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3 64ths? Are you kiddin?
- Thread starter Ray Matthews
- Start date
Just checked google. The abbreviation for millimeter is
"mm"
Mill must be just a local peculiarity round my area!
"mm"
Mill must be just a local peculiarity round my area!
Same down here. "Mill" or "mil" is verbal shorthand whereas "mm" is written.
1/1000 in. = 1 'thou'. Using 'mil' instead of 'thou' is very old-school in the UK, but may well be common practice in the US, where metric hasn't really caught on.
That's why feeler gauges (and a vernier, possibly) work well- lighting's not always the best.
I like it around 1.5mm, but since 64ths of an inch are easier to see and get more accurate using a ruler, I go with 3/64ths on the C string and 4/64ths on the B. If it's just a 64th off I can absolutely feel it and, while it doesn't impede my playing it makes it harder and messes with my muscle memory to the point where I have to consciously think about what I'm doing. I also need to have the relief set up so that the action is just a hair higher at the 24th fret... I really have my setup details worked out perfectly for me...
my strings are currently high enough to be in restricted air space
3/32 @ 17th fret if I play lightly.
4/32 @ 17th fret if I play harder
I'd like lower but just can't make it happen.
4/32 @ 17th fret if I play harder
I'd like lower but just can't make it happen.
As a referance a simple feeler gauge you might already have can be a 1/16 inch allen wrench ( hex wrench ) . A 1/16th allen wrench is 4/64 ths of an inch. 1/16 th = 4/64 ths
The next typical size allen wrench smaller is 50 thousands of an inch which is 0.050 .
As mentioned above 1/64 th of an inch is 1 divided by 64 which is equal to 0.0156 .
Looking at 3/64 ths of an inch it is 3 x 0.0156 which is equal to 0.0468 , round it off to 0.047 . A 50 thousands of an inch allen wrench is close enough in my book at 0.050 rather than 0.047.
There you have it , for a 3/64 ths and a 4/64 ths feeler gauge, get a 1/16 th allen wrench and a 50 thousands (0.050) allen wrench and you have your feeler gauges , maybe already in your tool box . LOL
I like to use a feeler under the string rather than trying to look at a scale or ruler.
If you think those numbers are tight try building a car engine or a racing engine, crankshaft and connecting rod bearing clearances need to be between 0.0015 and 0.003 thousandths of an inch . That is between one and a half thousandths of an inch minimum and a maximum of three thousands of an inch. Thats a total acceptable range of one and a half thousands of an inch from minimum to maximum bearing clearance.
I think its incredible that car engines are built mass produced everyday with tolerable clearances like that and we all take it for granted, myself included .
The next typical size allen wrench smaller is 50 thousands of an inch which is 0.050 .
As mentioned above 1/64 th of an inch is 1 divided by 64 which is equal to 0.0156 .
Looking at 3/64 ths of an inch it is 3 x 0.0156 which is equal to 0.0468 , round it off to 0.047 . A 50 thousands of an inch allen wrench is close enough in my book at 0.050 rather than 0.047.
There you have it , for a 3/64 ths and a 4/64 ths feeler gauge, get a 1/16 th allen wrench and a 50 thousands (0.050) allen wrench and you have your feeler gauges , maybe already in your tool box . LOL
I like to use a feeler under the string rather than trying to look at a scale or ruler.
If you think those numbers are tight try building a car engine or a racing engine, crankshaft and connecting rod bearing clearances need to be between 0.0015 and 0.003 thousandths of an inch . That is between one and a half thousandths of an inch minimum and a maximum of three thousands of an inch. Thats a total acceptable range of one and a half thousands of an inch from minimum to maximum bearing clearance.
I think its incredible that car engines are built mass produced everyday with tolerable clearances like that and we all take it for granted, myself included .
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What are you talking about? One tenth (0.1) of a millimeter is 1/256th of an inch and that is ridiculously small. One and a half 64ths of an inch is six tenths of a millimeter.
Even more confusing-in machining terms, is that 1/10,000 inch is called a "tenth".
Back on topic, I use metric for action: just easier to work with. For my Ibanez, or Ibanez in general, the action at the 12th is 2.5mm Bass side, 2.0 Treble. Using my metric pocket ruler on top of the fret gets me in the wheelhouse...or the tire shack, whichever.
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