[Monster212]

Stringing your guitar

When it comes to removing old strings, there are two schools of thought. Some people say you should take them off one at a time, to maintain some tension from the strings which counteracts the tension of the trussrod in the neck. Others say that you can just take the whole lot off at once. Personally, I take the whole lot off, which is also necessary if you want to clean and oil the fretboard. In this case, I'd recommend working as quickly as possible, so if the neck is going to move, it has as little time to do so as possible. I haven't noticed any ill-effects on any guitar I've ever owned by taking them all off at once. In the end, it's your decision. I can't be held responsible for your '59 Les Paul Sunburst losing its neck!
Just slacken the strings off and then cut them in the middle of their length with your wire cutters. Then throw them away - carefully. Now's your chance to get rid of all that dust under the strings! This is where the stringwinder can come in handy if you're taking the strings off an acoustic. The built-in bridge pin puller removes the pins easily and without any damage to the bridge or top of the guitar. Sometimes, the pins are reluctant to budge. In that case, place a piece of padding - a duster or soft cloth - around the reluctant pin and carefully remove the pin with pliers.
Unwrap the strings carefully taking care not to kink them in any way..
Starting at the low E string, I pass the end of the string through the hole in the tuner post. Experience will eventually teach you how much needs to go through. Allow enough to ensure about three or four winds on the wound strings and about five or six on the plain strings. About two to three inches is about right. The wound strings tend to bind together better where they go round the tuner post so they need fewer winds.
Make a sharp bend in the string where it exits the hole and, ensuring that the string is going round the post in the right direction (hands up who's managed to get it going round the wrong way at some time or another!), make one turn of the string pass above the hole. Then, on subsequent turns, make sure the winds go below the hole, with the winds going successively towards the bottom of the tuner post. This will make the strings "break" over the nut at the sharpest angle. On some guitars with standard nuts and trem units, too steep an angle can cause binding of the strings in the nut slots. In this case, don't have the winds too close to the bottom of the tuner post.
Don't forget to use your stringwinder. If you have to restring a couple of guitars, you'll want to save your energy for playing guitar afterwards!
So, you should end up with a neatly wound string, with the first turn going around the post above the hole, and the rest of the winds going below it, trapping the end of the string between the upper and lower winds. In this way, the string is "locked", with the end being gripped between the top wind above the hole and the first wind below it.

Setting The Intonation

If you want your guitar to play in tune all the way up the neck, you have to set the intonation correctly. this involves adjusting the "speaking" length of the strings - i'e' the distance between the nut and the bridge saddles.
For this job you'll need some screwdrivers and an electronic tuner or some other sort of pitch reference such as pitch pipes. I'll cover the subject with regard to both Gibson Tune-O-Matic and Fender Tremelo bridges. Before I proceed, however, a couple of important points.
1) Ensure that you have a set of new strings installed before you attempt to set the intonation and have the guitar tuned to pitch. For information about how to change your strings,
2) Setting the intonation is but one aspect of setting up a guitar and should not be viewed in isolation. Don't think that because we're dealing with the bridge here that we won't have to come back to it. When we go on to sort out the overall action, the bridge will need further adjustments.

This bridge has six individually-adjustable saddles which are adjusted by means of the screws you can see at the bottom of the bridge facing the stop tailpiece. The screws are of the slot head variety. On some Gibsons these screws face the other way (usually on the older or replica models) and are slightly less accessible.
Using a tuning reference, play a 12th fret harmonic on the bottom E string and then compare this with a note fretted at the 12th fret. The two notes should be exactly the same. If the fretted note is sharp, then the saddle needs to be moved back towards the tailpiece. If the fretted note is flat, the saddle needs to be moved the oppostite way - forwards towards the pick-ups. When the two notes are the same, the string has the correct intonation set. I find that the easiest way to remember all this is to think about flat and forward both beginning with the same letter.
If you have to adjust the saddle, place a soft cloth below where you're going to insert the tip of the screwdriver to avoid scratches if the tip slips. Turn the screw clockwise to move the saddle back and anti-clockwise to move it forward. It's best to just make small turns, as a little turn can make a lot of difference. After every adjustment to the position of the saddle, retune the string to pitch and compare the 12th fret note with the harmonic. Repeat the operation until the string has the correct intonation. then move on to the next string.Gibson-type Bridge

Fender-style Bridge

Although the Fender bridge looks rather different, the principles of setting the intonation are exactly the same as for the Gibson bridge. You move the saddles until the note at the 12th fret and the 12th fret harmonic are identical.
If you look at both bridges, you can see that the saddles are both arranged similarly, with two offset rows of three saddles each. This is the sign of a well-set-up guitar and after a little practice, it is possible to set the saddles by eye to this arrangement and find that the guitar has almost perfect intonation! If you're buying a guitar it's a good sign to see this as it means that the instrument has been properly set up at some time or other.
When do you need to set the intonation?
Well, I always check the intonation whenever I change strings or I think that the intonation is suspect. Guitars are very susceptible to changes in temperature and humidity and this may cause some need for adjusting the intonation. If you keep your guitar in a case in an environment which has a constant temperature and use the same gauge and brand of string you may hardly ever need to adjust the intonation. It's a good idea to check it whenever you restring your guitar and this will reassure you that you'll be playing in tune, especially if you're stringing your guitar ready for a gig.

[Monster212]

Trussrod Adjustment

When to check the truss rod
The rod needs to be checked whenever you string the guitar, although if you use the same strings - brand and gauge - you can make the checking intervals a little further apart. Also, because wood and metal expand and contract according to temperature and humidity, you may find that the neck shifts according to these factors. Also, if you become aware of buzzes that weren't previously evident, it's a good idea to check the neck.


How to check the truss rod
Rest the curve of the bass bout on the floor, and sight down the neck towards the body, looking along the edge of the fretboard. then flip the guitar over onto the treble bout and repeat the operation. Observe how the line along the edge of the fretboard runs. If it seems to curve so that it bulges out away from the body, the neck has a backbow. If it runs the opposite way, the neck has relief. (For those of you who are familiar with trussrods, I know that there are other conditions that I haven't mentioned, but I haven't got the time to write a book on the subject. I'm just outlining the most common truss rod states.) It may be that you see that the neck is dead straight, of course.
So, to sum up. you have three main neck states:
a) relief
b) backbow
c) dead straight

If the neck is dead straight, and you have no buzzing and you like the way it feels, it's pretty safe to assume that your truss rod is adjusted just right. Most techs try and shoot for a straight neck. Even if you have a little buzzing, if you don't hear it when it's plugged in - assuming that it's an electric, of course - then you can leave it. Not all buzzes will sound through the amp. If it still buzzes when plugged in, then this doesn't necessarily mean that it's the truss rod that requires adjustment. You might find your problem is solved by raising the bridge or bridge saddles. If this doesn't work and you don't eliminate buzzing by adjusting the rod - more on that below - then you may need some attention to the frets.


(The lesson to be learned here is that all the various stages of adjustment - the nut, the bridge, the rod, etc - are interdependent and adjustment of one of these factors on its own may not be sufficient to achieve the set up you're after.)
If the neck has some relief and you're happy with it, then you can leave it alone. However, if the relief is too pronounced, causing a very high action which causes intonation problems when you fret a note, then the neck will need straightening by tightening the trussrod.
If the neck has a backbow, this can cause some of the higher notes to fret out. You may find that when you play say, the B string at fret 5, the string is fouled by the higher frets and the sound of the note isn't clear. The truss rod will then need to be loosened to apply some relief.


Where to adjust the truss rod
This differs from one guitar to another according to brand, model and type. Gibsons have the adjustment end of the rod under a small plate on the headstock. Some Fenders have the business end here as well but with no plate. Others have the adjustment end where the neck joins the body, in which case you have to remove the neck to adjust it and keep on fitting it back and taking it off until the rod is right. I'm not going to deal with such adjustment here. Some acoustics have the adjustment area inside the guitar where the neck joins on. There are also various methods of adjustment. Some rod ends have a screw slot, some a nut, and others a hex slot. So, you'll need a screwdriver, a socket of some sort or a hex key. Obtaining the right hex key can sometimes be a problem, but the right one's out there somewhere!


How to adjust the truss rod
OK - this is the moment you've all been waiting for!
Using the right tool and a well-fitting one as well (you don't want to mess up the slot or nut shoulders!) insert it into the truss rod end.
If you want to apply relief to the neck you loosen the rod by turning the rod end - the nut, slot, whatever - to the left, or anti clockwise.
If you want to straighten the neck and eliminate backbow, tighten the rod end to the right or clockwise.
Remember - "righty tighty"!
Apply a one-eighth turn at a time and sight the neck as described above. If the neck is how you want it - stop! If not, apply another one-eighth turn and sight it again. Repeat until the neck looks right.
If the rod won't shift, don't keep on trying to turn it. Take it to a guitar tech. Similarly, if it squeaks or grates, leave well alone and take it to - you've guessed it! - a tech.
The biggest danger is over tightening. In this case, the worst scenarios are stripped threads on the rod, or even a snapped rod. In such cases, the repair can often be more expensive than buying a new guitar. However, you have been warned! If you're in any doubt about your own competency to do this job, take your guitar to a tech and if you encounter a truss rod that won't co-operate, do the same!
Just use a little care and common sense and you should be OK.