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one bad monkey wrote:I usually do my own setups. The only thing I'm ever leery of is turning the truss rod; thankfully, the necks on my Warwicks are rock solid and as such, rarely need any turning. The times I have taken them in to get set up are usually those times when I'm gigging so much I just don't have the time to do it. For example, I'm currently in the middle of a 3 week, 25 show/rehearsal run. There is no time to get a bass set up if I need to, so I'd rather spend the money to have someone else do it.

Funny, I find the truss rod to be the least intimidating thing about setting up my bass. It usually the quickest route to dealing with a needed seasonal adjustment. If I can't fix my issue with a little truss rod turning, then I start looking at other issues. As long as you aren't having to really crank it, there isn't much you can harm.

warwick.hoy wrote:EDIT:

PEC 6" 4R Rigid Machinist Rule:
http://www.amazon.com/PEC-Rigid-Steel-R ... inist+rule

PEC Feeler Gauge:
http://www.amazon.com/PEC-Feeler-Gages- ... eler+Gauge

I have two more places to check in town that are closed on weekends before I place the order. Looking for instant gratification and buying locally but I tried finding these items at Lowes, Home De Pot and Sears without much luck. If I were an actual machinist I'd get products from Starrett,...but since this is literally just a hobby/learning situation for me; I can't really justify paying 3x as much for these tools.

So I was actually able to source some needle files,...the 6" scale (a flexible one) and the feeler gauges for a little more than $10 at Harbor Freight. Are they as precise as Starrett, PEC or Shinwa? Probably not, but they will get the job done. I preformed a setup as laid out in the video; including a relief adjustment (Truss Rod) and I wasn't that far off by going by feel. I made the adjustments for the practice and it was practically painless. Seriously. I've paid probably around $200 in my lifetime in setups; which isn't much, but putting together the tools and knowledge is a lot more useful than letting someone else do it.

SmallEQ wrote:Funny, I find the truss rod to be the least intimidating thing about setting up my bass. It usually the quickest route to dealing with a needed seasonal adjustment. If I can't fix my issue with a little truss rod turning, then I start looking at other issues. As long as you aren't having to really crank it, there isn't much you can harm.

I think it was from back in the day, when I maxed out the truss rod on my Ibby 5 string. Been a bit gun shy since, although a good friend of mine gave me a quick rundown on how to do it properly (since a 16 year old doesn't realize only a slight turn is plenty) and I've done it a couple of times as of late on the "lesser priced" instruments in the stable with good results. Oddly enough, none of my basses go through that seasonal adjustment; only time I really do setups is when I change out strings.

Man the allen key I need to adjust the saddle height on my warmoth is sooo small. smaller than a 1/16" which is the bottom of the set I have

Is it metric?

The set I have is.

us cave dwellers have been known to use a piece of card stock with pencil marks as a string height gauge.

I use a nickel and a dime to set string height.

Also, I don't want someone else's grubby fucking hands on my guitar.

ChetMagongalo wrote:Man the allen key I need to adjust the saddle height on my warmoth is sooo small. smaller than a 1/16" which is the bottom of the set I have

warwick.hoy wrote:Is it metric?

ChetMagongalo wrote:The set I have is.

I'm confused.

Looking back on it I'm confused too!

Ha!

I don't have the sizes committed to memory but the bottom metric allen key is always smaller than the bottom standard key in the sets that I have. Always seems to be that 1.5mm key that fits the saddle height adjustment screws.

yeah the 1.5mm works on my Musicman bass but not on the bridge for the warmoth (hipshot I think?)
it's annoying

Well fuck that

so what fret does the coinage go on

At the 17th fret.

I've got a Telecaster with a 9.5 radius, and I'm using 10-46 strings. I set the neck almost completely straight. Then I set the heights so that a dime just fits between the thin e string and the 17th fret, and a nickel just fits between the thick E string and the 17th fret. Actually, right now I have the thick E side a little lower than this, so that the nickel just pushes against the string, and a dime has a little space. A nickel may be a bit too thick - a penny could work better on this side. Then I adjust the rest of the strings using the coins, so that the string height from the 17th fret increases from e (lowest) to E (highest) gradually, and matches the strings around them. If you have a fixed-piece bridge, then obviously you don't have to set each string height individually.

I find that this setup is about a low as I like it. Using coins you can find your own preferred setup; this should get you close, I think.

You could also use a dime or penny for both sides, if you want the same string heights across the board. I find I like the low side just a little bit higher.

When I say "just fits," I mean that you can slide the end of the coin along the fret from the outside of the fretboard under the string without it touching the string and pushing it up; using the coin as a sort of feeler gauge.

The Fender setup guide suggests 4/64" (1.6 mm) for all strings at the 17th fret; using a penny would give you about this.


US Coin Thickness: http://www.usmint.gov/about_the_mint/?a ... ifications
Fender Setup Guide: http://www.fender.com/support/articles/ ... tup-guide/