LPAssem Version 1.1
19
25 August 2016
6.0
Final Setup
At this point your guitar is assembled and is ‘whole string’ tuned. Go ahead, play it a little, finally! You will
probably notice that it plays OK, but you may want to adjust various parts of the setup for your playing and
to improve tuning. To improve the sound and playability of the instrument, there are a variety of important
adjustments that need to be done:
•
Truss rod adjustment.
•
Set the String Height
•
Set the Intonation
•
Set the Pickup height.
This instruction manual provides only the most basic procedures. We suggest that you buy a copy of Dan
Erlewine’s Guitar Player Repair Guide.
6.1.
Truss Rod Adjustment
The truss rod controls the bow, or curve, of the neck. The
truss is pre-checked at the factory and should not need
adjustment to have a playable instrument. However,
depending on your playing style and level of experience
you may want to adjust the neck curve using the truss
rod. This sets the foundation for several other pieces, it is
good to double check.
•
Place a capo on the between the nut and first fret. If you do not have a capo you will need an extra set
of hands for this section.
•
Place the guitar in playing position. Gravity does play a part in the curvature of the neck!
•
On the 6
th
string, hold down the string at the last (highest) fret.
•
Check the height of the string at the 7
th
fret using a good ruler with 1/32 markings, or using feeler
gauges. The string should be just off of the fret. The target height is 1/64”, or the thickness of a
business card, or very thin guitar pick.
•
Space too great means the truss rod needs to be tightened, to pull back the neck.
•
Space too small means the truss rod needs to be loosened, to release the neck.
•
If the rod needs to be adjusted, follow these steps:
•
Insert the Allen wrench into the hole at the top of the neck
•
Turn the wrench 1/8 - ¼ of a turn at most at any time.
•
Turning the wrench clockwise tightens the rod (Righty-tighty!), pulling the headstock back (and
lowering the strings).
•
Turning the wrench counterclockwise loosens the rod (Lefty-loosey!) allowing hte headstock to
move forward under string tension (and raising the strings).
•
Re-check the string height.
•
Here are a few videos on this processes:
•
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHHepmTX3So
(John Carruthers).
Alloy Pro T
ip
This is an advanced procedure.
If you aren’t sure - then don’t do
it! You probably won’t “break”
your guitar, but you may need
some professional help to get
things adjusted properly if you
make mistakes here!
