Crosby Pure Ebony Bridge Pins vs. Plastic Bridge Pins. Which are Best?

https://crosbyaudio.com Add clarity, tone, sustain and volume to your acoustic guitar with our Pure Ebony Bridge Pins. Made from genuine African Ebony with abalone inlay, our bridge pins offer an easy and affordable way to improve your guitar tone.

IMPROVE TONE - Our slotted pins can add clarity, tone, sustain and volume to your acoustic guitar, while the finely crafted abalone inlay will upgrade the appearance of your bridge.

FITS MOST GUITARS - The standard 1T pegs fit most guitars including; Martin, Taylor, Gibson, Fender, Guild, Takamine, Yamaha and more. If the pins are too big, simply sand them down until they fit.

EASY TO REMOVE - Compared to low profile pins, our Pure Ebony Bridge Pins feature a pronounced collar for easy removal.

MADE TO LAST - Unlike plastic bridge pins, our handmade African black ebony pins won't easily break or deform, making them a great gift for any guitar player.

ENHANCE SOUND - Compared to plastic, bone and metal pins, wood can help tame guitars with too much treble, producing a more even tone that guitarists desire.

Dimensions
Length: 1.2" (30.5mm)
Shank diameter: 0.21" (5.3mm)
Head diameter: 0.31” (8mm)
String slot: 0.08” (2mm)
Bottom diameter: 0.16” (4mm)
Taper: 3 degrees

Be sure to measure your current bridge pins to ensure that our Pure Ebony Bridge Pins will fit your guitar. If the pins are too big for your bridge, gently sand them down until they fit.

How Different Bridge Pin Materials Affect Your Guitar's Tone

The importance of bridge pins on an acoustic guitar is often overlooked, especially if you’re only a casual strummer. However, choosing the right material can not only improve your guitar’s aesthetics, but also it’s tone. In this article we’ll compare the different types of bridge pin materials and how each one uniquely affects your guitar’s tone. But first, let’s look at what bridge pins actually do.

Besides serving the functional purpose of securing the ball ends of the strings to the bridge plate hidden inside the body of your acoustic guitar, bridge pins also carry the vibration (sound) of the strings into the guitar’s body. The most common types of bridge pins are slotted and unslotted, with the latter being the most common of the two. Slotted pins have a groove cut into the shank to accommodate the string in an unslotted bridge and puts pressure against the string to hold it in place. Unslotted pins have no groove and are meant to be used with a slotted bridge. With this type of bridge, a notch is cut in the front of the bridge pin hole and the pin prevents the string from slipping out of the notch. Since these tiny pins play such an important role in your guitar’s performance, it’s crucial that you choose the right bridge pin material for your desired tone. Let's compare.

Plastic
Plastic pins are what usually ships with your guitar due to the fact that they’re inexpensive and won’t crack the bridge as temperatures fluctuate during shipping. However, plastic pins are known to bend and wear out easily, can look plain, and won’t enhance your guitar’s tone, making them a less than ideal choice.

Brass
Brass pins are the most durable of all the options, but unless your guitar is really bassy, they can make it sound too bright and brittle. Brass pins can also be expensive and sometimes require reaming out the bridge to fit properly. For most players, brass pins won’t produce a desirable sound.

Wood
Although wood pins look nice aesthetically and can improve your guitar’s tone, they’re sometimes prone to swelling in moist conditions. Depending on the age of your guitar and tightness of the fit, they can crack your bridge. Because of this, we don’t recommend using wood pins on antique guitars.

Ivory
Ivory pins can increase sustain, produce a warm tone, and look beautiful. However, not only are they very expensive, but they’re difficult to obtain legally and are marred by all kinds of ethical issues. We recommend you stay away from these.

Bone
Bone pins can increase sustain, produce a brighter, fuller tone, and are more durable than some of the other materials. Compared to plastic, bone can be a bit more expensive, but overall we feel that it's a superior choice for most players.

Whether you’re replacing your bridge pins because they’ve broken or you’re looking to improve your guitar’s tone or aesthetics, choosing the right type of pin is just as important as any other aspect of your acoustic guitar. Some guitars will sound better or worse depending on the material you choose, so try different types, experiment and overall have fun!

If you think that bone or ebony sound like the perfect fit for your guitar, why not check out our Pure Bone Bridge Pins or Pure Ebony Bridge Pins. Made from genuine ox bone and African Blackwood with abalone inlay, our bridge pins offer an easy and affordable way to improve your guitar’s tone and aesthetics.