Step 4
Adjust the Truss Rod
With the guitar strung to the client’s specs and tuned
to D standard, I was ready to tackle the neck relief.
1. Locate the correct tool
for your guitar’s truss
rod (the size and type of
nut can vary according
to Strat model, year, and
manufacturing origin) and
insert it into the truss-rod
nut (Photo 4).
2. Adjust the truss rod. Turn
the wrench clockwise
to tighten the rod and
reduce forward bowing,
or counterclockwise to
loosen the rod and reduce
back bow. Go slowly,
making very small
adjustments (1/8 to 1/4 a
turn at a time). Check the
results each time you move
the rod—and be patient.
By tightening the truss rod,
I reduced relief from .022"
to .015". This was the proper
amount of relief for the owner’s
playing style. Any less relief and
the strings would be likely to
rattle against the frets.
Earlier, I mentioned that the
custom pickguard was obstructing
the tremolo (Photo 5). This
is one of those little “surprises”
that can and will occur with any
guitar. To allow the trem to tilt
forward, there needs to be a small
space between the trem base
plate and pickguard. To create
this clearance, I determined that
the guard had to be trimmed by
about 1/8".
The process involved
removing the pickguard
(Photo 6), examining the
plastic to see where it was
contacting the trem (Photo 7),
using a mechanical pencil to
mark the material I wanted to
remove (Photo 8), and carefully
scraping away the unwanted
plastic with a precision tool
(Photo 9).
For this type of job, I use
stainless-steel scraper blades
(available from stewmac.com)
that are designed to smooth
plastic bindings and contour
wood surfaces. Scraping takes
time and a lot of patience. If
you’re not confident in your
ability to do this, consult an
expert. Even with more than
25 years of experience, it still
took me three tries to get it
right. Ultimately, I was satisfied
that there was sufficient space
between the base plate and
guard to allow the trem to tilt
forward freely (Photo 10).
4. When tightening or loosening the truss rod to control neck relief, go slowly and make very small adjustments. 5. Because it’s butting up against the tremolo
base plate, the custom pickguard is obstructing trem action and needs to be removed and trimmed. 6. To prevent a screwdriver from slipping out of the screw
head and scratching the finish, use your free hand to guide and secure its tip. 7. If you look closely, you’ll see two indentations at the edge of the pickguard
where it was pressing against the trem posts. 8. Using a mechanical pencil to mark about 1/8" of material to remove from the pickguard. 9. Scraping the pickguard
to create a space between it and the trem assembly. 10. Now the trem can tilt forward without hitting the pickguard.
Step 5
Adjust the Tremolo Spring Tension
Now it’s time to adjust the trem unit. I noticed the tremolo
claw held five springs, and their tension was holding the bridge
base flush to the body. Before going any further, I needed to
adjust the springs and claw to allow the trem assembly to float.
Here’s the process:
1. Tune the guitar to pitch,
then check the tremolo
base plate to see if it’s
floating, flush against the
body, or lifting up too
much at the rear.
2. Turn the guitar over and
rest it on a soft surface,
such as a towel. Remove
the trem cavity cover.
3. Using a medium Phillips
screwdriver, equally adjust
the two screws holding
the claw to the guitar
body (Photo 11). Loosen
the claw to create more
“float” on the tremolo.
Tighten the screws to
pull the tremolo closer
to the body.
Always retune after every
adjustment and check your
progress frequently. This
process is very painstaking
and will require at least
several attempts to get the
trem adjusted parallel to
the body with the tension
the way you like it.
I removed two springs from
the claw and re-aligned the
two outside springs to attach
toward the center of the claw.
After adjusting the claw several
times—and always retuning
whenever I tightened or loosened
the springs—I finally got
the tremolo floating parallel
to the body with just enough
clearance to pull the tremolo
up a bit and raise the pitch
slightly, as the owner requested
(Photo 12).
11. Adjusting the spring tension
to allow the tremolo to
float parallel to the body.
12. A floating trem has sufficient
clearance from the body
to both lower and slightly raise
string pitch.
Step 6
Adjust Basic Bridge Height
13. Adjusting the overall height
of the bridge to allow the trem to
move up and down, while also
providing enough leeway to fine-tune
string action by raising or
lowering the individual saddles.Once the trem base plate was parallel to the body, my next task
was to adjust the overall bridge height by raising or lowering the
two screws located on either side of the bridge (Photo 13). Note:
Vintage Strats or vintage-style reissues use six screws, rather than
the modern two-post system, but the principle of adjusting the
bridge height remains the same.
1. Tune the guitar to pitch.
Then using the appropriate
screwdriver (this will
be a Phillips or flathead,
depending on the model),
adjust the bridge plate to
provide enough clearance
to operate the tremolo.
This is a balancing act: In
the next step, you’ll adjust
the six saddles to set the
action. But if you raise the
bridge too high at this point,
even with the saddles set
flush against the plate, the
Strat won’t be playable. But
if the plate is too low, the
trem will hit the body as
you gently raise the strings’
pitch. The trick is to find
the sweet spot that allows
a floating trem and gives
you ample room to raise or
lower the saddles to get the
action the way you like it.
2. After adjusting the bridge
height, retune the guitar
and inspect the tremolo to
determine if it needs more
adjustment—it probably
will. Again, the goal is to
keep the trem parallel to
the body. Tightening the
springs pulls the trem tail
down toward the body,
loosening them allows the
tail to lift up.