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Post subject: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 4:05 am
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Hi guys, I'm having a bit of an issue with playability on my Strat and I'm trying to fix it myself before I run to the nearest store.

For some reason my Strat feels harder to play lately. I've got 10s on it, but it's easier and more comfortable to press the 12s on my acoustic than it does to press the 10s on the Strat. It's as if there's much more tension on the 10s.

I've checked the setup with the setup guide and the neck relief seems to be right. The strings on the first fret appear to be pretty high up though. And I can't bring the strings down further without causing string buzz. Btw, I have no issues with the A and E string, it's really just the first 4 strings.

Any ideas where I should try to find the solution?


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 6:26 am
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In my opinion , you do not do the set up right way . This is ( not ) easey but need some experience . You take wrong measurement or ruler reading , I don't know , but sure your guitar need a set up.

Look on You tube "how to....."

Be sure to see a good luthier not anybody in guitar store .


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 8:03 am
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C'mon. Let's try to be a little more helpful here... :wink:


OK, patzw, measure your action at the moment; (string heights measured from the bottom of the string to the top of the 12th fret; measure both E-strings - the ADGB should be in a nice line between those).
Then measure the string heights (all strings) for the first fret (capo on the third fret, measure the clearance between the string bottoms and the top of the first fret).
I'd say those are the two most common points on playability issues. The measures you get should be close to the specs in Fender's Strat setup guide.


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 8:04 am
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http://www.fender.com/en-IL/support/art ... tup-guide/
Have you done the setup properly & in the proper order? I would also check the action at the nut. It's possible that it's too high. Should be around .018". If everything is ok you may just need to get used to the new string gauge or get lighter gauge strings. good luck.


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 8:13 am
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patzw wrote:
...The strings on the first fret appear to be pretty high up though...


Maybe you had nines and changed to tens? If so, the strings might not be sitting all the way down in the nut slots. Possibly poorly cut nut slots that need some attention. :idea:

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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 8:24 am
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shimmilou wrote:
patzw wrote:
...The strings on the first fret appear to be pretty high up though...


Maybe you had nines and changed to tens? If so, the strings might not be sitting all the way down in the nut slots. Possibly poorly cut nut slots that need some attention. :idea:

That seems most likely. But care must be taken if you need to do some filing & only if you know what you're doing :!:


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 8:48 am
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Thanks for the replies so far. Not at home right now so I can't do any measurements, but I'll check everything again once I'm home.

The nut could definitely be the problem though, the trouble did start after going up to 10s from 9s. If that's the case I'm not doing any filing myself. I'll let you know what happens :)


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 4:32 pm
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patzw wrote:
Thanks for the replies so far. Not at home right now so I can't do any measurements, but I'll check everything again once I'm home.

The nut could definitely be the problem though, the trouble did start after going up to 10s from 9s. If that's the case I'm not doing any filing myself. I'll let you know what happens :)


Nut ??? Not sure , most of the time .010 seat well in place of .009 . Just look with a magnifiyng glasses. Chance is you have too much neck bow.

How do you take neck bow reading ? You need feeler gage ( or some expereince ) and press string at the first and last fret . That is why I answer first ; You don't do set -up in carefully.


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 6:40 pm
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what I do is take 9's off , then check truss rod with wrench clockwise to where it stops and is snug with no strength involved-no tension here at all on wood
then I place 10's and tune -stretching strings carefully of course -see fender instrs or youtube videos for help
then I take cover off back and loosen the two claw springs to where the tremolo is 3mm or less above front of body -(my preference)
then I retune
then I raise saddles to compensate for increased width of 10's strings-this can take days to personal taste -I usually move my saddles to lower action to my taste
then I adjust saddles to intonate at 12th fret with touch harmonics and open plucked stringsseveral times -always tuning E -6th string first and down from there
the nuts are usually not involved -I have had one or two fenders mexico whose nuts had to be replaced -they were barely filed down and strings would pop out
also neck relief is usually not a problem -but micro-tilt included in American deluxe models so it can happen someday where neck is bowed due to wear and tear and kept in bad controlled environments -high heat or high humidity out of case
then I play and enjoy :D


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 7:53 pm
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txdent77 ,

You must take some reeding with feeler gauge at 8 or 9 th fret. Where there are more space. Neck will move often in 24 hours . You must re-check and readjust truss rod.


If you don't do that , neck will not have the proper curve.


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 7:59 pm
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I did not include all the important minor details -I assumed we all already know this
letting the neck adjust after truss rod adjustment, etc....
"the devil is in the details" though :mrgreen:


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 9:22 pm
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txdent777 wrote:
what I do is take 9's off , then check truss rod with wrench clockwise to where it stops and is snug with no strength involved-no tension here at all on wood


Are you saying that with no strings installed you tighten the truss rod all the way until the adjusting nut stops? Then you install the strings? If so, you clearly do not know that you are doing. Take the guitar to a pro before you damage something.

BTW, the micro-tilt adjustment has absolutely nothing to do with setting neck relief.

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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 9:51 pm
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bluesky636 wrote:
txdent777 wrote:
what I do is take 9's off , then check truss rod with wrench clockwise to where it stops and is snug with no strength involved-no tension here at all on wood


Are you saying that with no strings installed you tighten the truss rod all the way until the adjusting nut stops? Then you install the strings? If so, you clearly do not know that you are doing. Take the guitar to a pro before you damage something.

BTW, the micro-tilt adjustment has absolutely nothing to do with setting neck relief.

Tightening the truss rod w/o strings seems superfluous to me as well. There's no point to it. You adjust the relief w/the strings on & tuned in.


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 9:59 pm
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If the relief looks good and you are getting fret buzz, shim the neck.


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Post subject: Re: Setup help
Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 10:27 pm
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stratele52 wrote:
...Nut ??? Not sure , most of the time .010 seat well in place of .009...


Yes, most of the time it should work just fine. In this case, the OP referred to the strings being too high at the first fret, so it seems that this time something is wrong with the nut. Even with a horrible setup, the string height at the first fret wouldn't be that bad. :idea:

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