How do I know if I need a neck reset? (Taylor)

[glocke12]

I am predominantly a bass player yet have a 614 CE here ill pick up maybe once a week to just strum.

A few years back I had it in to a local luthier for a setup and he mentioned it needed a neck reset and that it would be taken care of under Taylors warranty.

I honestly cannot detect any issue with this guitar. How do I know for sure a neck reset is needed on this?

[davenumber2]

Originally Posted by glocke12

I am predominantly a bass player yet have a 614 CE here ill pick up maybe once a week to just strum.



A few years back I had it in to a local luthier for a setup and he mentioned it needed a neck reset and that it would be taken care of under Taylors warranty.



I honestly cannot detect any issue with this guitar. How do I know for sure a neck reset is needed on this?

If the action is high and the saddle cannot be lowered any further to achieve decent action a reset is most likely needed. From what I hear a reset on a Taylor is no big deal because of the bolt-on neck. How does the guitar play?

[FingahPickah]

If you're OK with how it plays - leave it alone.

If you are not - take it to a different repair tech to evaluate.

Some primary indicators are:

Action height and Intonation that cannot be resolved by saddle and truss rod adjustments.

[rmp]

what they are saying,, true.

Taylor's have a bolt system for their necks, they use shims to change the break angle if it's out of wack.

MAKE SURE you take it to someone who knows how to work on TAYLORS!

a good tech that doesn't understand that, will just screw it up.

I've seen it happen before...

[Gdjjr]

If you're happy with the way it plays and sounds. No. A warranty claim can be filed and get paid whether the work is done or not. Dealership mechanics do it often.

[rmp]

Originally Posted by glocke12

How do I know for sure a neck reset is needed on this?

http://guitarless.com/2010/07/why-do...eadstock%20end.

the best way to do that is with a long straight edge.

resting the straight edge on the fretboard the straight edge should sit about at the top of the bridge infront of the saddle
if the straight edge is too low or too high, then yes.. it should be adjusted.

with Taylors tho, it's just a matter of the right shims (which taylor provides).

But again... the key is,, if you do the straight edge check and it's way off... find an authorized Taylor repair shop.

I would not to a local store that has a setup guy, unless they are also authorized to repair taylors. or god forbid "guitar center"

[Mark Stone]

If it plays well, don't worry about it. If it gets unplayable, it's a quick fix - but I will repeat what others have said - Take it to a Taylor authorized tech.

[619TF]

Originally Posted by Mark Stone

If it plays well, don't worry about it. If it gets unplayable, it's a quick fix - but I will repeat what others have said - Take it to a Taylor authorized tech.

I agree with this but I will add that unless you are the original owner the Taylor warranty does not apply.

[Street Glider]

Originally Posted by FingahPickah

If you're OK with how it plays - leave it alone.

If you are not - take it to a different repair tech to evaluate.

Why take it to a different tech?

[davenumber2]

Originally Posted by Street Glider

Why take it to a different tech?

Always good to get a second opinion.

[Jeff Scott]

Originally Posted by glocke12

A few years back I had it in to a local luthier for a setup and he mentioned it needed a neck reset and that it would be taken care of under Taylors warranty.

Originally Posted by Mark Stone

Take it to a Taylor authorized tech.

Originally Posted by 619TF

...unless you are the original owner the Taylor warranty does not apply.

I have a NS62ce that I bought new from a dealer who is also authorized service facility. While it plays find I feel that the action is a bit on the high side, so I took it to the dealer and asked about getting the neck reset to accommodate my needs. I told the tech that I had bought the guitar from them brand new and that it had never had any service done to it. He wanted (IIRC) $65.00 to do what you folks say should be covered under warranty.

Your thoughts on this?

[LakewoodM32Fan]

Take this with a grain of salt if you want (I took them at face value). Last holiday season I drove down to El Cajon to have a couple of things addressed on two Taylors I no longer own (one was a pickup upgrade, the other was a minor cosmetic blemish which they essentially made like new again). Still being short-staffed and backlogged with work due to the pandemic, I dropped them off and picked them up several weeks later. Both were given "neck resets" despite both being new instruments and playing fine (both before and after).

When I asked the tech why, they said it was that the wood had moved since it had been manufactured (it was in a dealer's inventory for a while, and then in my own home) so they set it to proper relief and found that to get to their desired action (3/32 bass E, 2/32 treble E) they had to change out the shims after the relief was to their spec. I asked if it wasn't easier to just shave a little off the bottom of the saddle, and he said at Taylor, they prefer to leave the saddle height as is out of the factory because that's their preferred break angle for the strings, and so would rather adjust action by changing shims (and hence neck angle) versus reducing the saddle.

They played and sounded great, so I didn't pay it any mind. Both guitars have since moved on, but I remember that conversation with their tech to this day. It's obviously pretty different than just about every other guitar maker out there where adjusting relief via the truss rod, then checking nut slot depth, and then finally adjusting saddle height is generally the way to achieve desired action.

[rmp]

Originally Posted by Jeff Scott

I have a NS62ce that I bought new from a dealer who is also authorized service facility. While it plays find I feel that the action is a bit on the high side, so I took it to the dealer and asked about getting the neck reset to accommodate my needs. I told the tech that I had bought the guitar from them brand new and that it had never had any service done to it. He wanted (IIRC) $65.00 to do what you folks say should be covered under warranty.

Your thoughts on this?

A standard setup runs generally is about that amount to have done.

The question to answer is, was this really a setup where things "not applicable" to a warranty were done?

eg: Regulate the nut slots, set neck relief, set action to a more desirable setting for your playing style. These would be normal things that any new guitar should have done once you purchase.

Caveat here is Taylors are usally setup pretty good from the factory, but it really depends on the player, and their own specifics.

and of course, setups, are not considered warranty work.

[619TF]

Originally Posted by Jeff Scott

I have a NS62ce that I bought new from a dealer who is also authorized service facility. While it plays find I feel that the action is a bit on the high side, so I took it to the dealer and asked about getting the neck reset to accommodate my needs. I told the tech that I had bought the guitar from them brand new and that it had never had any service done to it. He wanted (IIRC) $65.00 to do what you folks say should be covered under warranty.

Your thoughts on this?

Setups are not covered. Reset would be covered IF you're the original owner (as I said) and IF you go to a Taylor certified tech.

[glocke12]

Thanks Everyone.

My gut instinct has been to take it to a second tech. The first one was a local luthier who was a Taylor authorized tech but he has since closed up shop, and I also was always suspicious that he was trying to get me to have work done that wasn't needed.

Honestly for the amount I play this thing and the skill level I have it's probably fine. I literally pick it up for a total of an hour throughout the week and strum some chords because I like the way it sounds than put it back in the case and work on my primary instrument which is bass.

In any case, Sam Ash in Manhattan I think is an authorized Taylor repair center and I am up there almost weekly so I will probably take it there and have them look at it and slap some new strings on it while its there.