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14. Carefully finish-sand the bottom by hand using 320 grit
sandpaper on a piece of plate glass or any flat, machined
surface. Check flatness of the saddle bottom by marking
the entire surface with a pencil and then sanding a few
extra strokes. The pencil should be removed evenly. At this
point, lightly chamfer all bottom edges of the saddle to
remove the sharpness.
15. You now must carefully inspect and adjust the fit of the
saddle in the slot.
a. The saddle should slide into the slot smoothly and with
very little resistance. You should be able to insert and
remove it with your fingertips.
b. If the fit seems very tight, the sides of the saddle can
be sanded with 320 grit sandpaper.
c. Polishing or waxing the sides of the saddle will help
it to seat properly under string tension and can enhance
string balance and output.
d. Under some conditions, it can be beneficial to sand
a small amount of tilt on the bottom of the saddle to
compensate for the natural tilt of the saddle under
string tension.
e. If the saddle is too loose in the slot, it will cause
excessive saddle tilt and will usually result in poor
coupling to the pickup, low output and unbalanced string
response. It is advisable to replace the saddle if it is
too loose.
