Adjusting FR trem height with strings under tension

[Neo Fender]

On any fulcrum style bridge (especially on Floyd Rose locking trem) has anyone ever noticed any adverse wear of the knife edges due to turning the pivot posts to raise/lower the trem?  Yeah to be safe, I could loosen the strings, make the adjustment then retune, etc.  Can't imagine it causes much more wear than is actually caused when using the thing.

Thoughts, experiences?

Thanks.

 

[croquet hoop]

I doubt that a few quarter turns once in a while can really wear the knife edges of a quality trem (read: with hardened steel edges or something like that). In any case, I never noticed any kind of wear on the edges of my 10 years-old Edge Pro, which I adjust slightly every few months without loosening the strings.

 

[Cagey]

I'm with Mr. Hoop. If it were possible to wreck the knife edges or cut the posts by doing that, then you need a new bridge anyway because the one you have is junk and isn't long for this world in the first place.

 

[AgentPotato]

Why are you adjusting it slightly every few months? I thought once everything is set up, all you gotta do is keep the neck straight.

 

[croquet hoop]

Yes, but sometime I feel that I need the action on one side to be an extra half millimeter higher or lower. Nother drastic, just a small adjustement that changes slightly the feel of the instrument.

 

[Cagey]

I'm as curious as Mr. Potato. Once an instrument is at optimum, whatever that may be, why would you ever want to change it? I mean, most folks agonize over 1/32" in width in string spacing, string height, etc., which shouldn't make a lick of difference. But, muscle memory is sensitive to that sort of thing. I would think that moving your string height around would drive you nuts.

There are special cases, of course. For instance, if you want to shift a guitar to something you'd use for slide work, you'd want to crank the action up so you don't hear the slide banging off the frets. At the the other extreme, you would want the action super-close if you want to do the YJM shred thing.

So, what? DO YOU ONLY OWN ONE GUITAR? Bad boy. You need at least 6. Now, get out your credit card and do what you know you have to. Just send the parts to me, I'll build 'em for you. No worries.

 

[croquet hoop]

As I said, I only change it in very slight increments, just enough to change the feel without altering the playability. And just once in a while. When it comes to string height, I don't think there is one ideal value anyway.

And yes, that's precisely the reason why I wanted another guitar. To keep the Ibanez for the shredding nonsense, and get a Strat to let the notes breathe  :icon_biggrin:

 

[Cagey]

You're right; there's certainly no "ideal" height. I do fretwork to be shred-worthy, but very rarely adjust the action to that point. There's no buzz, but they tend to sound dead when they're that tight.

I just can't imagine changing it once you're happy. Most folks I know, myself included, want their fiddle to feel the same forever and ever, amen.

 

[Neo Fender]

For the sake of this discussion, I just bought an "experienced" Jackson Dinky and despite its claimed professional setup, the action was WAY too high.  If I were changing strings or cleaning the fretboard, I'd bring the trem down then but I didn't want to wait to get this thing playable.  Thanks all.

 

[Cagey]

There are "professional" setups, and there are professional setups. It's tough to know the difference without some experience with them. For instance, there are guys at Guitar Center who can talk the talk quite convincingly, but when the rubber meets the road they have no traction. Their type isn't limited to GC by any stretch, but they're pretty thick on ground there. Everybody thinks they're God's gift to guitars, yet most of them aren't even old enough to drink beer legally.

We're white punks on dope! Mom and dad moved to Hollywood. Hang myself if I get enough rope...

Ahem. Anyway. You gotta watch those guys close. Their hearts are usually in the right place, but they don't have the experience to back up their ambitions.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

I've been playing the same guitar for just a few months shy of 18 years, with all of the original hardware, including a Gotoh GE1998T lisenced Floyd, and I only adjust the nut and/or the bridge height maybe once every other year, but then again, I live in the Seattle area where the humidity conditions are very consistent from season to season.

I lowered the stud height on the high E side about 1/16th-to-1/8 of a turn for the first time in nearly 2 years the other day.

 

[Cagey]

I've always been under the impression that the weather is highly variable out there. Predominantly wet, but you never know. I've often wondered how anybody paints their house or cuts their grass, because it seems like you can't go 8 hours without the threat of rain. In fact, I've heard that the suicide rate in Seattle is extraordinarily high because it's such a depressing place to live. You see the sun so rarely it's sorta freaky when it does come out.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

I live in England where it rains all the time, and we basically just... don't paint our houses.

 

[Cagey]

That would drive me batshit insane. They've even invented a mental disorder for it called SAD (for Seasonal Affective Disorder), mainly because here in the states placing blame has become a national pastime. No matter what's wrong, it's some thing or somebody else's fault and they deserve to be sued or medicated away.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

I think that's a real thing, but everyone gets it. The people who actually go to the doctor about it are just those ones who are hypochondriacs or think they're special. I mean, who isn't happier in summer? We just had a sunny weekend and the effect on mental wellbeing is palpable.

Also, we build houses that don't need painting, so it's fine. Our houses basically look like this for the most part:

The main difference being they're usually a lot smaller. Conversely, I believe this is a typical American house, right?

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

Actually, we get heavy mist more in the spring months & light showers from late spring through early summer, and on average about 28 days without a rain incident in the summer.

Compared to when I lived in Modesto, Ca and had to contend with 95-115 degree days from May through early October, I'd say our summers in Seattle are quite beautiful and refreshing.  Our hills, lawns, and trees are green in August and the rain doesn't keep us from getting outside and enjoying a good hike, fishing, kayaking, or other recreation.

With that being said, we still paint houses, guitars, cars & such, just under controlled conditions.

 

[Cagey]

The main difference being they're usually a lot smaller. Conversely, I believe this is a typical American house, right?

Hehe! No, not by any stretch. A stunt like that would have you evicted in most neighborhoods.

 

[drewfx]

I don't know if anyone else noticed, but the flag on the left is at half staff, so I suspect there is some context missing with that picture.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

I may have been joking about thinking that was a typical American house.

In all seriousness though, I do like the fact that you see a lot of flags outside houses as a matter of course over there. Here, you only see it when there's an international football tournament on (which I'm not interested in), or when there's some sort of event to do with the royal family going on (frustrating if you're a republican like me). If we flew our flag as a matter of course, it'd be harder for it to get hijacked by these other things.

Plus, you guys have a fantastic-looking flag. It's just so nice.