Hello,
I was wondering how most of you remove the strings on your bass safely for fretboard cleaning/oiling etc. I haven't removed all the strings at once on a bass since the first time I ever changed the strings on a bass. Ended up with a really bad back bow and it had to be taken into the shop to be fixed. Since then, I've learned how to properly set up a bass so I'm not afraid to mess with the truss rod but I would prefer to not have to turn it excessively to get back to my preferred setup.
If your bass is properly set up, you should be able to take all the strings off normally for a cleaning. Cleaning shouldn't take more than maybe an hour or so, and that includes polishing the finish and the frets.
And that should keep it from bowing? Like I said, the last time I had experience with removing all the strings it was just long enough to change them out and I had to jack up the action big time (this is before I knew anything about the truss rod being adjustable)
I've been changing strings on my basses and taking them all off to do so for 45 years and it's never been a problem. I don't know where all this stuff comes from.
Sure, if you change to strings with different tension you may have to fool around with the action again. But it's no big deal.
If your bass is properly set up, you should be able to take all the strings off normally for a cleaning.
I agree, you should be able to take all of the strings off without it really changing anything... but, what is this "cleaning" you guys are talking about? Am I supposed to be cleaning my basses?
Yeah, that just occurred to me that it could have been a different tension or gauge that I put on that bass. The new strings I bought to put on here are the same gauge and all just a different brand. Good inexpensive strings are difficult to find when they need to be double ball I've heard a lot of good things about the ones that Status Graphite makes and they're $10-$15 cheaper than the Rotosounds I've been using. We'll see if they're gonna need a different setup or not.
I've been changing strings on my basses and taking them all off to do so for 45 years and it's never been a problem. I don't know where all this stuff comes from.
Sure, if you change to strings with different tension you may have to fool around with the action again. But it's no big deal.
The caveat is whether or not the bass is correctly set up before the strings are removed. The most common reason is that the neck is not properly shimmed. Rather than actually shimming the neck, sometimes the screws are loosened just enough to allow the heel of the neck to coast out of the pocket into position. When the strings are removed and replaced the set up is shot. It is not unusual to see this in a bass fresh from the factory. It doesn't matter if you put the old strings back on or change gauges and tensions. It's set up time.
The caveat is whether or not the bass is correctly set up before the strings are removed. The most common reason is that the neck is not properly shimmed. Rather than actually shimming the neck, sometimes the screws are loosened just enough to allow the heel of the neck to coast out of the pocket into position. When the strings are removed and replaced the set up is shot. It is not unusual to see this in a bass fresh from the factory. It doesn't matter if you put the old strings back on or change gauges and tensions. It's set up time.
Yeah, I can see how that would affect it. This is a NT Steinberger Spirit so I don't need to worry about any shimming under the heel. I got the strings off, the fretboard cleaned and oiled and the frets polished. Got my new strings on and it looks nice now! Working on getting my relief/action tuned in now. I'm trying to get the action as low as possible w/o any buzz. Any tips or comments are welcome.
I've heard a lot of good things about the ones that Status Graphite makes and they're $10-$15 cheaper than the Rotosounds I've been using. We'll see if they're gonna need a different setup or not.
