SS6100/10" neck radius - Bendy?

[slowhandy]

I've tried guitars with jumbo frets(nickel) and a 10" radius and find that they tend to fret out somewhat -- at least for me.  Normally I prefer jumbo nickels with a flatter radius like a 12".  I was wondering whether stainless frets would counteract the rounder curvature so that I could get one with a 10" radius.  Anyone out there with one?

 

[AutoBat]

The material isn't going to affect the radius. The radius will affect the radius.

A really neat solution to your problem would be a compound radius, like, say, Warmoth offers by default.

 

[Dan025]

you might have a slight tendency to hold the strings better because of the slicker surface you don't have to fight things. it all depends on you playing which we can't see. a 10" radius can be setup to bend ok, fender uses a 9.5" radius and plenty of pros play fine on those. but it also depends on how you like to set the action and how hard you bend.

the compound radius is also nice but if you dont want a bridge type with adjustable saddles you will either have to modify it, shim it, or have a slight compromise.

 

[slowhandy]

The reason why I was thinking of a 10" radius was because I wanted to use it with a Floyd Rose and locking nut with a 10" radius, without having to install shims.  According to what's been said, a 10" radius will work, provided it's set up right, and a compound will work although it must be shimmed.  Sounds like six of one and half-dozen of the other...

Still not sure.  Anyway thanks.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

Don't be afraid of shimming the FR saddles. It takes about 20 minutes tops and is easy. It's not worth compromising on the setup/playability of the guitar over its whole lifetime to save those 20 minutes.

 

[Cagey]

Jumble Jumble's right - installing the shims is not difficult. The bridge will come with the tool you need, and the shims are simple...

... just a thin plate of spring steel with a hole in it. They're available here for ~$10. To install them, you remove a saddle, place the shim(s), then re-install the saddle.

If you're using a Warmoth 10"-16" compound radius neck, you want a roughly 18" radius bridge, so two shims for each of the E strings, one for the A and B strings, and none for the D and G strings.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

I was just thinking "haha, that looks exactly when I did it".

Oh, it is when I did it.

And remove the big shim that comes stock with the Floyd, under the middle four strings. That's to take it from a 12" to a 10" radius.

 

[Cagey]

Yeah, I just pulled it off a Google image search. Kinda surprised to find exactly what I was looking for - couldn't have asked for a better shot <grin>

 

[slowhandy]

F.Y.I., I've decided to" take a walk on the wild side" and get a compound radius neck for the following reasons:  i) I prefer a flatter radius, ii) the prevailing tide of opinion seems to favor it, and iii) I appear to have gotten over my unnatural fear of shims.  T.Y. all.

 

[Cagey]

I think you'll be very pleased with the result.

 

[slowhandy]

By the way, almost forgot...Cagey the guitar looks awesome.  If it sounds one half as good as it looks it must be  one heck of a guitar.  I'd be almost afraid to play it looks so good! :icon_thumright:

 

[Cagey]

Thanks!

I am a little over-protective of the thing, since it has a nitro finish. They tend to scratch/chip more easily than poly finishes do.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

On the other hand, if you do get a ding in a poly finish, you really know about it.

 

[Cagey]

True enough. But, at least you get some indication that you've done something abusive if you're sensitive about your instrument at all - you can usually feel it happen and perhaps learn a lesson. With lacquer, blemishes seem to show up mysteriously and you feel like you're fighting ghosts.

Bear in mind that I'm hyper-sensitive to such things. It seems many folks regard blemishes as some sort of badge of honor. Myself, I want my guitars to look like brand-new for as long as I own them. It's an unrealistic expectation, and certainly none of my guitars are perfect. It's just a mindset.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

With OFR's being a default 10", I've seen them yield optimum results on straight radius' of 10' or 12", and they work great on the compound.