The Rockinger Tremolo

In late 1981, early 82, Kramer introduced the Made in West Germany Rockinger trem which was one of the first locking nut trems.It was a heavy brass fine tuning unit attached with a forebar with 6 screws (later it became a two post known as a Tru-Tune although weI don't have record of these making it on Kramers). The trem itself had two pin pivots that butted up against the forebar giving the rocking movement. The trem rested on the face of the guitar(non-floating).

Side-Top View Click on the thumbnail	Underside View Click on the thumbnail	Top View Click on the thumbnail	Rockinger Nut Click on the thumbnail

The earlier ones sported saddle height adjustments that required the saddle to be removed and the nuts had tighteners for each string. Later, the intonation adjustments were top mounted and the nut was changed to have one tightening screw for the "B" and "E" strings to minimize breakage which was common with these units. The bars were black with a friction screw and a nylon washer. There was also a matching brass wrench holder available for the back of the headstock.

Edward Van Halen's Pacer with Rockinger Click on the thumbnail for a larger version

The Rockinger was referred in early Kramer literature and hangtags as the "Edward Van Halen Tremolo" although EVH always expressed his frustration with the trem and suggested improvements that the Rockinger people didn't take too well. EVH had been working with Floyd Rose and eventually Floyd took over the business. The Rockinger was available through 1982 although they were probably available as an option a bit longer. The rockinger trem is pretty rare. Original box shown here to the right.

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"The Edward Van Halen Tremolo"	Old Kramer Rockinger Instructions	Rockinger Ad	Rockinger Ad	Rockinger Ad

More Rockinger Detail Pictures

Brass Unit	Complete True-Tune Unit