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Kahler Steeler vs Floyd

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  • Kahler Steeler vs Floyd

    Anyone know if a OFR is a direct swap for a Kahler Steeler?
    Popular is not the same as good
    Rare is not the same as valuable
    Worth is what someone will pay, not what you want to get

  • #2
    Not sure. I have a Steeler in my HM Strat. I don't see why you'd want to swap.

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    • #3
      Originally posted by DonP View Post
      Not sure. I have a Steeler in my HM Strat. I don't see why you'd want to swap.
      +1 You'll have to carry two sets of wrenches to work on the damn thing....SAE for the locknut and metric for the bridge.
      _________________________________________________
      "Artists should be free to spend their days mastering their craft so that working people can toil away in a more beautiful world."
      - Ken M

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      • #4
        Steeler is DEFINITELY a better bridge than current floyds and probably a lil better than a OFR in some ways. Shame there's a lack of parts for them now and they're pricey.

        I've always heard they were drop replacement for each other, but I've personally found the Steeler is not a drop in replacement into a floyd routed guitar. At least not on my USA Fusion it wasn't. Intonation was seriously off and barely usable when setup with the steeler. USA Fusion is 24 3/4 scale, so maybe it shows up worse. Several saddles are all the way back and just barely come close enough intonationwise to even use. They're still off a bit tho and somewhat out of tune.

        I believe the stud spacing is just slightly off as well. This is causing some issues for me.

        And, you'd want to use the bridge appropriate studs as well. I tried using the floyd studs so I didn't have to pull them and the steeler has jumped off those studs a few times on serious dives. Quite umm, entertaining for my bandmates. Ptwang....

        It also rests almost exactly flat on the inside route for the sustain block, with no room to pull sharp.

        Not sure about a Floyd into a Steeler route. Might be more usable, might not.

        Let me know if you sell the steeler for parts or whatever. I could use extra saddles etc. for this one I have.

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        • #5
          Thanks for the info guys The story is that I won a guitar on ebay and it's been shipped direct to be restored and refinished and I need to decide if I should swap out the bridge or not. I've never played a Steeler and so I'm kind of unsure if I should change it or not, esp if the parts are hard to come by...
          Popular is not the same as good
          Rare is not the same as valuable
          Worth is what someone will pay, not what you want to get

          Comment


          • #6
            If you're restoring, might be the time to swap to something current I guess. They haven't made them in years and the only source of parts is Kahler. Saddles assemblies are $35+ shipping each.

            Sweet bridges tho. I really like mine more than a floyd, other than the screw in arm thing, and that's fixable...

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            • #7
              Thanks John - I guess the problem with going for a Floyd install is the cost. If I do need to get new posts/inserts and/or move them, then suddenly with the new hardware, that's probably gonna cost the best part of $300...
              Popular is not the same as good
              Rare is not the same as valuable
              Worth is what someone will pay, not what you want to get

              Comment


              • #8
                Not soi sure what you should do... Maybe do what I'm doing and keeping it and hoping to horde parts haha... I'm so disenchanted w/new FRs.

                Mine's on a US BC Rich SS1 Strat. Had it painted once, it got whupped. Needs new paint again, and I really don't like the neck much anyways, even tho it's almost new fretwise.

                Really wanted to put the steeler on my Fusion... Looks like a Gotoh for it tho... Unless there's stud issues w/that too Then, I'm chasing a nice old OFR. Prolly the smartest for me.

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                • #9
                  I've got a steeler variant, and it feels identical to a Floyd. Most of the time you can drill out that screw-in arm thing and replace it with a collared one (not sure on a steeler, though).
                  _________________________________________________
                  "Artists should be free to spend their days mastering their craft so that working people can toil away in a more beautiful world."
                  - Ken M

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by Cleveland Metal View Post
                    I really like mine more than a floyd, other than the screw in arm thing, and that's fixable...
                    Originally posted by Axewielder View Post
                    Most of the time you can drill out that screw-in arm thing and replace it with a collared one (not sure on a steeler, though).
                    Yeah, I allude somewhat to fixing in my post. Yes, the Steeler can be drilled and collared.

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                    • #11
                      Ian, as Cleveland Metal states, the Steeler is regarded by many as superior to the OFR and it's been mentioned that the steel used was better quality. Luthiers such as Dave W. from Robin Guitars, John Hill of Hill Instruments, and Tom Anderson of Tom Anderson guitars have highly rated this trem.

                      I've also always heard they could be swapped for OFR, but from Kahler's website, apparently that's not true (scroll down to "2760 Steeler"):
                      http://www.kahlerparts.com/Other_Pag...for_Guitar.htm

                      They do have parts:
                      http://www.kahlerparts.com/X_pages/X_2760.htm

                      I have quite a few guitars with the Steeler trem and I prefer it to the OFR. FYI, I've never had to worry about buying spare parts either, the unit is made from high quality stuff. You won't be disappointed if you leave the Steeler in that guitar.

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                      • #12
                        Cool stuff - thanks for that Brian, and thanks to everyone else. Seems like I might as well just keep the Steeler on the guitar then...
                        Popular is not the same as good
                        Rare is not the same as valuable
                        Worth is what someone will pay, not what you want to get

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Kahler Steeler vs Floyd

                          > I liked it as well. It was SO good,Kahler was sued over it. This isn't to be confused with the Spyder,like you saw on HM Strats,but that was also an excellent trem. Tommy D.
                          "I'm going to try and work it out so at the end it's a pure guts race......because if it is.....I'm the only one that can win" - Steve Prefontaine

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                          • #14
                            I will say the Kahler locknut on my Steeler variant has developed a bit of a slippage problem. The pads on OFR locknuts are designed slightly better in that they have a slight concave shape which bites into the strings better.
                            _________________________________________________
                            "Artists should be free to spend their days mastering their craft so that working people can toil away in a more beautiful world."
                            - Ken M

                            Comment

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