Can my floyd be screwed? + other string height question

[Cederick]

Ok so I set up my Floyd Warmoth Soloist, I have never done it before but I followed instructions carefully and basically just "go for it"...

Anyway, how much tilted can the bridge be without ruining the knife edges? I know I didn't have it exactly on an atomic level, but I really tried using my eyes to get it as straight as possible against the bodies surface. I have only recorded some divebombs and shite with it because I have no clue how to intonate the fudger but it sounds great already.

Of course my neck may need a leveling in the higher frets because I can't get a low enough action that I want too.

The other question is do I dare to file the wood down under the nut? I think the stright height at the nut is way too high. It's not like you notice it with your eye, but comparing this to my favorite guitar (old "metal modded" Fender Musicmaster) it's not as comfortable to play. I really want it to nearly touch the frets...

 

[peter.k]

I can't help as I don't know a Floyd Rose from a Red Rose, but I can tell you this post won't last long here with the
F-bombs......best to edit your post if you want some help.

 

[line6man]

Anyway, how much tilted can the bridge be without ruining the knife edges?

It's the other way around. "How closely can I approach a perpendicular mating of knife edge to stud without ruining the knife edges?"

Think of it like pressing a sharpened pencil against a flat surface. The tip will crush if it is perpendicular to the surface, but if you strike from an angle, the point at the tip is more likely to stay intact, while the lead breaks off further back.
Or perhaps it's better to use an analogy with knives. Try hitting a cutting board with a sharp knife a few times with the blade perpendicular, and then angled. You might note that when the blade is perpendicular to the cutting board, its sharpest parts take the impact, but when you strike with the blade at an angle, the duller areas around the sharp part take some of the impact.

 

[Cederick]

Ok but that would mean all floyds are destroyed right from the beginning since they all are pressing straight when setup straight? :icon_scratch:

 

[AutoBat]

It would probably be worth your while to have a proper setup by an experienced guitar tech or luthier.

 

[Cederick]

Yeah I know but I'm not that rich, right now saving for a new guitar build (not a Warmoth tho, a hand made by a "real" luthier so it's way more expensive but Warmoth didn't have the options I wanted so... yeah  :icon_smile: )

 

[Pelagaard]

Why not get the one you just built fully functional before starting the next?  :icon_scratch:

 

[Cagey]

Anyway, how much tilted can the bridge be without ruining the knife edges? I know I didn't have it exactly on an atomic level, but I really tried using my eyes to get it as straight as possible against the bodies surface. I have only recorded some divebombs and shite with it because I have no clue how to intonate the fudger but it sounds great already.

I wouldn't worry about the knife edges too much. They're hardened steel and designed to take a good amount of abuse.

If you find you have too much tilt to the bridge plate, then you need to either raise or lower the mounting posts that the bridge bears against. Otherwise, you lose range of travel, which is arguably the Floyd design's only selling point any more since so many other bridges have two-point knife-edge fulcrums.

Of course my neck may need a leveling in the higher frets because I can't get a low enough action that I want too.

Perfect frets are a fundamental requirement for very low action.

The other question is do I dare to file the wood down under the nut? I think the stright height at the nut is way too high. It's not like you notice it with your eye, but comparing this to my favorite guitar (old "metal modded" Fender Musicmaster) it's not as comfortable to play. I really want it to nearly touch the frets...

Whether you dare or not is up to you. If somebody else installed that nut, you might want to see if they put any shims under it. If so, removing those will lower it. If not, then you have to start removing wood, which can be tricky business on a platform that large due to the need for it to be flat and level. Normally, it's done with a mill and a jig at build time, and isn't something your casual user would attempt to modify. But, you can file it - it's just scary easy to screw up.

 

[line6man]

Ok but that would mean all floyds are destroyed right from the beginning since they all are pressing straight when setup straight? :icon_scratch:

Maybe if you made knife edges out of plastic or something.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Please watch the language.  I don't want the filter coming back. 

 

[SlartiBartfast]

Please watch the language.  I don't want the filter coming back.

+1. Besides the filters, my poor, virgin ears got all confusticated.  :tard:

 

[alterbridgefan]

Please watch the language.  I don't want the filter coming back.

+1. Besides the filters, my poor, virgin ears got all confusticated.  :tard:

And I lost my natural innocence.

Oh, for shame. :icon_biggrin:

 

[stubhead]

Meanwhile, back in the real world:
http://modguitar.com/archives/313
http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/lessons/for_beginners/set_up_for_floyd_rose.html?no_takeover
You've probably been through a few web guides on setting up a Floyd? Those two look pretty good. However, your questions do indicate you may need to learn how several different interacting systems work. Like, has the trussrod been properly adjusted? You want the finger board flat or with a tiny bit of "relief" or forward curve. Press down a string at the 1st and the 22nd fret and look to see if there's any space between the string and the 12th fret. If there's a space the thickness of your high E string, you're in business. If it's bigger, the trussrod needs to be tightened. Are you doing ALL the work yourself, so far? Because there's a lot to learn... there's a whole lot of things that need to be checked before you think about leveling frets. Chance are extremely high that the frets heights are fine, relative to each other. If your Floyd is angled way up above the body, that's adjusted by tightening the springs inside the back cavity or adding another spring. 3 springs are customary for a string set of 9-42 or 10-46.

Do you have anyone you know who does their own setups? Because I don't think you should go tightening the trussrod, filing wood, leveling frets without doing some reading and/or getting somebody to show you stuff. Like this Mod Guitar article about action height looks pretty good:
http://modguitar.com/archives/323

But at the very least you need a set of feeler gauges ($10 at an auto supply, not $25 at StewMac). And there's a great book by Dan Erlewine, "Guitar Player Repair Guide" that should be a prerequisite to tearing stuff up. Things like fret leveling and wood removal are last on a long list, I believe there's like 4 different Floyd Rose nuts of different heights? If you just google "Floyd Rose nut height" a bunch of info pops up. I know money is tight, but you'll be better served by going slow and learning each step, rather than making hasty mistakes that'll cost more money to fix.

 

[Strat Avenger]

The original Floyd (if that's what you have) come from the factory shimmed for a Strat radius. If you have a 12" radius, you need to remove that shim, and if you have a compound radius, you need to put 2 shims under the Low and high E saddles, and 1 shim under the A and B saddles. There should be no shims under the D and G saddles. If this is not addressed, you will never get good action.