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| Not enough neck relief but no truss rod http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=40906 |
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| Author: | Tai Fu [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 8:42 am ] |
| Post subject: | Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
So if a guitar doesn't have enough neck relief, and it doesn't have a truss rod, what can you do to increase the relief? It's a steel 12 string... |
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| Author: | SteveSmith [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 10:09 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
Heavier strings? |
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| Author: | Pmaj7 [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 10:52 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
Clamp the neck in the position you want and put some heat on it (but not too much) like a light bulb and leave it they're all day. Or carve the neck some more. Depends on the value of the instrument. |
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| Author: | JasonM [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 12:02 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
Clamp it down with back bow, and level the frets, so when released there is sufficient relief. |
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| Author: | Tom West [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 1:27 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
When I first started to build I did not use an adjustable truss rod. One had to put a back bow into the neck because with out it string pressure alone would give too much relief. Generally over time the relief would increase. It seems strange to me that you could have lack of relief problems with a guitar that has been around a while..................unless the strings are a lighter gauge then original. Or the guitar is tuned down lower then it was designed to be tuned. Top may be starting to deform..............??? I would suggest decreasing the back bow. Maybe a bit more info...!! Tom |
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| Author: | Rodger Knox [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 3:22 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
We need a little more info. What brand of guitar is it, and how old is it? What is the neck wood, and is it solid or laminated? Is the neck reinforced? Some of the old Stellas(and lots of other older, inexpensive guitars) have a little sticker saying "Steel reinforced neck", but they are not adjustable. I can't imagine that a 12 string would not pull enough relief into an unreinforced neck. |
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| Author: | Tai Fu [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 4:06 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
The guitar is a Galiano 12 string, similar to a Stella 12. The neck is quite thick, made of poplar, with absolutely no reinforcement. I know this because I rebuilt this guitar. As for tuning I was asked to use a very low tuning which I think contributed to the problem, however I did have to plane the fingerboard because there was a pronounced hump that caused excessive buzzing at higher frets. As for string gauge he used heavier than normal but I have a feeling it's not heavy enough... the string still felt kinda flabby because it didn't feel difficult to play even with a higher than normal action. The top was in pieces which I had to reassemble like a jigsaw puzzle but since there's a tailpiece top deformity isn't an issue. |
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| Author: | Chameleon [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 11:31 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
Tailpiece might be part of the issue. The higher tension might just press down on the top more, especially if it's damaged like you say. I have no idea why it sounds logical to make a 12 string steel guitar #1 with no truss rod and #2 with a tailpiece on, I'm assuming, a flat top. I'm not an expert but that sounds like a very odd combination. |
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| Author: | Tai Fu [ Wed Jul 17, 2013 11:33 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
I don't know but that's how Stella 12's are built. |
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| Author: | Chameleon [ Thu Jul 18, 2013 1:57 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
Or you could build a whole new guitar that solves all the structural problems. |
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| Author: | nyazzip [ Thu Jul 18, 2013 11:47 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
too humid; wait for winter and it will curl up again and be playable  edit: i'm only half joking.....it is ok if an instrument has seasons, just like real life. makes you appreciate it when it is dialed in, and makes you think about things when it isn't. |
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| Author: | Tai Fu [ Thu Jul 18, 2013 11:52 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Not enough neck relief but no truss rod |
It would have been so much easier with truss rods for sure... the problem is either it curls up way too much or not enough. Problem is owners don't always understand this and assume that luthiers are magicians. |
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