Question Luke III Butter Cream

[Kuker]

Hi gyus,
I just bought Luke model. Can you share your experience about set up? (string action, trem..)
I prefer lower action around 1,25 mm on 1. string... Is it possible on this guitar?

Thanks
Kuker



and neck is absolutely beautiful!

 

[Steve Nukather]

Yes, it is possible to get super low action on these instruments! For the ultimate low action setup, I like to deck the trem and remove the neck shim. Then re-assemble and use a thin feeler gauge or a strip of paper to make sure the neck is making full contact with the floor of the pocket. If there is any gap, open up the body mounting mounting holes with a drill to allow the mounting screws to pass freely through the body. You want a solid neck to body wood connection and no ski jump - the upper register frets need to be dead flat or have some fall away. Then set the truss rod for minimal relief under string tension. Adjust saddle heights to get the perfect radius, lower the nut slots, and set intonation.

 

[ruger9]

I've never seen that color!!! Very cool!!

 

[Kuker]

Yes, it is possible to get super low action on these instruments! For the ultimate low action setup, I like to deck the trem and remove the neck shim. Then re-assemble and use a thin feeler gauge or a strip of paper to make sure the neck is making full contact with the floor of the pocket. If there is any gap, open up the body mounting mounting holes with a drill to allow the mounting screws to pass freely through the body. You want a solid neck to body wood connection and no ski jump - the upper register frets need to be dead flat or have some fall away. Then set the truss rod for minimal relief under string tension. Adjust saddle heights to get the perfect radius, lower the nut slots, and set intonation.

Thanks man. Maybe its not quit necessery have ultra low action. Maybe slightly under 1,5 on first string. Because I want to have acces for little trem work.

 

[Kuker]

I've never seen that color!!! Very o

I've never seen that color!!! Very cool!!

Yes, this color is realy rare. So when I saw that I knew that must be mine

 

[beej]

It's gorgeous. I would totally hit that.

 

[Astrofreq]

Man, I love that color.

 

[Steve Nukather]

Thanks man. Maybe its not quit necessery have ultra low action. Maybe slightly under 1,5 on first string. Because I want to have accesse for little trem work.

The decked trem will lower pitch only, but it is more stable for palm muting and tuning. If you want to float the trem and have super low action, it is best to use Gotoh S108 saddles. This is what Music Man originally used in the older Lukes, Silhouette Specials, etc. You get more adjustment range with the S108 saddles and you can get the string height lower even when the bridge plate is floating.

 

[Kuker]

The decked trem will lower pitch only, but it is more stable for palm muting and tuning. If you want to float the trem and have super low action, it is best to use Gotoh S108 saddles. This is what Music Man originally used in the older Lukes, Silhouette Specials, etc. You get more adjustment range with the S108 saddles and you can get the string height lower even when the bridge plate is floating.

Thanks a Lot!

 

[DrKev]

@Steve Nukather @Kuker

Correction from Music Man: They have never used Gotoh S108 saddles on those bridges.

Yes, the saddles on the vintage trems (which went into production in 1998) are very similar to the Gotoh saddles. The saddles on my Silhouette Special are the same height as the Gotoh list on their drawings, so the strings won't be significantly lower with the Gotoh saddles.

If you run out of downward adjustment at the saddles and can't get the string action low enough, first check neck relief is in normal range (too much neck relief will inflate the action measurement of the 12th fret). Second, check the the bottom of the bridge plate is flush or barely above the top of the guitar (adjust the bridge mounting suds if necessary). If that all checks out and you still can't get the action low enough, a shim in the neck pocket is the appropriate course of action.

 

[Steve Nukather]

@DrKev can you post a close-up picture of the saddles on your Silhouette Special? What year was your guitar made?

Also, can you send me the Gotoh drawings that you are referencing? I believe your contact at Music Man is misinformed. The service reps there are hit or miss these days. There were three different saddle types used on the vintage trems over the years. At least two of these types were supplied to Music Man by Gotoh, the same Japanese company that was supplying their Floyd trems for a long time. I'm not sure who supplies the current saddles, but the height is taller compared to the others.

 

[DrKev]

Stop.