Can You REALLY Adjust Your Truss Rod Without “BREAKING YOUR GUITAR?”
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- Опубліковано 15 тра 2024
- It seems like every guitar player has been told, "Don't touch your truss rod... you'll break your guitar!" But in this video Dan shows you a safe method for adjusting a truss rod, in even the most difficult neck.
Check it out. We hope you like it.
0:00 You CAN adjust your own truss rod
0:49 Overview of neck positions
2:25 Adjustment demo #1
7:28 Checking the action after adjustment
8:39 The "buddy method"
8:56 Different tools needed for different guitars
9:45 Single action vs. double action truss rods
10:46 Adjustment demo #2
12:01 Checking the action after adjustment
Items used in this video include:
Precision Notched Straightedge
www.stewmac.com/item/3814
String Action Gauge
www.stewmac.com/item/0670
Neck Caul
www.stewmac.com/item/4269
Hex Truss Rod Wrenches
www.stewmac.com/item/6101
Allen Truss Rod Wrenches
www.stewmac.com/item/6113
Soundhole Truss Rod Wrenches
www.stewmac.com/item/6161
Truss Rod Wrench for Fender
www.stewmac.com/item/6111
Pocket Truss Rod Wrenches
www.stewmac.com/item/6157
Truss Rod Crank for Tele
www.stewmac.com/item/6138
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Dan often refers to this method as his "#1 trick" for truss rod adjustments 🙂
Have you ever worked on a “Chibson - Chinese fake Les Paul” ? If so, what was your experience . I saw a luthier on the net that had a guy bring one in because the owner ended up separating the fretboard from the neck, trying to adjust the truss rod. The luthier said it wouldn’t be worth repairing it because it would cost more than the guitar is worth. So he and the owner decided to tear it apart and see what the problem was with the truss rod. The luthier found that the truss rod was actually welded in one piece and was non-adjustable right from the start and that’s why the owner broke the neck trying to turn it. I was just interested to hear if you’ve ever ran into one of these at your shop ? I got suckered into buying two of them, there is some buzz but I have to raise the bridge and/or put something under the A & low E strings to make it play better. I always enjoy your videos and I own a bunch of you tools. They work 👍
@@flashy5150 One came into a shop my brother used to work at for a set-up one time. But unlike yours, he said this one was an extremely well built counterfeit-everything worked and played just as good as the real thing, including the truss rod. He was shocked. I guess things coming out of China really are a crap-shoot.
@@haikuomusic It seems so. Theres also another vid explaining why it probably doesnt work (th one of the fender mustang. Good Luck!!!
@@jsullivan2112 Often good counterfeits are made in the US or Europe, not china. Slashes "Famous black Les Paul" was not made by Gibson, and actually better than a Gibson.
@@Bob-of-Zoid I don’t think you have any idea where this particular guitar I’m referring to came from. You didn’t see it,
Dan is the Bob Ross of luthiers. Could watch him work and explain things all day.
#Me too! Lol. That's funny as hell to me because I feel exactly the same and said as much. Check out "twoodfrd" channel. He's another Bob Ross luthier. I don't play or work on guitars but love watching these cats.
Yes mate Twoford is good..lm about to fix a broken headstock.. it's an Epi LP Custom, to take it to a luthier wd be more than its worth.
Took the words right out of my mouth!
@@baabaabaa2293 well.......I hope you video the job and post it so I can watch!! Lol. You never know!
What a legend, great personality and a great video , aive learned a lot and got entertained in the process! Thank you 🙏🏽🇦🇺
This fully explains guitar action, demonstrates it, and stresses the importance of getting it right, far better than any other UA-cam video in existence. Thank you for your service.
The misconception though is that truss rods fix action. Truss rods are only to set the proper amount of relief for the target action to want to achieve. Higher action=slightly more relief while the lower the action, the straighter the neck. Neck relief first, then in a perfect world nut or bridge can be next. Nut slots are also pretty non-negotiable, they're either right, or wrong
Dan is an absolute treasure for guitars and guitarists! Love watching and listening to him at work.
He must be protected at all costs
Some great tricks! Thanks
Thanks Austin!
@@stewmac on an acoustic guitar if the neck is straight but the action in the middle frets approximately 9 through the last fret is too high, doesn't that mean the bridge is too high? Shaving down the bridge saddle to perfectly level is the solution?
Hey Austin it's great to see you get your advice from Dan Erlewine. he's probably the best there is. you can't go wrong with him. I have learned a lot from him.
WEEEEELLLLCOOMMEEE BACKK TROGLODITES!!
Fancy seeing you here Austin
I've found Dans videos to be by far the most clear and informative on the internet, thanks so much Dan, you're the man!
Dan, you make repair and maintenance so easy, bless you 🖤
Discovered this channel as I was looking up guitar set up and maintenance videos on UA-cam. These guys are so good and explain everything so easily! Good job! Plus, Dan is such a sweet and humble guy!
Thank you, Dan, for your articles in Guitar player, back in the day. Up until then, set up was a mystery for most.
Dan is the man. Always teaching and helping the community. Thank you so much!
Thank you for this incredible advice! I love my guitars, and this is a big issue I was not fully aware of before. 👍🏻
Love the tips Dan! You explain everything you do about guitars awesomely! 🤣 you have saved me so much repair money through the years!
So nice to hear experience verbalized. Dan always exudes competence. A real delight. I'm grateful. I would love to see him take on the challenge of performing a neck reset on a classical guitar.
Thanks for decades of sharing your experience and innovation. I’m so glad to have started my day with this tutorial, ‘even learned a couple things, and happy to hear you play! You’re an inspiration 🙏
A true master of his craft. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with our community, Dan.
I have the second edition of your book and it has really helped to keep my guitars in great shape and playing just the way I want them. Peace
Always great to see Dan and watch him work
I like all of the StewMac videos I see, but this guy is my favorite host out of them all. Such a great video. I've been playing and adjusting guitars my whole life, and by the looks of it, I still had a lot to learn.
Amazing video, appreciate explaining it in such detail and explaining what exactly you are doing, this really helps a lot of people who are beginning their attempts on setting up their guitar by themself. Thank you for the informative video
Dan always makes things look easy, and he's a good teacher of techniques. He made guitar maintenance very approachable for me.
Always find your videos very helpful. I have a pretty extensive collection and some get a lot more playtime than others. However I like to make sure they all are idling safely and fully playable when the urge hits. Thank you so much sir.
This is gold, I've never been comfortable making adjustments like I knew what I was doing but now I will. Thanks.
Great advice from a true gentleman! Dan's wisdom and personality, matched with his skills and no-nonsense approach, have always made me feel at-home trying to perform my own adjustments to my instruments. The world would be a better place if all instructors and mentors were like him!
Very much appreciate you sharing your knowledge Dan.
Very nice of you to share your skills
Nice tip .. Thank you for taking the time to make the vid.
Great information for Spring season
Great video! I now feel pretty confident that I can adjust my guitar's truss rod correctly. Thank you sir!
Dan is so Zen. I wish all my school teachers were like him. I've learned a lot watching his videos. I, in fact, did a level crown and polish on an old Sigma that I played 'till the frets were destroyed. Now it plays like new again. Didn't think I could accomplish that. Dan is a great teacher!
'Driving the energy down to the body and the bridge'.. Solid gold!!
Great video. No fuzz, straight to the point, clear and understandable explanation. That´s how I like it.
Nothing like tried and true methods from experience. Thanks a bunch for posting this!
Thanks for a very educational video. Appreciate the humbleness of your approach.
This is great advice. Worked well on my Taylor 12 string and Gibson SJ200. Thanks!
Thanks for sharing your knowledge Dan ! You're the man !!!
Thank you for your video. I took it slow and made several adjustments to the truss. You saved my Fender CC 60s as it plays really nice now. :)😀
This man sure makes learning enjoyable. Thankyou
Always great advice and tips that sure is brilliant idea doing neck adjustment
Wow, this is a lifesaver! I have a guitar that I think needs a truss rod adjustment. It's
really good to hear that I can do this myself.
Thanks, Dan ! You've helped me through all these years .
Guitar wisdom! Thanks! Always great channel!
All my respect for this knowledgeable and adorable gentleman.
Thanks for making these videos Dan.
Wow! What an amazing technique!
This is brilliant, thanks Dan!
Great video. I've seen many truss rods ship maxed out on new guitars. No room to turn in a given direction. Very frustrating and something most buyers wouldn't know to look for. Years might pass until they find out the hard way.
Just a wonderfully done video in every way - thank you!!!
Thank the Good Lord for Stew! I'm on Social Security Disability and now I make less in a month than I used to in 4 days. Needless to say, I had to learn to fix a lot of things myself. If I have to learn, I want to learn from the BEST.
STEW MAC IS THE BEST! I could never afford to have "THE MASTER" work on any of my guitars, so THANK YOU STEW FOR SHARING YOUR WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE STEW!
GOD BLESS AND TAKE CARE...
Always great experience watching your videos sir, and I learn somthing each time.
I always get solid advice for taking care of my "fleet" of guitars from this channel! Thanks StewMac!
That's what we're here for! Thanks so much for tuning in.
Thank you for this video, it really helped me to understand much better!!🙂
Thank you for this informative video. It makes good sense doing it this way.
Hands down the best explanation, no bells and whistle, everything explained. Wow. Too bad I found this channel so late, would have saved me quite some time.
Now if only that truss rod on one my guitars would move in any direction...
Amazing trick Dan! Thank you!
Excellent! Thank you so much for this tutorial.
Helpful video. Just fixed some fret buzz and maintained good action. Thank you
Excellent video and tutorial.. !! Thank you StewMac.!
Great video Dan, thank you for that tip!
I was wondering how to help the truss rod along.. thank you for your expertise 👍👍
Thanks for this video , I have been making a guitar shop and this helps a lot
I have an old 2nd edition of your Guitar Player Repair Guide and refer to it often when maintaining my small collection of instruments. You're the greatest. Thanks for these informative and helpful videos.
Absolutely! That book is essential for any luthier's library!
Great vid, super helpful and smartening!
I would have a concern with the buddy method and easily snapping off a gibson headstock.
Thank you again!
Amazing video, thank you very much! Great teacher by the way
Thanks Stew. I needed this video.
Thank you for the lesson.
Thanks Dan. I needed that.
Most excellent!! Esp. with the graphics!! Wow, I just subscribed. Thanks!
Thanks and welcome!
Excellent advice and a better way of adjusting the truss road without breaking it.🙂
Great video of how to adjust the truss rod. I allways started from the assumption to leave this to specialists, but thanks to this clear instructions i am quite sure i can do it myself. Thanks for sharing this with us. Sander van der Voort from Zaandam The Netherlands
Thanks, Dan. I much appreciate your class. Cheers
Dan, as always, makes it look easy! Thank you! WooF!
Thanks for these useful tips.
great video, great tip. thank you
Best channel for guitar set up, keep up👍👍
Thanks for the tips. Good stuff
Great method ! I always use the other method you mention, bending the neck back before adjusting the rod.
I will try your method next time. Thanx
Another great video in the latest era of Dan!
Great vid! Those slotted straight edges are so helpful, I've had mine for years!
Agreed! Such a valuable tool for this kind of work.
Hands down the best and most complete "how to" video on truss rod adjustment.
This guy is so great at what he does and even better at explaining it and showing you how it’s done..
StewMac has become one of my favorite channels
He's a master teacher! Thanks for watching!
Thank you for the good information.🙏👍
great teacher...I started following Dan in the 80s, I retired 15 years ago from this trade as an internationally authorized repairer. I uploaded as far as I know the first Lutherie website in the world but never had the time and production skills to make good quality videos. Sometimes I miss my job. ciao Dan !
thank u man... now i can intonate my own guitar... made a huge difference
Is there anyone else here who would love to give this guy a big hug? I really love the way you care about guitars!
Years ago there was no UA-cam, and this knowledge wasn't available unless you worked in the business - which means a customer didn't know if things were really being done right (or at all). I appreciate your expertise and willingness to share TY, Subscribed without a second thought.
Thank you so much for this video it has helped me out so much.
I have a 1960 EKO Navajo 12 string and the action was way to high.
Now it is actually playable.
Thank you Dan, I just could not adjust the truss rod on my Vintera Strat, the nut was solid and I needed a bit more back bow to get rid of too much relief. I did the clamp trick to take the tension off the truss rod and it worked a treat, very pleased!
So helpful. Thank you!!
Very useful tips from the Professor Dan.
that's why I listen to my elders never been steered the wrong way to do anything yet and you got to respect someone that teaches you something that trick with the notches in the blocks and the block under the neck those two will stay with me forever thank you sir for helping out a guitar picker for pride.
Thank you for the tips.
Awesome, this was very informative
Thank you. Much appreciated.
Thanks a lot Dan, I'll do that. Great tip 👍
We appreciate you Dan
Just subscribed, sure do appreciate you sharing your wealth of knowledge God Bless !
Good on ya old mate, top shelf advice!
Awesome instruction!! I have two that need tending to LOL! This just gave me the confidence to do it! I love the clamp and level Idea!! Your awesome my friend!! 100% professional!! I have to learn setups, they get expensive!
This was very helpful, thank you!
You're very welcome! Thanks for tuning in!
Im happy to say that I live just down the street from StewMac because of stuff like this!
Very good learned a lot. Thank you.
I have that exact same level. Great video.