The last time I worked on this Regent Semi Acoustic was way back in 2013. Since then, it has changed hands twice. The current owner isn't really satisfied with the electronics and stock tune-o-matic bridge.
He's requested an electronics check and bridge upgrade. With regard to the latter, he has already purchased a bridge with roller saddles. He believes that it will work better with the Regent's Bigsby-style vibrato unit.
The first thing I did was disassemble all the hardware and electronics for servicing. To my delight, the electronics only needed rewiring. All the components I'd installed in 2013 were still useable.
Of particular interest was the factory-installed neck pickup. It had been in the guitar since its birth, which would have been somewhere between the late '50s and early '60s. You've got to hand it to the Japanese. This pickup was still working perfectly after all these years!
On to the roller bridge, then. It had an interesting design. Besides the brass roller saddles, hex bolts served as saddle locks, and the angle of the bridge itself could be modified by adjusting set screws on either end of the oval post holes.
Neat idea. The only problem was that the post holes were too small to accommodate the bridge posts. So out came the rotary tool, and in no time the problem was solved.
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| Hardware and Electronics Removed |
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| Ready for Servicing |
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| Stock Neck Pickup |
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| New Roller Bridge |
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| Post Hole Set Screws |
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| Enlarged Post Hole |
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| Test-Fitting the Roller Bridge |
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| Bridge and Pickups Installed |
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| Rewiring in Progress |
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| Electronics Installed |
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| Fretboard Conditioning in Progress |
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| D'Addario EXL110 Strings |
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| Good to Go |
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