help with low to low mid enhancements), stainless steel (will give you more midrange resonance due to its mid weight mass and more high mid sustain), aluminum (will give you an increase in low mid to high midrange resonance and a boost in mid to high end clarity response and very even sustain. Very light in weight, probably the lightest of all the metals.), titanium ( the most evenly boosted tonal response of the metals because of the mid weight and density, extremely hard and the sustains is like that of brass but a being a harder metal gives a flatter response. You’ll pay a difference for it but it’s worth it.)
I’ve been building for a while and have noticed these differences on the basses I’ve built and being a bass player of over 25 years they have all made a great difference where I’ve needed them. I’d love to add the benefit to my guitar build also! 
if you could give me the infoon the supplier I’d love to try them out on some of my up coming builds. 
I’m currently looking for a brass seven string one so I can complete this build. It’s going to be gorgeous!


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## SWLABR (Nov 7, 2017)

Völkl instruments said:


> Ok, I’ve been looking for this post for a while. Must have been an issue with my computer after signing up…
> I posted about this before I found it, so hopefully some other users reply.
> 
> I think it offers many qualities. As far as the metal choice is concerned brass (will offer more low end resonance, with a lot of bell like sustain. Because of its heavy mass it will help with low to low mid enhancements), stainless steel (will give you more midrange resonance due to its mid weight mass and more high mid sustain), aluminum (will give you an increase in low mid to high midrange resonance and a boost in mid to high end clarity response and very even sustain. Very light in weight, probably the lightest of all the metals.), titanium ( the most evenly boosted tonal response of the metals because of the mid weight and density, extremely hard and the sustains is like that of brass but a being a harder metal gives a flatter response. You’ll pay a difference for it but it’s worth it.)
> ...


Welcome to the forum. I see you created your profile just a few hours ago.
A good tip if you’ve found a thread via search. Always check the last time it was active. This thread was created in 2016. You may get responses, but possibly not from the OP. And, unfortunately this one has not been hanging around the site for some time.
Lots of great folks with good info, but have a peak at how old something is before you get your hopes up.

Again, welcome.


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## Hammertone (Feb 3, 2006)

string ferrule block in Musical Instruments & Gear for sale | eBay






www.ebay.com


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