Tweaking a neck

[angelodp]

I have done quite a few set-ups and I still marvel at how sensitive and delicate the adjustment on a neck relative to the bridge and body on most electric guitars can be. Any of you guys have some handy rules of the road for fool proof neck set-ups.

like .... BTW Frank Ford has a lot of info on this at www.frets.com/

1. Check nut for proper spacing and basic depth
2. Check neck for level and action of truss rod, set for flat to start.
3. Check all that all frets are smooth and well shaped and site along the neck
to see if there are any apparent high or low spots.
4. Mount the neck and set bridge so that strings are at reasonable playing level.
5. Set up the string saddles for height and proper intonation.
6. Lower the saddles and adjust intonation until a good playing height is achieved. This may also involve some adjustments at the nut so that the perfunctory 3rd fret test is satisfied.
7. Once the guitar is tuned, sight along the neck to see if it has developed any bow, which might affect action and buzzing. If there is any buzzing then .....
8. Determine the degree of neck bow, if it requires re-setting then undo the strings, remove the neck, re-set the truss rod in small increments, re-mount the neck and try all over again to achieve a good intonation and action without buzzing.
9. This seems to be a back and forth process until a solid action and intonation achieved.

I would love to see any other list of procedures for this.

I do realize that a guitar is a living breathing entity and that minor tweaks are always inevitable, but once a harmonious balance is achieved I find most guitars will stay true for a long time.

best Ange

[ChrisK]

I think that that was a pretty good process. Since the truss rod has no effect on the highest frets, it's important to set up the intonation and string height over them first.

The last thing that one does is to adjust the truss rod for the relief over the lower frets. I will put a capo on at the 12th fret and adjust the bridge for the ballpark first.

I've seen the Guitar Clones wank on the truss rod first. Unless they get lucky, all that they're doing is creating clearance items......

Then they wank on the micro-tilt and create a definite clearance item.

[cynical1]

ange -

Like Chis said, that pretty much narrows it down. I don't necessarily follow that sequence, but everyone has their "holy grail" of neck set-ups...

What you do to a neck is directly related to where it is when you start. If the neck is really bad I will usually remove it from the body, if possible, slack the tension off the truss rod, give it 3-5 days to settle and then start the process.

I just have a few basic caveats to what you have listed. If you've done a lot of set-ups then you probably already know these.

[CAVEATS]

1.) MICRO-TILT: Micro-tilt is handy and easy. It can give you a very good quick reference for final set on the neck. A shim is better. Micro-tilt puts all the stress and contact on one single point. A shim provides a more even surface area for the neck to rest on. A shim and micro-tilt both have an effect on tone. If you have questions on neck pocket shims, ask...this is thread all by itself.

2.) INTONATION: Intonation is always a compromise. You will never get all 19-24 fret in perfect intonation. Hit open and 12th with fretted and harmonic first. If you find this isn't good enough for where you play on the neck, work off "best averages" with your intonation. I do this from the odd frets, but do what works for you. Trust the harmonics.

3.) TRUSS ROD: Always go easy on truss rod adjustments. 1/4 turns, re-string and tune the guitar and wait a few days before going back for more...unless you really know what you're doing.

The popping you may hear when initially adjusting a truss rod is necessarily bad. It's usually just the glue from the fretboard breaking off the truss rod. The cracking of the fret board IS a bad thing...so go slow. And NEVER put a washer under the nut on a truss rod to get more adjustment.

3.) THE IRREVERSIBLE STUFF: Go easy on the things you can't simply undo.

Fret leveling and re-crowning takes time. Be patient and go slow. ALWAYS cover the fretboard around and to the side of the frets with masking tape. You will accidentally slide the file off the fret. Protect your work area.

I take a Sharpie marker and draw a line on top of all the frets before I start. As you work this will ensure you do not spend too much time in one spot and gives you a good reference for re-checking your progress periodically and noticing quickly where the real problems are. If you have serious string wear on your frets you may want to just re-fret from the start. Remember that leveling and re-crowning will effect the way the guitar plays...sometimes good, sometimes not so good depending on your style.

It will generally also require re-filing the nut, depending on how bad things were to begin with. When you get into nut filing remember the "measure twice cut once" rule. If you get it too low you need to replace the nut. Not the thing you want to do the day of the gig. Use feeler gauges and make sure you go slow.

[/CAVEATS]

Just remember that a perfectly straight neck is probably not what you're after. Some degree of bow is desirable to eliminate fret buzz, more so with heavier strings and especially on basses.

Everyone wants that super low action...again, fret buzz takes all the fun out of low action unless you have an incredibly light touch.

ALL setups vary on the style of the player. The enemy of good is better. Find what works best for you and learn when enough is enough and just play.

Happy Trails

Cynical One