Hello all. As the title suggests really. I have a 2010 CS Deluxe strat and its developed a rattle on the g and d strings. To be honest they all rattle a fraction, but quite severe on the g and d. The rattle/buzz happens from 3rd to 17th fret, and the noise first appeared to come from the fret above the one im fretting at, but there is no drop off in note sustain. I ve set up a few strats with success, so i had a go to try and cure it but to no avail. I ve adjusted the truss rod and set string height various times ,leaving my guitar to settle following each adjustment. I ve ended up with an excessive 15 thou neck relief and a string height of over 2mm just to try and reduce the problem. This is far to high action for me but still the rattle persists. I ve put a capo at the 7th fret just to check and i have a definate clearance between the bottom of the string and the next fret up as i thought it might be fret chatter. I ve gone over every screw, fixing, trem cavity, nut, headstock and tuners but i cant cure it. Please help. My number 1 is really starting to p**s me off and im starting to not enjoy playing it. What makes it worse is my £200 Squier knocks socks off my CS at the mo. Am i missing something before it goes to a luthier.
Thanks in advance.

Obviously, you've done some serious and extensive adjustments to no avail. Unfortunately and realistically, we'd have to have the guitar in front of us for precise diagnosis and remedy. Otherwise, we'd only be guessing as there are many possibilities and combinations of same which could be causing your malady. Your best bet at this point is to take it to a COMPETENT tech before it gets even further out of synch.

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You dig?

The only thing I can really think of would be maybe the frets metal spacings lifted up off out of the neck somewhat.Someone posted earlier that was what happened to them.I would take it to a guitar shop before doing anything else honestly have them see if they can find the source get a estimate and go from there.

Sound's like the neck is incorrectly shimmed. After seeing a good few CS fret jobs I can't for one second believe it's uneven frets, though theres always an exception to the rule.

Neither .015" neck relief or 2mm action are excessive.

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I would agree with taking it to an authorized service center and have them take a look. It sounds like you checked it out fairly well.
Have you sighted the neck looking down from the side of the headstock just to get a feel for the curve? If its buzzing from the 3rd fret on up to the 17th, which is essentially the middle (though a long middle at that), it could be a warp or a fret problem. it is hard to tell you without seeing it as mentioned.
Best regards,
rob

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rob Schwarz
Director,Fender Customer Service
Proudly serving Fender Customers
for over 30 years

Thanks for the advice everyone. Had a bit more of a fettle but no joy still. I would say it sounds like fret buzz but there is more than ample clearance between strings and frets. Really fustrated with it to be honest. Dropped it back to the shop where i got it from this morning to let them have a look. Less than a year old and i registered it with customer care when i purchased it. Bit concerned if the neck does need shimming or its warped. This is my go to guitar and always took great care over storage and keep it spotless.

This is your best bet; again, under the premise that the shop has a COMPETENT tech.

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You dig?

That is a concern of mine tbh. The fella i spoke to werent there tech. He aint in till tom so ill ring him early and explain the problems in depth. What worried me more was that the fella behind the counter said "neck needs shim mate", even before the thing was out of its case. Shimming might be whats needed. But i think its a hefty assumption before even seeing it. Dont fill me full of confidence to be honest.

FWIW, I HIGHLY doubt your neck needs a shim, even a forward one, period.

Granted, the counter guy is not the tech but I'd have a talk with the outright tech to get a feel of his competence first.

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You dig?

Nah it certainly doesn't need shimming if raising the action and increasing relief won't sort it.
All a shim will do is muck it up more by bringing the upper frets up to further interfere with the lower frets. You've already got that happening. Fender Custom Shop do NOT use shims. So Mike Eldred tells us.

DC, did you buy the guitar new? If so did you buy it from the shop where the tech you took it to works? It really sounds to me like he/she has some infatuation with shimming. If you bought it used it's entirely possible that the previous owner had a shim put in. A local guy suffered exactly that on his maple capped 54 re issue.



That thin piece of card ruining the playability of a gorgeous instrument. The idea of shimming a Oscar Pallares neck


It's rarely the answer for modern made guitars. Sometimes it doesn't hurt and sometimes it helps. I can't think of the last guitar I set up that I thought it to be a necessity.

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Yes. Was brand new. Infact i think im the only one who has ever played it. Was a special order for the shop with only 20 being here in the uk. I chose between the display one and from one out the back which box had never been opened. The tech set it up for me once before after about 3 months of playing in and a few string changes and was pleased with how it played after. I also cant see it needing a shim. Im no luthier by any stretch but i cant see how a shim would help. Would only raise the fret board more so. Unless the shim used was tapered, or wedge shaped,thus tilting the head stock forward? But i do have loads of clearance between the higher frets and bottom of the string.

Sounds to me that the tech/hack has shimmed the neck when you had it set up. That would explain the bad playability and is in keeping with their current infatuation for shimming.

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I hope thats really not the case. As i previous said. Im no luthier. But even before its first set up no way was it ever going to need a neck shim. And it played like a dream out the box. Main reason i got the guitar was to how it played and sounded. And felt better than the display one.

Let's look at the "shim thing" logically....if the pocket is too deep and you have no adjust left on your bridge saddles....then a shim is called for. In my experience (though its been awhile) using a shim was very very rare on the production line at Fender. Even when the models had Micro-tilt as a feature, it was very rarely used.
If there is a use for shims to fix a rattle or buzz, someone will have to explain that logic to me, cuz i don't get it.

Dc01, again I can't tell you what the deal is without seeing for myself, but it may be as simple as a truss adjust. Unfortunately, wood does shift a bit and sometimes necks go south.
Hope all goes well with the tech.
Best regards,
rob

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rob Schwarz
Director,Fender Customer Service
Proudly serving Fender Customers
for over 30 years

Cheers Rob. Ill will let you all know how it goes. Out of interest Rob. Is the Custom Shop Customer Care transferable to another dealer other than the point of purchase if you are not happy with the dealers service following the sale. I have 3 custom shop dealers within an hour from me. 2 of which are very well known and respected within the UK.