Set up suggestions

[Bayman]

Hello Warmoth(ians);
                                Just need to get some advice on my my Warmoth Cabronita Telecaster. It's pretty much a stock purchase with a " boatneck " neck profile. I had it set up by my repairer, with 10's and it sounded great. He set the neck straight, as necks reported start to pull up over a period of time. But I found that it was quite " buzzy " in the first 5 frets. I went back after a few weeks to have some tension taken off the neck, but there is actually no tension on the neck ( the truss rod is completely not in use ).

We have now gone to 11's, and while the buzzy has gone, it's has lost a bit of it's spark and zing with heavier strings. Also I have noticed that the bridge saddles are set up quite high. Not sure if this is because of the large profile neck on the body.

So my question is.....

1. Should I stick with the 11's, and wait for the neck to pull up over the coming months ? When the neck does pull up, I may be able to go back to 10's and put some tension back on the neck.

 

[Updown]

Hi Bayman .... More info needed here !!

1st up …… What type of Neck is it ? Warmoth Pro or Vintage ?
2nd ……… Sorry But .... Get a new guitar tech, sounds like he has no idea !!

Just put 10's on it 1st up & get it setup properly, if thats what you want on it.

Warmoth Pro Adjustment …. http://www.warmoth.com/Guitar/Necks/SideAdjust.aspx

There are a number of things to be checked, Nut, Frets level, Bridge Radius / Height etc etc
Sure someone else will jump in & state something else too.

 

[Bayman]

Hey thanks for the reply. It is a vintage style neck with a nitro satin finish.

 

[Strat Avenger]

It's not a good sign if the truss rod is backed all the way off and there's still no (or not enough) neck "relief". I have encountered a couple of guitars over the years with this problem.

I'd be curious as to what your string height is at the 12th fret. You should get a machinist ruler and take a measurement.

 

[Bayman]

I was told that it was a good sign, as over time when the neck adjusts to being under tension, then you have plenty of truss rod movement to play with ? I am just hoping that with time, it will settle in ( fingers crossed ).

 

[Cagey]

If the tech who told you that was the same one you mentioned earlier, I'm going to have to echo and emphasize Updown's suggestion that you consider shopping around a bit for a different tech. I don't know what color the sky is in his world, but a neck that won't relieve even with a sloppy loose truss rod is not a Good Thing.

 

[Bayman]

Indeed it is the same tech. Although another tech I spoke to yesterday suggested I stick with 11's on it for a few months until the neck pulls up. The neck has only been under tension for just over 3 weeks. Maybe it is time to contact Warmoth and send it back and asking for another neck ! Very disappointing to hear that this may very well be the case. It took such a long time to get the guitar, put it together, set it up etc etc.

 

[Bayman]

I would love to go back to just putting 10's on, but then the neck will straighten out and I'm back to square one. Even with 11's on it, the truss rod is not operational, and there is very little relief. It plays well with the heavier gauge, but 11's for me is Les Paul territory  !

 

[Cagey]

Warmoth's necks are remarkably consistent and stable, but wood can be a bit unpredictable sometimes so it does happen that a neck will misbehave. They're confident about their QC, but it is wood, after all. It can have internal stresses or reactions to the environment that are difficult to compensate for or predict. Still, their processes make such occurrences rare enough that they can offer a long warranty without fear of insupportable expense. So, I wouldn't write them off as a supplier just because a neck went south. Such problems are a reality all instrument makers have to live with, and I suspect if the truth were known, Warmoth's liabilities are substantially less than some of the high-volume consumer-grade OEM guitars you'll find out in the market.

 

[Bayman]

I appreciate the feedback. I assume this neck I have is a rock hard piece of maple that is as stubborn as hell and won't move. Maybe I should put 13's on it and see if it pulls up  :laughing7:

Conflicting reports can be very confusing though. Some say give it some time and the neck will definitely pull up and settle in. Others say it is highly unusual to have a neck that is straight and has no relief in it ?

I shall contact Warmoth first thing Monday and see what they say. Not having much luck with gear at the moment. On friday I got my new Fender Blues Junior after weeks of waiting, opened the box, unpacked it, and.....well.......nothing ! Seems the valves were damaged en route to Australia  :sad1:

 

[Cagey]

Maple is funny stuff. It is very hard and will resist external forces better than most woods, but it'll move a surprising amount on its own given half a chance. That's why Warmoth insists on hard, non-permeable finishes for it, and will void the warranty without them.

 

[Bayman]

So under the information I have given. Do you think the neck is defective and should be sent back, or is it still savable ? I can't put 10's or lighter on it as the neck only pulls up ( slightly ) when strung up with 11's ?

Apologies to all for my barrage of guitar questions. I blame it on myself being a bassist ( and the owner of a gorgeous Warmoth Jazz Bass I put together a few years ago )

 

[Cagey]

I'd want to have at it myself before I'd judge it. If you're used to playing bass, you may be unaccustomed to the somewhat finer dimensions of guitar necks. Plus, I'd want to put some instrumentation on it, as well as try some basic adjustment. In the discussion so far, I haven't heard once of anybody putting a machinist's rule or straightedge on the thing and measuring anything. Nothing like solid facts to make up your mind for you. You can't sight down the neck like the kids in the music stores do and see bow/relief/twist unless it's so bad you don't even need to sight down the neck.

If you trust your own senses and the skills of your guitar tech, then I guess I'd ask Warmoth for an RMA to at least do a warranty evaluation of the thing. Worst thing that could happen is you end up paying round-trip shipping to have the same neck in hand with no structural problems. Or, it could be a bum hunk of wood and they'll make it right somehow. You need to be talking to them about this, though.

 

[Strat Avenger]

So under the information I have given. Do you think the neck is defective and should be sent back, or is it still savable ? I can't put 10's or lighter on it as the neck only pulls up ( slightly ) when strung up with 11's ?

Apologies to all for my barrage of guitar questions. I blame it on myself being a bassist ( and the owner of a gorgeous Warmoth Jazz Bass I put together a few years ago )

Your questions have pretty much been answered:
1. What you have described is not a good sign.
2. Your absolute best bet is to contact Warmoth and describe the situation to them.

 

[Bayman]

I received the guitar neck in December, so it's definitely under warranty. The tech I take my equipment too is very reputable. He has to dress the frets when it arrived, as the frets were covered with the nitro finish when Warmoth did the finish, so the measurements should be correct. He then set it up with 10's and said it may take a while for the neck to settle under tension. I gave it 3 weeks, before I took it back to make what I thought would be a minor adjustment. It seems the only way at the moment to have this guitar playing right is to have heavy gauge strings on it ?

P.S. I have contacted Warmoth and will wait for a reply.

 

[Strat Avenger]

It's shouldn't take 3 weeks for a neck to "settle". More like 48 hours.

 

[Bayman]

I'll just have to wait and see what Warmoth have to say. Very disappointed at the moment

 

[fdesalvo]

Sad to hear, indeed.  Just know that Warmoth will honor their work and you will or already have (one of the best necks in the business). 

Frank

 

[Bayman]

The reply from Warmoth was to have my tech install a shim in the neck pocket.  Have him place the shim at the top of the neck pocket, this will angle the neck so that you have slightly higher action at the first 5 frets.

I'm on to it  !

 

[Updown]

Interesting  :icon_scratch:

Thanks for the update and please keep us informed of your progress with this.
ccasion14: