[BobS]

I recently got a RG1570gn. The factory set up on this thing was horrible. I've never done a full setup on a guitar before so I thought I'd try on this one. At any rate, I screwed in the bridge studs to lower the action at the higher frets. Only problem was, I basically had the knife edge of the bridge counter-sunk into the cavity before the action was acceptable.

Okay, so I figure this is incorrect. I figure that perhaps I need to shim the neck a bit and try again. I used a piece of cardboard that you see CD's shipped in sometimes. Maybe a hair thicker than a standard business card--bridge side of the neck. Bolted the neck back on, and lowered the bridge at the studs. NOW she's got some sweet action and the bridge wasn't sunk into the cavity. Unfortunately, I now have some SERIOUS buzz in frets 5-8.

No problem, I think. I've read enough on here and Rich's site to know that the truss needs adjusted. So I started cranking the truss rod (in 1/4 turn increments, of course) and eventually, the buzz was reduced, but the action is hideous again. (As an aside, does anyone else get freaked out by that horrible creaking sound the truss makes??)

I'm asking for suggestions on what to try next. I'm leaning towards putting in a thinner shim--again on the bridge side--and trying the whole thing again. I haven't touched the nut, and the action in that area seems pretty good...but I'm a setup-novice, so that doesn't mean it don't need tweaking.

Thanks for reading... (If this exact type of thing has been covered in the forums before and I missed it during my search...I apologize.)

 

[Rich]

A countersunk trem isn't a problem as long as you have as much pull up range as you desire

 

[BobS]

A countersunk trem isn't a problem as long as you have as much pull up range as you desire

Yeah, that was the problem...I was only getting about a step to a step and a half pull. Although I didn't really mess with the springs at that time because I thought the bridge looked nasty sunk in like that. I might try the thinner shim then. Maybe I can reduce how low the bridge sinks and still get reasonable action?

 

[nightfiend14]

Will the first thing you should do before you adjust your action is to get the truss rod adjustment right. I thin kit is general accepted that buzz up to the 7 or 8th fret is sign of truss rod adjustment. Once you got that taken care of. Check to see if you need a shim at the nut or perhaps a different shim. Once that is all taken care of, set the trem angle. Then once everything else is solved you should work on the action via trem height. If you have everything else right, the action adjustment should really only effect frets higher then 7-8 for the most part. As long as you have the trem travel you want and the action is were you want it then you are probably good.

 

[ryanb]

Sounds like something you should be able to resolve with the truss rod. But if all that fails, perhaps you need some fret levelling work done. What is your neck relief? Is the neck curved properly or S shaped? How low are you trying to get your action?

 

[rgr]

If all else fails, enlist the help of a knowledgeable tech, but ask him to show you what is wrong and how he fixes it. They are quite a few variables and unfortunately, experience is the best and sometimes only teacher. It's hard to say what is going on without being able to see the guitar. But, if you are going for super low action, there will probably be some buzz. If you really dig into the string, you can make it buzz even with medium action.

Roger

 

[BobS]

Hmmm...I was always under the impression that you could have a pretty low action (1/16th to 3/32nds at 24th) and still have zero fret buzz with a medium attack. I've played a strat for the last 10 years and my action was never what I'd call supurb. The strat does play nice but I just accepted the fact that the strat neck radius wouldn't allow for the same type of action you could get on a flatter neck.

Perhaps I need to rethink how low I need my action because my attack does range from medium to all out heavy-handed...with the occasional light attack, of course.

I really appreciate all of your responses. I'll probably end up tinkering with it again to see if I can drop the action a little more because regardless of my attack, I do have some buzz still in the middle of the neck with light picking. After that, I'll probably look for someone around town who does setups. I don't want to ruin this thing.

Thanks again!