Backbow

[IronKnight]

Hi,

I am new to the forum, its been a while since I worked on my guitar a Les Paul, that I made. Last time I thought I got rid of my problem some backbow I reradiused it removed the high spots, had to make new inlays, All the buzzing was gone but that was in the winter time, now in the summer same problem!! I think I might have to make a new neck, not really looking forward to doing that if I can help it. I think the problem is that I used a trussrod from Stew Macs incased in an aluminun chanel, I think just the rod would of been plenty sometimes less is better. Any one else have that perticular problem when they built their necks for a Les Paul? Any help would be appreciated I need to fix this guit once and for all !!

thank you in advance,

Jean

Montreal,Quebec,Canada

[Acousticraft]

You should be able to make an adjustment to your truss rod nut. Sight down the fingerboard from the headstock end and

it should have a slight dip in the middle of the neck away from the strings, to allow for the major part of the string vibration.

If its flat or forward bowed towards the strings then you will need to back off the adjusting nut to let it have some string relief. Dont turn it more than 1/4 turn at a time. Bring it to correct tuning pitch and let it sit for an hour or two before checking the relief and retune if flat.

Once you have some string relief and still have buzzing then the action will need raising slightly.

Edited September 4, 2008 by Acousticraft

[Mickguard]

I am new to the forum, its been a while since I worked on my guitar a Les Paul, that I made. Last time I thought I got rid of my problem some backbow I reradiused it removed the high spots, had to make new inlays, All the buzzing was gone but that was in the winter time

Hold on there, partner.

Let's back up a bit. First: did the guitar play properly when you first built it, or did you have the buzzing problem right from the start? Kind of important information.

If the guitar only developed the buzzing later on -- how come you didn't just adjust the truss rod? That's what it's there for, to accommodate for the changes in atmospheric conditions that can make a guitar neck move. And since you're in Quebec, it makes sense that the neck will move a bit with the changing seasons.

And if the truss rod doesn't work, then you ought to address THAT problem first.

[IronKnight]

And if the truss rod doesn't work, then you ought to address THAT problem first.[/b]

That is my problem, the trussrod is " loose" cant back it up. I should of stuck to the plans and used just 3/16 homemade rod instead of the one with the aluminum channel. I dont have many options I just dont feel like scraping the neck at this point. I dont know if the trussrod is too strong for this kind of neck, I went wrong somewhere. I am going to fool around with it, I will raise the nut a bit perhaps it will help. But the problem is there is no adjustment possible with the rod except for one way, to really fix that I may have to make a new one. I am just pissed off at myself for not going with the original trussrod.

Cheers

Jean

PS yes the problem was from the verry start, that why I think the rod is the wrong one for thid guitar.

[fryovanni]

Guys, I think he is saying he installed a one way truss rod(not going to help if he has a back bow condition), had a problem in winter(generally a dryer season) with the neck going into a back bow condition, he tried to level the fretboard(I would assume it had stabalized to the ambient moisture levels at the time) and was successful. Now moving into a wetter season the neck is moving into back bow again.

I think you need to be darn sure your problem is not coming from lifting frets or some other source. If it is seasonal changes. I would consider allowing the neck to "season a bit more" so to speak and note the actual changes. If your absolutely sure this is the source of the problem and that it is not causing other issues such as twisting or what have you. Then you could pull the frets and put the neck in a jig and build in tolerance that will prevent it from reaching back bow, or you may even choose to pull the fretboard and replace the truss, then re-assemble and adjust. Like I said be sure you know what is really happening before you try a fix. It is kinda odd that the string tension was not able to keep it out of backbow after your fix. Of course I am not sure what the condition of the wood was at that point, nor what the condition is now. So you are going to have to watch and figure out what is happening. Keep in mind relative humidity relates to temp. as well as moisture content. If you have the guitar in a heated space(generally several degrees warmer than outside) the air will hold moisture well compaired to outside. This is often a factor in why summer and winter are so different(of course moisture vapor averages vary as well). If the neck wood was relatively stable when you worked on it. It is pretty supprising the seasonal change would be so great as to overcome the string tension(oops. I guess I already said that ).

Rich

[ihocky2]

That looks like a rosewood fretboard, so please correct me if it is not. What size fret slots did you use, and what is the tang width of the frets. It may be possible that you used wire with a tang that was too thick and introduced backbow into the neck. By using wire with a thinner tang you can eliminate that. This is not saying that is absolutely what the problem is, but depending on your numbers, it could be a possible cause.

[Acousticraft]

I have a guitar that has a single acting truss rod and with 10-46 strings it had no relief even with the nut loose so I went up in gauge to 11's and with the heavier tension they certainly pulled some relief into the neck.

Edited September 5, 2008 by Acousticraft