You can do it in stages - start with just replacement saddles.
Then move up to a replacement bridge - but reuse all the screws etc from your existing bridge.
I wouldn't worry about the baseplate - Peter's is still an original Rick baseplate by the looks of it, and that way you never even touch the wood to make the mod.
Then post pictures and read my jealous comments

I wonder if this would count as a Peter Buck 360?

http://www.rickenbacker.com/news_auctio ... ews=recent


Also, I wonder if any of these guitars are replicas of his old 360? Wish we could see the bodies, not just the necks!

http://www.rickenbacker.com/news_item.a ... ews=recent

The original: http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151 ... guitar.jpg

http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151 ... rBuck2.jpg

The guitars from your second link: http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151 ... rsyeah.jpg

Some of the same: http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151 ... itars3.jpg

Wow! Cool shots! How did you find those? Looks like several Jet-glo 360 clones in the lineup. Also interesting is that the Burgundy 330 has a similar brass bridge to his 360. Thanks for sharing those!

I recently wrote a long answer to this question: http://nostalgiamusicreviews.blogspot.c ... why-i.html

The short and skinny is that when I was a teenager, or at least through ages fourteen through sixteen, I was obsessed with Peter Buck's playing and gear.

As I state in the article, I know my stuff, but I'm open to new things. If anyone ever has anything interesting about him to share, I'd love to see it.

Another option on this might be the new Mastery M5 bridge offered for Ricks. They're all brass (and chrome plated). And they're definitely charging "good money." Very curious - too new for any meaningful feedback or reviews yet.

Sorry for the old thread revival.

There is nothing new but the history a person doesn't know. We all did chrome plated, or sometimes raw, brass hardware in the mid to late '70's, in an attempt to increase sustain through added mass. The brass was softer than the steel strings, and so it would wear and look cruddy compared to steel parts, whatever the make or model of guitar or bridge. And the brass hardware didn't really change the tone that much, unless it was a quality bridge replacing an inferior one. Then in that case, it is a matter of the overall quality upgrade, not that the replacement was brass.

Unless it's the absolute look a person is after, I urge sticking with the stock bridge.

Yeah, there is no doubt about that. But in this case, I don't think anyone believes it's a new idea. I don't think it's a secret that brass bridges are usually sought after specifically to get that vintage tone. I had brass saddles on my Tele. I grant you it's subtle, but I do think brass saddles make an audible difference in tone. There are a few comparison videos out there that help illustrate this (as well as some that don't help).

Does anyone know what kind of bridge Peter uses on his 360/6? It looks like a brass roller bridge.