thank you for your video. some guy i met at the dump was teaching his kid a lesson and was throwing away his hamer es-335 i happily accepted it from the guy. there was a bow in the neck, and following your instructions, i was able to make the neck perfectly flat. plays wonderfully.
Perfect timing with this video. I already knew how to do it, but I bought a little Hofner Shorty and needed to set it up, requiring a rod adjust. This was just the kick in the pants I needed to get it done.
O, your Straightening the neck; but are you straightening it from a Back Bow, or from too much Releif? Is it Left, ? or Right? for back bow. Can you be more clear on that? WTF dude?
By straightening it he meant tightening it, turning the wrench to the right, because it had too much relief. You turn left, to loosen, or add relief, if you have a back bow.
This too annoyed the fuck outta me..... lefty loosey righty tighty.... as if we don't know how a screw works.... and as if ttight or loose tells us ANYTHIGN ABOUT WHICH WAY IT WILL MAKE THE NECK BEND!!!!
He said it was a "basic" truss rod adjustment. Most guitars don't have a back bow so he's assuming you're adjusting it from too much relief. A back bow problem is bigger problem than too much relief.
It doesn't always mean your neck is twisted if your E strings have different action, it could just mean that your bridge or saddles need adjustment. I like to hold the headstock at my dominant eye and peer down the fret board, you can usually see if there is a slight variation.
Thanks for the video, I have never adjusted the trusrod on a les paul before, and I had that undesirable high action on strings, even adjusting the tune o matic bridge. With this steps problem resolved. I wish this tutorial would be in Spanish too, but it is very helpful
I saw a tip from Dan at Stew Macs vid. Mark the starting point with a sharpie. I think that’s the best advice ever. Not sure you could do that with that epp tho. I couldn’t see. I actually have that exact guitar but never had the cover off. But my Les Paul has a male end that I can easily mark and have done.
I want the whole step bends, and when I tried to loosen my truss rod, it started loosening the nut from the rod, which sounds messed up now that I typed this lol, but when it is already loose and needs to go more, any sincere suggestions? I hate paying someone for something so easy, but I wasn't prepared for the nut to start coming off. need help please, gibson les paul studio 2016t.
I just did this to my Epiphone Special II but I dis like 3 half turns lol now it's all tight, if I leave it like that overnight it should go back to normal correct?
Because the truss rod is the one sure thing you can fix and rule out, since you're adjusting the action in a fixed environment. Since you are holding down the first and last fret, whatever action the strings are set to at the bridge is completely irrelevant. Making sure your neck is proper can let you know that the problem is elsewhere. You can't do this type of investigation on the saddle height or nut height (since nut height will differ due to neck position).
because the wood in the neck is the only thing that can move over time..... unless you have a cat with allen keys and dexterous paws you shouldn't see your bridge change height......
Ablat desu think of it like a bow, where the strings are the string of the bow. If it looks too much like a bow; high strings and bow curved away, it's too loose. In this case you want to tighten the rod. The other way around; the bow is humped towards the strings which can cause fret buzz when playing on the lower half of the neck. In that case the rod is too tight, so you turn left to loosen it.
Pretty much every esp/ltd has a double action truss rod, meaning if you loosen it all the way till it's completely loose. You can keep turning counter clockwise and eventually it will tighten the other way.
Paul, at 1:47, you show a vintage truss rod. How do you get the truss rod tool in there? This shows the body covering almost 1/2 of the truss rod & the neck pick up is in the way...
Great video man. Thanks a lot for sharing. But i have different problem. Everytime i played a note hit in the first fret in the head of my guitar offcourse it touches to the second fret and it really sounds terrible. So if you ever answer my question it would be really really appreciated. Thanks a lot
Sounds like the nut slots are to low. Check it by pressing down the string at the third fret. If its touching the first fret it's too low. Hope it helps.
You failed to connect bow and back bow to the concept of tightening/loosening the rod. Rightie-tightie, sure, but which malady is addressed with this direction? And you keep making a distinction of "we're straightening this neck," as if that's everything the novice needs to know. Again, aren't both bowed and back-bowed necks in need of straightening?
Well I knocked my LP over and the strings were buzzing. I never usually do any adjustments on guitars, but I am in Cambodia and no engineer can be found. So, I listened to this vdo and checked the neck - it seemed fine. Then, I noticed that the front pickup was high. I didn't even need to use a screwdriver, just tapped and it went back into place, guitar action back to normal. thnx
Russ S actually bowed is always that, like a bow. The other way a neck can be bent is called humped. Not trying to sound like a nitpicker but that is the correct terminology. Have a nice day!
EXACTLY thank you for being at least someone who realized this fuckin guy is an asshole for saying "Remember lefty loosey righty tighty" as if that helps AT ALLLLLLLLL!!!!!!
WastedFreakOut You shouldnt have your neck straight. press down 24th(or if you don't have just pretend you have one) and first fret. if 12th touching at the frets its wrong. It should slightly hover.
potentially. probably. also will most likely need to adjust saddle height. probably have to loosen (file) the nut slots, and definitely will have to re intonate the bridge.
john behun...Step 1) Capo at the 1st fret...Step 2) Using your right index finger, press down on the 6th string at the fret where the neck joins the body...Step 3) With a feeler gauge (set of metal strips with different thicknesses) or some go by the thickness of a credit card, measure the gap from the bottom of the 6th string to the crown or top of the 8th fret which is about the middle of the neck. The average gap should be between .010 & .012 inches. This gap is all about player preference but that is the 'average' gap. If the gap is greater that .012 inches, the neck is too bowed which can cause unnecessary string height & needs to be straightened to decrease the gap. So, you would need to straighten the neck by tightening the truss rod to reduce the gap. If the gap is less than .010 inches, the neck is too straight which causes unwanted fret buzz. This means the neck need to be more bowed or 'looser'...All this takes about 5-10 minutes...EDIT: In addition, if you've measured the gap & it's ok but your strings are still too high of the frets, then you revert to adjusting the bridge to lower the string height that way & vice versa...
you missed the step where you have to loosen the strings off first then move them out of the way , then you can adjust the truss rod, and PS you need to always have just a bit of bow in the neck other wise you can create a new problem
You were not clear enough about defining a neck with a bow, and the opposite of that. Persons who are relatively new to guitar adjustments would most likely not understand.
You never did say look straight down your neck and see if it is straight it might have a bow in it that's why my strings on my Epiphone Casino a r e a mile high
No, it doesn't. The action is set by adjusting the string saddles at the bridge. This is a height adjustment. The truss rod adjustment straightens the whole neck. You need to check both, as well as intonation (same note on open string overtone at 12th fret as fretted note at 12th fret).
I suggest adjusting the truss rod, bridge height, and then intonation. I'm sure someone will argue why you should do the bridge height first then the truss rod, but checking the neck with your finger at the first and last fret kinda takes the bridge height outta the equation, so it's preference. Intonation should be last though, otherwise you wasted your time.
Yes. Because the neck is attached to thinner wood. If you over tighten you can damage the body. Not a problem on electrics and it's much faster to get it set where you want it with the full tension.
You say you should have the same amount of play or bounce underneath the low E in the high E strings and if you do not you probably have a twisted neck. I would think that it would just be that you have your TuneOmatic Bridge adjust differently on the high E and the low E Side. This could easily make you think you have a twisted neck when all you really have is a bridge that has been improperly adjusted. I would definitely check the bridge before worried about a twisted neck. You should measure underneath each string the high E and the low E with a feeler gauge. See if you can get them fairly even by adjusting the bridge, at least that's what I would try before I worry about a twisted neck. Too many dumbasses out there that don't know what they're doing get things out of wack way too easily. It doesn't take much to get things out of whack on a guitar, especially where the Frets are concerned. A few thousands of an inch can make all the difference in the world. God Bless Jimmy in NC....
I don't need this hypochondriac bullshit. Every single guitar from Guitar Center is backbowed or twisted. Yes your neck is fucked up. Someway, somehow it is fucked. No. You will not get a good one. I've tried. You can only return so many.
Learning this technique will save you hundreds of dollars throughout our musical journey.......thanks paul...great lesson
thank you for your video. some guy i met at the dump was teaching his kid a lesson and was throwing away his hamer es-335 i happily accepted it from the guy. there was a bow in the neck, and following your instructions, i was able to make the neck perfectly flat. plays wonderfully.
Perfect timing with this video. I already knew how to do it, but I bought a little Hofner Shorty and needed to set it up, requiring a rod adjust. This was just the kick in the pants I needed to get it done.
3:33 "Then you take the truss rod, insert it into the truss rod…" ok
I think Paul just likes the word Rod
thanx for this video,,,,iv always had low confidence with this stuff
the "background" music.. why
No shit. A distraction
This is the ES-339 from Epiphone. Great guitar!
O, your Straightening the neck; but are you straightening it from a Back Bow, or from too much Releif? Is it Left, ? or Right? for back bow. Can you be more clear on that? WTF dude?
exactly!!!
ben wright I'm glad it's not just me, i was going to say the exact same thing. "I'm straightening the neck" from what?!
By straightening it he meant tightening it, turning the wrench to the right, because it had too much relief. You turn left, to loosen, or add relief, if you have a back bow.
This too annoyed the fuck outta me..... lefty loosey righty tighty.... as if we don't know how a screw works.... and as if ttight or loose tells us ANYTHIGN ABOUT WHICH WAY IT WILL MAKE THE NECK BEND!!!!
He said it was a "basic" truss rod adjustment. Most guitars don't have a back bow so he's assuming you're adjusting it from too much relief. A back bow problem is bigger problem than too much relief.
It doesn't always mean your neck is twisted if your E strings have different action, it could just mean that your bridge or saddles need adjustment. I like to hold the headstock at my dominant eye and peer down the fret board, you can usually see if there is a slight variation.
That would be true if he didn't specify to fret the string at the first and last fret.
@austinfailz Ha, good point! :)
Thank you 😊 very much. You made my playing experience better.👍
Thanks for the video, I have never adjusted the trusrod on a les paul before, and I had that undesirable high action on strings, even adjusting the tune o matic bridge. With this steps problem resolved. I wish this tutorial would be in Spanish too, but it is very helpful
For a locking term guitar with high action is it better to adjust the trust rod or lower the trem itself ?
Thanks Paul. I needed this and it helped out. I can play her again.
I saw a tip from Dan at Stew Macs vid. Mark the starting point with a sharpie. I think that’s the best advice ever. Not sure you could do that with that epp tho. I couldn’t see. I actually have that exact guitar but never had the cover off. But my Les Paul has a male end that I can easily mark and have done.
Thanks Paul, this is very informative and helpful.. Just as i wonder why my strings action has changed.. Thumbs up from me..
Very helpful video Paul, gonna try this out on my Les Paul.
I'm not surprised to see you here!
Rick van Pol ;)
I want the whole step bends, and when I tried to loosen my truss rod, it started loosening the nut from the rod, which sounds messed up now that I typed this lol, but when it is already loose and needs to go more, any sincere suggestions? I hate paying someone for something so easy, but I wasn't prepared for the nut to start coming off. need help please, gibson les paul studio 2016t.
Very helpful brother.... Thanks alot
I just did this to my Epiphone Special II but I dis like 3 half turns lol now it's all tight, if I leave it like that overnight it should go back to normal correct?
Nice explanation and demo. Thanks.
I'm going up from a 9 to 10 on a Gibson Flying V, should i do any adjustments?
"First you take the truss rod, insert it into the truss rod "
+Antonio Irons Right!!... He did really say that!
Why does everyone automatically think the truss rod is the culprit? It could be the bridge saddle height or the nut, not always the truss rod.
Because the truss rod is the one sure thing you can fix and rule out, since you're adjusting the action in a fixed environment. Since you are holding down the first and last fret, whatever action the strings are set to at the bridge is completely irrelevant. Making sure your neck is proper can let you know that the problem is elsewhere. You can't do this type of investigation on the saddle height or nut height (since nut height will differ due to neck position).
Because they want to irritate you.
It's best to adjust in the order of ; Truss rod, nut, then bridge. Always start with truss rod.
because the wood in the neck is the only thing that can move over time..... unless you have a cat with allen keys and dexterous paws you shouldn't see your bridge change height......
AS fate would have it/Needed to adjust my sunburst Es-339-just 2 quarter turns no buzz-Well Done
Thanks for the useful tips
by tightening the truss rod, do i lower the action or the other way around?
Ablat desu think of it like a bow, where the strings are the string of the bow. If it looks too much like a bow; high strings and bow curved away, it's too loose. In this case you want to tighten the rod. The other way around; the bow is humped towards the strings which can cause fret buzz when playing on the lower half of the neck. In that case the rod is too tight, so you turn left to loosen it.
Great video Paul.
Pretty much every esp/ltd has a double action truss rod, meaning if you loosen it all the way till it's completely loose. You can keep turning counter clockwise and eventually it will tighten the other way.
Great video, really helpful!
Thanks
Paul, at 1:47, you show a vintage truss rod. How do you get the truss rod tool in there? This shows the body covering almost 1/2 of the truss rod & the neck pick up is in the way...
Watch the rest of the video
I would highly recommend purchasing a straight edge. Bought mine for under $20 on amazon. Wouldn't suggest doing this without one.
Thanks for the great video! :)
Is this the same for acoustic?
Great video man. Thanks a lot for sharing. But i have different problem. Everytime i played a note hit in the first fret in the head of my guitar offcourse it touches to the second fret and it really sounds terrible. So if you ever answer my question it would be really really appreciated. Thanks a lot
Sounds like the nut slots are to low. Check it by pressing down the string at the third fret. If its touching the first fret it's too low. Hope it helps.
I tried this. next day I'm driving down the road and the wheel came off my car. Be careful.
Steering wheel or the rubber ones.
Great Bojack reference :D Thanks for this.
You failed to connect bow and back bow to the concept of tightening/loosening the rod. Rightie-tightie, sure, but which malady is addressed with this direction? And you keep making a distinction of "we're straightening this neck," as if that's everything the novice needs to know. Again, aren't both bowed and back-bowed necks in need of straightening?
Well I knocked my LP over and the strings were buzzing. I never usually do any adjustments on guitars, but I am in Cambodia and no engineer can be found. So, I listened to this vdo and checked the neck - it seemed fine. Then, I noticed that the front pickup was high. I didn't even need to use a screwdriver, just tapped and it went back into place, guitar action back to normal.
thnx
So if a neck is bowed. Do you Righty tighty or lefty loosey???
Bowed... turn right
It depends on which way it is bowed, which you did not mention.
Russ S actually bowed is always that, like a bow. The other way a neck can be bent is called humped. Not trying to sound like a nitpicker but that is the correct terminology. Have a nice day!
EXACTLY thank you for being at least someone who realized this fuckin guy is an asshole for saying "Remember lefty loosey righty tighty" as if that helps AT ALLLLLLLLL!!!!!!
upplsuckimcool16 that is the general rule yea, the only thing he didn't link to that is that right tight = less bow (hump) and left loose is more bow.
Pretty useful!
The neck doesn't change position if I trun the truss rod. I've turned it a couple of time. 1/4 per turn. I tune it, it stays the same
Bit dangerous. Take it to your music store.
the background music is very annoying !
Yeah apparently we're all Wayne's World enthusiasts aged 16.
Hahaha yeah the music sounds like what you'd hear during a compilation of explosions and stunts gone wrong LOL. 😂
Does any of this affect a jackson randy rhoads or an 8 string guitar by any chance?
Yes! All guitars.
gibson Les Paul's are one way trust rod ? counterclockwise thighs, and clockwise loses this little piece ?
Not sure what you mean by "thighs" and "loses" but clockwise tightens and counterclockwise loosens. Tight, the neck goes back. Loose goes forward.
what if i have my neck straight and action high and still get fret buzz? its sooo anoying. mall my frets are leveled btw
WastedFreakOut Have you checked the nut? Some times the nut can be the culprit
WastedFreakOut You shouldnt have your neck straight. press down 24th(or if you don't have just pretend you have one) and first fret. if 12th touching at the frets its wrong. It should slightly hover.
Nice video!
Do I need to adjust the truss rod if I go from 9's to 11's?
potentially. probably. also will most likely need to adjust saddle height. probably have to loosen (file) the nut slots, and definitely will have to re intonate the bridge.
should between 10 thou and 12 thou i use a striaght edge on the first fret and last frett..put a feeler gauge at 7
fret
how do i know when I need to adjust the truss rod?
+john behun If you have a lot of fret buzz higher up the neck, or if the strings are floating above the frets too high.
Or easily said when your guitar neck is bowed
john behun...Step 1) Capo at the 1st fret...Step 2) Using your right index finger, press down on the 6th string at the fret where the neck joins the body...Step 3) With a feeler gauge (set of metal strips with different thicknesses) or some go by the thickness of a credit card, measure the gap from the bottom of the 6th string to the crown or top of the 8th fret which is about the middle of the neck. The average gap should be between .010 & .012 inches. This gap is all about player preference but that is the 'average' gap. If the gap is greater that .012 inches, the neck is too bowed which can cause unnecessary string height & needs to be straightened to decrease the gap. So, you would need to straighten the neck by tightening the truss rod to reduce the gap. If the gap is less than .010 inches, the neck is too straight which causes unwanted fret buzz. This means the neck need to be more bowed or 'looser'...All this takes about 5-10 minutes...EDIT: In addition, if you've measured the gap & it's ok but your strings are still too high of the frets, then you revert to adjusting the bridge to lower the string height that way & vice versa...
Razor blade? Id think like .006 is pretty good
What size allen wrench on the Epi 339? 4mm?
1/8 th inch I believe.
you missed the step where you have to loosen the strings off first then move them out of the way , then you can adjust the truss rod, and PS you need to always have just a bit of bow in the neck other wise you can create a new problem
Always make your necks as flat as you can... Any bow is a bad thing..
You are absolutely wrong, Keith.
You were not clear enough about defining a neck with a bow, and the opposite of that. Persons who are relatively new to guitar adjustments would most likely not understand.
I guess I'm pretty randomly asking but do anybody know a good website to stream newly released series online?
@Damien Kieran try flixzone. You can find it by googling =)
@Chris Bronson Yea, been using Flixzone for months myself =)
@Chris Bronson thanks, I went there and it seems like a nice service =) I really appreciate it !
@Damien Kieran glad I could help =)
You never did say look straight down your neck and see if it is straight it might have a bow in it that's why my strings on my Epiphone Casino a r e a mile high
Usefull
just double checking - setting the action usually means adjusting the truss rod, right?
No, it doesn't. The action is set by adjusting the string saddles at the bridge. This is a height adjustment. The truss rod adjustment straightens the whole neck. You need to check both, as well as intonation (same note on open string overtone at 12th fret as fretted note at 12th fret).
I suggest adjusting the truss rod, bridge height, and then intonation. I'm sure someone will argue why you should do the bridge height first then the truss rod, but checking the neck with your finger at the first and last fret kinda takes the bridge height outta the equation, so it's preference. Intonation should be last though, otherwise you wasted your time.
Great video. Drop the BG music though. It's not Guitar Center.
Mine just buzz so much
allen wrench.......What freaking size?
"Next: how to adjust your white balance", just kidding, nice tips!
chocking frets on high e and generally high on the fretboard? probably a little twist? f@ck...
Okay, I see this a lot! They say “quarter turn” and clearly it’s NOT a quarter…it’s an eighth turn.
Thanks :-)
"Son?"
Don't most acoustic guitar experts tell u to loosen the strings first before truss rod adjustments
Yes. Because the neck is attached to thinner wood. If you over tighten you can damage the body. Not a problem on electrics and it's much faster to get it set where you want it with the full tension.
helps when hes showing u how to do it on ur exact guitar XD
I have that exact one also. Lot of problems with intonation. I replaced the bridge with a Wilkinson. Ugly but it worked.
I was not able to finish watching this due to the background music!
Superogobongo why
due to the background music.....
Would be great, but that noise in the background??????
You say you should have the same amount of play or bounce underneath the low E in the high E strings and if you do not you probably have a twisted neck. I would think that it would just be that you have your TuneOmatic Bridge adjust differently on the high E and the low E Side. This could easily make you think you have a twisted neck when all you really have is a bridge that has been improperly adjusted. I would definitely check the bridge before worried about a twisted neck. You should measure underneath each string the high E and the low E with a feeler gauge. See if you can get them fairly even by adjusting the bridge, at least that's what I would try before I worry about a twisted neck. Too many dumbasses out there that don't know what they're doing get things out of wack way too easily. It doesn't take much to get things out of whack on a guitar, especially where the Frets are concerned. A few thousands of an inch can make all the difference in the world.
God Bless Jimmy in NC....
Face like mr.bean 😂
Low loose, up tight.
Excellent video, thanks! But pleaaaaase, the background music does not help, would be much better without! :-)
cheater driver, never knew they existed. perfect solution for my fender mustang. thanks for the tip paul!
ms3bani I was thinking the same thing, for my Mustang. lol
+Nichole Levine me three!
"I'm straightening the neck." Ya don't say? 🤔
Listen, I really would like to hear this but, yet, you have all this unnecessary music playing in the background and it is distracting. 😊
How about the actual spec at the center, instead of BOUNCE?? WTF?
right? like is that the technical measurement? lol. and suggesting a razor? because all razors are the same thickness... lol
A business card or to be more specific, about 1/32nd
popping the neck, are you serious? thats a bold move, but saves hours of time
whats up with all the spanish commercials on youtube lately?
Irritating background noise.....
WOW Vintage guitars are a pain..
That Hollowbody looks soooo small
That's the point of a 339. It's a smaller version of the 335.
If I adjusted it WITH him, i would not need to know how. I would let him do it.
What the hell is with the background music? Completely unnecessary.
I don't need this hypochondriac bullshit. Every single guitar from Guitar Center is backbowed or twisted. Yes your neck is fucked up. Someway, somehow it is fucked. No. You will not get a good one. I've tried. You can only return so many.
LUCY IS NOT LEFTY, LEAVE HER ALONE.
Neck adjustment you’re a chiropractor!!
Son???
That is some nasty ass bullshit music playing in the background.
How to Adjust a Truss Rod without Paul Riario :P Just kidding :)
Awful. Turn off the music, comb your hair and strop acting like your 8 years old.