First Truss Rod Adjustment (seeking advice)

mbrh138 · #1 09-25-2020, 11:39 AM

Hey everyone, this is my first post on AGF, been loving all the content on here! I recently bought a Gibson L00, it arrived by mail and it had a slight fret buzz, and basically i took it into the store, the luthier looked at it and told the guy at the desk to loosen the truss rod a bit, but now that it has settled in (about five days from that adjustment) I've found that the action is a little higher than I'd like. I want to just do this adjustment myself, as i think just a quarter turn tightening would get it back to where i want it. Is it too soon after that adjustment? Should i wait a few more days to let the neck further settle? Am i overthinking this?

I'm just paranoid, as I have never adjusted the truss on my own before, though doing research, it seems pretty straightforward in this case. Just want any advice you guys might have for performing this.

Thanks in advance.

LeDave · #2 09-25-2020, 11:46 AM

Not sure if truss rod adjustment would do much if the luthier already adjusted it, maybe post a picture of the saddle height? I'd leave the truss rod alone just because a luthier adjusted it and he knows best.

KevinH · #3 09-25-2020, 11:49 AM

Welcome to the AGF!

Unless you trust the store you bought the guitar from, you might consider taking the guitar to another luthier/guitar tech and having a setup done. Let them know you're playing style and he/she can get the action adjusted the way you want.

If you're comfortable working with a few tools, you can do the setup yourself. There are many youtube videos and descriptions here on the AGF to help you out.

The truss rod is not used to adjust action per se. It is meant to adjust the relief in the neck, which will have an effect on the action. Fret buzz can be caused by a number of things. Simply adjusting the truss rod to eliminate the buzz may leave you with the wrong amount of relief. Google guitar setup, or search the many previous threads here and you'll get a boatload of information. And, BTW, if the "luthier" at the guitar store was going to adjust the truss rod to get rid of buzz I would look to a different tech -- unless they had already checked the relief and decided the neck needed more relief. That happened to me years ago when I bought a guitar at my local Guitar Center after I noticed some buzz on the high e string. The "tech" there spent all of 30 sec on it - gave the truss rod a 1/4 turn and gave it back to me. That was before I knew anything about setting up a guitar. I've never gone back after that.

warfrat73 · #4 09-25-2020, 12:00 PM

If you tighten it a 1/4 turn --without forcing anything-- you're not going to hurt it, and it will be fine.

Give it a shot and let it settle for a couple of days.

If that gets you where you want to be, then you're good to go. If not, take it back to the shop for a setup.

Ralph124C41 · #5 09-25-2020, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeDave

Not sure if truss rod adjustment would do much if the luthier already adjusted it, maybe post a picture of the saddle height? I'd leave the truss rod alone just because a luthier adjusted it and he knows best.

I do think it's possible that the guitar has "settled" and an adjustment could be made. I've had it happened with my acoustics and really somewhat dramatically with a few of my electrics.

But I agree a return trip to the luthier may help. In some cases, the luthier may do that for free or at a reduced rate.

mbrh138 · #6 09-25-2020, 12:12 PM

Quote:

The "tech" there spent all of 30 sec on it - gave the truss rod a 1/4 turn and gave it back to me. That was before I knew anything about setting up a guitar. I've never gone back after that.

This is kinda what i'm thinking which is why I feel like it should be okay to tighten it 1/4th turn back. It's not like he gave it a full set up or anything. He stopped over and looked at it very briefly and had the other guy loosen it.

Thanks for everyone's feedback

Peter Z · #7 09-25-2020, 12:18 PM

As warfrat says, tighten 1/4 turn and see what happens.

Before doing this, you should check the relief. That can be done easily:
press the low E-string on the 1st fret with a finger of your fretting hand and at the same time press the same string on the 15th fret with your pinky of your right hand. Than tap the string with your right hand thumb on the 7th fret. There MUST be a space between the string and the fret. If there is a gap it will make ‚click’ when you tap. It can be close to zero but there MUST be a gap.

In case there is none, don‘t tighten your truss rod!!! That might be the only way to damage your guitar, depending on the type of truss rod in your guitar.

Otherwise don‘t worry. If a 1/4 turn is not enough do another 1/4 turn or even a third one, just give the guitar some time to settle. You can also ‚help‘ the neck with pressing it backwards - gently of course.

Mr. Jelly · #8 09-25-2020, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by warfrat73

If you tighten it a 1/4 turn --without forcing anything-- you're not going to hurt it, and it will be fine.

Give it a shot and let it settle for a couple of days.

If that gets you where you want to be, then you're good to go. If not, take it back to the shop for a setup.

Exactly!!!!!!!!!!

I've had guitars that I adjusted the truss rod every spring and fall to keep them playing well.

MartinGibsonFan · #9 09-25-2020, 02:17 PM

Personally, I would have an established relationship with your guitar tech, take the guitar in and have the tech explain how to adjust the truss rod and what it all involves and affects.

Maybe there could be some YouTube videos on adjusting truss rods.

I'd be hesitant to cranking that truss rod for the very first time on a guitar that has a value of $2,699.

Internet advice is cheap (FREE) permanent damage to a $2,699 guitar that you bought is forever.

Just my opinion,

MGF

Br1ck · #10 09-25-2020, 02:28 PM

I always slacken a truss rod before I tighten it. Ultimately you need to understand the geometry of a guitar neck. With a capo and a set of feeler gauges, you can measure relief for yourself by capoing at the first fret, pressing down at the 14th, and then measuring at the 7th. Do this and you can get a feel for how much a quarter turn affects your relief.

It is very important to understand this only has an affect on part of the fingerboard, and nut slots and bridge are more actually the parts that effect action.

I have become a believer in fret leveling as the most important tool toward good action, but that's another subject.

Mike McLenison · #11 09-25-2020, 03:05 PM

See if you can have an experienced tech do a setup for the fret buzz and great action in front of you. Ask questions and make notes. I was a machinist for many years so I know how to properly assess my setups for corrections. All my guitar's necks are perfectly straight with no relief (my preference for max tone and volume), low action (1/16" at 12th fret), and zero fret buzz (also check for high fret areas). There are some additional tricks which comes with experience. Good luck!

justonwo · #12 09-25-2020, 03:59 PM

You should learn about all the aspects of setup before you start tweaking things on your guitar. If the guitar was buzzing too much with the truss rod was tighter, that means tightening the truss rod will get you back to a buzzing guitar.

You probably need to keep the relief you have now and lower the saddle, but guitar setup is a very methodical process that has to be done in the right order. Take the time to educate yourself about the entire process or you'll be spinning your wheels.

Until you understand the full monty, I wouldn't touch the truss rod. If I'm really being thorough about setup, I'll have a good technician adjust the nut slots - that's where it starts:

1) Action at the nut is best adjusted by someone that knows what they're doing. If the nut isn't slotted deep enough, it'll be hard to play first position chords. My preference is 0.020" at the low E and 0.010" at the high E. Interpolated for all the strings in between. If the nut slots are too low, you'll get buzzing on open strings.

2) Relief. This is the amount of bow in your truss rod and helps to eliminate buzz in the lower parts of the neck up to about the middle of the neck. This is what the truss rod is for. I usually shoot for 0.006"-0.008" to completely eliminate buzz.

3) Finally, you adjust action at the saddle. If it's too high, you sand down the bottom of the saddle. If it's too low, you either replace the saddle or shim it.

This all assume the frets are level, of course.

Long story short, don't take shortcuts. Either have someone competent do the job or learn the whole thing yourself before doing any individual step.

justonwo · #13 09-25-2020, 04:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike McLenison

See if you can have an experienced tech do a setup for the fret buzz and great action in front of you. Ask questions and make notes. I was a machinist for many years so I know how to properly assess my setups for corrections. All my guitar's necks are perfectly straight with no relief (my preference for max tone and volume), low action (1/16" at 12th fret), and zero fret buzz (also check for high fret areas). There are some additional tricks which comes with experience. Good luck!

Hmmm . . . I think for anyone that is playing with anything but the absolute softest, most delicate touch, having no relief and action of 1/16" (0.0625") would be considered a recipe for extreme buzzing. A perfectly straight neck usually doesn't work very well if you want to eliminate buzz, particularly if you want action that low. 1/16" would generally be considered extremely low action - too low to be practical. I couldn't even get away with that on my electric guitars.

warfrat73 · #14 09-25-2020, 04:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justonwo

You should learn about all the aspects of setup before you start tweaking things on your guitar. If the guitar was buzzing too much with the truss rod was tighter, that means tightening the truss rod will get you back to a buzzing guitar.

Well, it kind of depends on how much the tech loosened it in the first place. But, while tightening it a 1/4 turn might get it buzzing again, it certainly won't do any harm.

justonwo · #15 09-25-2020, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by warfrat73

Well, it kind of depends on how much the tech loosened it in the first place. But, while tightening it a 1/4 turn might get it buzzing again, it certainly won't do any harm.

Not likely to do harm, but I really don’t think people should mess with the truss rod if they don’t know what it’s supposed to do. The best place to start would be to measure relief. If the guitar has an appropriate amount of relief, the effort should be directed elsewhere. I don’t advocate this uneducated, shot-in-the-dark approach to setup.