Callaham Cold Rolled Steel CNC Machined Gibson Stopbar Tailpiece Callaham

From Callaham:

Machined from the same alloy as our ABR-1 bridge, use of our steel tailpiece will improve note definition and widen frequency response in Gibson style guitars. The tone change is comparable to changing a dead set of strings to a new set of strings. Coupled with our steel ABR-1 bridge, the instrument starts to take on piano like qualities. Notes are crisp yet smooth, and with the proper technique one can create a wide variety of tones simply by altering their touch. With a more responsive instrument, you may find yourself using less extreme settings on your amplifier. You should be able to flatten out the response so that switching from bridge to neck is more balanced.

I am always amused by the claims that an aluminum tailpiece adds sustain. Aluminum will NEVER come close to the sustain produced by our steel tailpiece.

As with all of our products, we do not believe in repeating the mistakes of the past. The original 50’s tailpieces were made from aluminum because it was easy and cheap. Producing a tailpiece from steel and machining it is three times as difficult, but it is the best material if you are concerned with your sound. The myth that weight or mass is an imporant property of guitar hardware has no basis in science and is completely false. Thus, the same principles that apply to our strat tremelo block also apply to this tailpiece.

Our tailpiece is compatible with stock Gibson studs and most aftermarket studs. With the steel tailpiece the effects of the studs is minimal. We do suggest the studs are tightened down firmly.

We were concerned with maintaining the vintage look, and with the help of customers with original 50’s tailpieces we have succeeded. After machining, the tailpieces are sanded and polished by hand to recreate the same look and feel of an original. We do not purposely try to recreate the flaws that so many of the originals exhibit. Having said that, we do not try to make them look exactly identical from part to part. They each have their own unique identity due to the handwork performed during the final stages of production. They are only available in nickel plating, which is done with care yielding a graceful finish, unlike the plating on many other aftermarket tailpieces