Loose truss Rod.

hey all. I am the proud owner of one of the sexy and sophisticated 25th Anniversary models (in fact, I am have trimmed down my herd to just this one...for now, anyway....I want to save up for a Rustic legacy)

anyway, I was having some issues with fretting out on the high E around the 5th and 7th frets and took some advise provided here and loosened the truss rod a bit. it really helped.

last night, I was playing a bit and was still find myself fretting out on the 5th fret or so. honestly, not a big deal, I think my technique has a bit to do with that. anyway, I thought I would try loosening up the truss rod just one more hair and discovered that it so loose that there was no tension in it when I turned it. freaking out a bit, I tightened it back up just enough to know that there was some tension in it.

so, is this unusual...? maybe it was me, but the truss rod just seemed to be hanging out in there.....please note, that the guitar plays great, is intonated and has been seen by two different professional tech guys in the past who have not raised any concerns about the neck..I am just wondering if this is common or not or cause for alarm.

thanks, Paul

Paul, I would look into this a bit more. I would check the neck with a straight edge and measure the relief at the 7th or 8th fret. If there were zero clearance at all points on the neck then the neck is perfectly flat. Good thing. I check frets when the neck is adjusted for 0 relief. I would then check the frets, in the area where you are having the issue, with a shorter (6 in. ) straight edge and make sure that you do not have a high, or low fret. After I had determined what the problem is , then a solution is possible. I suspect you may have a fret that is a bit high. Hopefully the neck itself is straight. If you can figure this out then the problem can be addressed. The truss rod should not be loose but at this point we are not sure what you neck relief is at. If you measure 8 thousands or more relief than you are in good shape for future adjustments. Going into the winter in Minnesota the neck relief would increase during the winter months. If your neck is flat or bowed up a bit then you have a problem if the truss rod is loose. Only a dual action truss rod could solve that issue. Hope that this makes sense.-- Darwin

You've have to make sure that the bridge geometry is correct on a guitar with the DF Vibrato. Follow the set- up procedure in the FAQ. Get the bridge plate level, parallel to the body, and 3/16" above the plane of the body. Get the saddles at the proper height above the bridge plate.

Make sure the the saddles are radiused to match the radius of the fingerboard. That is one of the best tips I've ever gotten in 45 years of playing, to make your guitar "play like buttah". (And I HATE that expression!) You need to use a radius gauge to set it. Over time the bridge can flatten out, or get uneven, and really make your life miserable.

Should it be that your neck does need more relief, you can try heavier strings. Sometimes going from say, 9s to 10s, can make a big difference.

You may need to take the guitar to a tech, and have them heat press the neck. I had this done on my old LP Special, and it helped quite a bit to correct a back-bow. As a last resort, the fingerboard can be planed down, and refretted.

Good luck.

Bill

Thanks for the input, Darwin. What you said does make sense, though admittedly, I had to read it a few times. All the years I've been playing, I have been generally adverse to adjusting the truss rod. I think its the horror stories I heard as a teenager about the bad things that can happen if you aren't careful (which I am generally not). I used a 7 inch straight edge to check the frets and they all seem the same level. I also experimented with slight adjustments of the truss rod. with slight tension, I was able to notice that it did bow forward ever so slightly. I took it down a hair and the high E started to buzz just a bit on the first fret so I tightened it up just a notch. I did the trick where you press down at two points on a string at each end of the neck, plucked it and confirmed that I still had slight relief. I have the "if it ain't broke" attitude about it for now but it has been a few years since it was professionally set up, so that should happen eventually. I really don't have the patience or skills to do that kind of thing myself.

Bill, thanks for the input as well. I confirmed that the saddles matched the radius of the wood. I actually took your suggestion some time ago and bought the repair book that came with the plastic gauges... though honestly, I still don't know if I am using them correctly. By the way, the 25th Anniversary has the saddle lock bridge. while I appreciate the ingenuity of the DF Vibrato, it's not something that I have ever really taken advantage of, other than to actually to bend with my hand when a chord is ringing out.