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  #1  
Old 03-21-2018, 12:40 PM
mikemo6string mikemo6string is offline
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Default New Baja Tele, High E close to fret?

Hi folks,

I ended up with a new Baja Telecaster from Sweetwater. I do really dig the guitar: the neck, the pickups and the weight/balance are great. I'll post some pictures and a review after I have the guitar more than a few days. It's brand new.

The high E string is a little close to the fret edge. It's pretty tricky to get a good pull off, though it can be done with a little attention to technique. I'm thinking it's the nut, and it should be recut. It's definitely a little tight to the edge. Seems they might have missed that with that "55 point inspection!" I did contact Sweetwater, and haven't heard back yet. Unless they cover shipping to recut the nut, it wouldn't be worthwhile to send it back anyway.

Any thoughts? I may go ahead and have a new bone nut made. And if there are any opinions as to bone nuts and Teles, I'm listening!

Cheers,
Mike
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Old 03-21-2018, 01:21 PM
muscmp muscmp is offline
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play it for a while. if it bothers you, send it back. did you find the same problem when you played it in the store?

bob colosi for bone nuts. http://www.guitarsaddles.com/products.asp

play music!
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Old 03-21-2018, 01:22 PM
paulp1960 paulp1960 is offline
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Personally I would go for a synthetic nut made of graphtech or a similar material. It is more consistent than bone and nice and slippy to help prevent the strings jamming in the nut.
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  #4  
Old 03-21-2018, 09:29 PM
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PTony PTony is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mikemo6string View Post
Hi folks,

I ended up with a new Baja Telecaster from Sweetwater. I do really dig the guitar: the neck, the pickups and the weight/balance are great. I'll post some pictures and a review after I have the guitar more than a few days. It's brand new.

The high E string is a little close to the fret edge. It's pretty tricky to get a good pull off, though it can be done with a little attention to technique. I'm thinking it's the nut, and it should be recut. It's definitely a little tight to the edge. Seems they might have missed that with that "55 point inspection!" I did contact Sweetwater, and haven't heard back yet. Unless they cover shipping to recut the nut, it wouldn't be worthwhile to send it back anyway.

Any thoughts? I may go ahead and have a new bone nut made. And if there are any opinions as to bone nuts and Teles, I'm listening!

Cheers,
Mike
As a fellow Baja owner, as well as NUMEROUS other Fenders...this isn’t uncommon. You’ll find many threads out there regarding this issue. It’s not always the nut. Before you proceed detune until you get some slack in the strings. Back the the neck screws out a bit (4-5 turns) and pull the neck over in the pocket. Then re tighten the screws and retune.

Fenders are notorious for this. If that doesn’t remedy it then I’d say either send it back as “defective” and they’ll send you an RS label via email. Then ship you a replacement. All free of charge (I’ve dealt with Sweetwater for YEARS). Always fantastic customer service.

Hope this helps. Bajas are great guitars. Very very well made. Let us know how it goes.

PT
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  #5  
Old 03-22-2018, 12:31 PM
Paleolith54 Paleolith54 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by muscmp View Post
play it for a while. if it bothers you, send it back. did you find the same problem when you played it in the store?

bob colosi for bone nuts. http://www.guitarsaddles.com/products.asp

play music!
He bought it online.
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Old 03-22-2018, 12:46 PM
mr. beaumont mr. beaumont is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PTony View Post
As a fellow Baja owner, as well as NUMEROUS other Fenders...this isn’t uncommon. You’ll find many threads out there regarding this issue. It’s not always the nut. Before you proceed detune until you get some slack in the strings. Back the the neck screws out a bit (4-5 turns) and pull the neck over in the pocket. Then re tighten the screws and retune.

Fenders are notorious for this. If that doesn’t remedy it then I’d say either send it back as “defective” and they’ll send you an RS label via email. Then ship you a replacement. All free of charge (I’ve dealt with Sweetwater for YEARS). Always fantastic customer service.

Hope this helps. Bajas are great guitars. Very very well made. Let us know how it goes.

PT
This.

Also make sure the string is set correctly on the barrel saddle...if it was pulled through and over a bit crooked, you could also experience a bit of "close to the edge" feeling.

Whatever it ends up being, it's fixable, and you got yourself a great guitar right there, the Baja's are fantastic--the neck alone is a thing of beauty.
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Old 03-23-2018, 04:01 AM
paulp1960 paulp1960 is offline
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It is hard to say from OP description whether he means the string is too close to the fretboard edge at the nut, or whether he means the string is too close to the edge further up the neck. The latter usually caused by the neck not sitting right in the pocket and the former by a nut out of place.

I've seen a few Fenders in the shops (even US made ones) with the problem where the top string moves closer to the fret edge more as you move up the neck towards the 12th fret and beyond. It is poor quality control but usually easily fixed by loosening the neck and reseating it as described above by PTony.

I had the problem with one of my Squier Teles bought unseen and my tech easily fixed it for me.
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Old 03-23-2018, 06:36 AM
mikemo6string mikemo6string is offline
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Thanks for the replies. It's definitely close near the nut. Doesn't seem to be a problem down the neck, toward the body.

I did contact Sweetwater, and my rep did say that those Baja Teles are all cut like that. At least the four they had, and it seems to be pretty common. It also seems that the general consensus is that if I like the guitar, try and fix it on my end. I'm not so sure. I guess that's why they have a return policy.

Lesson learned, at least for me. Wait until you can try a guitar in person before you buy it. Or, in my case, buy from Guitar Center, where you can return the guitar in person and avoid eating the shipping charges.

It is a fun guitar. I dig the neck and the pickups a lot. It may be worth having a new nut done... I have to set it up with heavier strings anyway. I've only had the guitar a week, so I've got some time to decide.

Cheers,
Mike
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  #9  
Old 03-23-2018, 08:42 AM
ataylor ataylor is offline
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If you like the weight of the guitar and everything else about it feels right, I’d have a really experienced guitar tech set it up to your liking, which may very well include a new nut. I also bought a Baja Telecaster from Sweetwater about two years ago, and while it played fine upon arrival, it now plays great after a good setup I had done last year.
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  #10  
Old 03-23-2018, 08:53 AM
mr. beaumont mr. beaumont is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mikemo6string View Post
I have to set it up with heavier strings anyway.
Heck, that might solve the problem right there...
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  #11  
Old 03-23-2018, 11:23 AM
harpspitfire harpspitfire is offline
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i let this thread run a while before i answered, this is a set up issue, i think sweetwater is great, but that 55 point IMO is meaningless for some things-- like set-up, i bought an acoustic there, i expected shipping in a day or so, i thought the truss rod would be adjusted, meaning the guitar has set a while to check intonation-well i no sooner bought it and an email a couple hours later with all the images and 55 point done with a shipping notice- seriously? so your new guitar was never really set up IMO, have it done some where local, new guitar needs it anyway
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