Guitarists sometimes put shims in the neck pocket to get lower action. Most fast shredders do this so they can fly up and down the neck. The shim was probably nicely placed at the beginning, then when you dropped your guitar, the shim shifted out of place, creating lift where you didn’t need it, creating string choke in certain areas. The shim was probably off-center, lifting the low-E side of the neck a little too high and leaving the high-E side low.
Nice video! Please keep making videos. I really like how you get right to the point and your sense of humor. Just a tip for the future. On strats, it’s common for the neck to separate away from the body, which kills sustain and can cause issues like you were experiencing. You can simple ( with full string tenstion IN TUNE), you simple loosen the bottom (closest towards the bridge) neck screws about 1/4 turn, then the top screws a 1/4 turn. You’ll usually hear a crack or click at this point, that is the neck moving tighter to the body of the guitar. Now just tighter the bottom screws, and then the top. You’re all done! Increases sustain on most strats that haven’t been properly set up in a while. Hope that’s helpful. Rock on sister!
thanks so much for the kind words and helpful tip! I appreciate it! I will definitely keep that in mind for the future with Strats I come across. Thanks! :)
Problem solved. It was exactly this problem. "screws about 1/4 turn, then the top screws a 1/4 turn" I was putting a pad and tightened the neck a little thank you for the tip 👍
Glad you got it fixed! It sounds so good and your playing is smooth! I had a brand new classic vibe tele that I removed the strings, polished all the frets, replaced the saddles, put new strings and setup only to find a popped up 5th fret causing buzz. My luthier has slow turnaround time and I didn’t want to exchange it having put in all that work so after some internet search got the soft face hammer out and carefully tapped it in! Mine was maple and had some finish underneath the fret so had to clean that out first otherwise I would’ve destroyed the fret. All good now and saved so much time and money! For others that try this make sure you research before doing it though cause you can very easily deform the fret if you strike the wrong spot which will lift the ends. There is a technique to it
So just got a 2008 American Deluxe Strat. Thought the frets needed a level, it after watching this video I got really curious as to why it wasn’t playing as good as it could. Sure enough, it was shimmed with a thick piece of perloid plastic along with the thick sticker from fender. Removed them both and plays like buttah now.
"The guitar...not me" made me laugh. People will usually try a shim in a bolt neck guitar to change the angle of the neck to lower the string height over the higher frets. By removing it you most likely caused the string heights to increase a small amount. Good on you for doing it yourself. Your guitar is ringing nicely now!
You’re exactly right! It’s a shim! The newer models have a micro adjustment screw under the neck plate. It’s common to make that adjustment but I’ve always found it does cause choking on the higher end bending. I keep my neck angle as flat as possible on a strat for this exact reason!
You probably would've been better with checking the neck relief and adjusting the truss rod as that's probably what was knocked out when you dropped it. Your action has most likely changed from removing the shim and from the drop. If you're happy with the action then great looks like it worked out well!
OMG!! For a long time a have been looking for information on the net to solve this tricky problem! I've done many things that you can't imagine... refret, leveling, replace the nut, setting the strings many things! My strat all the time had a problem on the 12th fret over, sustain issue and dead frets when I bending up. Today I run into with your video and BINGO! I took that wicked piece of paper off and there it goes, now it's pretty good. Thank you so much!
These are good tips. I have found the neck angle to be hyper-sensitive on my guitars. Also, if a neck does need a shim, it needs to fit the whole end of the neck width-wise. Almost always, I use a wood shim that is tapered (start with pre-tapered shims from Stew-Mac). Even when neck angle is correct, I find these common problems: (1) The neck was sanded flat when the fretboard has a radius and the bridge matches the radius. This means the neck should be sanded with a radiused sanding block. The Low and High E strings would be slightly lower than center strings. When done with the correct block, the volume and sustain goes up a LOT and choking goes away. (2) Somewhere between the 12th and 15 fret, I sand a slight taper to where the highest fret (22nd or 24th) would be slightly lower than 12th or 15th fret. Its a microscopic difference, but this tiny difference in height makes a huge difference on action height. If your tone seems to drop off on the high end of fretboard without high action, this is probably why. Thanks for post. Appreciate.
glad to see you're doing your own work ! Cute and a genius too.. i bought a cheap strat and re-shimmed it..and hammered the bad fret. yeah that paper would impact the neck level ..especially in 1000ths of tolerances..
Essentially you just raised the action. Taking that shim out is what caused a lessened neck angle which = action higher...no different than raising each saddle by that same amount and leaving the shim in.
Removing the paper neck shim must have tilted the neck and lifted the action (string height) on the higher frets. Most of your choke and stuff would have been fixed by lifting the action. Action should not be set to "your preference" but shoukd be set as CLOSE to your preference as possible BUT not cause the fret buzz or bend chokes. 🙂
I had the same problem - high E on the 15th almost choking out on a bend - sounding buzzy. I hadn't dropped the guitar, after some fret dressing failed to fix it, I applied the ultimate fix - a new neck! (well, actually a Luthier did it for me). Buzzes on the lower frets I can live with, but up there it has to be clean!
@@mitchconnerandsometimesjlotoo Nice! Thanks for letting me know. Glad to hear you were able to fix it for your guitar. The screws on the saddle of my Strat are really messed up and my frets are old too (I bought it used and the owner didn't take good care of it) so I think I'll need to do a lot of fixing on mine as well 😅
Hi Christine, hopefully you’ve fixed the error now but it sounds to me like a high fret. Either it’s popped up or the frets around it have pitted or divot’d. When you play the fret, use a tuner to figure out what musical note you’re playing then it’s probably that fret that’s high. Hope that helps!
Guitarists sometimes put shims in the neck pocket to get lower action. Most fast shredders do this so they can fly up and down the neck. The shim was probably nicely placed at the beginning, then when you dropped your guitar, the shim shifted out of place, creating lift where you didn’t need it, creating string choke in certain areas. The shim was probably off-center, lifting the low-E side of the neck a little too high and leaving the high-E side low.
Hey, in a youtube that nowadays is full of clickbait, this was very useful. Thank you!
Wow, thanks for the kind feedback. glad u enjoyed it and found it useful!
Nice video! Please keep making videos. I really like how you get right to the point and your sense of humor.
Just a tip for the future. On strats, it’s common for the neck to separate away from the body, which kills sustain and can cause issues like you were experiencing. You can simple ( with full string tenstion IN TUNE), you simple loosen the bottom (closest towards the bridge) neck
screws about 1/4 turn, then the top screws a 1/4 turn. You’ll usually hear a crack or click at this point, that is the neck moving tighter to the body of the guitar. Now just tighter the bottom screws, and then the top. You’re all done! Increases sustain on most strats that haven’t been properly set up in a while.
Hope that’s helpful. Rock on sister!
thanks so much for the kind words and helpful tip! I appreciate it! I will definitely keep that in mind for the future with Strats I come across. Thanks! :)
Problem solved. It was exactly this problem. "screws about 1/4 turn, then the top screws a 1/4 turn"
I was putting a pad and tightened the neck a little
thank you for the tip 👍
what screws should I loosen, is it the screws that holds the neck to the body? thank you in advance
Glad you got it fixed! It sounds so good and your playing is smooth! I had a brand new classic vibe tele that I removed the strings, polished all the frets, replaced the saddles, put new strings and setup only to find a popped up 5th fret causing buzz. My luthier has slow turnaround time and I didn’t want to exchange it having put in all that work so after some internet search got the soft face hammer out and carefully tapped it in! Mine was maple and had some finish underneath the fret so had to clean that out first otherwise I would’ve destroyed the fret. All good now and saved so much time and money! For others that try this make sure you research before doing it though cause you can very easily deform the fret if you strike the wrong spot which will lift the ends. There is a technique to it
Thanks for sharing your experience and what worked for ur guitar! 😄 Glad to hear u were able to save the time & money!
So just got a 2008 American Deluxe Strat. Thought the frets needed a level, it after watching this video I got really curious as to why it wasn’t playing as good as it could. Sure enough, it was shimmed with a thick piece of perloid plastic along with the thick sticker from fender. Removed them both and plays like buttah now.
"The guitar...not me" made me laugh. People will usually try a shim in a bolt neck guitar to change the angle of the neck to lower the string height over the higher frets. By removing it you most likely caused the string heights to increase a small amount. Good on you for doing it yourself. Your guitar is ringing nicely now!
You’re exactly right! It’s a shim! The newer models have a micro adjustment screw under the neck plate. It’s common to make that adjustment but I’ve always found it does cause choking on the higher end bending. I keep my neck angle as flat as possible on a strat for this exact reason!
You probably would've been better with checking the neck relief and adjusting the truss rod as that's probably what was knocked out when you dropped it. Your action has most likely changed from removing the shim and from the drop.
If you're happy with the action then great looks like it worked out well!
yeah that's a great point! always a learning process with guitar tech stuff for me haha - thanks for your tip and feedback! :)
I’m going to be checking my EVH Wolfgang,it seems as though someone put a “shim” in the neck pocket too.
OMG!! For a long time a have been looking for information on the net to solve this tricky problem! I've done many things that you can't imagine... refret, leveling, replace the nut, setting the strings many things! My strat all the time had a problem on the 12th fret over, sustain issue and dead frets when I bending up. Today I run into with your video and BINGO! I took that wicked piece of paper off and there it goes, now it's pretty good.
Thank you so much!
You play great 👍
THAT PIECE OF PAPER WAS A SHIM PROBABLY PLACED THERE AT THE FACTORY.
OKAY
Its So satisfying when you solve it yourself 😂
These are good tips. I have found the neck angle to be hyper-sensitive on my guitars. Also, if a neck does need a shim, it needs to fit the whole end of the neck width-wise. Almost always, I use a wood shim that is tapered (start with pre-tapered shims from Stew-Mac). Even when neck angle is correct, I find these common problems:
(1) The neck was sanded flat when the fretboard has a radius and the bridge matches the radius. This means the neck should be sanded with a radiused sanding block. The Low and High E strings would be slightly lower than center strings. When done with the correct block, the volume and sustain goes up a LOT and choking goes away.
(2) Somewhere between the 12th and 15 fret, I sand a slight taper to where the highest fret (22nd or 24th) would be slightly lower than 12th or 15th fret. Its a microscopic difference, but this tiny difference in height makes a huge difference on action height. If your tone seems to drop off on the high end of fretboard without high action, this is probably why.
Thanks for post. Appreciate.
thanks for your feedback, Trevor and helpful tips - I appreciate you sharing! :)
glad to see you're doing your own work ! Cute and a genius too.. i bought a cheap strat and re-shimmed it..and hammered the bad fret. yeah that paper would impact the neck level ..especially in 1000ths of tolerances..
Great video ! Maybe put some hard wood or hard plastic inbetween your hammer and the fret next time, otherwise you can damage the fret metal/metal !
That's a great idea - thanks for the tip!
I'm having the exact same problem. High E, 5th fret and 12th fret total choke on the bends.
thank you worked for me
1:33 Yup 🚬😎🍺
you are brave :) hats off :)
I try 😬😅
Essentially you just raised the action. Taking that shim out is what caused a lessened neck angle which = action higher...no different than raising each saddle by that same amount and leaving the shim in.
That paper was put there as a shim.
Great video and good find with that shim in the neck. Definitely looks like that was the culprit! 🎸🤘👍
Thanks for watching!
Sorry if it is not related but what is your action on low and high e? May I know?
What's the fretboard radius on that guitar?
Come for the guitar problem stay with the comfortable information and your beautiful.
Same issue with my lp😢.tnx for the info love it❤ keep it up👌
Removing the paper neck shim must have tilted the neck and lifted the action (string height) on the higher frets.
Most of your choke and stuff would have been fixed by lifting the action.
Action should not be set to "your preference" but shoukd be set as CLOSE to your preference as possible BUT not cause the fret buzz or bend chokes. 🙂
We need to hashtag #frettingout
I like it 😂
I had the same problem - high E on the 15th almost choking out on a bend - sounding buzzy. I hadn't dropped the guitar, after some fret dressing failed to fix it, I applied the ultimate fix - a new neck! (well, actually a Luthier did it for me). Buzzes on the lower frets I can live with, but up there it has to be clean!
nice! thanks for sharing. someday I hope to do that with this guitar :)
my guitar hates me i swear
How is your action?
Great video and good job.
Hmm, mines noting well but hammer ons don't work. I'm guessing it's a high fret or something.
Weird… I have no idea (not a guitar tech by any means lol). But let me know if u find the answer to ur guitar issue, I’d be curious to know
@@autumn-works the saddle was too high on the e and the frets were needing filing. Problem solved. Now I have a nice harley benton
@@mitchconnerandsometimesjlotoo Nice! Thanks for letting me know. Glad to hear you were able to fix it for your guitar. The screws on the saddle of my Strat are really messed up and my frets are old too (I bought it used and the owner didn't take good care of it) so I think I'll need to do a lot of fixing on mine as well
😅
She didn't show herself the most important thing. And that's exactly where you placed the pad. I have the same problem, only on the 12th fret
That can be fixed by adjusting the truss rod without removing the shim
fret buzz you say? I have 3 frets that sound the exact same note?? second string, the 21-22-23 fret. zero videos on this topic. wow.
Hi Christine, hopefully you’ve fixed the error now but it sounds to me like a high fret. Either it’s popped up or the frets around it have pitted or divot’d. When you play the fret, use a tuner to figure out what musical note you’re playing then it’s probably that fret that’s high. Hope that helps!
My first string broke trying to listen to the choke sound 😂😭
oh no! 😂
What is not to love about you ? Can you adjust my strat?
Mexican players strat by chance?
Yes!
Shim Shady.
Wtf, a paper!?
Shordy you fine af😊