Patent ID: 8748717

Claim:
An accessory for a stringed instrument, the stringed instrument having a body with a face, a head portion, a neck disposed between the body and the head portion, and a plurality of instrument strings attached to the head portion and extending along the neck, the accessory comprising: a bridge assembly being mountable to the face and having upper and lower surfaces, the lower surface being configured to be adjacent to the face when the accessory is mounted to the instrument, the upper surface being spaced from and opposite the lower surface; a plurality of first bearings operatively attached to the upper surface, wherein each first bearing of the plurality of first bearings is configured to secure a central portion of an instrument string of the plurality of instrument strings such that a first end portion of the instrument string is attached to the head portion and extends along the neck passing from the neck to the body, securely reversing direction at the bearing, and passing back from the body to the neck to a second end portion that is attached to the head portion spaced from the first end portion; a saddle bearing assembly haying a plurality of saddle bearings with each saddle bearing of the plurality of saddle bearings being configured to support a portion of an instrument string of the plurality of instrument strings in a spaced relationship from the body and to retain the portion of the instrument string in a spaced relationship from at least one of another portion of the instrument string and other instrument strings of the plurality of instrument string, wherein the saddle bearing assembly further includes a bearing base, wherein each saddle bearing of the plurality of saddle bearings includes a generally spool-shaped bearing body operatively attached to the bearing base, the bearing body having first and second flanged ends, a first cylindrical bearing surface proximate the first flanged end, a second cylindrical bearing surface proximate the second flanged end, and a circumferential gap between the first and second cylindrical bearing surfaces.