neck relief on 10-16" warmoth neck

[roglf1]

I have always set the relief on a strat by putting a capo on the first fret & either depressing the string on the fret where the neck joins the body or on the last fret, depending on the guitar, & use a gauge to measure from the string to the fret at the 8th fret, which is how fender tells you to do it. I know it depends on the radius of the neck & Fender gives examples of the gap settings

Neck Radius Relief
7.25" -          .012" (0.3 mm)
9.5" to 12" -  .010" (0.25 mm)
15" to 17" -  .008" (0.2 mm)

Just curious if there is a recommended starting point for a 10-16" radius neck? I have ended up using a gap of about .007" with the string depressed at the last fret. Ended up with this just by experimenting.

 

[Cagey]

I've never seen anything published, but ~.008" is usually where I end up. That's after some fairly ambitious fret levelling/crowning/dressing/polishing. I get the frets to where I can't get a .001" feeler under a machinist's straightedge anywhere on the neck when the truss is adjusted for it to be flat.

 

[roglf1]

Actually mine is probably closer to .008", all I have is a .007 to go by & it is a little smaller than the gap. I am just using some feeler gauges used for spark plug gaps & I have lost the .008" Well your info helps confirm I'm in the right area. the way How I got to this is, I set the string height to where the guitar plays well in the higher register key of E then I straighten the neck a little at a time until the E on top plays the same as the higher E Key. The higher register is not going to change much as you do this & has always worked out well. this low tech way of doing this works for any guitar, I have come to find.

 

[elgravos]

dumb question but can someone recommend the right tool / gauge to make this kind of measurement.  0.008" is not the type of distance one can easily eyeball.  I'm guessing you're using some kind of electronic gauge?  Thanks.

 

[bagman67]

Machinists' or automotive feeler gauges:


http://www.sears.com/search=feeler+gauges?sLevel=0&viewItems=25&storeId=10153&levels=Tools&sid=ISx20140327xNonBrand&psid=21x2866977&knshCrid=2950726&k_clickID=09ebea7f-8373-a928-e22b-000077706578

 

[stratamania]

"until the E on top plays the same as the higher E Key. "


Do you mean the E on the bottom meaning lowest in pitch plays the same as the higher E string ?

 

[elgravos]

Cheers Bagman, looks like they won't break the bank either!

 

[Wolfie351]

I splurged a couple weeks ago and bought the stewmac Nut Slotting Gauge.  I can't praise it enough, I don't think I could ever go back to feeler gauges

 

[Cagey]

Are you talking about this unit?

If so, I couldn't agree more. Kind of a pricey little rascal, but the results are phenomenal.