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Post by Rockerfeller on Feb 25, 2018 17:05:07 GMT -7
B-benders are like crack. Once you start using, you can't stop. Don't start unless you count the cost! So after using Bowden palm benders for years, I am sending my number one Tele off to get a strap activated Bender. She's all packed up and going out in tomorrows mail. It will only add 4 ounces to the weight of the guitar.  |
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Post by Paul (TRANE) on Feb 25, 2018 17:17:03 GMT -7
Cool. How much wood do they have to remove to out one in? They do sound very cool.
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Post by Rockerfeller on Feb 25, 2018 17:20:43 GMT -7
Not a lot at all. It not as intrusive as a Parsons style bender install. They basically drill out a tunnel in the body for the mechanism and they have to remove some wood from underneath the bridge and some wood where the bender "bends" on the top strap. They use light weight aluminum which helps keep the weight down.
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Post by Jason Cornelius on Feb 25, 2018 17:35:23 GMT -7
Who is doing the bender for you?
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Post by Rockerfeller on Feb 25, 2018 18:33:19 GMT -7
It is a Bill Warford Bender. Bill died in 2016, and his son in law, who was building them with him at the time, took over the business.
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rob
Junior Member
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Post by rob on Feb 25, 2018 19:12:28 GMT -7
I’m in for the follow. Looking forward to your review of the process and the bender.
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Post by iluvpunz on Feb 25, 2018 21:23:04 GMT -7
You really want to send your baby out for surgery?
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Post by zpilot on Feb 26, 2018 7:23:30 GMT -7
I opted not to get knee replacement surgery last year. I'm darn sure not going to have anyone install a B-bender in my Nocaster. If I decided to get one it would have to go in a Tele dedicated for that.
I don't mean to hijack this thread but I was wondering about something sort of related. I used to have a Hipshot E string de-tuner on a Tele. When I sold that guitar I kept the de-tuner and I have it in a box somewhere in my stash. I AM thinking about installing it on my Nocaster since it requires no modification. Or maybe putting on a B-bender guitar. Now that would be cool I think.
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Post by Rockerfeller on Feb 26, 2018 7:29:31 GMT -7
I opted not to get knee replacement surgery last year. I'm darn sure not going to have anyone install a B-bender in my Nocaster. If I decided to get one it would have to go in a Tele dedicated for that. I don't mean to hijack this thread but I was wondering about something sort of related. I used to have a Hipshot E string de-tuner on a Tele. When I sold that guitar I kept the de-tuner and I have it in a box somewhere in my stash. I AM thinking about installing it on my Nocaster since it requires no modification. Or maybe putting on a B-bender guitar. Now that would be cool I think. The common wisdom about B-Benders is this: you don't buy a new Tele with a B-Bender already in it, you find a really great Tele and THEN you have a Bender installed in it. That way, you have a great b-bender guitar. Not all guitars are created equal, something we all know. You could have a great bender installed inside of a medicore guitar and nobody really wants that. This particular tele, and my other one, have been deemed worthy by me for a Bender install. But I would have never, ever been able to make that decision on other guitars until I got hooked on benders. Now, it is an easy call to make. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 26, 2018 7:31:19 GMT -7
I know a lot of guys with B-Benders.
I have had my Parsons/White for 33 years. Had a Glaser also and sold it to a good friend (I didn't need 2 anymore).
Had a guy in my studio with a Glaser one yesterday.
I don't know anybody who had a B-Bender put in their guitar that wasn't happier with it after the instal.
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Post by Rockerfeller on Feb 26, 2018 17:47:57 GMT -7
You really want to send your baby out for surgery? Oh yeah. She'll be back in time for the next gig. |
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Post by Rhythmark on Mar 4, 2018 20:06:23 GMT -7
those always sound cool-- never tried playing one-- might have to find one--
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 5, 2018 8:21:05 GMT -7
those always sound cool-- never tried playing one-- might have to find one-- Careful, if you try one and stick with it long enough to figure the thing out, you will be addicted! |
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 5, 2018 18:58:53 GMT -7
Well, it arrived at the shop and work will begin on it this week. I talked to B&W and they are going to be sending me photos of the bender install as it progresses. I think I will post those photos here for any who might be interested in the process.
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 9, 2018 16:20:03 GMT -7
Just got the email that work on my Bender install is going to start tomorrow, Saturday. I'll be posting pictures soon.
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Post by The Bad Poodle Experience on Mar 9, 2018 17:33:09 GMT -7
This is a nice link... man, that original Clarence White tele that Marty Stuart has... www.vintageguitar.com/16889/parsonswhite-stringbender/i've wanted one ever since i found out that's what Jimmy Page was using. i've played one or two in guitar stores but never owned one. definitely fun and addicting to play. |
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Post by djcakadave on Mar 9, 2018 18:49:41 GMT -7
I was in that shop with Parsons! Facinating Place!
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 10, 2018 20:21:22 GMT -7
Just got the first photos! More to come. You can see the bending mechanism that goes under the bridge plate in the first photo. Not much wood taken out. They drill a hole from there up to the neck and you can see where the strap activated mechanism is going to go in photo 2. Photo 3 shows the throw adjustment screw: Tighten it and it is harder to bend, loosen it and it gets easier! Yee Haw!    |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 11, 2018 7:28:51 GMT -7
That's pretty minimal.
Which bender is that?
Excited for you.
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 11, 2018 7:55:33 GMT -7
Its a Bill Warford (B&W) Bill died back in 2016, but his son-in-law, who ran the shop with him took over. He's been building them slowly, one at a time, since then, but just opened up a bigger shop. It is still a one man shop. But his prices are super reasonable: $475 for a B-bender. I have played one of his older versions and once I adjusted the throw it was really nice and smooth and sounded great. The B&W benders have all gotten great reviews. We'll see how well mine plays!
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 11, 2018 16:29:34 GMT -7
Amazing! I just got word that my Bender is DONE. Talk about fast turn around! Two days to install it, it ships back to me on Monday. I am so excited. Steven called me up and asked me if I wanted him to make everything shiny, like he normally does on "pretty" guitars. I said "Heck NO!" So here are the photos of the finished Bender: The Strap pull:  The Bender Mechanism itself, minus the pull rod that goes up to the neck, he did not give me a photo of that one but you can see the routing he did for that: The Bridge mod:  The Best part: The back of the Guitar:  For $475 installed, I am pretty happy that my guitar was only out of commission for 2 weeks AND it will only weigh 4 ounces more. |
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Post by walt on Mar 11, 2018 17:52:29 GMT -7
Congrats!I have to ask though-I respect a working guitar as much as anything,but did that tele get thrown down a flight of stairs?
Mind you,my stuff is all dinged up,so no judgement here...
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 12, 2018 8:55:12 GMT -7
Congrats!I have to ask though-I respect a working guitar as much as anything,but did that tele get thrown down a flight of stairs? Mind you,my stuff is all dinged up,so no judgement here... Walt, I bought this guitar from JimmySmith and it is the best Tele I have ever owned. It is a Nash Guitar, and I actually do think they threw it down a flight of stairs! |
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Post by walt on Mar 12, 2018 17:00:45 GMT -7
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Post by LT on Mar 13, 2018 13:55:51 GMT -7
That's awesome! I always thought a bender required significant routing, especially on the back. That's a fantastic job!
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Post by The Bad Poodle Experience on Mar 13, 2018 14:49:55 GMT -7
install looks great. you're gonna love it.
i know the Nashes. thrown down a flight of stairs would be a mild relic'ing treatment.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 13, 2018 16:36:13 GMT -7
Some do!  |
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Post by zpilot on Mar 13, 2018 22:15:52 GMT -7
After you have had this for awhile, please let us know how it is working out.
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 14, 2018 7:57:56 GMT -7
After you have had this for awhile, please let us know how it is working out. It arrives Friday morning IF UPS tracking is to be believed. I will have it put back together and give it a full workout over the weekend and then post my initial thoughts on it. My local guitar shop has a Tele with this Bender in it and it plays really well. The bend is smooth, always in pitch, it is easy to adjust. At $475 installed, that is super reasonable, considering McVay is $1200. I I expect that B&W is going to raise their prices as soon as word gets out to the larger community that they are back up and running and demand increases. It is still a one man shop, and Steven builds these at nights and on the weekends because he still works a full time job. |
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Post by Rockerfeller on Mar 22, 2018 6:27:04 GMT -7
I have had 6 days with my new B&W B-Bender, which is enough time to get use to it, learn how it works and feel very comfortable with it. So here is my review: The Look: Take a look at the pictures of the back of my guitar. You can NOT tell it has a bender. They cut out a little bit of wood from under the bridge pup, drilled a hole up to the pull strap button, and cut a little hole in the bridge plate for the Bender arm. That is it. I give it 10 for the cosmetics. Super great job. The weight addition: My guitar weighs 4 ounces more than before the install. Man, a guitar with a B-Bender that weighs under 7 pounds? I give it 10 for that. Playability: It plays perfectly. It bends up a whole step with out a problem, nails the note, is fully adjustable to how much tension is required to activate the bend and the bend is really smooth. I had it set up with a medium length throw or bend, instead of short or long. With the medium throw it is easy to get those slow, bitchin sounding bends as well as fast if you want it. It is also super easy to do 1/2 step bends. I give this a 10. It is everything I hoped it would be.
Customer service: Steven, who took over for his father in law after he passed away, was amazing to work with. We communicated a lot via Facebook messaging and he would answer within MINUTES. My guitar was was out of my hands for less than two weeks. He even called me afterwards to make sure everything worked correctly and walked my through some of my issues with the Bender, see below. I give B&W a 10+ for customer service! Issues: I did have a problem at first with the Bender activating while resting on my shoulder. I had to hold the guitar up so it didn't go out of tune. B&W helped me realize this was happening because I added a strap lock to the bender and that was throwing off the angle. So I switched it to a regular Fender strap button and now it works perfectly. Price: This is where B&W is the hands down winner, in my opinion. The bender install cost me $475 and took two weeks. Keep in mind that similar bender installs cost $1000-$1200. This was a stupid deal. If you want a B-Bender installed in your Tele, (and he only puts them in Tele style guitars) I highly recommend B&W. Do it before he figures out how much he should be charging! Check out B&W Benders |
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