Action setting

[Towzer]

have a guitar that is 3.2mm at Bass E 12th fret and 1.9mm on the treble E

What is best way to bring the Bass E down to about 2.5mm ?

Should i file the nut a bit or sand down the saddle ?

[nikpearson]

Although the height of the strings in the nut does make a significant difference to how the guitar plays, it hardly impacts on action at the 12th fret.

To lower the action at the 12th fret by a set amount you’ll need to take twice that amount off the bottom of the saddle. So a 0.5mm reduction in action at the 12th fret would require 1.0mm taking off the saddle.

Your action on the high E is 1.9mm - close to ideal - on the low you’ll need to drop the saddle by 1.4mm to lower the action to 2.5mm.

Sanding the bottom of a saddle flat is not to difficult but you’ll need to only sand away material from the bass side; that is a little trickier. I’d suggest marking the amount you want to remove with a fine pencil, tapering this to the treble side where no material needs removing, and then attaching the saddle to a flat and square piece of wood or similar with double-sided tape. By leaving only the material you want to remove projecting beyond the piece of wood you’re less likely to mess up.

Mount some abrasive paper on a flat surface and then sand the saddle.

Not the most elegant explanation but hopefully that helps.

[Towzer]

ok will try this thanks

[JayBee1404]

Check and, if necessary, set your neck-relief before you start removing material from the saddle. You can thank me later...

[dnottis]

Get the relief right, then the saddle. Last would be the nut action. .020" would be a safe first fret action. From there you can tweak.