How low did you get your action?

[TheElvis]

I tried some different setups with the warmoth neck (strat specs) and ended for now with the fender specification: 0.010" (=0,25mm) relief, 3/64(=1,2mm) string height at 12th treble and 4/64th (=1,5mm) bass side.
Earlier I had a little more relief, which basically trades string height at low frets for string height at high frets.
I can't get any closer to the frets (which I would like), without buzzing.

So I would be interested in what setting everybody uses.

 

[Strat Avenger]

I like my action no higher than 5/64", and no lower than 1/16" (4/64") @ the 12th fret.
I've achieved this on every electric guitar I have ever owned.

 

[BigSteve22]

I like my action as low as I can get it without buzzing. With the relief set around .005"-.006", and depending on the neck, my goal is between .040" and .050", low E side, at the 12 fret. My Tele neck, (24.75" scale, 6230 frets, and a Zeroglide nut), is set at just under .050". My Jazzmaster, (25.5" scale, 6150 frets, and a standard nut), is at about .040". The difference is probably due to the excellent fret and nut work Cagey did on the Jazzy, while I did the Tele myself.

Anyway, if I played harder, I'd need to set it higher, but for my style of playing, it's perfect. To me, Fender's suggested .062" is just way too high.

 

[Cagey]

That's as good as I've ever been able to get it, too. It does depend heavily on a well-set up neck, and I should mention I've even got those specs on a 7.5" radius fretboard as well. I don't think I'd try it without using stainless frets, though. Nickel/silver frets wear too quickly for specs that close to last very long.

 

[AirCap]

I like mine low because I'm old and have arthritis.... Over the years, I've lightened up on my touch.

BUT - I have a client with the lightest touch I've ever witnessed. I cannot play his Taylors without making them buzz (he has 5), but he can get the clearest tones by fingerpicking. These pictures are proof.... See the coins? The only thing holding them on the fingerboard is string tension. On the bass side is a nickel - the treble is a penny.

https://imgur.com/XftcseF
https://imgur.com/oLzlb7Q
https://imgur.com/aOdaWN4
https://imgur.com/PjEcmyL

Also, I filed the frets down to .020 tall - fretless wonder size. Action is stoopid low.

Here he is on a different Taylor... Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWS_qRp2kTY

 

[bagman67]

Dude plays with a brass slide with action that low and doesn't crash into the fretboard?  That's a light touch. I'm impressed.

 

[stratamania]

I use the same sort of neck, bridge and relief type adjustments as most do. But I go by feeling more than a specific measurement. The end result will be a low action as that is my preference.

 

[Mr. Neutron]

Dude plays with a brass slide with action that low and doesn't crash into the fretboard?  That's a light touch. I'm impressed.

Ditto on that, Bagman! It would sound like someone hammering nails in a board if that were me tyring slide on something with that low of string height.......

Man, you guys amaze me. Best I've gotten with the modern construction neck on my Strat/Hybrid is 3/32" (6/64", or almost 2.5mm) to be able to beat the frets a-buzzin'. But I can get heavy handed at times during 12 bar blues........  :guitarplayer2:

 

[BigSteve22]

Might want to have a good tech check the height of your nut slots. If the slots aren't cut deep enough, you will need to set the bridge saddles higher to keep the strings from buzzing on the upper frets. It's just a matter of geometry. I had to have the nut on my Strat cut because I had the same problem getting the action down to where I like it. It did fix the problem. Good luck!

 

[Mr. Neutron]

Thanks, Steve!!!

The black Tusq graphite-laden nut I'm using is one that I cut, so there's likely some room for improvement. I used feeler guages to check the string height at each string with a capo between the 2nd and 3rd frets. IIRC, I set my clearance at .012"-.013" on the low (pitch-wise) E string, then went down close to a thousandth per string as I worked down to the high E string. I *think* it's set pretty good.

This is all kinda timely. I ordered a string action ruler last week, and got it today. It's a tool I've been wanting for quite awhile, and I like having it as another reference. They're not expensive; I just kept forgetting to order one, thinking "I got this covered.....". Around the 7th-9th frets, the neck relief is a hair under .01" by this scale. My feeler guages show about the same, .008". This is with the capo on at the first fret, and pressing down the low E string at fret 17 or so. Pretty much the same for the high E string.

The embarassing point is that with the new string height ruler, I got some different measurements than what I posted above. They're actually a bit lower than what I thought they were. With no capo, measuring to the bottom of the string with the ruler at the 12th fret, the low E string is actually 5/64ths, and high E is closer to 3/64ths. Its embarrassing because I'm a retired machinist (from a little aviation company not far from Warmoth......), and I thought I'd gotten better measurements that that with the feeler guage method. Now, we seldom used feeler guages for most checks at Boeing, but still, I should've gotten better measurements before when I set this guitar up half a year ago. The weather has changed a bit since last November, and that'll move a neck around a tad. But basically, I think a combination of very tired eyes, a not-so-great measuring method, and not using my skills had kinda let me down here. Sorry about that.....  :tard: