Killing Two Birds with One Stone: JLD Bridge Doctor #3695 with Brass Pins

[redir]

I admit I don't have a lot of experience with the BD but that's because after about the 5th one I tried I said to my self, never again. Every one of the guitars I put one on the tone was crushed. It could very well be though that on some cheap guitars they work out well. I only say that because a lot of people make that claim. But then a lot of people make the claim that switching bridge pins makes a huge difference too when in fact it very rarely does

The BD does indeed to what it states it does though. It will flatten out a top that has a bridge with too much forward rotation. But it comes with a price. As a last ditch effort on a cheap guitar though, just to keep it functional and playing, then sure go for it.

[mirwa]

Originally Posted by bobbyewing40

Check on youtube : Free neck reset . https://www.google.com/search?client...KMX2kwW-kJYg39 The guy is John Miner from down under.

Unfortunatley his logic is flawed, steaming the front part of a guitar will not suddenly allow the neck to bridge relationship to suddenly come straight again, the fact he clamps the guitar for a month with a beam attached to the top is likely the reason for the change, it will however revert back to the way it was

[cugir321]

Originally Posted by SRL

Okay, I will repost my reply here:

Nah, I think you've got it right, unfortunately.

It all depends on how far you want to go. If you're concerned about tone, I wouldn't use a JLD, as they add mass to the top/bridge, making it less responsive. Or maybe you're a heavy strummer and it doesn't matter? Nearly all guitars develop bellying over time; it just depends on how bad it is.

If you want more break angle, and you don't mind modifying the bridge a bit, why not shave some off of the edge where the strings touch the ebony (between the saddle and the holes). Or, cut grooves for each string to pass without touching the wood You could also combine that with cutting some small slots at the holes with a thin file (nut slot files work well). These two bridge modifications would get you a better break angle.

Did your tech mention anything about a neck reset? If your neck angle is off, that can cause the situation where your action is too high, but you can't lower your saddle anymore. Most guitars need a neck reset every decade or three, depending. You can easily check your neck angle yourself with a good straightedge tool. Lay the edge on the frets and move it toward the bridge. The top of the frets should line up with the top of the ebony part of the bridge, ideally just skimming over the top so that the top of the fretwire and the top of the ebony bridge wood are on the same plane. If that's not the case, and the frets "point" to a spot lower on the bridge, closer to the spruce top, you're probably due for a neck reset.

Additional thoughts:

If you need a neck reset, you need a neck reset. Your saddle is already far lower than the designers of the guitar intended, because otherwise your strings wouldn't be touching the edge of the bridge (in between the string holes and the saddle).

So, sure, a JLD will fix the belly, if it's bad enough to warrant a fix, and doing so may improve your intonation a bit, but adding mass to the bridge will suck some volume out of the guitar, it's just physics. Modifying the bridge as I suggested above would also improve the break angle and help compensate for some of the volume loss from adding the truss.

A good "test" to see if your belly is bad enough is to put a straight edge across the guitar's lower bout, at the bottom of the bridge, basically the widest point on the lower bout. Then measure the gap at the edges of the guitar, between the edges of each side of the straight edge and the edge of the guitar. If the total distance you measure is over 1/2", then you might consider doing something about the belly. If you measure, say 3/16" on each side for a total of 3/8", for example, it's probably not worth fixing because you're unlikely to get much of a difference in action.

Another way to test that's a bit harder is to measure the angle of the bridge tilt. It should be ideally be less than 5 degrees. These are all approximations of course.

I have one on a Bedel...second loudest guitar I have.