Due to the massive inquiries lately on a  black light I re ran this from our other website so all can read this popular post.

QUESTION

What do they mean when they say does it black lite ?? I just bought a vintage guitar and want to check my parts out to see if they are real.

REPLY

Thank you for the e mail. Great question not a simple answer. Vintage guitar plastic should glow a certain color when exposed to a black lite in the dark. This is very obviously if you have new and old parts side by side to see the difference it is like night and day. But if you have only the vintage parts to test basically here is what it will  look like.

Again color is subjective to each person so i think it looks like a fluorescent yellowish color with a bit of green to it. But i have seen parts black lite more whitish and more unique tones than i can describe . basically they should jump out!! at you under a black light and really stand out. The newer parts change color but do not jump out at you. If you are still not sure borrow a knob from your friends new guitar and put the new and vintage parts side by side you will see right away.

Now another note ! all parts do not black lite the same color or at the same intensity. knobs and such black lite strong as do guitar tuner tips. pickguards are not as strong but they will react under black light. Do not panic if you see your knobs black light different from you knobs this is normal!! the same goes for finish but that is a real complicated story we will touch on at a later time.

There are fakes out there and people as we speak are trying to develop new parts that are aged that black lite so this is for now a fairly safe test but it will not be long until some idiot will figure it out and ruin it for everyone.

If you are still unsure you can send us parts and we Will evaluate them for free no charge you just pay shipping both ways.

Thank you again for your question

Jim pasch

The Parts Drawer

QUESTION

I have a 1956 Gretsch duo Jet guitar ad it has a crazy bridge on it I am not sure what they are called. It is the most annoying thing I have ever seen. What can i use to replace it and why would Gretsch make such a stupid bridge in the first place. I do not like the normal bar bridge Gretsch uses there is no intonation adjustments.

REPLY

The Gretsch melita bridge is every mans nightmare and a parts dealers nightmare as well. I have asked myself the same question over the years and have come to no conclusion myself

In theory it has the ability to intonated well and adjust the string height very precisely but they could of made an easier design that was more user friendly. There are so many littler parts on these bridges they are easily lost when changing strings or doing repairs. The other problem is you cannot get individual parts to replace the lost ones. In the past you were forced to buy a whole new bridge or jut replace it many have just been thrown away and abandoned over the years

I cannot tell you how many vintage gretsch guitars i have seen upon close inspection have one or more replacement parts in the bridge assembly . This is a common nightmare in the melita world. Now Gretsch Reissues these bridges and you can steal a part from a new one but this has been the case for only a few years now.

The problem is if you have an expensive vintage Gresch guitar you need the bridge to retain value of the guitar so if you replace keep in the case. I would use a newer Gibson abr-1 style bridge on a wooden base. This was you are not drilling holes in top f the guitar and ruing the value. this bridge style will easily just retro fit with no mods. it Will adjust both height and intonation fine and is a working mans bridge tested and proven over the years.

The other bar bridge gretsch uses can be an option but again you have limited intonational adjustments with it. Do not drill holes on top for post or install some high tech unit it is not necessary and will destroy your instruments value. Always think ahead before  you modify any guitar .

I hope this helps and anyone out there reading this who has any old melita bridge parts e mail me I always need them . Contact me at THE PARTS DRAWER

Jim Pasch