Pre Refined Fly Whammy Bar

[Presence76]

So I have an incoming pre-refined fly with no whammy (trem) bar included. I love using the bar so I’ll definitely want one. eBay and Reverb only have a bar for a refined Fly.
Would it be safe to use a hex key that’s the same size? I know it will be more rigid. Not sure if it would damage anything...
Thank you in advance!

[vjmanzo]

Hi @Presence76, yes: any 1/8” hex bar made of stainless steel should do the trick, but you’ll have to bend it and cut it to length. There is a seller on eBay that makes these bars, though I don’t recall he name of the shop. It may actually be this shop:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/HEX-TREMOLO-WH ... 890.l49292

[vjmanzo]

Just a quick follow-up:

Timmy Wayne, the user I mentioned, will custom-make hex or round vibrato arms; just contact him here.

[lerxst6]

I ordered a hex tremolo bar from the eBay seller mentioned above (Timmy Wayne)

He didn’t have any currently listed for sale but I contacted and he made 1 and shipped within a week. Super easy!

[Jayrod99]

Hi! I just acquired a 1997 (I believe) Fly Deluxe. Love it! One question: Is there a way to control the depth of the trem bar? In other words, is there a way to keep the bar higher in the bridge or is it designed to be fully inserted? Thanks!

[vjmanzo]

Congrats, @Jayrod99!

I think you can adjust the height of the arm and then tighten the set screw (with the 3/32" hex t-bar tool) in the back of the bridge to clamp it in place, but I don't use mine that way, so I can't say for certain that it will hold or how well it will hold over the course of an evening of playing. Others may have experience with this...

[Jayrod99]

Thanks, VJ! I did tighten the set screw in the bridge, but that just affects the rotation of the bushing. There doesn’t seem to be a way to clamp the bar in the bushing itself. No biggie...even all the way in, there’s enough clearance to avoid the knobs and switches. I just like the extra leverage I get from the bar sitting higher in the bridge. Thanks for the help!

[vjmanzo]

Darn Totally understand; with the “refined” bushing, I think you can get away with what I was proposing.

Maybe shorten the vibrato arm (allowing it to extend further toward the top of the guitar) to get the extra leverage?

I recall that Tim Wayne, the user I mentioned who custom-makes hex and round vibrato arms, made them in a short length as well for this reason. His contact info again is here.

[Jayrod99]

Got it. Thanks, VJ!

[ThePedroDB]

...is there a way to keep the bar higher in the bridge or is it designed to be fully inserted?

I believe this is just a factor of how much and where you put the slight bend in the 'stem' of the Trem Arm. Having the bend nearer the end of the stem (rather than the 'elbow' of the arm) will result in the Arm sitting higher in the socket.

One of my Fly's arrived with the Trem arm standing quite proud of the Socket. I straightened it and got it so it fully inserts into the socket (my preference) and stays in place

[RMCasey]

I have tried to reach out to Tim Wayne several times on Ebay but have not had any responses. I'm guessing he is not doing them anymore. Are there any other sources for the pre refined trem arms?

[vjmanzo]

Sorry to hear that, @RMCasey; they do show up on eBay from time to time.

If you don’t want to go the whole DIY route, others have had success getting a “round to hex” adapter at hardware stores. I’ve never done that myself, but it would, in principle, allow you to use a round vibrato arm in your hex bushing.

[RMCasey]

So I did the DIY thing. I got the exact model in the "anatomy of the fly PDF" from the link to Amazon. I decided to do the bends to mirror the original Floyd Rose so it's a little shorter. I'm amazed at how close I got and how good it looks. However, I do find that it is extremely hard to push in and pull out.... to the point that it got me super anxious when I was removing it as I feared it was permanently stuck! I also find it super stiff to to rotate... even after fiddling with the set screw. Keep in mind.... this bridge has not had a tremelo since 2005.

My take...
Someone mentioned above that it was 1/8" hex. The one I ordered was 3/16". My 3/16" allen wrench goes in without issue. I am wondering it it is slightly twisted with the bend?

I do not think the spinning issue is related to the tight fit issuse as it looks like the ring spins the entire socket. Not sure if it needs lube occasionally or where to lube it from.

Have any of you that have built your own trem bars experienced this... if so ... any feedback or fixes?

Man... I love the way it came out... I just don't want to get it stuck and it needs to be able to be "spin adjusted",