Hi kmarccoco,
I don't think so. But it's certainly going to be a marked improvement over the Zamak one!
I've not tried the Wilkinson personally, though it does look as if it might have been be easier to slap on there by myself.
I'm not sure if the fit would be as, erm, 'tight" & transfer as much of the vibrations & whatnot as with the Callaham, owing to the elongated holes etc.;
...but whether anyone in the audience would ever hear any difference between the 2 in a crowded pub gig, after a few beers, & when played through a cranked amp &/or distortion pedals, over drums & bass etc. is altogether another matter though.
I read a mammoth thread on the Fender Discussion Forum a while ago where Bill Callaham maintained that he's the
only one with the correct special UNS 1018 cold rolled steel & all the milling machines, tools and so forth to make them the way he does. Apparently the steel blocks on some of the Fenders, for example, are made from pressed, powdered steel, others are either a hot rolled leaded steel, or soft cast steel - none of which apparently gives the optimum results tonally.
I fitted a Callaham block on a MIJ Strat 5 or 6 years ago, and to a Jeff Beck Strat about 3 years ago, and in both cases it made a world of difference, louder, clearer, fuller, more sustain, but as BigTone says above, not brighter.
Callaham also makes a big deal out of machining the exact correct angle of the bevel on the bottom side of the plate which allows the bridge to pivot, and which they say must not extend past the diameter of the pivot screws :-
Here's the Fender Custom Shop plate: -
...and the Callaham one: -
Here's the spiel : -
The Fender bridge is not only crudely angled but extends well past the diameter of the pivot screws. This causes the bridge now to try and pivot along 2 axis. The bridge slides down the screws instead of pivoting and then must slide back up on return. This creates unnecessary friction and inconsistent return to pitch.
More info here: -
http://www.callahamguitars.com/bridges.htm
and here: -
http://www.callahamguitars.com/blocks.htm
This will be the first time I'm trying his top-plate too.
My ST-80 Springy is still with luthier Simon Pinder (high humidity here has made the refinishing take longer than expected, he can't do the re-assembly & set-up etc. till it's hardened enough to be buffed out) ...but I should be collecting it within the next week.
I will report back on the difference the Callaham assembly has made on that as soon as I get it back, & do a couple of gigs with it.
