Trussrod wheel question

[Jazzbassman23]

Did a search, but didn't come up with anything, so I know somebody will know.

My HH Sterling's neck needed a tweak after all this crazy East Coast weather, but fairly quickly, I encountered significant resistance when I tried to turn the wheel to flatten the neck further. Of course, I stopped (I've owned enough EB's to know to stop). I know it's not recommended, but I lowered the saddles to get to the action I wanted. Do I have the wheel maxed out? Is the neck as flat as it's going to get? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[ibanez2005]

Some are fairly tight, mine take a bit of force. I suppose they have to be as they are tightly packed in the neck.
Take it to your local music shop/tech if your unsure.

 

[wraithwrider]

Mine's tight on my Bongo 5 too. If I try it again I might try loosening the string tension 1st.

Good idea? Or should I have done it anyway

Peter

 

[ibanez2005]

Its worth a try but adjusting the truss rod wont make a huge difference to the pitch of the strings, afterall, you're only changing the curve in the neck by a few millimeters.

 

[Fuzzy Dustmite]

I have the same problem with mine. So much so that the allen wrench I was using bent. I called Customer Service and ended up sending it in to have it looked at since it's still under warranty. I just sent it in on Friday, so I won't know if there is a problem until sometime after Tuesday.

 

[adouglas]

Any threaded fastener that's been under tension for awhile will develop a bit of stiction (yes, that's a real word).

Try breaking it free by loosening it first, then crank back down. Once you've gotten it moving it should give you less resistance.

I tweak my trussrod relatively often (every three months, I'm guessing) and the initial movement always takes a bit more force.

I bleeb that EBMM trussrods are coated with Teflon, but wouldn't swear to it.

 

[tadawson]

Did a search, but didn't come up with anything, so I know somebody will know.

My HH Sterling's neck needed a tweak after all this crazy East Coast weather, but fairly quickly, I encountered significant resistance when I tried to turn the wheel to flatten the neck further. Of course, I stopped (I've owned enough EB's to know to stop). I know it's not recommended, but I lowered the saddles to get to the action I wanted. Do I have the wheel maxed out? Is the neck as flat as it's going to get? Any help would be appreciated.

That will still leave your relief set wrong, but if you like it that way, what the heck. The truss sets relief, the saddles action height, they are not generally considered interchangeable adjustments - each has a specific, and totally different function. (Sorry if that was a bit soap-box-ish . . . )

- Tim

 

[hankSRay]

I always loosen the truss rod first. Some say it also helps to do truss rod adjustments while in the playing position. I do on my MMs. usually I loosen it first, put a little bit of pressure on the headstock (pulling back) and then tighten. Works for me and I haven't ruined any basses yet.

 

[adouglas]

usually I loosen it first, put a little bit of pressure on the headstock (pulling back) and then tighten. Works for me and I haven't ruined any basses yet.

That's an interesting thought. Perhaps if you unload the trussrod by applying gentle pressure to the headstock opposite to what Hank does (i.e. if the bass were lying on its back, lift the headstock up while holding the body flat) it might let you move the wheel more easily. You'd need three hands to do this, of course.

I don't apply pressure to the neck when I tweak my trussrod simply because it doesn't seem necessary to do so, but I don't see how it could hurt if you don't overdo it.

I'm staying with the stiction idea. I think all you really need to do is break it free and once you've done that it will move smoothly. Unloading the trussrod might make that easier. Of course, simply loosening the strings might be enough to unload it.

Let us know what happens.

 

[wraithwrider]

My memory is returning. Gary Willis recommends:

The Truss Rod

It worked well on the L**land.

It just unloads the trussrod a bit.

Why did I forget when I tightened the Bongo's?

Don't go mad and don't blame me if you overdo it.

Peter

 

[PocketGroove82]

has anyone ever really "maxed" out an EBMM trussrod?
Being that I don't play old old old f3nd@rs, I didn't learn about maxing out a truss rod until recently (from reading TB threads).
can any of you guys explain what happens when this occurs? And how to fix it...etc.

thanks!

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

can any of you guys explain what happens when this occurs? And how to fix it...etc.

I've never heard of it happening to MM Basses but on some instruments, the trussnut can reach it's maxium point of adjustment before a sufficient amount of bow has been eliminated out of the neck. The nut has become "maxed out" due to the compression of wood behind it. It can usually be fixed by adding washers behind the nut to give it an extra few turns.

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

Did a search, but didn't come up with anything, so I know somebody will know.

My HH Sterling's neck needed a tweak after all this crazy East Coast weather, but fairly quickly, I encountered significant resistance when I tried to turn the wheel to flatten the neck further. Of course, I stopped (I've owned enough EB's to know to stop). I know it's not recommended, but I lowered the saddles to get to the action I wanted. Do I have the wheel maxed out? Is the neck as flat as it's going to get? Any help would be appreciated.

I really don't think your neck has maxed out. I suggest you have a talk with Customer Service so that you can be steered in the right direction.

 

[PocketGroove82]

thanks for the info rod. a few more questions if you will...
if you have an old bass with a truss rod that is at it's maximum point, does that mean that your neck has bowed/warped so much, that it must be replaced? if the whole adding washers thing doesn't help?

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

We're starting to move off topic and away from MM Basses.

You can email me:

HERE

 

[Jazzbassman23]

Just wanted to thank everyone for their replies. My guess is that it is a "stiction" issue. I backed off the wheel a bit, and while tight, the wheel did continue to turn CW. Fuzzy, did you hear anything about your bass and its wheel?

 

[Fuzzy Dustmite]

Yeah, got a call from Dan at EBMM CS yesterday. Nothing wrong with the bass, thankfully. Wheel was just 'stuck', which they fixed with a little lubricant. He said they did a setup on it and are shipping it back.

I'm glad nothing was wrong, and to get a factory setup for $35 (shipping) was well worth it!

 

[mrcrow]

Its worth a try but adjusting the truss rod wont make a huge difference to the pitch of the strings, afterall, you're only changing the curve in the neck by a few millimeters.

always loosen off the strings before setting the truss rod, action or intonation..
otherwise you are working against un necessary stresses

i would also slacken off the truss rod...bend the neck against it...backwards to flatten
then retighten

a luthier did this with a through neck i had which had a lot of bow...it creaked a bit but settled down fine..

truss rod adjustment need only cover around 1/2 turn max from light to heavy strings

 

[PocketGroove82]

I'm glad nothing was wrong, and to get a factory setup for $35 (shipping) was well worth it!

Factory setups are so hawt.
At least untill the new bass spends a few hours in a local guitar center!

Guitarafondio, teach us your setup secrets!

 

[KennethB]

always loosen off the strings before setting the truss rod, action or intonation..

What???????.......Wrong!!