Thompson Bridge Gluing Cauls – StewMac

Thompson Bridge Gluing Cauls

For gluing Martin guitar bridges and bridge plates
Clamps want to slide off the curved wings of a Martin or Gibson® bridge. These glue-resistant nylon cauls are shaped to fit those curves, giving you a flat clamping surface while protecting the bridge.

Where these cauls contact the bridge, they’re subtly radiused. This raises the outer edges of the caul so it applies firmer pressure around the perimeter of the bridge wings. This important detail makes the caul so effective, compared to shop-made wooden cauls.

Inside the guitar, the bridge plate is fitted against the braces—another tricky clamping situation. The two bridge plate cauls in this set fit over the brace to apply clamping pressure directly to the bridge plate. The staggered shape of this caul lets one side contact the guitar top while the other contacts the bridge plate while the clamping surface stays level.

The kit also includes a bridge top caul, for clamping the center of the bridge. This caul has a notch that fits over a saddle, so that you can glue a bridge with or without a saddle in place.

Set of 5 cauls includes:
• 2 bridge end cauls to fit the wings of the bridge, with rubber pads
• 1 bridge top caul to fit the center of the bridge, notched to fit over saddles
• 2 bridge plate cauls for inside the guitar body, notched to fit over braces