There are number of issues that some of these Superaxes suffer from. That is not to say they all suffer from them, far from it. These guitars were very well built. It just highlights which parts of the guitar are more prone to wear and tear over a 45 year and more life span. Here I will document how to fix them. Your help is most welcome.

The ones that are ‘common’ that I have come across:

– The case handle breaks off, leaving just the brackets. Here is one way of repairing it: Click

– The SA-5, SA-50 and SA-30 vibrato (tremolo) arms and collets get removed sometimes and then get lost. Quite often you see these guitars for sale without their vibrato arm. It is almost impossible to source a replacement arm and collet unless you buy a guitar that has those parts and then ‘transplant’ them. I have had a number of SA30s and SA50s without their vibrato arm (whammy bar) so decided to make them myself.

The SA-30 whammy bar I make from 316 stainless steel. The SA-50 vibrato arm I also make from 316 stainless steel while the collet is made from 304 stainless steel. The nuts are also 304 s/s.

If you are interested in getting one of these vibrato units, contact me.

Below the videos I made about the vibrato assembly and installation with my aftermarket vibrato arm and its collet.

– Truss rod covers get removed and then become lost in the process.

Here are the dimensions of the Yamaha Superaxe truss rod covers so you can make your own.