Adjusting Action

[Endevour]

I have finished building my acoustic guitar, it sounds and plays nice, only thing is that the action is high. I have sanded the nut and the bridge, both bone.
The action is still a little high and I want to install a pickup which is making the action even higher. My question is, how do I lower the action on the actual wooden bridge slot without destroying it?

[HHP]

Is your neck angle good?

[Endevour]

Neck angle is bang on! What I think the problem is, is that I bought a finished bridge on Ebay and assumed that it was the correct height, depth etc.
It's only a tad high, I mean by the thickness of the low E string. Problem is that when I install the pick up it sits just way too high for the bone saddle to fit in properly.

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by Endevour

My question is, how do I lower the action on the actual wooden bridge slot without destroying it?

If the bridge is already affixed to the guitar, as it sounds like it is, usually a router or dremel in a jig or a sharp knife and chisel and a certain amount of finesse. If you are planning to install an under-the-saddle transducer, the bottom of the slot needs to closely match the bottom of the saddle, else response from the pickup will be uneven. The easiest way to accomplish this is to make both the bottom of the slot and the bottom of the saddle FLAT.

[Endevour]

Thank you
I just got back from The Home Depot where I bought a Multipurpose bit for my Dremel. I am going to practice on a spare Bridge and if I can get up the courage then I will go at it.

[RussB]

WHOA!

A Dremel has no business anywhere within 20 feet of your bridge and saddle unless you have the SKILL and the JIGS and FIXTURES to do the work properly

[Endevour]

Ok, now you have me second guessing!!!!

[charles Tauber]

You'll need something along the lines of this jig: http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tools/Ji...uting_Jig.html

Depending upon tools and aptitude, you can easily make one yourself from plastics or wood.

As RussB said, free-hand isn't the way to go for this.



As an aside, a jig is a device that holds the work stationary and guides the movement of a cutter past/over the work; a fixture is a device that assists in positioning the work as it moves past/over a fixed-poition cutter. In a jig, the the cutter moves; in a fixture the work moves.

[Endevour]

You were right! I need a jig...

[Ned Milburn]

You can pay money (162 dollars) to stewmac for a jig that you may only use once. But if you are just going to do this once, you can probably pay a luthier less than that to route your saddle slot deeper. Probably 30 min to 1 hour - max - even if someone was really finicky and measured 50 times before cutting.

Or, you could DIY it very easily. I have some bamboo hardwood floor stock that I use for many things - from sanding blocks to routing guides to even my band saw fence. I once used this bamboo to make a guide (I wouldn't go so far as to say "jig") for routing a saddle slot on a Gibson Hummingbird. Clamp one piece in front of the bridge, one behind, then two "stops" to keep your dremel/router from making the slot too long. Basically, measure, clamp, measure, clamp, measure and measure again, then start cutting. Oh, and you'd likely want to use some non-slip rubber-ish material (or cork?) between the guides and the guitar to prevent damage to the finish and to prevent slipping.

One of the key skills to guitar building is not just being able to build a good guitar, but it is being able to build the tools, jigs, and guides you need to enable the building of a good instrument.

[Endevour]

Thank you very much for the reply.
I have built 5 acoustic guitars now and repaired a few as well. I purchased many tools from Stewmac as well. I may just buy that jig.
I am going to try what you suggested for making a guide though.
On another note, I checked the neck angle again and it seems to be fine. I measured and compared to my other guitars and the height is exact at the bridge so maybe that neck angle is the culprit. I think when building consideration should be given to the tension the strings cause as this will have an affect on the action, therefor maybe the neck joint should be slightly off 90???????? Any thoughts????
I am second guessing because the first guitar that I built has perfect action and very easy to play. The difference was that the solera was bowed in the center causing pressure resulting in the neck being slightly negative, when I put the strings on it the action came up to a perfect height. Plenty of room to lower the action if needed but like I said, nice and low already and very easy to play, no buzzing either. Oh yeah, 15" radius.